Central NSW is a photographer’s dream in Spring – take in colourful landscapes and explore the region at its most vibrant time with garden festivals, wine and food events, and tours of blooming landscapes.
Yellow canola fields, pink cherry blossom festivals, fresh green produce, and incredible black and white night skies, it all begins just two hours’ drive from Sydney.
Central NSW Tourism has released 16 of the best ways to explore the colours of the region this Spring – the ’30th Sakura Matsuri’, Cowra’s Cherry Blossom Festival, Cowra’s ‘Fields of Gold’ canola tours, the Bathurst Spring Spectacular, Trundle’s Bush Tucker Day and the Orange Wine Festival.
Garden Festivals – get inspiration and meet the locals at major garden events, rambles and open days:
- The 30th Sakura Matsuri, Cowra Cherry Blossom Festival, 28 September – an annual celebration when the cherry blossoms are at their peak also celebrates Japanese culture with demonstrations, bonsai and ikebana displays, martial arts and tea ceremonies. cowragarden.com.au/events
- Bathurst Spring Spectacular, 26-27 October – 10 of the historic town’s gardens will throw their doors open as lilacs, irises, rhododendrons and azaleas will be in bloom, a riot of colour celebrating Spring. Every garden will also feature music, art and sculpture. bathurstgardenclub.org.au/bathurst-spring-spectacular/
- Millthorpe Garden Ramble, 3-4 November – this historic village in Blayney opens 10 large rural gardens, small village gardens, veggie plots and small nooks to the public, with fine local food and cool climate wines part of the celebrations. millthorpevillage.com.au
- Mayfield Garden Spring Festival, 5-27 October 2019 – the 22-day festival explores over 160 acres of manicured gardens and offers a rare chance to experience the expansive private Hawkins family garden and the English inspired Mayfield Maze. This is one of the world’s largest privately-owned cool climate gardens with row boats on the lake, an 80-metre Cascade & Temple, restaurant and café. mayfieldgarden.com.au
- Grenfell Open Gardens, 12-13 October – seven beautiful gardens open in the historic village of Grenfell in Weddin Shire, the birthplace of Australian poet Henry Lawson.
Colourful food and wine tours, festivals and events:
- Cowra’s ‘Fields of Gold’ Canola Tours – a must-do for photographers this guided tour of Cowra’s canola region includes commentary on canola history, facts, the best photo spots and a town tour. Run on Saturdays and Sundays in September and October. visitcowra.com.au/canola
- Orange Wine Festival, 18-27 October – features over 80 events including the Orange Wine Show Tasting, Wine in the Vines, The Vino Express, dinners, lunches as well as the highly popular Festival Night Market. orange360.com.au/Events/Orange-Wine-Festival
- Cowra’s Spring ‘Wine and Forage’ tours – organic wine tastings, guided walks through the orchards with fig and olive tastings and a seasonal lunch at Wallington cellar door are part of a five-hour tour. 14 September, 12 October, 20 October, 2 November and 9 November. visitcowra.com.au/wineandforage
- Red strawberry pickings at Huntley Berry Farm in Orange – from November grab a bucket and pick your own from eleven varieties of berries at this beautiful Orange farm beneath Mount Canobolas. huntleyberryfarm.com.au/
- Green of fresh produce at the Trundle Bush Tucker Day, 7 September – have you got what it takes to be the National Bush Cook Champion? Fresh produce and delightful aromas fill the air at Trundle Showground with cooking demonstrations, free bush tucker taste testings, sheep shearing, dog jumping and live entertainment with special guests ‘The Bushwackers’. trundlebushtuckerday.com/
- Australian National Field Days in Cabonne, 24, 25 & 26 October – a wonderful start to Spring offers a diverse demonstration of the future of agriculture with over 600 exhibitors in the magnificent country setting of Borenore just outside of Orange. www.anfd.com.au
Skies and Outdoor Art:
- Sunset at Utes in the Paddock – the sun setting is the best backdrop to see Utes in the Paddock at Condobolin, a series of ute car artworks, all a humorous depiction of this Aussie icon.
- Forbes’ red AMAZING sculpture – somewhere down the Lachlan outside Forbes you will find the ‘Amazing’ sculpture, nestled amongst the river gums this bold red iconic sculpture is symbolic of the local creative community.
- Night skies and sparkling stars – the star-lit night sky ‘gazing’ experiences in this region are incredible, including Indigenous night sky learnings. For example, at Seven Sisters Ridge near Forbes the Dreaming story tells of seven young women, known as the Mulayndynang in Wiradjuri language, who leapt into the sky to become the stars of the cluster we now know as the Pleiades.
- Blue skies for AirVenture Australia, 20-22 September – the great Aussie fly in at Parkes features all things aviation, exhibitors, training, peers, air show, STEM and youth engagement, food and entertainment. airventureaustralia.com.au/
- Grenfell’s Silo Art Project– one of the biggest new silo artworks in Australia stands 30 metres high and is attracting record visitors to Grenfell. The compilation of images reflects the local contemporary farming industry with sheep, cattle, native birds and Weddin Mountains National Park. facebook.com/australiansiloarttrail/
Central NSW includes Oberon, Bathurst, Blayney, Cabonne, Cowra, Forbes, Lachlan, Oberon, Orange, Parkes and Weddin. Unearth your Central NSW at www.visitcentralnsw.com.au
