Mudgee Region, NSW, Australia
As we hit the dirt road and with a trail of dust behind us, I turned to the girls and said ‘Welcome to the country. This sure isn’t the city anymore!’ We pulled up to the farm gates and stared at the long dirt driveway that lead to the farm house and we all smiled. This is exact type of girls weekend away that we were hoping for. A weekend of serene farmland, a unique Air BnB, good coffee, markets, wineries, history and art. Perfection!
We had driven three and a half hours from the Hills District of Sydney to Mount Frome and our glamping style Air BnB where we would spend two nights. This was our girls weekend getaway and we were so excited! We pulled up to the silos and the excitement from the backseat was so cute. Yes you did just read that right – silos! The big round tin thingys that you keep wheat in. These silos no longer contained wheat, instead they contained what would have to be the cutest glamping experience ever.
Now, before I get a little too ahead of myself, I’d better go back to the beginning because we stopped off at a great place on our drive out to Mudgee that I need to tell you about. The Lithgow Tin Shed is a fantastic rustic cafe full of antiques and local art. The food was delicious and included locally sourced produce. I enjoyed the Ploughman’s Platter while the others had the Halloumi Salad, Shoestring Fries and Kids Pasta (kids menu available). We also grabbed coffee to takeaway and it didn’t disappoint!
Ploughman’s Platter
OK, back to the arrival at the silos…we were in absolute awe of the stunning surrounds and the different colours that came out as the sun went down. The girls were busy running around, cracking the whip they found, playing with the dolls house, saying hello to the cows, snuggling the farm dogs and just generally getting grubby and loving life. Meanwhile us Mumma’s were sipping a glass of wine, nibbling on some cheese, chatting about life and pinching ourselves that we got to spend the weekend here. We met Elizabeth who was the owner of Scifleet Silos and she came bearing gifts of fresh milk, tea and wine for us. It was so lovely to chat with her and learn more about her stunning property. I love this element of Air BnB – getting to know the locals and learning from them.
The silos had everything we needed for our stay including a small fridge, small oven, microwave, bbq, electricity, running hot and cold water, proper toilet, overhead shower and three comfy beds with bedding. We did bring our sleeping bags as advised to make sure we stayed extra warm during the night. Also be sure to pack mosquito repellent for the evenings – I had my trusty Vanilla Mozi as always!
Saturday morning and of course the girls were up and about nice and early. The best part was laying in bed and listening to them giggle at the cows and taking some fun photos of them. We rolled back the doors and soaked up the magnificent view of the land from our beds. After breakfast we headed off on our day of exploring some of the Mudgee region and started it with coffee!!
Alby and Esthers is a tucked away coffee house and wine bar on Market St, Mudgee. We only had a takeaway coffee from there but we did scope out some of the food that other people were eating and it looked good. The girls had a babychino each which was made with no milk but whipped cream and sprinkles.
We then enjoyed bacon and egg rolls from the markets across the road in the church grounds and also a wander around the different stalls. The type of markets change from weekend to weekend so check whats on when you are there by visiting Visit Mudgee Region.
Next stop was to Lowe Wines on Tinja Lane, Mudgee. This winery is absolutely gorgeous. We enjoyed a great wine tasting and the girls ran about in the front garden until we were done. The wine was so good and we ended up buying a couple of cases to take home. After our tasting we then got the kids map of the property and set off on and adventure to explore. We wandered through the orchid, through the grape vines then up to chook palace. It was really fun and the girls loved leading the way with their maps. Great to visit a winery that is welcoming of families and includes this great activity for the kids.
Now it was time for some art! We were lucky enough to be in Mudgee when the famous Sculptures in the Garden exhibition was on at Rosby Wines. This annual art exhibition showcases some of Australia’s best and emerging outdoor artists. The sculptures where truly amazing and all we kept saying was ‘gee, I want that in my garden’!
Again, this exhibition wasn’t just for the adults. SIG for Kids lets children from preschool right through to secondary school create something to submit into the exhibition. This year the them was Water, Water Everywhere. When we entered the SIG for Kids section the girls were given a clipboard and pencil with the job to draw their favourite installation for the peoples choice prize. They took this job very seriously and loved every minute of it. All proceeds from Sculptures in the Garden support the Guide Dogs NSW/ACT and they even include sculptures that can be explored by touch and sound for those affected by blindness. Love it!
Time to find us some gold, so off to Gulgong it was. Upon driving into this quaint little town I actually thought we had driven onto the set of an old goldrush movie. Gulgong hasn’t changed much over the years and that is what gives it its charm. I was fascinated by the history of this little town and to find out more we headed to the Gulgong Gold Experience. We wandered through the ‘old days’ and experienced a replica underground mining tunnel with various different mining tools. The girls found it interesting and a little creepy which we used to explain how the miners would have felt heading underground in desperate search for gold. We then went up onto of Red Hill and tried our luck at gold panning. A few little specs here and there of the shiny stuff sent the girls giddy with excitement! When I say girls, this time I probably mean Mum’s… It was so much fun and especially exciting when the girls were given ‘special’ gravel full of semi-precious stones to sift through. No kids went home empty handed and the overall experience was very fun! We recommend that you visit the Gulgong Gold Experience if you are in the area. Open daily from 1pm to 3pm. Check their website for more details.
Main St, Gulgong
Gulgong Gold Experience
Gulgong Gold Experience
Gulgong Gold Experience
So we didn’t make it big from our gold finds and instead we went in search of fine cheeses and wine! High Valley Cheeses was to be our next stop and tastings can be had at The Cellar by Gilbert back in Mudgee. We sat in the sun and enjoyed a cheese and fruit platter paired with their delightful Rosé. The girls were pretty exhausted by now and were quite happy to sit and watch a show on our phones for half an hour while we enjoyed (yep we pulled out the phones, just being real with ya!).
The Cellar by Gilbert
It had been a huge day and it was time to head back to our silos, cow friends and farm dogs!
The sun set across the paddocks and turned the sky pink again. It was the most perfect view. We put the girls to bed, sat under the stars and sipped some of our new wine. We were so happy, chilled and ready to conquer term 4 and the last quarter of the year!
Morning came and again we layed in bed and listened to the girls giggle and play outside while we watched the paddocks come to life. The sun had left us and the rain was on it’s way, so we had to get packed up before the countryside got a soaking that it so desperately needed.
My bed with a view
Of course we had to make another stop before driving home and that was to a historic town called Rylstone. We stopped in at the local cafe, The Saffron Kitchen, for some breakfast and coffee before hitting the road headed for home. Of course by the time we got to Lithgow we had to once again stop in at The Lithgow Tin Shed because the food was that good!
And just like that our weekend escape to the country was over. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about Mudgee and seeing some of my photos. For more photos and to keep up with our adventures both local and not so local then follow us on INSTAGRAM as we are uploading pics all the time!
Now before you leave I have a little something for you. I am giving away free the link to this itinerary which includes all of the places we visited, maps and information presented in a glossy digital itinerary planner. All you need to do is pop your email into the box below and you will receive it as a part of our Welcome Pack straight to your inbox.
Don’t forget to comment below with any other great places you have visited in this region. We would love to hear about it!
Safe travels!
Jen
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