This was published 9 years ago
Swan Hill, Victoria: Travel guide and things to do
Couple walking across the Murray River at Pioneer Settlement in Swan Hill, The MurrayCredit: Robert Blackburn
Swan Hill is a well laid out city of some 10 000 people with a pleasant, garden-like main street, located at the eastern edge of the Mallee area in north-western Victoria. Here the Murray River meets the Little Murray River. Together they denote the eastern boundary of the settlement. The Murray proper forms the border with NSW and, as the town's Giant Murray Cod indicates, the river provides good opportunities for fishing, as well as boating and water sports. In all it extends 2530 km from north-eastern Victoria to the coast of South Australia, making it one of the longest navigable rivers in the world with a catchment area covering 14 per cent of the continent.
Swan Hill is 344 km north-west of Melbourne on the Murray Valley Highway and 70 m above sea-level. Its large saleyards indicate its role as a market centre for part of NSW's Riverina district, although irrigation has also led to the production, in the shire, of wheat, wool, citrus fruits, grapes, wine, dairy products, fat stock, fodder crops and maize. Local manufacturing centres on farm machinery.
Prior to European settlement the area is thought to have been occupied by the Wemba-wemba Aboriginal people. Surveyor and explorer, Thomas Mitchell, camped here in 1836 and gave the site its current European name. In his journal he writes of a 'shallow lagoon, where swans and other wild fowl so abounded that, although half a mile from our camp, their noise disturbed us through the night. I, therefore, named this somewhat remarkable and isolated feature, Swan-hill'. The Beveridge brothers established 'Tyntynder', the first European property in the district, around 1846.
A punt began operating at Swan Hill in 1847. It was the only point at which the Murray could be crossed within 160 km and this would remain the case until the 1930s. When the first punt sank the wood was salvaged and used to build the town's first hotel.
In 1853 Swan Hill was visited by Francis Cadell who here concluded a rather famous steamship voyage from the mouth of the Murray. Despite popular claim it was not the first such voyage but it did herald the start of the inland river trade and Swan Hill became the first major inland port. A wharf was built and remained in use until the 1920s (the remnants can still be seen on the riverbank along with a photograph and explanation plaque).
Swan Hill became a municipality in 1871. The river trade declined with the growth of the railways but the town received a new lease of life when the Mallee was cleared and developed for agricultural purposes. It became a borough in 1939 and a city in 1965.
The town hosts the Red Gum Festival in March, the Racing Cup Carnival in June, the Italian Fiesta and Fireworks in mid-July, the Inland Irrigated Wine Show in October and the Swan Hill Agricultural and Pastoral Show on the first Friday and Saturday of October.
Things to see
Tourist Information
Visitors can garner local information at the Swan Hill Development and Information Centre at 306 Campbell St which is open weekdays from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. and on Saturday from 10.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m., tel: (03) 5032 3033, or, toll-free, 1800 625 373.
Pioneer Settlement
Just before you cross the bridge over the Murray into NSW, Monash Drive veers off to the right, heading south past the pleasant environs of Riverside Park (where there are picnic and barbecue facilities), the railway station and turntable, and the river junction. It then follows the course of the Little Murray River as the main river veers eastwards.
Just past the railway station, at Horseshoe Bend, is the Swan Hill Pioneer Settlement, an open-air historical museum which covers 4 ha on the banks of the Little Murray. Australia's first such display, it is, essentially, a reconstruction of a 19th-century river port town. To that end, all employees are dressed in period attire. Kangaroos and peacocks stroll around the complex while sheep and goats are tethered. There are several picnic areas, including one at Pental Island, reached by a small bridge.
Authentic streets and buildings have been recreated in the 'Horseshoe Bend Township'. The Stereoscopic Theatre (1895) was an entertainment venue in the late 19th century. It creates a three-dimensional impression when pictures within the large cylindrical chamber are viewed through special binoculars. There is a Masonic hall displaying the arcana of Masonic rituals, a replica coach-house (c.1860) with shingle roof, stub floor and drop-log walls, a drop-log post office which is still in use, a general store, an old-time photographic studio, a newspaper office and printery from Ballarat which is still functioning and one of the country's first prefabricated iron houses (1854), shipped to Australia when the goldrushes led to a population surge. Towanninie homestead's outbuildings include a mallee-stump stable, a mud-brick kitchen and log cabin.
Equipment includes vintage cars, an old locomotive, carriages, trucks and buggies and there are free horse-drawn wagon rides. Moreover, activities such as baking, blacksmithing, pottery, woodturning, printing, damper-making, saddlery and chaff-cutting are all carried out in the traditional manner with traditional equipment. The 45-minute Sound and Light Tour is conducted through the complex in a small vehicle at dusk each day. Music, theatre, lighting and dialogue are used to illustrate aspects of the past.
The entry point is through the paddlesteamer PS Gem (1876) which also contains a restaurant, open in the evenings. When operational it covered 1100 km a week fromMorgan in South Australia to Mildura.
One-hour Murray River cruises depart daily at 10.30 a.m. and 2.30 p.m. from Horseshoe Bend on board the PS Pyap (1896). Participants are provided with a river map pointing out physical and historic features such as the 1836 campsite of Thomas Mitchell.
In all this popular complex is one of the better examples of its type. It is open daily from 8.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m., tel: (03) 5032 1093.
The Kookaburra
Luncheon Cruises of the Murray, taking in the Murray Downs homestead, are also conducted every day but Monday from 12.30 p.m. to 2.00 p.m. on the M.V. Kookaburra, tel: (03) 5032 0003 (they have houseboats for hire).
Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery
At the southern end of Horseshoe Bend is the Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery. It is open weekdays from 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. and from 2.00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m. on weekends and public holidays, tel: (03) 5032 1403.
Dowling House Art-and-Craft Centre
Around the corner, at the intersection of Campbell St (the highway) and Gray St, is Dowling House, an old timber building transported from Kyneton in 1916. It is currently used for the display of local arts and crafts. It is open daily from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Riverside Park
This pleasant park by the Murray (off Monash Drive) has picnic, barbecue and bike-hire facilities. The cairn marks the approximate site where Major Mitchell, the first European in the area, camped in 1836. Disturbed by the sound of wildfowl in the night he named it Swan Hill.
The Bridge, Tower and Federal Hotel
The bridge, built in 1896, was the first lift-span bridge on the Murray (note the large counterbalancing weights). The central span is lifted to allow passage to paddlesteamers. The old water tower adjacent the bridge was built in 1883 and served as the town's first water supply. Just over the bridge, on the Moulamein Rd, is the Federal Hotel (1889).
Burke and Wills Tree
The Burke and Wills Tree is a beautiful and enormous Moreton Bay fig which was planted from a seed by a Dr Gummow who played host to the explorers when they passed through the town in 1860 on their ill-fated excursion to the centre of Australia. The tree, arguably the largest of its kind in the country, is in Curlewis St, opposite the bowling green.
Adjacent, on the McCallum St corner, is the old National Bank (1888), recently restored to its original colours by a firm of local solicitors.
Giant Murray Cod
11 m long and 6 m wide, the 'cod' signifies the local popularity of fishing on the Murray. It is located in Curlewis St, adjacent the railway station. Children can sit inside the mouth of this old movie prop for a photograph.
Murray Downs
2 km east of town, on the Moulamein Rd, is the historic property and homestead of Murray Downs, established in the 1840s. Burke and Wills left a sick camel here in 1860 during their ill-fated excursion into the centre of Australia. Suetonius Officer, a well-read philanthropist, pioneer irrigator and prominent figure in the development of the area, bought the station and built the current homestead in 1866. He introduced pumps, initially operated by horses and windmills and later by steam, and established fields of lucerne, maize and oranges. Ostriches were a subsequent addition. The property was semi-autonomous with its own bakery, blacksmith and 50 employees who gathered in the homestead for church services.
In 1884 the property was bought by businessman and philanthropist Alfred Felton whose will established an enormous trust fund for charities and for the purchase of artworks by the National Gallery of Victoria.
The homestead is built largely of Murray Pine, the sap of which repels termites. It is surrounded by large formal gardens and the fort-like design was to afford maximum protection against Aborigines. There is an animal park with ostriches, deer, pheasants, peacocks, wallabies and kangaroos, a craft shop and Devonshire teas are available, tel: (03) 5032 1225. The admission fee includes an interesting one-hour tour.
Hilltop Resort Fauna Park
Just north of town, on the Murray Valley Highway, this fauna park is part of a resort complex but can be visited by non-residents. There is a range of animals on display in a walk-through enclosure. You can feed the animals and enjoy a train ride around the perimeter, tel: (03) 5032 1515.
Buller's Winery
14 km north of Swan Hill, on the Murray Valley Highway, is Buller's Winery at Beverford. Established in 1952 it produces a wide range of table and fortified wines and is open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. weekdays and from 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. on weekends, school holidays and long weekends, tel: (02) 6032 9660
Tyntynder Homestead
'Tyntyndyer' (Aboriginal for 'song of birds'), the area's first European property, once covered 78 000 ha, stretching for 50 km along the Murray River. The homestead, set beside the river, was the first brick veneer homestead in the country. The original log structure (1846) was covered in 1850. The building is classified by the National Trust and is now owned by the local Aboriginal community who conduct guided tours explaining their perspective of the property and its landscape. There is a museum display of colonial-era items and Aboriginal artefacts. An admission fee is charged.
The gates of Tyntynder are located 17 km north of town on the Murray Valley Highway, just north of Beverford. It is open from 9.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. from Wednesday to Sunday, tel: (03) 5037 6506.
The Pheasant Farm
20 000 pheasants, including a number of purely ornamental species, and 5000 guinea fowl wander around on this free-range commercial farm. If you wish to visit they are open daily and have a kiosk serving refreshments. The entry fee is currently $6 for adults, $5 for pensioners, $3.50 for children, $16 for a family and $4.50 per person for larger groups. The farm is 33 km north-west of Swan Hill. Head north on the Murray Valley Highway for 10 km then turn left onto the Chillingollah Rd and it is another 23 km.
Raymer's Gardens
10 km north-west of Swan Hill post office, in Church Rd at Woorinen (pronounced 'woo-ri-neen'), is Raymer's where, for $2.50, you can inspect the gardens (complementary tea or coffee). There is also a large nursery. Woorinen Rd runs off the Swan Hill-Sea Lake Rd (an extension of McCallum) St on the western side of town.
Lake Boga
Lake Boga, 17 km south, adjacent the Murray Valley Highway, is a popular spot for swimming, fishing, picnicking and sailing. On the highway beside the lake is a restored Cannie Ridge Steam Pump used for pumping water into irrigation channels from 1904-1952. The Lake Boga Yacht Club Easter Regatta is held at Easter-time.
Lake Boga Flying Boat Museum
At Jacaranda Crescent in Lake Boga township a Catalina flying boat marks the site of the museum which is located in an old bunker built in World War II. It recalls the occasion in World War II when a Flying Boat Repair Depot operated at Lake Boga. The museum has an interactive map display, memorabilia and photographs. It is open from 9.30 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. daily, tel: (03) 5037 2850.
Other attractions are the Imperial Egg Gallery at the Catalina Motel which has over 100 jewelled, carved and painted eggs (03 5037 2790), and the Von Glass and Craft Shop in Kerang St which specialises in stained glasswork and decorative boxes, tel: (03) 5037 2580.
Best's Wines
Best's Wines, established by the Thomson family in 1930 (see entry on Great Western), produces a large range of table wines and fortifieds. The cellar door is open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. on weekdays and 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. on Saturdays and public holidays. During long weekends only the winery opens on Sundays from 12.00 p.m. to 4.00 p.m. There are picnic facilities.
They are 5 km off the Murray Valley Highway in Wilson Road. Keep your eyes peeled for the winery sign. It is on the left-hand side of the highway if you are heading south in the built-up area of Lake Boga township, tel: (03) 5037 2154.
Lakes Kangaroo and Charm
Lake Kangaroo and Lake Charm are popular water skiing lagoons located south of Lake Boga on the Murray Valley Highway. For further information see entry on Kerang.
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