{"id":1313,"date":"2022-03-15T22:23:15","date_gmt":"2022-03-15T11:23:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/?p=1313"},"modified":"2023-03-03T23:27:40","modified_gmt":"2023-03-03T12:27:40","slug":"day-2-4-shepparton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/day-2-4-shepparton\/","title":{"rendered":"Day 2-4 – Shepparton"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
\n\t\t\t\t
Shepparton<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
\n\t\t\t\t
Art Museum<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
\n\t\t\t\t
Silo Art<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>
\n\t\t\t\t
Botanic Gardens<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t
\n
\n
\n \"\"\n
Enjoying an olive at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Van site at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Pond at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Gazebo at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Van site at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Last of the Andrew Peace wines<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Van site at Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Only a couple of hours from Holbrook<\/a> to Shepparton<\/a> with a lunch stop at Benalla. Out destination was Hurlstone Homestead Gardens<\/a> for a three night stay. Hurlstone is a beautifully restored homestead that operates as a B&B, Wedding Venue and is also listed on Hipcamp<\/a> (a website where landholders\/farmers offer campers\/caravaners a place to camp on their property for a fee. Unlike most Hipcamp<\/a> sites, Hurlstone offered power, water hookup and toilets, so pretty much a caravan park without all the crowds…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hurlstone is owned by Marg and Kerry who’ve restored it over thirty years from a rotting shell into a grand homestead residence. They do nibbles every evening and guests can bring their drinks and join them on the verandah for a chat. Marg and Kerry have lived a very interesting life and had many adventures over the years as well as survived a number of mishaps and hardships. Marg has a thousand stories and was quick tell us about the book she has just written describing their life bundled into a cookbook (she has cooked for Princess Diana and other notable people).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having wine and nibbles each afternoon was very pleasant, which generally consisted of cheese, crackers and a number of homemade delicacies from the Hurlstone gardens including quince paste, olives, pecans and almonds. Jo actually enjoyed the olives in a first for her. They were beautifully plump, meaty, salty and not a hint of bitterness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our van was situated on the front lawns among beautiful shady trees. It was a bit of squeeze getting into the grounds but not too difficult. We knew it could be done because Marg & Kerry had their own ‘Leader’ van (made by Supreme) that was a similar size to ours. Very possibly one of the most relaxing and pleasant sites we’ve camped on to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a wedding (170 guests) on the night that we arrived and it was held on another lawn area, 50 metres away, only separated by a line of trees and shrubs. Despite this we barely heard a thing apart from the dance music as things ramped up that evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having nice weather and spacious grounds provided a chance to put our drone up and take some aerial shots of the homestead, which will be available below once they’ve been edited to cut some of the ‘unnecessary manoeuvring’ out.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>

\n
\n
\n \"\"\n
A long flat stretch to Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
A long flat stretch to Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Lunch at Benalla<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Triathlon competitors in Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
One of many cow sculptures in Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Park wetlands in Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Park wetlands in Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Shepparton<\/a> is the atypical Victorian rural town and reminds me of a scaled down version of Mildura. It is not what you would call a tourist destination but it does have a ($52 million) Art Museum and a Silo Art trail around some of the smaller rural villages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like Mildura, Shepparton<\/a> is surrounded by large irrigated fruit orchards as well as a patchwork of farms growing wheat, hay and grazing catlle. There’s a patchwork of irrigation channels and the typical grid layout of streets with no high-rise buildings, except for the four-storey Shepparton Art Museum that dominates the landscape near the central wetlands and park area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shepparton<\/a> feels like a relaxed kind of town although it was the Labour Day long weekend so not a lot of shops were open and only a handful of coffee spots. The major activity of the weekend was a triathlon being held around the central wetlands\/park area that seemed like a pretty big deal with fenced off finishing lanes, interchange areas and a dozen or so tent stalls selling triathlon equipment\/gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marg from Hurlstone Homestead suggested that we visit Phillips Cellars and Regional Wine Centre<\/a>, which we did on our day of departure to stock up on some local clean-skin shiraz and SSB’s. Haven’t tasted yet but reds were $10 and the whites were $8 so hopefully they will live up to the recommendation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s worth noting, from a travelling perspective, that Shepparton<\/a> (like Mildura) has a large fuel station (APCO) that somehow manages to sell fuel 10 cents\/litre (14 cents with an IGA receipt) cheaper than Caltex and Shell. Imagine feeling relief at paying $2.07\/litre for diesel when only a month ago it was $1.59. Most places we’ve noticed are charging $2.21…<\/p>\n\n<\/div>

\n
\n
\n \"\"\n
Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Barrow full of goannas – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Art piece – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Art piece – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Art piece – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Stolen Generations sculpture – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Mosaic close-up – Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Large mosaic piece at Shepparton Art Museum<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

The Shepparton Art Museum<\/a> is a massive four storey dark, contemporary cube like building that houses a number of public gallery and is free of charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is quite stark towering above the central wetlands\/park area and the inside is bright, open and spacious. With a number of large galleries each hosting their own particular display<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were lucky enough to catch the last day of an indigenous display that fascinating, respectful and challenging with a variety of paintings, sculptures and textile pieces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My favourite piece was a painting depicting thousands of footsteps with a small patch in the corner looking like it had been scratched away to reveal a GPS style map of Redfern… Jo’s favourite piece was a very large mosaic. Both can be seen in the gallery above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Art Museum was a very pleasant way to spend an hour or so and get a little bit culture into our uncultured selves…<\/p>\n\n<\/div>

\n
\n
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Silo Art Trail near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Poppy sculpture tree at Dookie<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
CWA Gardens at Dookie near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Small silo art at Dookie near Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Shepparton is the hub for a number of farm villages and settlements most of which have large grain storage silos. A number of these have had artists commissioned to paint murals on them depicting a significant historical aspect of the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The silo art in Shepparton can be found at Dookie, Goorambat, Devenish, St James and Tungamah. It’s an easy way to spend half a day driving to each location and marvelling at the images and the effort required to create them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We started our trip at Dookie, which only has a small painted metal silo that is directly across the road from an army surplus disposal store\/coffee shop. The store is packed to the rafters w.ith used military clothing, equipment and memorabilia that you could spend hours pouring over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s a coffee counter at the front operated by what may be Australia’s quirkiest barista. He looked like he was probably an army vet and had AC\/DC cranking out at high volume while he stopped every now and then for a sip of coffee and dance. He asked Jo to serve four coffees to some of the outside customers while I wrote our order for him inside. A genuinely funny bloke with a quick wit. He offered Jo the waitressing job when we left<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We continued our tour of the art silos via Gorambat, Devenish, St James and Tungamah; each location’s silos being distinctive with their own stories to tell. The silos are a must do when in Shepparton.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>

\n
\n
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>
\n \"\"\n
Australian Botanic Gardens – Shepparton<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Shepparton is home to the Australian Botanic Gardens<\/a>, which is formed up as a long mound situated on a former landfill site. It showcases Australian native plants on series of paths winding up and around the mound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s still very much a work in progress but is extensively planted and maturing into a diverse display of Australian flora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The botanic garden grounds also contain a bushwalk area that meanders through the scrub and past a small wetland area where we were lucky enough to see a spoonbill wading in the muddy brown water and swinging is beak side-to-side in search of food. There are also some rusty steel sculptural pieces along the track, which is not far from the railway line with glimpses of a passing freight train that could bee seen through the trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Australian Botanic Gardens<\/a> are located on the edge of town and well worth a look when staying in Shepparton.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three days in Shepparton, staying in the serenity of the Hurlstone Homestead Gardens, and seeing the surrounding Silo Art Trail. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1374,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[66,72],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-short-trips","category-victorianbreak"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Rob Maguire","author_link":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/author\/rob\/"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",480,640,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632-225x300.jpg",225,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",474,632,false],"large":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",474,632,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",480,640,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",480,640,false],"wprm-metadata-1_1":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",375,500,false],"wprm-metadata-4_3":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",281,375,false],"wprm-metadata-16_9":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632.jpg",203,270,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632-480x372.jpg",480,372,true],"twentyfourteen-full-width":["https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220314_115632-480x576.jpg",480,576,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Rob Maguire","author_link":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/author\/rob\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Three days in Shepparton, staying in the serenity of the Hurlstone Homestead Gardens, and seeing the surrounding Silo Art Trail.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rjjc.net\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}