Welcome to Life Images by Jill.........Stepping into the light and bringing together the images and stories of our world. I am a photographer, writer and multi-media artist. Focussing mainly on Western Australia and Australia, I am seeking to preserve images and memories of the beautiful world in which we live and the people in it.
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Good morning all. I hope you and yours are doing well. Did I say we needed rain? It has been cold with continual steady rain on Thursday and intermittent Friday and today, Saturday. Luckily we live on a bit of a slope so the rain water can run down the street!
Welcome to Part 5 of our trip across Australia. If you missed any of the preceding posts, you can find them in the Blog Archive side bar. Here is the link to last time - Part 4 - South Australia to Victoria
Today we turn south from Swan Hill on the Murray River in north western Victoria and travel south through the Wimmera Mallee grain growing region.
This was an area I particularly wanted to visit as my grandmother was born here, there is a Silo Art trail, history, filming locations for an Australian TV series, and the amazing Stick Shed. Below is a map -
We decided to stay in the centrally located town of Warracknabeal, and devised a route radiating outwards that would take us to many of the silo art locations, as well as the other places we wanted to see. This proved to be a good plan.
Warning - lots of silo art coming up!
The Silo Art Trail was conceived in 2016 after the success of the first silo art in Brim. Artists from across Australia and the world met with locals and transformed each grain silo into a work of art telling the unique story of the host town. You can pick up a trail map and guide at Visitor Information Centres. The trail stretches over 200 kilometres linking towns in the area.
The grain silos are easy to see as you come into the towns. They are usually near the railway line. For more information on the silos trail - Victorian silo art
Heading south from Swan Hill on the Murray River, we entered the Wimmera Mallee grain growing region of north western Victoria. It reminded us very much of our grain growing areas in Western Australia. The paddocks had already been harvested.
The area was inhabited for thousands of years by the Aboriginal people before white settlers arrived. The southern Wimmera was first settled in the late 1830s to early 1840s. The drier Mallee was opened up much later during the 1890s.
Our first stop was Sea Lake. The lake itself, Lake Tyrell, is a salt lake located seven kilometres north of the town. There is evidence of indigenous occupation over 45,000 years. The lake is dry most of the time but sometimes covered in shallow water. Salt was first extracted from here in 1896 and 100,000 tonnes is extracted yearly. Visitors are advised not to drive onto the lake which is popular for photography.
Below are the silos at Sea Lake painted by Joel Fergie, aka The Zookeeper, and Travis Vinson, aka Drapl, in October 2019. One side of the silo depicts a girl swinging on a swing over-looking Lake Tyrell. There are emus on the far left silo.
Our next stop was Woomelang, originally known as “Cronomby” after the natural waterhole that first attracted the early settlers to this area. At Woomelang you will find the eight mini silo (field bins) art trail scattered around the town depicting local endangered species and painted by various artists in 2020. There is a map to help you find them. You can find it here - Woomelang mini silos map
14kms further on is Lascellesnamed after the “Father of the Mallee”, Edward Harewood Lascelles. The silo was painted by artist Rone in 2017 and depicts a local couple, Geoff and Merrilyn Horman, who represent the enduring spirit of the community. Unfortunately the light around midday wasn't the best for photographing these sepia toned silos.
On the road again, we had lunch by Lake Lascelles in Hopetoun, and discovered they have powered and non-powered camping around the lake. Just one of the things you discover when you are exploring new places, and you are already committed elsewhere.
14kms on, our next stop was Rosebery. The rural locality of Rosebery was named after the Earl of Rosebery who toured eastern Australia in 1883-84 and was Britain's Prime Minister in 1894.
Painted by Kaff-eine in 2017, the silos celebrate the resilience and fortitude of the farming community and the connection between the land and its people.
Only 9 kms down the road we stopped briefly in Beulah to see the horse mural painted by Kaff-eine on the old butcher shop. Looking at the website now, there is much more to Beulah that we could have explored, including more murals!
Another short drive brough us to Brim and the silo art painted by Guido Van Helten in 2016. The anonymous faces depict the strength and resilience required to be a country Victorian farmer. It was the first silo art in Victoria. The name Brim is said to come from the Aboriginal word for spring or well of water.
And so to Warracknabeal 20km from Brim, and our stopover for the next few nights.
The Shire run Warracknabeal Caravan Park, is located next to the Yarriambiack Creek. There is shade, we could pick our own spot and it is only a short drive into town. The town was bigger than we expected, which often seemed to be the case in regional Victoria. It has everything you would need and I recommend staying in Warracknabeal if you are visiting the area. We decided we had chosen well.
The first squatters to occupy land around the future Warracknabeal, were the Scott brothers, who in 1845 took up land and established their "run" on Yarriambiack Creek, which they called “Werracknabeal”, after the Aboriginal word describing the gum trees shading the watercourse.
Below here you can see clockwise from top left - our caravan at the caravan park, Warracknabeal sign, Yarriambiack Creek, the Post Office and war memorial, sunset over grain fields, and the cemetery where my Great Great Grandfather Alfred George Floyed (1831-1895) and my Grandmother's little brother, William Alfred Floyed (1893-1897) are buried.
The family moved to Western Australia soon after little William's death from "the fever". It must have been heartbreaking for the family but they hoped to forge a better life in Western Australia.
A walk path along the Yarriambiack Creek can be accessed from the caravan park.
A few bird photos from my husband - clockwise from top left - Black duck, Coot, Dusky Moorhen, and a Long Billed Corella.
We visited a small fauna park and picnic area along the river, maintained by the local Lions Club. Clockwise from top left - wombat, emu, some pink and grey galahs on a stick in the creek, and a kangaroo.
After a peaceful night we headed south the next day following the silo trail to Sheep Hills. Painted in 2016, artist Adnate's muraldepicts Wotjobaluk Elder, Aunty Regina Hood, and two children. Adnate shines the spotlight on the area's young Indigenous people, and their connection with the elders in their communities. Adnate has spent much of her career painting murals telling Indigenous stories.
Our next stop was Minyip, which our son was excited to visit as it is the filming location for the town of Coopers Crossing in the long running 1980's Australian TV series, The Flying Doctors. Also used in the filming of the 2015 movie The Dressmaker, and the 2021 crime thriller The Dry.
We walked down the main street taking photos of various filming locations and had morning tea in the cafe which had been Emma's Garage in The Flying Doctors. The Club Hotel was known as The Majestic in the series - unfortunately it was closed when we visited. There is lots of memorabilia around the town.
Next stop Rupanyup. First surveyed in 1873, the town is located next to Dunmunkle Creek and was originally known as Lallat, but by 1876 was renamed Runanyup - an Aboriginal word meaning "branch hanging over water".
Painted by Sam Bates, aka Smug in 2025, the silo art was painted over the orginal, painted by Julia Volchkova, which had faded.
14kms further on is Murtoa, home of the amazing Stick Shed, and the location of my Great Great Great Grandmother Ann Gibbins (1893) grave.
Added to the Australia's National Heritage List in 2014, the Stick Shed is the only remaining emergency grain store built during World War 2. The Stick Shed was built over 4 months 1941-1942 and filled with grain within six months of construction.
Walking through the vast cathedral like shed which is lit by skylights, you cannot help not be amazed. The description WOW says it all, but can't fully intepret the feeling as you are surrounded by a forest of 580 unmilled mountain ash poles. It is a breathtaking sight. My photos don't do it justice. Our visit to the Stick Shed became one of the highlights of our trip.
By the 1930s the Australian wheat industry was producing between 150-160 millions bushels per year, with 100 million for export. It became apparent by 1939 that wheat exports could not continue during the war, especially after exports to Asia and the Pacific were abruptly halted when Pearl Harbour was bombed in 1941. It was decided it would be necessary to store the upcoming harvests. 22 emergency stores were built across Australia. Used up until 1989, The Stick Shed at Murtoa is the only one remaining. Evidently the stick sheds in Western Australia had sloping sides, whereas this one has stright sides.
The Stick Shedcovers 16,000 square metres under the roof, measuring 265 metres long, 60 metres wide and almost 20 metres high at its apex, and could hold 3.5 million bushels or about 92,500 tonnes of wheat. Much of the building was constructed with little mechanical aid and a limited workforce due to the war.
Wartime restrictions necessitated adapting Austrlian traditional building materials and techniques, and use of raw, local and recylcled materials.
A steel shortage mean the shed was built from readily available timber, and 580 lenghts of unmilled mountain ash poles were used for the uprights. The concrete was manually barrowed in and poured 4 inches thick. There is over 150 tonnes of corrugated iron on the roof. New South Wales black butt poles are being used for replacement poles today.
Here is a video from You Tube which tells some of the story -
Usual opening hours are 10am to 3pm daily. Fees apply. Please check website to confirm and find out more. The Stick Shed can be booked for private functions.
After visiting my GGG Grandmother's grave, and checking out the silo art in Murtoa painted by Sam Bates, aka Smug in 2023 (unfortunately a little hard to see), and our picnic lunch in the park, it was time to move on.
Next stop the silo art at Horsham, also painted by Smug in 2022, telling the story of Wotjobaluk Aboriginal man Yanggendyinanyuk, a skilled tracker, talented cricketer and cultural exponent. His totem, black cockatoo, is painted on the adjacent flour mill.
And then back to camp at Warracknabeal.
Next day we drove to Jeparit - where my Grandmother was born in 1888.
Jeparit is also the birthplace of Sir Robert Menzies, Australia's longest serving Prime Minister - 1939-1941 and 1949-1966.
There is a commemorative park on the site of the the Menzies family store.
There was not much happening in the small town of Jeparit when we visited, but there is a Heritage walk if you want to linger. I discovered when we met up with our friends in South Australia, that our friend's Grandmother was also born in Jeparit, though later than my Grandmother. Small world.
Jeparit was surveyed in 1883 and gazetted in July 1903. So my grandmother's family would have arrived there in the very early days of settlement. The name Jeparit is believed to be derived from an Aboriginal Gromiluk word meaning 'home of small birds'.
We visited the Wimmera Mallee Pioneer Museum at Jeparit - Fees apply. Their extensive collection is very interesting and so much to look at! Machinery, shops, houses, etc etc take you back in time. It is certainly worth a visit. I was hoping to find some reference to my ancestors, but found none. Please check Facebook for opening hours as they are not open every day - Wimmera Mallee Museum on Facebook
Leaving Jeparit we stoped briefly at the unusual faceless tennis player silo art at Arkona painted by Smug in 2022 highlighting the importance of tennis to small communities,
before having lunch in a park in Dimboola, and then back to Warracknabeal.
We could have stayed longer in the area, and explored further afield, and there was silo art at Nullawill, Patchewollock, Albacutya, Kanica and Goroke which we didn't see, but we were on a timetable, we had to have a little repair done to our caravan in Bendigo, and so it was time to move on.
Thankyou for visiting. I hope you have enjoyed today's post. Next time we travel east to Mansfield in the foothills of the Victorian High Country and visit Jim Craig's hut from the Man From Snowy River movie. We had now covered 4,445 km from home and we hadn't even got to the Main Event yet!
To discover more Australian silo art visit here - Australian Silo Art- there is even a downloadable app - of course there is!
Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
If you are looking for a translate button - it's there near the top on the right hand side.
Hi everyone. I hope you and yours are doing well. It is winter here in Australia, and I have been getting over a bad cold the last couple of weeks, and wishing I was somewhere warm.
Welcome back to my blog and my series about my recent trip across Australia from Western Australia to Victoria. If you missed last week, you can catch up here - Part 3 - South Australia
This week we leave Burra in South Australia, travel down to Morgan along the Murray River, to Waikerie and Loxton to Renmark, just inside the South Australlian/Victorian border. Then across the border to Mildura, Wentworth, Swan Hill and Lake Boga in Victoria.
Here is the map from our SPOT tracker. The squiggly blue line is the Murray River.
The Murray River is one of the world's longest navigatable rivers. It starts in the Australian Alps, near Mount Kosciuszko in New South Wales. It then runs2,700 kilometres across the top of the state of Victoria through South Australia to the Southern Ocean on the south coast of South Australia near Goolwa, and forms the border between the states of New South Wales and Victoria.
Long before European settlement, Aboriginal people lived along the river, and it was travelled by some of Australia's earliest European explorers. By the late 1800s, it was a busy trading route with boats and paddlesteamers carrying supplies to outlying stations and homesteads, and bringing cargo, wool and passengers to Adelaide.
Today some people live on house boats which are common along the river, or you can hire a house boat or book a half day, full day or several day cruise sleeping on board a paddle steamer. You can learn more here - Visit Victoria - The Murray River.
On a previous trip to South Australia in 2013 we stayed by the Murray River at Mannum and followed the river to the ocean. I made sure we criss-crossed the river using every ferry crossing possible. In many places the only way you can cross the river is by ferry that takes cars, caravans and trucks, running 24 hours a day, at no cost to the traveller.
Leaving Burra, our first stop was Morgan. Settled in 1878 it played an important role along the Murray River trade link. We went down to the old wharf which unfortunately now seems to be derelict, however Morgan still has much to attract visitors.
Below you can see us crossing the Murray River by ferry - you just drive your car on and they take you across.
Passing through vineyard and orchard country, our next stop was Waikerie.
We parked by the silos painted by Jimmy DVate and Garry Duncan, featuring native flora and fauna, including a giant yabby and the endangered Regent Parrot. You can read more about it here - Waikerie silos art
The name ‘Waikerie’ is said to mean ‘many wings’, after the giant swift moth ‘Weikari’, the name given to the moth by the Indigenous first peoples of the area.
Both artists used exterior enamel paints, Garry exclusively, while Jimmy mainly used aerosol spray cans. The work took 16 weeks to complete and used nearly 500 litres of paint.
From the silos carpark there is a 3.5km return cliff top walk with loookouts over the Murray River. There is also free overnight camping. Waikerie was probably another place that deserved a longer stop over - but it wasn't to be.
Below is a Peace Pole # 68 - erected by the Waikerie Roatary Club in 2023, and part of the global Peace Pole Project. This is one of 250,000 poles erected around the world with the simple goal to spread the Universal Message of Peace. Started by Mahahsia Goi in 1955 in Japan inspired by the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in WW2.
The message is simple - May Peace Prevail on Earth. You can learn more here -Peace Pole Project. I am wondering if you have ever seen a peace pole? There is a map you can go to find out where they are - experience.arcgis.peace pole project
We joined the Sturt Highway at Waikerie, but did a little side trip to Loxton.
After lunch by the Murray River, we explored the Loxton Historic Village. Here you can learn about the region's early settlers, told through 45 recreated buildings and exhibits. All of the buildings have been relocated or built on site. We spent a couple of hours here, but you could easily spend longer. Please check the website for opening hours and entry fees.
Established in 1970, the village is run by a dedicated team of 70 volunteers, shop staff and manager. The village has market and other special days through the year where the village comes alive. School teachers are encouraged to use the resources of the village. There are several programs for school children.
For children, ask for a Look and Find tick sheet, which can direct your wandering as you look for the items in the displays.
There is a blacksmith, pioneer's hut, chapel, school, general store, bakery, telephone exchange, general store, bank and much more to explore. It is fascinating to wander around, you might even see something from your childhood! We certainly did!
Below are two unusual houses - a Nissan hut with the curved roof - you can see the inside of it below the main photo. The image on the right is a hut made out of mallee roots (an Australian tree). And below that a settlers kitchen.
Nissen hutswere semi-cylindrical (like half a tin can) prefabricated from corregated iron. Invented during WW1 by British engineer Peter Nissen for fast, low-cost military field accommodation. Following both World Wars, governments sold surplus huts to state and local authorities to alleviate the housing crises.
Here is a closer look at the wall of that mallee root hut....
Our next stop was Renmark on the Murray river, about 55 kilometres from the South Australian / Victorian border. We stayed in the river side Echo Holiday Park caravan park overnight.
My husband takes photos of birds. Below you can see clockwise from top left - Wood Duck (Mane Goose), Little Grebe (with dinner in its beak!), Crested Pigeon, and Eastern Swamp Hen. Little grebes are diving waterbirds that eat small fish, acquatic insects, tadpoles and crustaceans.
We went into the Visitor Information Centre in Renmark and went on the paddle boat tied up at the wharf (free adminssion). You can see some house boats in the background of the river scene below.
Below is the historic Paringa bridge near the caravan park. Traffic can go both ways separated by a walk way down the middle which was once a rail track. We walked along the bridge in the afternoon, and then next day towed our caravan across. There is not much room each side of your vehicle, so take it easy driving across.
Opened in 1927, it is South Australia's only lift bridge. The bridge's vertical lift span is designed to rise 9.1 metres to allow tall boats and houseboats to pass through. That would certainly be something to see! Sceduled openings are at 9.30am and 2.30pm daily. Other times, boat skippers must give 2 hours notice.
Just across the bridge is silo art at Paringa, by artists Jack Gran and Sam Brooks, celebrating local identities. Read more about them here - Paringa Silo art
From Renmark-Paringa we crossed the border into Victoria
and continued to Mildura, our next stop on our trip, 138 km from Renmark, and booked into the Mildura Riverside Holiday caravan park just out of town. We are now in the Riverland district where there are vineyards and orchards. You can walk along the river just down from the caravan park.
We went to the fantastic Mildura Visitor Information Centre (one of the best visitor centres we had ever seen), and collected local information and found out what the daylight saving time was! It can be confusing when travelling across borders and time zones.
Down at the river we saw a cruise boat coming through a Lock. So interesting how it works raising and lowering the water levels. Construction of the Lock 11 and weir began in 1923, and was completed in 1927. The weirs and locks along the Murray River are important for regulating the flow of the river, which at different times can be flooded, or completely dry. This lack of consistency caused problems for towns and boats along the river.
The Mildura # 11 Lock is a concrete chamber 61.5 m long, 17.1 m wide and 7.6 m deep. The boat comes into the lock, and ties up. The gates are shut, then water is pumped in so that the water in the lock is the same height as the river on the other side. The gates are opened and the boat motors out. Amazing.
Downstream lockage is operated by the lockperson on the hour and upstream lockage is operated on the half hour (with a boat booking). Refer to the website for more information - Mildura Lock
I wish I had taken a video to show you, but here is a You Tube video I found -
Flash boat hey! There are many house and cruise boats up and down the river - house boats that people live on, or for hire.
Next day we crossed the Murray and Darling Rivers into New South Wales and drove to the town of Wentworth to visit the Perry Sandhills just a couple of kilometres out of town. The sandhills were used in an early scene in the Man From Snowy River Part 2 movie, as well as Burke and Wills, Flying Doctors and Boney. (our son loves film locations)
The tree you can see here engulfed by sand is called the God Tree. This is a Murray River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), which is over 500 years old. Over time, the sand has completely covered the trunk of the tree (perhaps 15 to 20 foot), so that if you walk underneath the branches you are actually standing in the canopy of the tree. I haven't been able to find out why it is called the God Tree.
According to geologists, the Perry Sandhills have been formed by wind erosion and are around 40,000 years old. Skeletal remains of giant mega-fauna (kangaroos, lions, emus, wombats and goanas) have been found here.
Back in Wentworth we had lunch in a lovely park at the confluence of the Murray and Darling Rivers, where there are picnic tables and a lookout tower. It doesn't look much in this photo, but to get to this point the Darling River has run 2,740 kilometres from Queensland, and the Murray River has run 1,686km from the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales. From here they join and run another 832km through South Australia to the Southern Ocean.
A few more birds from my husband - clockwise from top left - Noisy Miner, Pied Butcher Bird, Yellow Rosella, and a Mudlark (Magpie Lark).
After a couple of nights in Mildura we were on the road again - fuel was now $3.13 a litre! - still influenced by the Middle East conflict.
Our next overnight stop was Swan Hill, on the way passing through Ouyen (grain growing region), and Piangil (vineyards, orchards and vegetable gardens).
After setting up camp at the Swan Hill Riverside caravan park we drove 15km further on to Lake Boga - the location of a secret flying boat WW2 catalina repair base and secret decoding bunker in WW2. We watched a 25 minute movie before exploring the museum exhibits. In the decoding bunker female clerks played an important role decoding incoming and encoding outgoing messages throughout the South Pacific theatre of war in WW2, as well as monitoring aircraft movements.
Please check the website for opening hours and entrance costs.
The museum is on the edge of Lake Boga, popular all year round for water-based activities.
That's it from me today. Next time we will go down through the grain growing Wimmera Mallee region where we visit the amazing Stick Shed, visit another TV filming location, more painted silos, and I connect with my ancestors.
I hope you have enjoyed my blog post today, and my continuing travels across Australia. If you missed any previous posts, please find them in the left hand side Blog Archive side bar drop down list.
Until then, take care everyone, and stay well and happy.
Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
If you are looking for a translate button - it's there near the top on the right hand side.
