The South West Wander was attended by 31 Mokes in total on the day. The weather was great and we managed to visit all of the places we had planned.
Leaving Shepparton, we convoyed out of town and through the fruit growing outskirts, travelling to Rushworth via Tatura. A short stop at the Waranga Basin was a reminder of the importance to the region of the Goulburn Valley Irrigation Network for supplying water to the region for over 100 years.
The visit to the Working Horse Muster at Moora was an opportunity to see horses and farming practises from days gone by and also the Mokes were lined up to create some interest for the locals.
Our lunch stop in the Whroo Historic Reserve was preceded by a short , dusty drive through the Rushworth State Forest. After lunch the opportunity to go for a wander around this former gold mining town, once home to over 2000 people.
Not much remains of Whroo these days apart from the plantings of non-indigenous trees as a guide where houses once were. A tour down into the Open Cut Gold Mine was popular before we hit the road again. A quick stop to check out a horse drawn 'puddling machine' before we were back on the bitumen heading south to the Goulburn Weir.
The highlight of this leg of the trip was the crossing of the Goulburn River along the historic Kirwan's Bridge. A 310 Metre long timber bridge, built in 1890, for one way traffic, with a couple of passing lanes.
From here it was on to the Goulburn Weir Reserve and an opportunity to walk across the Wall and inspect this gigantic, historic structure. Then, back on the road for the final leg to Shepparton, arriving around 5.00pm.
Thanks to all who attended. The convoy procedure was well executed. We had some fun and saw some interesting sights. Special thanks to Chris, Doug and Ina for their filming efforts. The Trip can be seen on VIC MOKE the MOA YouTube channel. Click the image below to see the video.
Till next time...
Mark 180L