I’m not sure why it’s never occurred to us to stop at Lake Cullulleraine, 58 km west of northern Mildura and deep in the heart of the Victorian Mallee.

Until now.

Only 3½ hours from Adelaide, Cullulleraine (as it is shown on more modern maps) is a perfect example of why it’s SO worth exploring places not so far from home, something us long-distance road-trip experts tend not to do.

So when we left home much later than anticipated, and spent an inordinately long lunchtime at the FAAAAABULOUS Renmark Patisserie Café/Bakery AND then crossed the border into Victoria thereby gaining half an hour, we realised we’d be getting to Mildura on dusk.

Something Pilchard swore we’d never do.

So we pulled in to the Bushman’s Rest Caravan Park for a drive by.

That’s a euphemism for ‘check and see if it looks like it’s full of psychos and axe murderers before we commit to staying’, in case you were wondering … and if it doesn’t pass the ‘whaddayareckon’ test, we – yes, you guessed it – drive on by!

Bushman’s Rest passed with flying colours, despite the sign in the amenities block … give me an alien over an axe murderer any day!  Although weirdly, there were no children in sight …

The manager then confirmed the ‘pass’ when, unprompted, he gave us a 10% discount!

Even without knowing he was speaking with Red Nomad OZ – although I guess this post will give the game away …

The huge lawned lakefront site with power and a view to die for as the sun started sinking behind the clouds, far enough off the Sturt Highway to muffle the traffic noise and with no one else much around may mean we never stay in Mildura again!!

It also meant we stayed an extra day. Even though we woke to heavy fog and winter temperatures.

A few kilometres north (although not enough to make any difference to the weather) is the Lock 9 weir, constructed in the mid 1920’s and one of 13 locks along the Murray River (or River Murray, depending on which school you went to, and how long ago).

Absolute virgin territory (ie neither of us had been there before), it’s a wild stretch where few houseboats venture.

Even if the sign at the lock warns of a different danger …

Although Lake Cullulleraine is 9 metres above the river level, there’s still a lot of floodplain in between the lake and the river that would have been inundated during the massive 1956 floods, the benchmark against which all floods in these parts are measured.  With 100 times the volume of water than that flowing through the river now!

The 184 hectare Lake, once an ephemeral wetland, has been topped up since the 1920’s to provide a permanent water supply for a post-war farming scheme in the Millewa district.

The 10.4 km walking trail circumnavigating the lake (8.6 km if you take the shortcut across a peninsula!) passes through a number of habitats, over the Supply Channel Bridge AND – most unexpected of all – past a now disused Scenic Public Toilet on a rise behind the old boat ramp.

From which that killer sunset is best viewed …

As we relaxed on the lake front after our 8.6 km stroll (yes, we took the shortcut!), the manager gave his miniature float plane a workout from the jetty directly in front – presumably in preparation for the upcoming R/C Float Plane event to be held at Bushman’s Rest in early July! Little did he know he – and his plane – would soon be appearing on my blog …

Albeit separately – my sports photography skills being insufficient to get a clear shot of the plane in the air!

As dusk fell, and countless Purple Swamphen gathered in anticipation of beating the possums to our leftovers, we knew we’d lucked out.

It had never before occurred to us to stop at Lake Cullulleraine.

But we won’t be making that mistake again – we’ve still got the attractions on the southern side of the highway to explore!

And there’s not an axe murderer in sight …

PS  Of course such awesome views deserve a second chance!  BUT … was our SECOND visit as good as the FIRST??  Check out what happened exactly 5 weeks later when we visited Lake Cullulleraine again HERE!

Want MORE?

• Our SECOND visit to Lake Cullulleraine!
• Bushman’s Rest Caravan Park
• Lake Cullulleraine, Victoria
• Murray River

The post Lake Cullulleraine: So COOL it’s HOT! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

The huge fish levitating planking looming above the cars parked opposite the Swan Hill Visitor Information Centre ALMOST made up for Pilchard’s refusal to take a detour via the tiny town of Tittybong. Just so I could say I’d been there …

But the thrill of ALMOST visiting Tittybong dissipated as I sniffed out a story here on the Victorian side of the River Murray, which forms the state boundary with New South Wales.

Swan Hill’s giant Murray Cod ‘Arnold’ was saved from oblivion by its community who fibreglassed the steel and timber behemoth and slapped it (him?) up on the banks of the river as a tourist attraction. And they were right to do so – ‘Arnold’ is now far better known as a stalwart of the Swan Hill streetscape than for his short lived movie career. Say what? Yes, he was constructed in 1991 as a prop for Australian movie production Eight Ball.

No, I’ve not seen Eight Ball either. I’d never even heard of it until our April 2012 visit to Swan Hill! It’s apparently about two men who meet on a construction site for a preposterous tourist attraction – yes, a giant Murray Cod – on the banks of the Murray River near Swan Hill!!

At least It makes a change from swarms of bees, creatures from black lagoons and killer tomatoes …

So is Arnold’s reincarnation life imitating art? Or vice versa??

At 15 metres (~47 ft), Arnold dwarfs Jaws, a tiddler at only 8 metres (25 ft)! But giant Murray Cod aren’t just the stuff of B grade movies – the largest real one ever recorded was over 1.8 metres (6 ft) long and weighed 113 kg (250 lb)!

Whether inadvertently or not, Arnold’s size echoes the Aboriginal Murray River creation legend – a giant Murray cod chased down a small stream widens the river bed to assist its escape, it’s thrashing tail creating the river bends that the more prosaic attribute to weathering, floodwaters and time …

But will re-stocking programs, catch-and-release strategies, upper and lower size restrictions, and bag limits be enough to reverse the decline of this iconic Australian fish?

Once common throughout the Murray-Darling river system, the Murray Cod is now ‘vulnerable’, since European settlement a victim to unregulated overfishing, river de-snagging, decline of water quality and competitive introduced species such as European carp.

A youngster at only 21, Arnold has 27 years to go before he matches the age of the oldest recorded Murray Cod. And even further to go before 2061 when he’ll reach 70 – the estimated age of the monster fish of yesteryear!

I hope he’s not the last of his kind by then …

The post Only in OZ #21 – Big Murray Cod, Swan Hill, Victoria appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Amenities Block, Perry Sandhills, Wentworth New South Wales

Sandhills, Perry Sandhills via Wentworth, New South Wales

We’re not in the desert, are we?  Perry Sandhills, Wentworth, New South Wales



Still life with Pilchard (1990’s), Perry Sandhills via Wentworth, New South Wales

In the more recent past – about 18 years ago – you might have been lucky enough to spot the rare Pilchard amongst the dunes as I did …

Water at the amenities block, Perry Sandhills

• Perry Sandhills
• Wentworth Tractor Monument
• Wentworth
• Murray/Darling River system

The post Australia’s Scenic Public Toilets #22 – Perry Sandhills, Wentworth, New South Wales appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Historic Sign, Wentworth, New South Wales

At what point is an object, action, document or place deemed ‘historic’ – and therefore worthy of recognition and/or preservation?

So I was thrilled to spot the sign on this massive River Red Gum at Wentworth’s Riverbend Caravan Park marking the spot where explorer Charles Sturt celebrated his discovery of the junction of the Murray and Darling rivers! At least here the memory of this historic event has been preserved!!

Looking across the Darling River to the historic spot on the other side

But in a bravely pre-emptive strike, another more recent historic event is immortalised on the other side of the tree!

Hysterical sign, Wentworth, New South Wales

Isn’t it a relief to know that future generations of Aussie kids will know EXACTLY what happened in this spot??!!

• What else is Wentworth famous for?
• Wentworth, New South Wales
• Murray-Darling basin

The post Signs #18 – Historical? – OR Hysterical?! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.



TE20 Harry Ferguson Tractor Monument, Wentworth

 In a parallel universe, the Australian government and public service pantheon would have been well placed to see first hand the effects of ‘policies’ governing the Murray Darling Basin in the capital Wentworth, at the junction of the Murray and Darling rivers.

BUT … while iconic Wentworth, once busiest inland port in the country, was one of several locations considered as potential Australian capital sites post Federation, it lost out to Canberra.  Australia thereby forever losing the opportunity to take the capital to the people … But I digress!


‘Grey Fergie’, Wentworth NSW



The first monument to a tractor in the WORLD, it commemorates the vital part played by the ‘grey Fergie’ in protecting the town from destruction by the extraordinary 1956 flood that devastated downstream South Australian towns.


 The TE20 Harry Ferguson tractor, of course!! An actual ‘grey Fergie’ tractor greets visitors entering the town across the river – a much more showy monument to this humble farming implement than the small bronze cast of the original.


First Tractor Monument in the world!



‘Grey Fergie’ Monument wording



The post Only in OZ #14 – Tractor Monument, Wentworth, New South Wales appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

On our March 2011 visit, the river was running high but had peaked the previous day.  But the current level is still well below other floods – as shown by the markers on the right.

Why is the meter so high?  Well … the September 1956 flood is the benchmark against which all other floods are measured.  And yes, it’s there on the marker – way up past 11 metres!!

If it reaches those levels again , the Mid Murray Council would have a lot more than a few out of date signs to worry about, wouldn’t they?!?!?!

Stay dry!!

The post Signs #13 – ‘Droughts and Flooding Rains …’* appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.