Mildura

Houseboats Galore. 

Mildura, situated right on the Murray River, was a really nice surprise for us. We rank it as one of the best inland towns in which we have stayed. With a population in excess of 60,000 people, it is a large town with heaps to do, and with our stay coinciding with Easter, town was packed, and there were plenty of events planned. It was only a short drive from Robinvale, so we arrived nice and early, and got set up at our caravan park, The Apex Riverbeach Caravan Park, which is about 3 kms from the centre of town, and right on the river. The site we were allocated was a dud, but the staff were very accommodating, and because we were staying 10 days, did some shuffling around and we finished up right on the riverfront!

Set up beside the Murray River.

Our first chore was to attend to the annual service of the caravan. We had prebooked our service at the the local Jayco dealer, and all went smoothly. Like cars, caravans need a regular service, and with ours getting so much use, we make sure it gets looked after! With the caravan serviced we were ready to look around. At the caravan park, the crowds had started to roll in for Easter. To our surprise, a huge number of people arrived towing speedboats instead of caravans! A tent city appeared, with an amazing array of fancy speedboats park beside. When the caravan park filled up, caravans were in the minority!

Water skiing was the go.

Everyone gets to drive the boat!!

Along this section of the river, and for quite a distance east and west, the system on weirs and locks means the river is wide and deep, and recreational boating, mostly in the form of waterskiing, and houseboats, is huge. There are hundreds of huge houseboats for hire. The Easter weekend draws people from all over for a carnival of speedboat, and water ski racing. You feel sorry for the poor old fishermen, trying to catch an elusive Murray Cod, as high speed boats roar up and down the river. Directly opposite our caravan park was a boat ramp, and I can't begin to describe the huge assortment of inboard and outboard powered boats, that were launched and retrieved each day.

Paddle Staemers used to transport
everything

The Sunraysia district, as this area is known, produces vast quantities of fruit & vegetables. How about this for some numbers! The area produces 75% of Australia's Table Grapes, 69% of its almonds, 48% of its Pistachios, 24% of its citrus, 20% of the national Wine crush, 13% of its carrots, and 9% of its Asparagus, and the list goes on. So, if you drive in any direction from Mildura, you are amidst cultivated fields. We have never seen so many grape vines! All of this made possible by the incredible use of irrigation from the river. In years gone by, much of the produce was moved by riverboat, and thankfully that heritage has been maintained by passionate people.

A Paddle Steamer Cruise.

Still using a wood fired boiler.

There are a number of restored Paddle Steamers that ply the river doing tourist trips, up and down the river. We hopped on board the PS Melbourne, for an afternoon cruise. It was a very informative 3 hours. We headed downstream to the only lock on the river that is not incorporated into a weir. It is in a purpose built channel that bypasses a sweeping bend in the river. Here we were lowered over 3 metres, and then continued down the river to our caravan park, where we did a U turn and headed back up through the lock and into the wharf precinct of Mildura. It was great for us seeing our caravan from the water, and the beach opposite the caravan 

Travelling through a lock.

park was packed with people and speedboats enjoying the amazing weather. The management of water flows along the river is incredible. Using the weirs along the full length of the river, water levels are maintained within an inch or two at all times, and it would only be a huge drought or a major flood event, that would cause fluctuations to occur. Water usage to farmers is increased/decreased according to the water available, and all farmers usage is measured. A farmer has his water rights which is his annual maximum amount, but he may not get it all, as allocations are made on a regular basis by the Water Authority, based on available flows. There is also the ability for farmers to buy and sell from within their allocation, making it an incredible system. In some seasons, a farmer may never sow a crop and survive well by selling his water for that year!

Where the Darling & Murray Meet.

Weir 10 at Wentworth.

We took a drive down the river to the historic town of Wentworth, which is where the two great rivers, The Darling & The Murray, meet. It is a lovely tree lined town with lots of grassy parkland along both rivers. Just downstream from where the rivers meet, is the next weir & lock. These weirs are quite amazing, as many of them are completely removable from the river! The pelicans and cormorants flock to the weirs to prey on the fish, mostly carp, that escape through the water being released from each weir. In addition, fish ladders have been built at most weirs to allow the fish to move up and

The old Wentworth Gaol.

downstream. We stopped for the obligatory photo at the

Pelicans frequent the weirs.

viewing area where the rivers meet. In town, there was a rowing regatta in full swing on the Darling River, which seemed quite out of place! Of course, there were still heaps of speedboats and houseboats. The Darling River is in quite a poor state at present. Too much water is taken from the river in the upper reaches of NSW, and in the feeder rivers that flow from Queensland. In these areas, crops such as cotton are grown, requiring vast amounts of water. These huge plantations build massive Turkey Nest Dams and suck megalitres from the river to store for their own use. Tragically, half of what they take evaporates, and towns downstream never get their share. Broken Hill is trucking in drinking water, and the Menindee Lake system is almost dry. It really should be better handled.

One of many grand old homes.

There are three championship golf courses in and around Mildura. I played a round in the midweek members comp at Mildura Country Club, which is a very challenging layout. I played with another visitor, Steve, from Albury and we teamed up in a Two Ball Aggregate Event.. Our combined 64 points put us in the top half of the field. It was a lovely morning, and we enjoyed the company of a father & son pairing, who moved to Mildura from Adelaide 10 years ago. They had an identical score to us, so we took heart from that, given their local knowledge!

A wonderful culinary experience.

A romantic dinner.

Our other big treat in Mildura was a culinary event. Many of you Foodies will be familiar with the Italian chef Stefano. He has appeared on many of the lifestyle & cooking shows over many years. He has lived in Mildura for most of his life, and continues to cook up a storm at his restaurant, simply called Stefanos, situated in the cellar of the old Grand Hotel. Now in his 60's, he personally cooks every night, and we can assure you he hasn't lost his touch. We enjoyed a wonderfully romantic dinner. The tables for two are situated along a long narrow passageway, with subdued lighting creating a great atmosphere. There is no menu. Each day Stefano creates a 5 course degustation menu. There is a 3 course option for the really light eaters, but his management of the portion sizes means 5 courses isn't over filling. Our 5 courses started

Tuscan cabbage pudding. Delicious!

with a Tuscan

Italian sausage with lentils
 & pickled vegetables.

Cabbage Pudding, which sounds strange but was just out of this world, served with a crusty home baked sourdough bread that came with a spreadable cheese. Second was an Italian sausage served with lentils & pickled vegetables. Again the flavours were incredible. Third course was the pasta, Oriechetto with broccoli, garlic and Parmesan. The meat dish was exceptional, Slow roasted ox tail and beef cheeks, served with polenta. The flavour in the meat & gravy was so intense, you just wanted to lick the plate! We finished with dessert, where we each got something different and shared. One was a simple filo basket filled with a light vanilla cream, and the other was a panacotta that came from cloud 9! What a wonderful night, enjoyed with delightful wines. Stefano was charming, and happy to pose for a photograph with Carolyn, and chat for moment. A truly memorable night out.

Café de Caravan.

Café de Caravan our favourite coffee spot was a shipping container down by the river! Called Cafe de Caravan, it was in a great spot and did great coffee. A few umbrellas under the trees to shade the few tables and chairs, it was simple and the setting couldn't be beaten. We loved it and went most days! Apart from that we just toured around looking at the many historic old homes, and picking up fresh fruit and veggies from the countless little fruit stalls and honesty stalls dotted along the roadways. We enjoyed a nice pub lunch at the historic old Gol Gol Hotel, to be found on the NSW side of the river. Reading the brochures you expect to be sitting by the river dangling your feet in the water, but in reality, the river is way in the distance! But the food was good!



So that was about it for Mildura. We loved it, and will be back. It had proven to be a great choice for Easter, and the Easter Bunny did find Carolyn! We slowly packed up, and quite reluctantly headed out of the caravan park and set course further west into South Australia. We had managed our fruit and veggies really well, and this time we would not be handing over anything to those fruit fly inspectors at the SA border! Not even one shriveled up bean!!!