Hay, Hillston and the Rabbit Trap Hotel

After a short stay in Bendigo, yeah, that's right, bendigo. We had been up the central coast of new south wales just after Easter when i had to head back for a check up in Bendigo. Well, after getting the all-clear, I couldn't wait to get going again. We caught up with the kids and headed up the Cobb highway hoping that the MYSTERY town of Hay would hold the appeal that it has had for us for several years. We have wanted to explore more of this old, riverina town with classic architecture since visiting on one of our "paddlesteamer wreck finding tours" of years ago. That was when we found the wreck of the PS Viola downstream of Hay, went on then to Maude, the junction of two great rivers, Lachlan and Murrumbidgee. Anyway, Hay had been labelled as the NEW inland capital of Australia, before Walter Burley Griffin developed his theory as Canberras site. Why? Simply, Hay is equidistant between Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide..Q.E.D....
This explains why the main lenders of the day, The Bank of New South Wales (Westpac), The Great Union Bank, later English Scottish and Australian Bank and even later ANZ Banking group, The Hay council and the magnificent Hay Railway station, are such splendid if not grandiose buildings.

After exploring Hay, firstly from the Hay showgrounds, which is a cheap but convenient overnighter, and secondly from the hay caravan Park (The Top Tourist park) we found that Hay had not developed to our previous expectations but still does a great job for the surrounding community with all services well covered.

Hillston was our next goal and we had been told at the Hay showgrounds of a small caravan park over the lachlan river and just past the Lake Cargelligo intersection. This place, Billabourie, was a family farm set up with a few powered sites. Off we go...

10 kilometres of gravel road off the main road and we see the park logo, a Hart-Parr tractor(vintage) hitched up to a nice old plywood caravan at the front gate meant that we had found the right place.The drive in had seen several different things from this low lying river type landscape. we have seen this country before from the family farm at Balranald where the cattle seemed to grow fat on nothing much down by the river amongst the trees. This time, Black Angus and a few herefords were seen on the way and then a field of harvested cotton bales waiting to be loaded and taken off to the gin at Hillston or somewhere else North. We had already come past paddocks where sowing of grain was happening even so by dry sowing. Crops of citrus trees and neils trucks from Moama laden with potatoes..

Three nights was not enough here. Jeff and Steph, from Adelaide had left us although Robert and Janet and Barry and Trish, all from Ballarat were staying on until after we left they kept up the wood supply and Barry caught good Yellas every session he went out. My score was not as good with one, but it was a beauty.

We have changed our tack again, now, instead of heading North into Queensland, we have the time to go back, across to the coast and complete our original goal of doing the East coast. Heading back over the Lachlan we follow it for ages. Lake Cargelligo, Condobolin and beyond before it swings back towards Orange/Cowra and the hills of the Great Dividing range. Camps 7 has the Rabbit Trap Hotel as a cheap site with power and water so that's our next destination. The hotel is at a small place called Albert, population 11, made famous this year by Jason Owen, runner up in X factor last season.

There is a car rally due in town today so we decide to head off and get outta their way. Heading up through Narromine, Dubbo and on to Dunnedo we have time to walk the 600 mtrs up the main street for a look and say g'day to a few surprised locals. I have felt a lot more comfortable the last few days because I'm back in HAT country and people don't stare at me when entering shops or anywhere at the moment..