Mayfield Gardens
08 October 2024 / Story: Kerry Warner and Anda Clayton; Photos: Anda Clayton, Kerry Warner, Mark Godfrey
Mayfield Gardens
27-30 September, 2024
Story: Kerry Warner and Anda Clayton
Photos: Anda Clayton, Kerry Warner, Mark Godfrey
Day One:
A two-car run with Anda and Brian joining Lesley and Kerry at Again & Again in Bomaderry for that obligatory first coffee. Sunshine and clouds interspersed with a few short-lived light showers dictated a roof up run for the sensible ones. Three guesses where Brian and Anda’s roof stayed for most of the day. First stop was the Post Office Café in Moss Vale, very welcome on a chilly morning.
Onwards to Crookwell for a bakery lunch break. A short leg stretch and exploration of Crookwell highlighted a number of closed shops. Onwards through Tuena, Trunkey Creek and Millthorpe (and some of the best MX5 roads in New South Wales) to our motel for the night. Kay and Mark from Sydney meet us at the Motel. Dinner was Korean “Let Jacky Feed You” at Mr Lims. A sensational meal with a cheeky Pinot from Philip Shaw or two, went down very nicely.
Day Two:
Today we caught up with RPM Chapter members Ian and Carmel who live out this way and were joining us for the day. We headed off to Canowindra for a coffee and to visit the ‘Age of Fishes’ Museum.
It was Show Day in Canowindra, and the town was heaving. We scored a rare table at the Perennialle coffee shop in the Garden Centre before heading to the museum. This is one of only two Devonian fish fossil museums in the world and has a remarkable collection of fish fossils found accidentally when building a road nearby back in 1955. A dig from 1993 revealed over 3,000 fish fossils from over 360 million years ago.
A return trip through Cudal to lunch by Lake Canobolas. We sat in the sun (hats and sunscreen on of course) and had a delightful lunch. Ian and Carmel left us there promising to meet us for dinner. We headed to De Salis Wines where owner Charlie gave us a personalized tour of their wines from the best sparklings to a couple of great reds. Mark, Kay, Lesley and Kerry then went to Borrodell for an afternoon glass of wine with an amazing view.
We all met up at Hotel Canobolas for dinner and an early night.
Day Three
After departing Orange we headed straight to Bathurst, to Mt Panorama, of course! We drove the mandatory slow 60km/hr lap around the circuit. Roadworks interrupted our lap - preparations were under way for the upcoming Bathurst 1000 in mid-October. A photoshoot of our cars and we were on our way to the main event of the day.
Today was the day that some had been waiting for many years. Mayfield Gardens, on the outskirts of Oberon, is a private, cool climate garden, that was inspired by the great gardens of Europe. The 65-hectare garden was acquired by the Hawkins family in 1984 and gradually transformed from bare paddocks to one of the largest privately owned cool climate gardens in the world. There are fountains, waterfalls, ponds, lakes and of course flowers galore! The gardens are best visited several times at different times of the year. Today we seemed to be between seasons as many flowers were about to bloom or had just bloomed. Some of the more interesting features are the Chicken Hilton, the stumpery and of course the maze. Kerry & Lesley dared to enter the complex maze and we were "amazed" that they managed to locate the exit within minutes!
Back to Millthorpe for our last night’s accommodation. Millthorpe is a quaint town with quirky clothing shops, a lampshade shop, a chocolate shop, several wine merchants and a hatted restaurant, Tonic, which unfortunately is closed on Sunday night. We dined at the Millthorpe Hotel, the only eating establishment open on a Sunday night. The meal was a disappointment for some, but the local wine and company was great.
Day Four
Homeward bound today, Anda and Brian drove south, Kay and Mark to the northern end of Sydney and Lesley and Kerry to the Inner West.
A great weekend was had by all!
From Brian, Anda, Kay and Mark – thank you Kerry and Lesley for your hard work in organising a fun 3 days - great drives with wonderful scenery, comfortable accommodation, some (mostly) delicious meals (Mr Lim's was superb), and visits to wineries and drum roll, Mayfield Gardens!
