Day Tour In The Wineries

I was recently doing my research at the Newcastle Historical Society when I came across an old Cessnock Council tourist map, originally issued in 1969 and it details 3 day tours that tourists can follow around the Cessnock area. So being an adventurous soul, I decided that I would try to follow one of the tourist drives and attempted  Tour 3 - Mount View Range and the Vineyards. It should be noted however that a lot of the wineries have changed owners and some landmarks are no longer visible , which I'll point out and I have left the distances in the original format, being miles, instead of kilometres.

0m. RIGHT - Mount View Road, Millfield (turn off Wollombi Rd, around 15.4 klms from Wine Country Drive Cessnock):

• Follow Mount View Road. To the north we see Mount View, though to be one of a north-south line of extinct volcanoes.

0.9m. LEFT - Entrance to old Millfield Racecourse: 

• Most of the rails and even the winning post on this racecourse still stand (now gone, it is now the entrance to a private property) 

1.3m. Bridge Across Creek:

• To the west at the foot of Mount Baker is William Lewis's diary farm, which stands on the Baker's grant of 1825-31. Some of the Baker family became pioneer farmers on the Orara River, west of Coffs Harbour

2.5m. RIGHT - Cedar Brush Valley:

• Red cedar trees still grow in this valley. In a paddock on its southern side Prof, T.W. Edgeworth David and his students at the turn of the century sank bores in the course of a survey of local coal seams ("and blew a blessed bugle all night at their camp")

3.3m. RIGHT (on the horizon) - Myall Range:

• A Jewish bushranger and his gang used Jew Boy Mountain in the Congewai Valley, which begins in the Myall Range, as a base for making raids on local settlers. He was Edward Davis, hanged in Sydney in 1841.

4.3m. RIGHT - "Jerusalem Rock":

• These greyish extrusions, known locally as "Jerusalem Rock", are characteristic of this area, which greatly interests geologists (although there are plenty of these formations to be seen in the area, I was unable to pinpoint this feature to its exact position & none of the local vignerons I spoke to were able assist ... more investigation needed)

5.4m. Mount View (Bimbadeen) Lookout:

•   From this look out you may see much of the valley of Black Creek. From the north to south you may see in the background the Barringtons, hils at Nelson Bay, Mount Sugar Loaf, and the Myall Range; in the middle-ground Molly Morgan's Range, the town of Weston and Kurri Kurri, and Mount Tomalpin (600ft), an isolated flat-topped feature; and in the foreground Black Creek farmlands, Allandale Geriatric Centre, Cessnock District Hospital, inner Cessnock, Aberdare, and Bellbird. In the immediate foreground a gravel road winds down past a dairy farm (and continues on to the vineyards). This is the road we shall follow (this road is now sealed).

Resume journey, first proceeding south, then north, and avoiding the turn-off right to Bellbird. Continue through undulating grazing lands to the foot of the range.

9.0m. RIGHT - Turn Off For Cessnock:

• Avoiding this turn off, continue north along tar-sealed road (Oakey Creek Road).

9.5m. LEFT - Turn Off To Vineyards And Vineyards Lookout:

• Follow this turn off (still on Oakey Creek Road)

11.1m. Right - Happy Valley Wine Cellars (now Wynwood Estate):

• Happy Valley vineyards are managed by Barrie Drayton, member of a branch of the wine making family, whose founder, Charles Drayton, planted a 40 acre vineyard at Pokolbin in 1870. 

LEFT  - Bellevue Wine Cellars (now Drayton Family Wines): 

• Bellevue, whose cellars stand on the 40 acres planted by Charles Drayton in 1870, is managed by Len Drayton. From the beginning the Draytons combined mixed farming with wine making. Fortunately for wine lovers, the Draytons resisted the temptation, during the Great Depression, to abandon wine making altogether.

LEFT - (beyond Bellevue) - Mount Pleasant Vineyards (Marrowbone Road):

• Mount Pleasant was acquired from Maurice O'Shea (who acquired it from Charles King) by the company whose founder was a London surgeon, Henry John Lindeman (1811 -71), who settled at Gresford in 1840, purchased Carwarra in 1843 and, later, Dr. Carmichael's Porphyry Estate. The Lindemans retained O'Shea as manager until his death in 1956. He was one of our greatest winemakers.

13.0m. RIGHT - Turn Off To Lindemans Ben Ean (McDonalds Road) :

• Avoiding this turn off, continue west along a gravel road the which leads to to the Vineyards Lookout (this road is Pokolbin Mountain Road) 

RIGHT - Cote d'Or :

• Note grove of trees surrounding an old house, Cote d'Or. Cote d'Or was built by Lieutenant Frederick A. Wilkinson who came to Pokolbin in the 1860's and set about clearing thick scrub and planting a vineyard. After living in tents for six months the Wilkinsons, a cultured family, set about building Cote d'Or: they used hand made bricks and nails, pit sawn slabs and shingles.* Cote d'Or is nearly collapsed & it is a real tragedy that it historical building hasn't been preserved. The ruins can now only be glimpsed from the Audrey Wilkinson Vineyard on De Beyers Road.

When turning right to begin the ascent to the Vineyards Lookout note the old road, lined  with trees and fenced on either side, which runs straight up the ridge. This road, abandoned 60 years ago, leads directly to the Pokolbin Vineyards Lookout, which we now approach by  means of a relatively easy deviation. Towards the end of the climb note to the right the farms of the pioneer Mathews Family.

15.5m. Sharp Turn Left Off Road To Vineyards Lookout:

• Proceed on foot in a southerly direction along a ridge (following portion of the abandoned road already noted). This old road follows the general line of a road noted in 1832 which ran from Millfield across Mount View and the eastern side of the Broken Back (Range)and on to the Hunter River. From this ridge you have an uninterrupted view of the vineyards, the Liverpool Range and Mount Royal Range  * the Vineyards Lookout that is mentioned isn't the current Pokolbin Picnic Area (cnr McDonald & De Beyers Road); but it is an older point of interest & is no longer in shown on contemporary maps or signposted. The Vineyards Lookout is 4.2 kilometres from the intersection of McDonald & Pokolbin Mountain Road .  

Rejoin vehicle and retrace journey as far as the intersection of the Vineyards Lookout road and the tar sealed road leading north (McDonalds Road). There continue north.

19.9m. LEFT -   St. Mark's Church of England:

• Students should not confuse this building with the one referred to as the church of the 1860's at Pokolbin: the church of the 1860's at Pokolbin was St. Luke's, the church near the cemetery at Nulkaba. George Frederick McDonald, a Presbyterian, donated the land on which Church of England vignerons erected St. Mark's. 

LEFT - Pokolbin School of Arts:

• Here there have been social and official gathering of our own great winegrowers and internationally known wine lovers.

RIGHT - Pokolbin War Memorial:

• Inscriptions on the tablets at the gates read like a roll call of our vignerons. They include the names of Pokolbin men who fought in the Great War of 1914 - 18 and the 1939 - 45 War.

LEFT - Lindeman's Ben Ean Wine Cellars and Vineyards

• Frederick, son of Dr Lindeman, purchased Bean Ean from J.F. McDonald, son of John McDonald, who obtained the grants in 1825 - 31 here and at Rothbury Creek. 

20.5m. Intersection With De Beyers Road:

• Turn right along De Beyers Road. Harry De Beyer, a German migrant, who worked in a Newcastle district coal mine, acquired and developed a vineyard property near Broken Back. At the same time there came to Pokolbin another coalminer. This coalminer's son, Bob Elliot, took over Oakvale vineyard on the Broke Road; developed Belford on the mainstream of the Hunter; acquired land at Fordwitch; and shortly after the 1939 - 45 War acquired Tallawanta east of Oakvale.

21.5m. LEFT - Entrance To Glen Elgin:

• John Younie Tulloch, a prosperous businessman at Branxton, acquired Glen Elgin around 1894 from J.Hungerford. After the 1914 - 18 War he acquired 50 acre blocks abandoned at Fordwitch by soldier settlers and there planted vines. J.Y. Tulloch died in 1940. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Hector. (the entrance to Glen Elgin is approximately now the entrance to McLeish Wines)

22.5m. Entrance To Cessnock Airport:

• Avoid entrance to airport. Turn sharp left. (this is now an olive tree plantation, the entrance to Cessnock Airport is now off Wine Country Drive)

23.5m. Lake's Folly:

• Lake's Folly is the young vineyard of Max Lake, surgeon, and author of two charming books; Hunter Wine (1964); Classic Wines of Australia (1966). Max Lake is a member of the Confrerie de Chevaliers du Tastevin. Max Lake deeply appreciates the historical background ot our Pokolbin and Rothbury families and the tenacity and skill of our vignerons.

• To the left on the Broke Road beyond Tallawanta (Hunter Valley Gardens & Harrigan's Cellars) is the Ashman's property (known by the family as 'the marriage settlement' of Tyrells Vineyards Pty. Ltd. (this vineyard is just now known as Tyrrells Estate, 1838 Broke Road Pokolbin)  This company is managed by Murray Tyrrell. great-gradson of Edward Tyrrell, brother of Rt. Rev. William Tyrrell, first Bishop of Newcastle Church of England Diocese.

23.8m. Intersection With Road To Branxton (Wine Country Drive):

• Follow this road north * although it is only about 600 mtrs to Wine Country Drive from Lakes Folly, if you take the trip to Tyrrells as described in this tour it actually adds nearly another 11.5 kilomtetres to the trip!  

25.7m. RIGHT  - Turn Off Along Widerness Road To Allandale and Lochinvar:

• Follow this turn off

RIGHT - Daisy Hill (Old Vineyard & Wine Cellar):

• For details see Tour 2

LEFT - Wilderness Cemetery:

• For details see Tour 2. The Wilderness Church and cemetery (named after the home built on this road in the 1840's by Joseph Broadbent Holmes, a native of Exeter, on the east bank of Black Creek) is the resting place of members of the families of almost all of our pioneer vignerons * the cemetery is located behind Emma's Cottage  438 Wilderness Rd Rothbury.

RETURN BY BRANXTON ROAD (Wine Country Drive) TO CESSNOCK

Trying to follow that map was a difficult assignment, not just because of the changing names of the properties, but the compiler added diversions (Mt Pleasant and Tyrrell Wineries) without adjusting the milages. Also, there was no road names indicated (especially when I was trying work out where the Vineyards Lookout was situated!) and to further complicate things, the speedo that they used in the vehicle was out by over 10%, making the trip even more confusing than it needed to be.

Overall, it was a fun way to spend a day out, driving around one of Australia's best wine producing regions and living the history of Australia's pioneer vignerons ... a great day out. 

I'd like to thank the invaluable help given to me by Stephen Drayton & Robyn Drayton in identifying historical landmarks around Pokolbin. Also the Newcastle Family History & Historical Society for use of the extensive pam files & the Cessnock City Council who originally produced the Cessnock Day Tours  guide 

What Happened To Summer?

What happened to summer?

When I was a kid growing up in one of the sprawling suburbs on Australia's east coast, our summer started for us kids on the Labor Day Long Weekend which is celebrated on the first weekend in October and from that weekend on it was Stubbies (a popular kind of shorts), thongs (double pluggers), surf, sand, sunburn, Beach Boys tunes and girls. This Australian rite of  passage  usually continued right up until Easter Long Weekend. Yes, those were the lazy halcyon days of my youth.

What happened to summer?

Last year we had a late start to summer with the warmer weather not really kicking in till the week before Christmas and playing out until late April. Once again this year we have had a late to our summer, with the warmer weather waiting until New Years to bless us. Even then it has been a patchy start to 2012, with a few hot days in between the dominant  southerly air stream, that have bought patchy showers and cooler temperatures. To emphasise the point, December 2011 was the coldest recorded in 50 years with an average mean temperature of just 19.9º and with only an average 6.7 hours per day, down from the usual  7.9 hours, which added to the gloom.  

What happened to summer?


But it is not all doom and gloom, I don't think I have ever seen my garden looking so lush and verdant at this time of year ... ever! Usually by January the gardens are really struggling, as the moisture evaporates with hand watering and heavy mulching the only way that the avid gardener can keep his garden from desiccating before their eyes. However, not this summer, the whole garden is alve with new growth, especicially the  frangipanis which are producing flowers en masse, the like I have never seen before.


What happened to summer?


Although my garden is in picture perfect condition, a wet summer has its drawbacks as well, like the vines in the Pokolbin vineyards area not setting the fruit, which could lead to a smaller crop and a poorer vintage this season. Another drawback  is the lack of beach days, where I get to spend lazy days reading good books and soaking up the sun on some of Australia best suburban beaches and worrying about how to keep my camera free of sand. But not this summer, beach days have been a rare event and movies have been the preferred weekend outing.  


What happened to summer?


So what happened to summer, I don't know, perhaps next year we'll get one .... and then we can complain about the drought, bushfires, water restrictions and a brown lawn.

Wet Days & Wine

Ahhh, the vineyards of Polkolbin in the spring time can be quite picturesque with lush verdant vines thriving in the warm Australian sunshine. 


 .... What !!!

Well normally this would be the case, however springtime in Australia, especially in New South Wales, can be extremely temperamental, with wild swings in temperature and weather conditions, especially in the current La Nina conditions. And believe me this week certainly proved the point as to the changability of our weather. 


As the week started out it was hot and humid and quite uncomfortable. However, by Wednesday morning the heavens had opened up over the Hunter and dropped over 80 millimetres, which is over 3 inches in old speak, of much welcomed rain over the district. So while our summer is just around the corner, a cold snap such as the one we are experiencing at the moment, can have you wondering why you packed away your winter weight jumper and wet weather gear so early, brrrr

Although the dams can always use a much needed top up, working in the constant precipitation is not much fun and dodging the constant deluges can try the patience of a saint ... or an Australia Post transport driver. 


As Charles Dudley Warner famously said, although mistakenly attributed to Mark Twain,  "everyone complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it" 


However, I just think I'll just let Enya take us out with -


It's In The Rain


Every time the rain comes down,
close my eyes and listen.
I can hear the lonesome sound
of the sky as it cries.

Listen to the rain...
Here it comes again...
Hear it in the rain...

Feel the touch of tears that fall,
they won't fall forever.
In the way the day will flow,
all things come, all things go.

Listen to the rain...
(the rain...)
Here it comes again...
(a-gain...)
Hear it in the rain...
(the rain...)

Late at night I drift away
I can hear you calling,
and my name is in the rain,
leaves on trees whispering,
deep blue sea's mysteries.

Even when this moment ends,
can't let go this feeling.
Everything will come again
in the sound, falling down,
of the sky as it cries.
Hear my name in the rain.

'In The Rain' lyrics Roma Ryan courtesy 2005 EMI Music Publishing Ltd - www.enya.com

Doin' Lunch

When did lunch time become so complicated in our busy, fast paced modern lives?


These days lunch times seem to be a period when it has to filled with some kind activity, such as power walking, bike riding, checking emails, updating Facebook, surfing the net ... whew, the list just goes on. Even when do get around to 'doing' lunch, it seems we have to do it with someone else, where we can unload the burdens of our private lives and our frustrations of work upon some other hapless soul, while gorging on some overprice takeaway trash.


We seem to fill this midday void with anything rather than just getting some quiet contemplation and a chance to unwind, to restore our restless soul.


Over the past few weeks I have been lucky enough to be having my meal break in the Maitland area and once again I decided to take advantage of the wonderful Walka Water Works picnic grounds and a secluded spot at Melville Ford crossing on the Hunter River. This may sound strange, but thanks to shift work I actually have my lunch between 9 - 10am and so, without sounding selfish, it does mean that my lunch is usually taken when there aren't a lot of people around to disturb my bit of downtime during this magic time of the day.


During my lunch lately at Walka Water Works I have been visited by a very inquisitive Magpie who seems to taken quite a shine to my lunchtime meals, coming down to visit as soon as I pull up and then waits for me to give him a few nuts (is that healthy for birds? ... whatever), after that he then just takes off. This regular occurrence has taken place over the past few months and even though I don't visit that area every day (it was over a week between visits this time), or at the same time, my new found lunch mate flies down for his visit no matter what. Not only do I have my Magpie mate, there are also the cows lowing in the paddocks, a flock of quarrelsome Cockatoos and a large mob of Kangaroos that regularly graze in the area, making my lunch breaks something special.

Sure beats sitting in a sterile McDonalds fighting the cappuccino sipping pensioners for the last soggy Newcastle Herald!    

A Winters Day In The Bay

June in Newcastle can be get rather cold, so it is tempting just to sit inside, put the television on and wait for the warmer weather to arrive, however some winter days can be just magical.


This Saturday was just on of those special mid winter days, the sun was shining, the temperature hovered around 19° and so Jude and I decided to head off to Port Stephens for lunch at Shoal Bay. Shoal Bay is a wonderful little hideaway and has one of the best takeaway shops that can be found in the area, Aussie Bobs.So making sure I packed my Canon  400D we headed off on the 30 minute drive to the Bay. As well as lunch, since it is also whale migration season (June - October) it is sometimes possible to spot the whales from the headlands and so that is why I preferred the 400D, with its 75 - 300mm telephoto lens as it is ideal for bringing long distance shots into focus.

After our big lunch we decided that it might be a good idea to go for a walk along the bay and just see what we could find on our little adventure, plus walk off those calories. What we did find was the entrance to Tomaree National Park and the walking trail around to the old WWII gun emplacements at Fort Tomaree.


Since it was only a 1 kilometre walk we were well kitted out for our bushwalk, camera, check, a three quarters full bottle of Coke, check, one packet of chewy, check ... so off we went.


The old emplacements are accessed by a relatively easy walk and are well worth the effort. The guns were two 6" Mk.VII BL guns (the same as Fort Scratchley) and were installed in 1942 to cover the entrance to Port Stephens to deny the Japanese Navy easy access to a deep water anchorage, from where they could launch an invasion on Newcastle. The guns, unlike those at Fort Scratchley, were never fired in anger and while the guns have long since been removed, there are still the emplacements, plus other remnants of Australia's WWII history that are still in place and are worth exploring.


On the return journey I noticed that there was a track that led up to the 155 metre summit and it was only a 260 metre walk to the top. Now, this isn't mountain goat country, as it is a well formed path with steps and walkways that allow easy access to the summit, however it still requires a bit of effort to make it all the way to the top. Once you make it to the summit (which was also the WWII radar site), the vista is spectacular, with uninterrupted views north to the Myall Lakes, south to Newcastle, and along the Karuah River that  lazily meanders westward.


The Tomaree Headland is also a great spot to do some whale watching and we were lucky enough to see a couple of these wonderful mammals putting on quite a display as they continue their migration northward to the warmer waters around The Great Barrier Reef (especially The Whitsundays). There is always something special about these displays which can captivate you for hours and makes you wonder how that we humans nearly hunted these wonderful mammals nearly to extinction early last century!


It certainly was a great way to spend a winters day, only next time I go on one of our walking adventures I think I'll pack something a bit better than a bottle of Coke and some chewing gum ... not exactly the best way to bushwalking!

   

When The Mountain Just Isn't Enough

I decided to go back to Wellington (NSW) to visit some friends and explore some more of this fascinating area. Now there aren't too many people that, on the last weekend of summer, would purposely drive the 4 arduous hours to visit this region, most would prefer to visit some of our wonderful coastal locations. However, I like to be just a little bit different!

Wellington is situated about 360 kilometres west of Sydney and is nestled between to major river systems the Macquarie and the Bell. The town also sits at the foot of the triple peaked 533 metre Mt Arthur. The Mt Arthur Reserve is a 1300 hectare area set aside for public recreation and one of the best things to do is to go bushwalking along its many trails, keeping an eye out for some of the 530 species of flora including bryophytes and lichens. It was also from the Mt Arthur area that the explorer John Oxley climbed on the 18th August 1817 and in his notebook noted that -


"On ascending a range of hills which lay directly across our course, we had a prospect of a fine and spacious valley - our descent to it was rendered difficult by lofty, rocky hills forming deep and irregular glens, so narrow that I feared we should not be able to follow their windings, the rocks being such perpendicular masses as seemingly to debar our passage."
  

After scaling Mt Arthur (a bit easier now  than in 1817, thanks to the dedicated walking trails) we decided to pay another visit to the wonderful Osawano Japanese Gardens. In this peaceful setting one can almost imagine that they have transported themselves back to the court of the Japanese Royal Family, except there is a whopping great big gum tree located nearly dead centre to the gardens. Although the contrast of oriental delicateness and this iconic Australian tree can be visually jolting, It really does give the gardens a unique 'Aussie' feel.   


One would think that you could cover all there was see in Wellington in one day, but to really do it properly, it has to be done over a couple of days. With so many photographic opportunities available, I can't wait for my next visit.  

When Cockies Come A Callin'

Each October the Sulphur - Crested Cockatoo, or Cacatua Galerita, as they are known in scientific circles, make an annual pilgrimage to Warabrook to feed on the pine nuts supplied by my next door neighbours trees.

The Sulphur - Crested Cockatoo, or as it is more commonly known the cockie, is one of the most iconic birds in the Australian bush and can be found through out Australia. The cockie, is a large white parrot, it has a dark grey-black bill, a distinctive sulphur-yellow crest and a yellow wash on the underside of the wings. The humble Cockie is one of the most identifiable and gregarious birds of the Australian bush. 

If you can't see this bird in it's natural habitat you certainly will not miss its wonderful birdsong. This recording is courtesy of the Australian Museum.

http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/images/audio/cacatua-galerita.mp3

Other interesting facts about our Australian birds can be found at www.birdsinbackyards.net/

Ok, it' not quite tuneful, wonderful or melodic as some other bird species, however, it is unmistakable and is one of the real sounds of the Australian outback

The much maligned cockatoo is really considered a pest in some quarters because of it destructive habits such as chewing decking, window frames ect., however, I do think it is the most majestic birds of the Australian bush.

So along with kangaroos, Aussie Rules football, meat pies, Vegemite and Holden cars, the humble cockie is part of our landscape, a part of Australia that I never want to lose.