Australia Day
Tag: Aboriginal
A Beautiful Place
Last Sunday, after enjoying a nice afternoon tea at one of our favourite cafe’s in Picton which is about 15 minutes drive South from where we live, we decided to head out to Lake Burragorang which is part of the Sydney Warragamba Dam Catchment, Sydney’s main water source.
We are so fortunate to have such a majestic and beautiful spot that is only 32 minutes drive away.
Lake Burragorang is a man-made reservoir that was created by a Dam. Unfortunately, to create the reservoir, it was necessary to relocate residents who had lived farming towns in the Burragorang Valley since the early 19th Century. The lands actually belonged to Gundungarra Aboriginal tribe.
Construction of the Warragamba Dam commenced in 1948 and was completed in 1960 and is surrounded by a 3km exclusion zone to ensure the integrity of the water supply. It is sad that such a beautiful spot was created in this way, however, the end result is certainly a jewel to the eye.
My first visit there dated back to the 1980’s when I was just getting into Photography. I’ve been back there with social clubs and with my SLR/DSLR on a number of occasions. It has BBQ facilities, seats, amenities and is a great place for a picnic.
My previous visit was back in 2018, a year before those horrendous bushfires ripped through various parts of the state, including the Burragorang Valley. Even the though a lot of the green has returned in the past year, down in the valley, you can still see clear through to the ground where there is still little or no undergrowth. It will take time, but it will eventually recover.
The only camera I took this time was my phone as I wanted to concentrate on sketching and also writing some Poetry (if the mood captured me). My wife, Susan took her Crotchet with her, and after a brief walk we settled down to enjoy the surroundings for the next 2 1/2 hours.
The light was impressive throughout the afternoon as it danced and highlighted different sections of the landscape intermittently. I felt so relaxed.
I went away with the feeling that ‘I had indeed been away’ and not just been on a Sunday drive. The light, the ambience felt almost Spiritual.
We certainly won’t be leaving as much time between visits next time.
Written by David Johnson
16 February 2021
Sources of Historical information:
https://www.theland.com.au/story/5702018/painting-revives-rich-burragorang-history/ ; https://historyofaboriginalsydney.edu.au/south-west/location/burragorang-valley ; https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-03/how-sydneys-water-needs-drowned-burragorang-valley/9390170
Stories Inspire!
Earthly Rhythms
Canowindra & The Arts!
One of the Towns that we visited whilst we were away recently was Canowindra, which is pronounced ‘ka-NOWN-dra’ and is a Wiradjuri Aboriginal word for ‘Home or Camping Place.’ It is located 307km West of Sydney, Australia.*
It is often referred to as the ‘Balloon Capital of Australia’ due to a Hot Air Balloon Festival that is in held in April every year.*
We stopped in there on the way home from Wyangala Waters and found it to be a delightful town with a small but enchanting main street dotted with many historic buildings and friendly town-folk.
When we are away touring it is a delight to come across the local Art and Craft Gallery or indeed a second-hand bookshop. It’s also good to have a friendly chat with the locals.
We were indeed delighted to come across a display of the Canowindra Arts Society who are currently displaying their creativity in a B & B (Bed & Breakfast) which happens to be in an old two-story Bank building.
They have a wide range of creative ventures on display such as: Oil, Watercolour, Acrylic paintings, Drawing/Sketching, Pottery, Sculpture, Textile and Wood-related Art/Craft.
The Canowindra Arts Society are currently looking for a permanent home (a challenge that a few Art Societies have) to display their Art and Craft and they hope to grow their Society along the way.
If you are visiting Canowindra, make sure you drop in and experience their creativity and have a chat with some friendly locals.
Click on the link below to find out about more of the things that you can see and do in this lovely little Town.
Written by David Johnson
24 November 2018
A Little Town Called Boorowa
Last month, my wife, Susan and I decided to take a short, 5-day break from our small business and head up to Millthorpe and Wyangala Waters State Park in country NSW, Australia.
They are both inside 4 1/2 hours drive from where we live. On the way, we stopped for a picnic lunch in a little town called Boorowa.
‘Boorowa’ (originally called ‘Burrowa) is an Aboriginal word meaning ’Turkey’ and it purportedly comes from the Wiradjuri tribe. It has a population of 1,694 (@ Census 2016) is a tidy, friendly little town with a lovely picnic spot beside a small river.
As I like to do, I had a chat with a couple of the locals and took a wander around the streets. One store we went into was a second-hand bookstore that was connected to an Op-Shop (charity store). The lady there told me that in the space of 12 months that (from sales), they were able to donate $26,000.00 to 10 charities in the area. Pretty impressive from such a small town.
It was a very hot day so in terms of ‘optimum photographic light’ the light was quite harsh so I took a few images on my phone and only a couple on my DSLR. There were a couple of buildings that I wanted to sketch/paint later so I took a few reference photos of them.
We enjoyed our brief stay in Boorowa. A picnic by the river and some time spent in a small country town is the perfect way to recharge when on a driving holiday.
For further information on Boorowa, visit the link below.
Written by David Johnson
Communicating Creatively 