Brushstrokes of the Bush
Days:
7 Days
Activity:
2. Moderate
Transport:
Drive
$2,995.00
Tour description
Discover the stories, creativity and character of regional New South Wales on Brushstrokes of the Bush, a colourful seven day journey celebrating spectacular silo art, murals, country communities and fascinating local history.Travelling from Sydney through the Blue Mountains, our journey takes us to Portland, where towering former cement works silos have been transformed with vibrant artwork celebrating the town’s industrial heritage. From here, we continue through the Central West, discovering remarkable public artworks in Murrumburrah, Grenfell and Eugowra, each telling stories of the people, landscapes and events that have shaped their communities.Our time in Cowra combines art with history and culture as we discover the town’s water tank artwork, former Prisoner of War Camp, POW Theatre, beautiful Japanese Garden and fascinating Heritage Rail Depot. The journey then continues through Molong, Wellington, historic Gulgong and Dunedoo before reaching Tamworth.More impressive artworks await in Barraba, where the magnificent Water Diviner silo mural towers over the landscape, and Gunnedah, home to murals celebrating Indigenous heritage, farming life and Dorothea Mackellar. We also experience Tamworth’s country music heritage before travelling through Quirindi and Merriwa to the beautiful Hunter Valley.Our final day combines chocolate tasting, Kurri Kurri’s remarkable collection of more than 60 murals and historic Fort Scratchley in Newcastle. With comfortable accommodation, meals, sightseeing and luxury coach travel as listed, this is a wonderful celebration of art, history and country Australia.
Tour Highlights
• Discover spectacular silo art and murals throughout regional NSW
• See Portland’s beautifully restored silo artworks
• View the First Australian Light Horse silo mural at Murrumburrah
• Admire Grenfell’s striking native bird and landscape silos
• Explore Eugowra’s colourful collection of murals
• Discover Cowra’s fascinating POW history and water tank artwork
• Visit the beautiful Cowra Japanese Garden
• Guided tour of Cowra’s Heritage Rail Depot
• Explore historic Gulgong and its fascinating museum
• See Dunedoo’s impressive silo mural
• Experience Barraba’s famous Water Diviner silo mural by Fintan Magee
• Discover Gunnedah’s murals celebrating local heritage and rural life
• Visit Tamworth’s Golden Guitar Museum
• See Quirindi’s colourful silo artwork
• View Merriwa’s much loved Dancing Merinos
• Enjoy a relaxed Hunter Valley wine tasting
• Morning tea and chocolate tasting in the Hunter Valley
• Explore more than 60 murals in Kurri Kurri
• Guided tour of historic Fort Scratchley in Newcastle
• Luxury coach travel, accommodation, experiences and meals as listed in the itinerary
Itinerary
We begin our journey in Sydney and travel through the Blue Mountains, stopping at Mt Tomah for morning tea among cool-climate gardens. After lunch in Lithgow, we continue to Portland to admire its beautifully restored silos, once part of the town’s historic cement works. These towering canvases now feature vibrant murals celebrating local workers and community spirit, marking Portland as an early pioneer in regional silo art..
The afternoon takes us deeper into regional NSW as we continue to Cowra, where we settle into our motel and enjoy dinner together.
Overnight: Club Cowra Motel- 3 Star- (02 6341 1999) Meals Included: Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast, we travel to Murrumburrah, where we enjoy morning tea at George Coddington Park before viewing the impressive First Australian Light Horse silo mural. We then continue to Grenfell to admire the striking painted silo artwork depicting native birds and landscapes, followed by lunch in the heart of town. This afternoon, we explore Eugowra’s colourful collection of murals, discovering stories of local history, bushrangers and community resilience as we wander through the town. We then return to Cowra to relax before dinner.
Overnight: Club Cowra Motel Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
Today we enjoy a guided tour of Cowra, discovering the town’s rich history, including the impressive water tank artwork and the site of the former Prisoner of War Camp. After morning tea in the beautiful Rose Gardens, we experience the moving POW Theatre at the Cowra Visitor Information Centre, where we learn about the 1944 breakout and the remarkable story of reconciliation that followed. We then enjoy lunch at the Japanese Garden Café, with time to wander through the tranquil Japanese Garden before a guided tour of Cowra’s Heritage Rail Depot, showcasing beautifully restored locomotives and the region’s railway heritage.
Overnight: Club Cowra Motel Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast, we farewell Cowra and travel to Molong to admire the striking water tank artwork celebrating local history and community spirit. We continue to Wellington for morning tea before arriving in the historic gold-rush town of Gulgong. Here, we visit the fascinating Gulgong Museum, where a diverse collection of exhibits brings the town’s rich pioneering, mining and rural heritage to life. After lunch, we travel to Dunedoo to view its impressive silo mural before continuing to Tamworth, where we settle into our accommodation before dinner.
Overnight: Best Western All Settlers Tamworth- 4 Star- (02 6762 1566) Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast, we travel to Barraba, home to the impressive “Water Diviner” silo mural created by internationally acclaimed artist Fintan Magee. Towering over the landscape, it depicts themes of drought, resilience and the deep relationship between locals and the land. In Gunnedah, we admire a collection of murals and silo artworks that celebrate Indigenous heritage, farming life and poet Dorothea Mackellar. After lunch, we return to Tamworth for a town tour and a visit to the Golden Guitar Museum, where we explore Australia’s rich country music heritage, before enjoying dinner together.
Overnight: Best Western All Settlers Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Today takes us to Quirindi to admire its brightly coloured silo mural celebrating the region’s sunflowers, farming landscapes and local identities, enjoyed alongside morning tea. In Merriwa, we view its striking “Dancing Merinos” artwork, a playful and much-loved depiction of sheep wearing red socks. After lunch, we travel into the Hunter Valley for a relaxed wine tasting set among vineyard scenery. We settle into our accommodation and enjoy dinner in the heart of wine country.
Overnight: Mercure Hunter Valley- 4 Star – (02 4998 2000) Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast, we enjoy morning tea and a delicious chocolate tasting at Hunter Valley Chocolates before departing for Kurri Kurri. Here, we explore the town’s remarkable collection of more than 60 murals, with colourful artworks depicting local history, notable characters and community life. We then continue to Newcastle for lunch on the waterfront before visiting historic Fort Scratchley, where a guided tour reveals the fascinating stories of this coastal fortress and its role in defending the city. We then begin our journey back to Sydney, arriving home late this afternoon.
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch
Activity Levels
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1. Easy
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2. Moderate
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3. Active Moderate
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4. Adventurous
Testimonials
Dear John and Kerry, Debbie and Steve, thank you all so much at On Course Tours for the hugely successful and absolutely wonderful trip to South Australia. Tricia and I loved every moment and were amazed and delighted by how much South Australia has to offer in so very many ways, food especially and of course very many superb wines and wineries – topped off, as John rightly said, by Max’s selection of a delightful crowd of good club friends! John, you and On Course Tours are certainly a class act. You always try very hard, and you succeed, in going that ‘extra mile’. We could not have had better service, right from being picked up at the gate by Kerry, then enjoying your nearly 4,000km of safe, always careful but wonderfully exploratory driving, your delicious picnic provisioning, your excellent selection of accommodation and eateries and your very broad knowledge of all we saw, right thorough to being delivered safely home last night. With our best wishes and so many thanks to you all at On Course Tours for another truly wonderful holiday. We look forward with keen anticipation to the next!
Tricia and Martin
Re Lord Howe Island Tour. Dear Kerry, we would like to thank everyone in your office, and particularly you for your guidance around getting us safely to and back home from the island. The itinerary covered just about all that anyone in our age group could reasonably do, and everything was marvelous, including of course, your nibbles and drinks overlooking in the lagoon. We consider this to be our best short tour and have already recommended it to some of our friends, that, if they want to go to the island, they should contact Oncourse about the time you will have future tours. With best wishes, and many thanks.
