SFT Tour - Day 2 - Mudgee By Trike

The story of our day was the rumbling of a Peugeot engine and small sips of red wine.

Jeff from Mudgee Trikes turned up after lunch and took us on a tour of Mudgee: a little history, a little information on architecture, a little education on the best places to eat or get a coffee ... and a lot of roaring down the road to visit wineries.

I was more than a little nervous as the last time I was on anything less than four wheels traveling at speed was 44 years ago and that didn't end well but Jeff eased us into three figures gently and before long I was cheering on down the highway, with teeth clenched and once or twice I opened my eyes.

Actually it was a lot better than I expected and for Sue, it was all that she expected. I'm thinking of going to the hospital to see if surgery can remove her smile.

It was the perfect afternoon for this type of activity, with about 21C and warm sunshine, without a cloud to blemish the sky. The moll and I pretended we were young again but the only dope she'll be smoking will be me if I happened to get too close to the fire. We started the tour with a visit to the remains of a cottage Henry Lawson lived in as a child. Its a brick fireplace. Not very big but at least it would have been warm. Fitting then that Australia's second most infamous drunk should lead us into our first set of activities of the afternoon.

We visited several wineries: Robert Stein's, who offered us wines across a broad range (we purchased reds), Pieter van Gent who is known for his Pipeclay White Port (we purchased it and some reds) and Burrundulla Wines who have been growing wine in the Mudgee area since the first of the Cox family, George, arrived in the area in 1845 and they have been squashing grapes ever sinces. They are famous for their reds (we purchased reds).

Coming back to town, Jeff swung us past some interesting local stories. Did you know, for instance, that parks were created in Mudgee, in the late 1960's, from spaces that had been cemeteries. the headstones were removed and placed along what is known as the Mudgee Memorial Wall. Robertson Park, the most prominent park in town and nearly 1.6 hectares in size, was originally called Market Square and was the site of the first Mudgee Show 1846. In 1903, a rotunda was built in the centre of the park to honour the men who fought in the Boer War and was named, as was the park, in honour of the local member, Sir John Robertson, who was the Premier of NSW.

This was a really fun afternoon and Jeff couldn't have been more accommodating.

In the morning, we did some short wandering about the centre of town. Any longer stints are still beyond Sue's knee. We managed to see a few interesting buildings, find a chemist and have a coffee. We sat opposite the Town Hall, built in 1880 and badly damaged by fire in the late 1970's. Its no longer the official seat of local government but was refurbished in 2013 and now houses the Mudgee Library and the theatre and cinema. It is Heritage listed by the National Trust.

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We move on tomorrow as we couldn't secure more accommodation to further explore the place but this link will give you more information about the fascinating places here. Mudgee information from Aussie Towns

SFT - Day 1 - Tamworth to Mudgee

 At last.

Cudgegong River at Mudgee

Rig joined. Food on board. Tank full of fuel. Tyres kicked and away.

We left Tamworth mid morning and headed south to Werris Creek, before turning west via "The Gap", a narrow break in the hills through which both rail and road squeeze and opened up the Breeza Plain to us. In steady progression, we passed through Spring Ridge and Premer before joining the Black Stump Way and heading south to Coolah.

On the way, we passed the site of the Flaggs Inn. Named for the Flag Lillies that bloomed at the entrence to the inn, it was built in the 1880's and was the main coach stopping point between Mudgee and Gunnedah. According to the Mudgee Guardian ... 

"The Inn consisted of a large bar, office for the owner, parent’s bedroom and parlour,  sitting room and a spacious dining room. There  was an extensive  kitchen and an oversized bakehouse with an immense stove and oven. Hot  water was connected to the stone kitchen and bath rooms.  In addition there was a dormitory, fifteen bedrooms, one especially fitted for the governess, plus a big dance hall with a supper room. There was long verandah which ran around the front and side of the Inn with a school room at one end, containing book cases, shelves etc. Out buildings consisted of a butcher shop with all necessary equipment, a general store, saddle and harness room, a blacksmith’s shop with forge, a stable, with eight feeding boxes, plus a loft for the storage of hay and corn.  A shearing shed joined the blacksmith’s shop. Horse yards with watering troughs were provided nearby."

The inn was built by James Dempsey, who held the first licence. It lasted forty or so years before being burnt to the ground in the 1920's.

An interesting part of its history was its role in the search for Jimmy Governor and his brother in the huge manhunt in August of 1900. It became the search centre. The owner was told by the Police sergeant in charge that he should expect 75 at the Flaggs for lunch. 200 turned up.

Today, nothing remains except some exotic plants. All materials that mark it's existence were removed quickly after the fire.

We stopped not long after the Flaggs for lunch at the roadside stop which marks The Black Stump - or one of them - about 10kms from Coolah.

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After lunch, it was an easy run on through Gulgong, the town which used to be on the $10 note, along with Australia's most tragic creative, Henry Lawson. What awful irony that he should be replaced by his rival Banjo Patterson.

Arriving in Mudgee as the afternoon turned from mid to late, and we set up comfortably at the Riverside Caravan Park among the leafy trees, right beside Cudgegong River.

Its just so good to be back on the road in our little mobile home.