Uralla, Walcha and their hinterlands

First stop today was Uralla. The town centre's streetscape is highlighted by the New England Highway that runs north-south through the town's business district.

A panoramic view of Uralla can be had from a lookout on Mt Mutton which is to the west of the township.

If one spends any length of time in this small township then one simply has to check out the grave of C19th bushranger Fred Ward alias "Captain Thunderbolt".


A very interesting conversation was had with a local wool merchant who provided us with a detailed account of how the wool buying firm purchases (mainly) local fleeces and exports them to China.


Morning tea was had at Uralla's Galloping Gourmet. The cake we had featured apples, dates and coconut- it was absolutely scrumptious. If you're ever in Uralla you simply must taste the GG's cakes.


We then journeyed to the east of Uralla and visited the Gostwyck area where the focus is a quaint little village that is now privately owned. Although we were not able to visit the village or the nearby Deeargee woolshed we did manage a stopover at the Gostwyck chapel.


Then, it was off to Walcha, via Kentucky. This very productive sheep and cattle country appears to be set for a very healthy spring and summer. Dams are full and streams are flowing. Actually, we were somewhat surprised to find one causeway was still covered with water and that necessitated a committee decision about whether we should navigate the waters or opt for an alternative form of action.

After much deliberation the consensus of the touring party was that we couldn't wimp it - no such obstacle was going to prevent us reaching our planned destination, Walcha.

We arrived for a rather late lunch at Cafe Graze, which proudly boasts that it enjoys 2010 SMH Good Food Guide status. Lunch was a very generous helping of Sweet Potato and Pear Soup, accompanied by thick crusty toast - just the tucker for us as we prepared for a coolish afternoon.


An afternoon walk around the township enabled us to chat with a number of locals. One couple of mature-aged citizens gave us a very detailed description of major flooding the Walcha township experienced when it was inundated by a raging Apsley River in the early 1960s. These days the town is protected by flood walls on both sides of the river.

Another local, a long-term teacher at the local central school, gave us a detailed account of buildings in the town's centre.

A view of Armidale

Day 2 - Armidale and surrounds

Woke to find the glorious final day of winter ordered the night before had been promptly delivered.

Breakfast was at Caffiends on Marsh - thanks to a recommendation from a local - and it was A1-plus.

Just happened to notice a sign on the premise's front window stated it was in the SMH's "Good Food Guide" for 2007, '08 and '09. If it's not accorded the same (or higher) status in the 2010 edition there's something drastically wrong with the way The Guide decides upon the how it it accords a status to an eatery. Take it from me, Caffiends on Marsh is a real gem.

Oh! And something worthy of a mention ... a bloke at a nearby table at Caffiends requested tomato sauce for his bacon and eggs. Gee, he was very neatly sat on his ar*e by a waiter who brushed the request aside and remarked, "We don't have that on our premises."

Our early morning excursion commenced with inspections of some of Armidale's stately residences.

"Esrom" at 164 Mann Street brought back memories for some members of the touring party along with a few of their associates.

"Esrom" was built as a gentlemen's residence for Mr G F Morse (reverse 'morse' and what do you get?) in the 1890s. As pic 3 above shows, "Esrom" was built using Armidale blue bricks. In a later life the building provided a residence for male students attending UNE - it was one of the town houses associated with Earle Page College (see pic 2 above).

Next stop was "Booloominbah", built between 1883 and 1888, as a 45-room mansion for Frederick Robert White. Its features include decorative brickwork and architectural features that include prominent chimneys and high gabled roof ends. White's son-in-law, T R Forster, purchased the mansion in 1937 and presented it to the University of Sydney for the establishment of a University College. Today,"Bool" is UNE's administrative centre (pic 1).

After inspecting the university's academic faculties and residential colleges the touring party proceeded on its tour around Armidale's business, commercial, residential, industrial, religious, sport and cultural areas.

A highlight of the afternoon's activities was a close inspection of the notorious "Victorian Gothic" building that sits high on Armidale's south hill (pic 4). The building, which has been variously known as "Psycho House", "Wuthering Heights" and "House of Lords" has been restored and now seems to serve as a normal family residence, unlike its usage in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Let me assure readers that if that building's walls had ears they could tell hundreds, perhaps thousands, of stories that wouldn't be fit for publication in a family-friendly post such as NCV.

Credit: Armidale Visitor Information Centre's "Armidale Self Guided Heritage Drive" brochure