Our Trip West - Day Two - Mendooran to Hickeys Fall

  Map of our Travels

Day Two 6/4/22

Next Morning

The Mendooran Campsite. 

We had sheep and Alpacas for company in the paddock nearby. 

Our morning coffee view is like a painting

Buffy is feeling a little cold this morning

The view of the river from the campsite

The Mural at the McKechnie's Royal Hotel showing what the locality is known for.

The Mendooran Turf Club successes were in part responsible for a number of winners.

Mendooran shop

Mendooran Main street

Old machinery at Mendooran

Time to return to the campsite, pack up and head towards Gilgandra. The campgrounds is just beyond the Police Station.

A short stop at Gilgandra - A mural of our next overnight stop

Gilgandra Royal Hotel

 

Back on the road

Tooraweenah with the Warrumbungle National Park in the distance.

Big Sky Country well south of Tooraweenah

Heather scrambled over the rocks and took this wonderful photo of Hickys Fall whilst I managed the fur family. This is where we spent our second night. The spot is small and we had four vehicles stay overnight. The spot is also the end (or beginning) of the school bus run as we found out in the morning while having breakfast.

Next - Day Three - Hickeys Fall to Baan Baa

Our Trip West - Day One - Home to Mendooran

 Map of our Travels

Our Trip West was meant to be a 4 night trip visiting Jerry's Plains, Mendooran, Gilgandra, Hickeys Fall, Narrabri returning home through Baan Baa, Willow Tree and home to Largs via the New England Highway.

It was way too ambitious and was extended to 5 nights, still was too short to see and experience what the area has to offer.

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Day One 4/4/22

A good start to the day with the motorhome readied and packed. The original plan was to leave late on Monday the 4th after an appointment, followed with taking our cat Chappie to Kip Hunter Valley Pet Resort [formally known as Akuna Pet Resort]  for some special spoiling. We basically ran out of time and would have been setting up very late at Jerry's Plains in the dark. We regrouped and......

Day One Take Two - 5/4/22

A good start to the morning. 

New England Highway with the Golden Highway turnoff in the distance.

A short break at Jerrys Plains 

On our travels, we met Trevor and Veronica who were taking their recently restored FJ Ute for a run. This example was one of the last FJ Utes built in early 1957 and ended with a FE motor.

Past Jerrys Plains are a number of very large horse racing studs and breeders.

..... and a vineyard.

Bridge over the Hunter River outside Denman

A Sandstone farmhouse at Cassilis

... and the pub at Cassilis.

Tonight's stay on the banks of the Castlereagh River at Mendooran. 

An excellent free camp! Has flushing toilets, cold showers, fire pits, dog friendly, quiet and plenty of space.

Mendooran Rescue Squad - part of the Volunteer Rescue Association.

Around the main street of Mendooran.

Mendooran General Store has closed for good. Sadly a common sight in rural Australia. 

The mural at the Tennis Club tells of its history

 

The local - McKechnie's Royal Hotel. Like a lot of clubs and pubs, the hub of the community.

Goodnight from Buffy and Bambi at the free camp at Mendooran

Next - Day Two - Mendooran to Hickeys Fall

Our Trip to Victoria - Antennapalooza

  Our Trip to Victoria - Antennapalooza - 3th to 5th December 2021

Our hosts Ian VK3BUF and Di 

All set up for tomorrow

The crowd arrives on day 1

An Aerial Shot from the video below by Drop Table Adventures

Video thanks to Drop Table Adventures

A boom lift is handy

Us and the others staying at the top of the paddock 

Ian was a presenter on HF Mobile Antennas

A bit of CW on 40M in Chris's mobile shack

Time to pack up