NSW Western Plains Travel Guide
Dubbo
At the
Junction
of the
Newell
&
Mitchell
highways,
is the
thriving
centre
of the
Western
Plains
area.
Settled first
in the
1840's
when
a store
was
opened
on the
banks
of the
Maquarie
River
by Jean
Emile
de Bouillon
Serisier
it became
a stopping
point
for
settlers
heading
out
in search
of a
"better
land"
and
for
cattle
mobs
being
herded
south
to the
Victorian
markets
of the
day.
Many
fine
old
buildings
remain
in the
town
including
the
National
Trust's
Dundullimal
Homestead,
an 1880's
classical
court
house
with
massive
columns
and
the
1876
bank
which
now
houses
a good
local
museum.
One
of the
main
attractions
of Dubbo
is the
world
renowned
Western
Plains
Zoo
which
presents
over
800
exotic
and
native
animals
in large
open
exhibits,
landscaped
to recreate
their
natural
habitat.
Mudgee
The
town
of Mudgee
is famous
as a
wine-producing
region
that
offers
so much
more.
It sits
within
a region
that's
born
of goldrush
and
rural
booms,
where
colonial
history
still
shapes
the
little
towns
we see
today
in the
form
of heritage
buildings,
museums,
galleries,
memorial
tributes
to brilliant
poet
and
writer
Henry
Lawson,
gold
fossicking,
and
viewing
sheep shearing.
As a
wine
producing
region
for
over
100
years,
an opportune
time
to visit
Mudgee
is in
June
when
for
the
Wine
and
Food
Fair
or in
September
for
the
Huntington
Festival
which
fuses
local
food
and
wine
with
classical
music.
Wellington
Lying
on the
edge
of Bell
River,
Wellington
is renowned
for
its
tourist
attractions,
setting
and
lifestyle.
The
Wellington
Caves
attract
over
40 000
visitors
a year.
The
Cathedral
cave
contains
a 15m
stalagmite
which
is thought
to be
the
largest
in the
word,
and
in Bone
Cave
(only
open
to scientists)
fossils
millions
of years
old
have
been
found.
27km
to the
south-east
of town
is Lake
Burrendong
which
has
a volume
of water
3.5
times
that
of Sydney
Harbour.
Bathurst
Bathurst
is one
of Australia's
oldest
inland
cities
built
at a
site
personally
chosen
by Governor
Macquarie
in 1815.
In 1851
it was
the
scene
of Australia's
first
goldrush
and
many
fine
buildings
remain,
a legacy
of the
era.
The
Victorian
Renaissance
court
house
with
a double
story
portico
and
large
octagonal
central
dome
is now
home
to the
Bathurst
Tourist
Centre which
has a fine
collection
of pictures
from
the
gold
rush.
A wing
of Government
House,
built
in 1817
by Macquarie
is still
standing
and
the
home
of Ben
Chiffley
a former
Prime
Minister
is preserved
as a
national
memorial.
The
Bathurst
Regional
Art
Gallery
has
a notable
collection
of work
by Lloyd
Rees.
Orange
Orange,
a town
of leafy
parks
and
trees
is the
centre
of a
huge
apple
and
pear
growing
industry.
The
soils
in the
area
are
very
fertile
as result
of lava
flows,
from
the
extinct
volcano
of Mount
Canobolas,
which
have
broken
down
over
the
millenniums.
Nearby
at Ophir
was
the
first
goldfield
to be
exploited
with
a sizable
strike
in 1851
, now
a flora
and
fauna
reserve
whilst
on the
outskirts
of town
is one
of the
finest
private
mineral
collections
in the
country
at the
Gallery
of Minerals.
Parkes
Parkes
was
named
following
the
visit
of Sir
Henry
Parkes
in 1815-96
Who
was
one
of the
major
contributor's
in the
heading-up
of the
Australian
Federation.
The
original
settlement
went
by the
name
of Brushmans.
Memorial
Hill,
Nth
Parkes
is a
great
place
to view
the
township
from.
There
are
tourist
drives
that
give
easy
self
guided
tours,
taking
around
90 mins.
Walking
around
Parkes
will
include
the
oldest
house
in Parkes,
Historical
Museum,
Gold
mine
site,
Motor
Museum,and
much
more.
23 Km
north,
the
gaint
saucer
Telescope
Information
Centre.An excellent
educational
aid
that
will
explain
all
there
is to
know.
Sofala
Nestling
in the
lovely
hills
of the
Turon
River
valley
is Sofala,
the
oldest
gold
town
in Australia.
Settled
only
3 weeks
after
the
first
official
gold
strike
at Ophir,
Sofala
swelled
to a
peak
population
40 000.
Today
it has
contracted
to a
rustic
village
of around
100
people.
The
surrounding
district
is primarily
superfine
wool
farms.
Each
farm
has
many
relics
and
remnants
of the
goldrush.
boasting
7km
of the
original
Cobb
&
Co coach
road
to Hill
End,
O'Reilly's
extensive
underground
mines,
Chinamans
creek
alluvial
diggings,
water
races,
old
shanty
huts
&
a wealth
of unspoiled
history
to explore.
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