Having stayed at home the past few weeks, we were quite ready to explore the regional towns once again.
I always wanted to visit Echuca to enjoy a paddle steamer river cruise. But alas! The tyranny of distance from Melbourne CBD always won when I thought of the dread of driving about 3.5 hours (with rest stops) just to get there. I would have needed an overnight stay in Echuca to have enough rest to safely make it back home.
Unless …. I sign up for a day trip with Explore Australia for the Murray River, Paddle Steamer & Wildlife Experience!
The Explore Australia website promises:
“Cruise the Murray River on a heritage paddle steamer, meet native wildlife at Kyabram Fauna park, capture colourful silo art, and marvel at the striking Pink Cliffs on this unforgettable day tour.”
So I can let someone else do the driving and all I needed to do was to show up at one of the convenient pickup locations within the CBD? Hey, I’m all for it!
Our day with Explore Australia started nice and early at 7am. After saying our hellos to the friendly driver and him ticking off the names list, we were off!
First stop was the Kyabram Fauna Park. We were given about 45 mins to wander about to view the many native animals such as dingoes, kangaroos and koalas. The park has an open range zoo concept and it was such a joy to see animals so relaxed in their natural habitats.
We then drove on to the Port of Echuca.
There, we got to explore this old heritage town built next to the mighty Murray River. The river was used in the 1800s as highway to transport goods. There were many exhibits on display showing life way back then. The highlight was, of course, the cruise on a vintage paddle steamer. The experience was amazing as the captain explained the history of the use of the river as a highway and how important it was to regional commerce. As we slowly cruised the waters, everyone took in the peaceful red gum forests and rustic riverbanks that showcased the charm of country Australia. We were very impressed with this river experience!
Hopping back the bus, it was a short drive to see Silo Art in Rochester and Colbinabbin.
Giant grain silos have been transformed into enormous outdoor art pieces! The vibrant murals shouted out the stories of the local communities. The shutter bug in me spent many minutes taking in the truly amazing paintings.
After ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the silos in both locations, we moved on to the last stop of the day which was the Pink Cliffs Reserve.
The site was historically a gold mining area. The use of high pressure water to extract surface gold deposits about a hundred years ago have resulted in massive land erosion. Thankfully, the practice was quickly banned once the environmental impact was realised.
Today, the land there looks like it is from another planet. The mineral-rich clay formations glow in shades of blush pink, deep orange and gold. It is a quite a sight to behold. Wow …
The drive back to Melbourne wasn’t too long despite hitting the evening peak hour traffic. In all, it was certainly worthwhile paying for this tour. Being bussed around took off the stress of self driving and allowed us to better appreciate what the various locations had to offer.
I have made a Youtube video of the day’s experience here.
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Enjoy!
