Things to See & Do around Wollombi

Village Life:

Life in the village centres around The General Store and the Wollombi Tavern. A Saturday evening on a cold winter's night in the Tavern bar is highly recommended as is any Friday evening at the Laguna Wine Bar where regular gigs are held by local groups.

Saint Michaels Church
Saint Michaels

For more serious activities, attending a service in any of the local churches will reveal the simplicity and beauty of each historic building including St. Marks in Laguna. Dont forget to visit Wollombi Cottage or a stroll across the road to the cemetery which will evoke scenes of long past settlers and local identities.  Then there are the Cattle Sales held on the second Saturday of each month. Market Days are held on Public Holidays and are not to be missed for great bargains and bric a brac.

Whilst with us, please pick up a copy of Our Own News (OON) which provides details of major events and forthcoming productions of our community theatre company, Valley Artists.

Wine Trail

Undercliff Winery
Undercliff Winery

A trip to the Hunter Valley would not be complete without sampling some local produce. Both the Wollombi and Laguna General Stores stock a fine range of produce however, the Wollombi Wine Trail makes an enjoyable diversion with the added bonus of being able to stock up your cellar with some fine wines grown in Wollombi's own unique climate and soils.

Start at Undercliff Winery where you may meet with Peter and Jane Hamshere and sample their selection, then move on to Stonehurst Vineyard at Cedar Creek where Daryl and Phillipa Heslop have developed their wines using organic practices. Their Chambourcin is worth buying and laying down, then head on up to Mt View Road in Millfield where you will find Millfield Wines and Millbrook Winery. Along the way enjoy the beautiful scenery along our local roads.

Soothe the senses

Relaxing at Lavender Gate Farm
Lavender Gate Farm

Lavender Gate Farm, a must see on your itinerary. The farm  is a blend of rustic provincial charm and European sophistication, located just four minutes from historic Wollombi Village.The farm is set on 100 acres and surrounded by majestic hills and valleys. You can wander through rows of lavender and explore the gardens at your leisure. 2470 lavender plants are currently cultivated, taking up an area of over 1 acre. An exhibition garden also displays a selection of rare and unusual lavender varieties.

The farm also has its own Cafe and Gift shop where you can relax over your cappuccino and browse through their wonderful gift ideas.

Star gazers.....

A view of galaxy NGC 5128
The heavens from Koolang Observatory

Koolang Observatory at Bucketty is where you can reach for the stars.  It is a privately operated, public access, astronomical observatory and space science display centre. They operate most days and nights a week throughout the year.
 
Koolang was designed and built with two purposes in mind - to make science, especially astronomy, more accessible to the general public; and to be a resource for those involved in teaching astronomy to children of all ages - K to 12. Our on-site lessons for school children are curriculum based.

At Koolang Observatory you will find one of the largest public access telescopes in Australia. Their main telescope is a 510mm F5 Newtonian reflector . All of their telescopes are designed for you to look through. They even have telescopes which we can use during the day to observe the nearest star to Earth - the Sun. And if its cloudy you can browse through the display centre or take part in one of our indoor video shows.

The clear air and dark sky will allow you to see the Southern Cross like you've never seen it before; you will see the Coal Sack nebula, the gold colour of gamma Crucis and much more.

Take in a country lane...

The environs of Wollombi offer some spectacular scenery and pleasant drives may be taken within minutes of Capers. For example a drive along Narone Creek Road or Milsons Arm, or a bit further afield why not explore Blaxlands Arm south of Laguna.

If you want to be more adventurous then map out a trip to the Finchley Trig point where on a clear day you can see..........    Not far from the Trig Point you will come across aboriginal rock carvings. By all means explore these wonderful works but please take extra care to protect and preserve them for others to enjoy and wonder at. This trip will take a few hours and is well worth the time.

Another interesting trip is to explore the Great North Road. Head up to Bucketty where you will find extensive works carried out by convict road gangs in the early 1800's. From there you can either head off towards St Albans or back towards Wollombi where you will travel past examples of stonework retaining walls and culverts. Examples of Bridge works are to be found in the Yengo National Park under the guidance of Park Rangers.

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