Mayfield Gardens Weekender
14 October 2022 / Words by Roby Leckenby, Keiran Rodgers, Dayna Fisher, Photos by Wayne Lang, Keiran Rodgers, Dayna Fisher, Barry Luttrell, Peter Rodgers
We were all keen meeting at Oliver's by 9am
With coffees and greetings done our start was on time leaving by 915
With Keiran and Dayna as run leaders they were followed by Wayne, Cathy, Barry, Jenny, Rob, Rhonda, John, Janeen, and Pater, Roby as tail end Charlie.
Traveling west through Wauchope the road was wet, grey low clouds overhead with patches of blue sky and sunshine.
The air was fresh with recent rain and with a temperature of 20degrees driving was comfortable.
1st traffic light stop separated our group, see pic of Bago location This was expected as Peter let us know we would have many traffic stops and not to be concerned about potential group separation. He had given us all a briefing of stops planned, with times and locations and each driver was given an itinerary sheet.
The drive west was stunning with open green pastures, fast running creeks and lots of sheep.
Baby lambs were in large numbers as our mx5’s roared through the undulating country.
We stopped at Walcha Royal Cafe, where we each indulged in lunch inside the pub. The rain had started, the temperature dropped and we had a long table with a fire burning nearby.
The drive on to Keepit dam meant continued pothole awareness, careful causeway crossing and patience as we traveled via Manilla. The views were pleasurable with fat black cattle grazing green pastures, and fields of grape seed crops in full flower. Refer to Wikipedia for details on broadacre grape seed cropping in this region
Upon reaching Keepit dam we found the road closed and being behind schedule we continued on to Gunnedah.
We all settled into our rooms at the Gunnedah lodge motel for a well earned rest and free time.
The energetic ladies went for a walk for exercise and nibbles purchasing! Well …Roby and Jenny conspired whilst walking a ‘pre-dinner catch up’ as we hadn’t shared together at length.
We were impressed with the lovely town centre with lots of tempting shop windows and clean streets.
Dinner was at the Railway Hotel with a good choice of options and in house live music. As the rain forecast was for overnight heavy rain we went to bed thinking Sunday may be awash. We woke up to a blue sky with sunshine and 11deg. Everyone was so happy, as we hadn't had a night of torrential rain.
After breaky we set off for a 2min photo shot of the painted silo with Dorethy McKellar's poem 'I love a sunburnt country' before heading further west to Dunedoo, the planned morning tea stop. This was aborted at a road closed sign as 10 K ahead at Tambar Springs , the road was reported closed by the helpful local resident who pulled over to give us the ‘heads up’ on definitely abort traveling on this road.
We went on to Coonabarabran for a 30 min coffee stop. While most ordered morning tea, Roby spoke to locals to check on their take of which local road in their opinion would rate as the safest through to Mudgee. They gave us assurance it would be okay to travel through to Mudgee via Mendoren having traveled the day prior. This drive through the fields having received heavy rain overnight was spectacular. Fast flowing streams, lots of potholes to avoid, and beautiful green pastures. As we approached Mudgee, it was a race to meet our lunch booking with 30 mins to spare before they closed. Hats off to Keiran for booking ‘the Cade’ everyone loved the restaurant and the food they offered. With an old english feel, of old pub, raked bare timber dark ceiling we felt like we were in Harry Potter land! The food was delish. Whilst waiting for lunch, Rhonda and Roby strode through Mudgee to check out what shops were still open, with a yearned for hope some may still be. Sadly ‘just jeans’ and the cheap shop were the only offerings, so we returned knowing there was a lovely lunch waiting to be set down.
After our very special lunch, we all went on to ‘the Honey shop’ as Janeen had requested a quick stop in to quench a need for desert! This certainly was the case as most of us bought a delicious honey ice-cream. Dayna was treated to a sweet smelling early birthday gift of vanilla oil from Peter as it was impossible to delay the excitement of a pending Monday birthday!
We were shuffled out as the business had delayed closing to accommodate our indulgent requests, of treat shopping.
We then set off to Hill End. Well this was an interesting journey! Potholes, a winding inclining road ..you can imagine the skill needed to avoid front end suspension damage. Peter was especially careful and drove slowly, well behind the group, as the memory of an expensive rim repair caused by the inability to avoid a pothole was still fresh in his and Roby’s mind.
With a couple of local four wheel drivers driving fast and without due care the drive was rather stressful on to Hill End. We were very happy to eventually arrive and find a most Interesting Lodge/shed accommodation. Well done Peter on booking this interesting accommodation. We were all pretty happy except one room had a dank moldy smell, and hats off to Barry and Jenny for their gracious acceptance of said room! We settled in to our quite adequate rooms, and had time to walk / drive through Hillend. Soaking up the history was a delight and very informative. Dayna and Keiran were very keen to document with photography this location, and we are all very grateful for their time doing so. With the race around Mt Panorama being in the front of many of our groups minds, there was haste in setting up the TV’s to view the end of the race with drinkies in hand!
The next morning, we awoke to a lovely sunrise and the cocking of the local rooster. After packing our bags, we headed back down to the dining hall where a simple breakfast of cereal or toast awaited us before our departure.
Our first stop for the day was a short 20-minute drive down a lovely winding road to the gold mining town of Sofala. Once we arrived, the group had the opportunity to grab a coffee whilst wandering around the town, marveling at the relics and artefacts on display – a reminder of the thriving community this town was in the mid 1800’s.
Following our brief stop-over in Sofala, we headed for Mayfield Gardens – about an hour’s drive – where we had a sumptuous lunch before spending the next four hours exploring the surrounding landscaping and horticultural delights of the property.
Mayfield Gardens was established in 1984, initially as a sheep farm. Over the next 33+ years the Hawkins’ Family devoted themselves to creating one of the world’s largest ‘cool climate gardens’ spanning an impressive 160 acres, inclusive of the sporadically open Hawkins’ private garden.
There are beautiful plant arrangements, monuments, water features, interesting buildings such as a bluestone chapel overlooking the garden, and a Chinese pagoda over Mayfield Lake. The plant selection is marvelous - for keen gardeners there is even a plant nursery on-site!
Following our wanderings around Mayfield Gardens, we headed down the mountain pass toward Lithgow. Once we arrived at the Zig-Zag Motel – our accommodation for the night – we set about discussing the day’s events and the plans for tomorrow. We had a scrumptious dinner at the in-house restaurant, Frankie’s, where we celebrated Dayna’s 26th birthday with delicious Italian cuisine and incredible house-made tiramisu.
The following morning, some members of the group parted ways, signaling the official end of the run. Keiran, Dayna, Peter, Roby, Barry and Jenny headed toward Katoomba for some local sightseeing and to see family on the way home, whereas the remainder of the group headed for Kurrajong before heading up the Putty Road before making their way onto the Pacific Motorway toward home.
We all had a fantastic trip with many memories and stories that will be cherished within the club for many years to come. Thank you to everyone who came and contributed to the trip!
Photos by: Wayne L, Keiran R, Dayna F, Barry L & Peter R.
Run Report by: Roby L, Keiran R & Dayna L
