WHEN it comes to classic country shows, Clunes is right up there.
Coming up Saturday, November 19, the Clunes Show is a calendar
highlight for locals and those who love a genuine country show.
This time celebrating its 160th anniversary, this little ripper of a show delivers on
that vibe in spades. There’s something for everyone on a program that features wood
chopping, tug of warring, ladies’ wood splitting, gumboot throwing, keg tossing,
dog jumping, ferret racing, live music, local food and wine and even an inaugural
strongman exhibition.
That’s just a bit of a taster, as the line-up also features all of those other show day
classics – equestrian ring events, livestock and primary produce, home crafts, baking,
and the Clunes Bute Ute comp that’s celebrating its 25th anniversary.
“I think we’ve just got a fantastic committee,” society president Jenny Redpath
said. “Our members range from their early 20s to their 80s so you’ve got your
knowledge there but also new ideas. We like to keep the traditions – from the horses
to the crafts, knitting, and baking, and the stock all on show. This year we’ve also got
the Midland Axemen coming to do a couple of demos for us.
“And we’re having a strongman event which will involve pulling a tractor. It’s for
different ages, male and female, and different weight categories. One of our local boys
has put it together and it’s linking in with some of the gyms in Ballarat.”
Jenny says that while a lot of the crowd-pleasing activities for which the Clunes
show is loved have been there “for as long as I can remember” this year’s strongman
demo and virtual reality header simulator are just two of several new attractions.
Marking the 160th anniversary also makes this year’s show a special one, with
an anniversary timeline produced by Clunes historian Robert Campbell, noting a
highlight for each year of the event since its earliest beginnings with a ploughing
match way back in 1858. There’s also a newly produced book acknowledging past and
present members available to purchase on show day.
Show day is also a chance to support both the Clunes Fire Brigade and the Clunes
Cricket Club which will join forces to offer breakfast from 7am.
Link: www.clunesshow.com.au | Words: Eve Lamb

THE Daylesford Show, on Saturday,
November 26, will again feature
an exhibition of the work of local
people who are proud to show off what
they have produced in the past 12 months,
or perhaps three years.
Show president Don Harvey said many
people were prepared to enter their work
into one of the numerous classes available to
compete against their neighbours and other
artisans, and see their work displayed in public
and judged both by the show-appointed judges and the public.
“Some people frown a bit on competition these days,” Don said. “But let us hope
that anybody who bakes a cake, or makes a nice quilt, or knits a nice beanie or grows
some beautiful flowers can walk around the showgrounds on the day thinking ‘I am a
winner and the rest of the town can see my name on a blue first prize certificate or a
red one for second prize’.”
Don said the show committee expected more than 120 sheep to be judged with
almost as many entries in the poultry pavilion and about 300 horses and more than
400 dogs.
“In these classes we have animals that represent months and often years of very
careful husbandry by loving but often intensely competitive owners. There will also be
cookery and other homecrafts and photography to see in the football pavilion along
with flowers, vegetables and floral art in the table tennis pavilion. Children’s art and
musical performers will be in the newly renovated Tom Ford Pavilion.
“In all of these competitions there will be proud owners or proud makers or
proud bakers or growers who are quite happy to talk about why it means so much to
them to compete and show, and we encourage anybody who thinks they could easily
enjoy even a small victory to talk to these local experts about what they like about
showing their wares.
“Daylesford people have been doing this for over 160 years now so there must be
something in that which people enjoy.”
Entries close on Friday, November 18 and everything must be at the show ready
for judging to start on Friday, November 25.
Don said the show would have local and statewide showmen and foodstalls but
the essence of small country shows was competition “and let’s hope it stays that way
for quite a while in the future”.
“Your first step into this local competition takes only a bit of research and your
own enthusiasm.”
Show schedules are now available in a number of places around town or head to
www.daylesfordshow.com to find a section in which you can show your work off
Words: Contributed | Show images: Samantha Moore

Crispy-skinned salmon
I know the weather is still cold and wet in our little world-of-its-own
microclimate (how often have you driven out of the foggy, drizzling highlands
towards Melbourne to discover that it’s actually sunny down there?), but surely it is
time for some lighter dishes on the menu after a steady diet of steaming casseroles and
rib-sticking winter stews.
I have finally discovered a failsafe method of cooking salmon with a delightfully
crispy skin. You must try this. It is super easy and takes about ten minutes.
Dry the salmon fillets with a paper towel. If you have time, leave the salmon in
the fridge on a plate for an hour to help dry it out, but don’t worry too much if you
don’t.
Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the skin of the salmon and sprinkle
the skin with sea salt. Place the fish in a cold frying pan that will fit the fillets
comfortably, skin side down. I use a cast iron pan that has good, even heat.
Turn the heat to medium high and let the salmon cook, undisturbed, for about
six minutes. Wait until the salmon is about three-quarters cooked; you will be able
to see the flesh changing to an opaque colour. Turn the heat down a fraction if it is
getting too hot. Nudge the salmon gently with some tongs, and if the skin sticks to
the pan leave it for a minute or so more before flipping it over for another minute or
so to cook the other side.
Serve immediately with the skin side up with some lemon to squeeze. It really
doesn’t need anything else, except some side veggies (or a salad if you want to buy a
lettuce that is probably more expensive than the salmon).

THE 2022 Daylesford Rotary Art Show closed last Tuesday, with 182
artworks on show by 78 artists, after what was months of planning
and hard work.

The show, run by a sub-committee of the Daylesford
Rotary Club, is one of the club’s significant fundraising events for the year.
The funds raised go directly back to the community in the form of donations and
community events and projects.
This is the first year Rotary have engaged someone outside the club to coordinate
the event, as it has become nearly a ‘fulltime job’. I could not have managed without
the help of the committee which itself is made up of a number of generous minded
community members. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank just a few. Having
spent many months preparing for the show and working tirelessly in the search for
sponsorship from the business community. Jenny Hopkins has proven herself to be a
force to be reckoned with. She did everything including planning the event, sourcing
the goods for the auctions and raffle and organising the opening night speeches.
Many sleepless nights were had, trying hard to cover all the bases, all done with a
broken leg the whole time.
If you came to see the show on any day over the long weekend you would have
met Alan Harrison, who spent the entire duration of install, through to pack-down,
working tirelessly. Carting screens, installing artworks and lights, selling paintings
and generally being an awesome fellow. Alongside Alan were Koos Hulst, and Terri
Oprean, who together ran the Bendigo Bank Bar on the opening night. They also
contributed to the many other tasks of running the art show including hours of
painting, moving, and planning.
We’d also like to thank Brian Nash and Roberta Donnelly, who, over many years,
have contributed to the art show, this year is no exception. They created a beautiful
entry to the art show, decorating it with their plants and paintings. Brian also
generously donated the first prize in the art show raffle, a local landscape.
The winners were: first prize, donated by Blooms Pharmacy: Gwenda McDougall

Forget Me Not; second prize, donated by Rotary trio (Daylesford Rotary,
Greenwood Strategy & Birches Daylesford): Yvonne de Valle – Gatehouse Humffray
Street; and third prize, donated by Daylesford Meat Co: Paul Ainsworth – Tonka
Barbie.
The youth prize, in its inaugural year, supported by Biggin Scott Real Estate,
was won by Gem Williamson from Woodend for her piece, Douglas, a beautifully
executed drawing of a pigeon.
The People’s Choice award went to Denis Sonogan with his painstakingly
executed Old Barwon Heads Bridge, now on display at Bendigo Bank.
Head over to the Daylesford Art Show website to see the 2022 winners along with
all other entries.
Words: Fiona Morgan, Daylesford Art Show administrator

As this will be the last piece I write in this Mayoral term, I thought I should reflect on
some of the achievements and challenges of the past year.

It has, as I have mentioned on several
occasions, been a difficult year for many people
as we emerge from the extended stresses of
the COVID pandemic and the trauma of three
major storm events in the Shire. Combined with
rising interest rates and cost of living pressures,
2022 has presented its fair share of painful
experiences, which for many continue to be a
daily feature. However, without diminishing the place of grief in this
year, I’d like to focus a sense of gratitude I feel at the same time.
I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to be Mayor and to
serve the Hepburn Shire community during this difficult time. I have
been very lucky to have met and been invited to join with so many
incredible local community groups and individuals. It has been a
privilege to have shared in their stories, got to better understand
their histories, and challenges and to have grown with them as a
result. It has also been an honour to stand up and advocate for
these same people, to challenge myself to become a better leader
and to cherish the gifts of being enmeshed and engaged in the lives
of people in my local community. Together, I think we can be proud
that coming out the other side of this year, there is a sense that we
may be collectively a little stronger, a bit better prepared, and that a
sense of renewal, and a new identity may be forming out of all the
change and uncertainty. I have also gathered greater respect and
appreciation for the beauty and power of the land and place I call
home and to want to continue to heal this upside-down country in
partnership with our Dja Dja Wurrung First Nations custodians.
Just in this past week, I have been fortunate to celebrate in several
community success stories including the Sustainable Hepburn
Expo in Trentham, two community art shows in Daylesford and
Creswick, Clunes Landcare and Waterways Group Commemorative
Queen’s Jubilee event, been part of a Glenlyon Recreation
Reserve Masterplan session and attended the opening of Kingston
Remembers event in Kingston. I am thrilled and love that in these
last weeks of my Mayoral term I have been able to be so directly
involved in community life. I encourage you all to be kind to
yourselves and others through these unprecedented times and
to reach out for help and to lend a hand if you can. We all have
a meaningful part to play in shaping more sustainable future
pathways, both physically and spiritually, in this wonderful part of
the world we call the Hepburn Shire. I’d also like to thank my fellow
Councillor colleagues, CEO Bradley Thomas, and all the incredibly
hardworking and dedicated staff of Hepburn Shire Council who have
all been there on this journey, through thick and thin, over the past
year.
Cr Tim Drylie
COUNCIL PLA

The final of the Christ Church concerts will feature the Daylesford
Community Brass Band with their Beyond concert on Saturday, November 19
at 2.30pm at Christ Church Anglican, 54 Central Springs Road, Daylesford.
Musical director is Mark Lyall, deputy is Sue Morris and artistic director is Jenny
Jordan. Beyond is a celebration of music’s power of transportation. Concert goers
are invited to come on a journey with the band through space, time, and the most
intimate of destinations: themselves.
Beyond draws inspiration from film and television, as well as literary works that
have touched many people in their formative years.
Brass banding in Daylesford has a long history, with the first band being formed
in 1862. Now known as the Daylesford Community Brass Band, they proudly
provide entertainment and musical education around the Daylesford area.
Current members range in age from early twenties to eighties and with 160
years of history in the community the band is much loved and a feature at all key
public events from street parades to annual war commemoration services, Christmas
and Town Hall-themed events. This relationship with the public drives the band’s
commitment to performing and honours its long commitment to their community.
Tickets from www.trybooking.com

A QUIZ night at Daylesford’s Victoria Park Pavilion offers a chance
to not only flaunt your general knowledge – or complete lack of it –
while raising vital funds for the Hepburn Wildlife Shelter.
Organised by wildlife rescuer, Kristina Forbes, pictured, the trivia night will get
started from 6pm this Saturday, November 12 and is open to all.
“The shelter is hoping to raise money for a vet therapy laser machine which costs
$8000,” said Kristina, a Castlemaine-based wildlife rescuer.
Kristina said that being able to secure the therapy laser machine would give the
shelter a greater capacity to manage pain and heal wounds in injured wildlife.
“I am a wildlife rescuer and have seen firsthand the amazing work Gayle, Jon and
a small group of volunteers do at the shelter.
“I’m absolutely amazed at the selfless dedication Gayle and Jon have – caring,
rehabilitating and helping sick, injured and orphaned wildlife.
“I and other wildlife rescuers are taking many animals down to the shelter from
Castlemaine and surrounding areas.
“We take kangaroos which have been caught in a fence, birds hit by cars, joeys
where mum has been hit by a car and they are now orphaned, and animals that have
been found on the ground by a member of the public.
“What makes Hepburn Wildlife Shelter different from the others is that they take
in all types of Australian wildlife including kangaroos, koalas, lizards, birds, possums,
sugar gliders, echidnas, turtles and bats.
“For anyone who has had children, they know about nightly feeds. Gayle has
been doing this for over 20 years, feeding kangaroo joeys, wombats, echidnas and
birds at all hours of the morning. They truly are amazing people. I call them wildlife
heroes.”
Kristina said the quiz night promised to be a lot of fun with questions ranging
over general knowledge areas like music and sport, with some attractive prizes up for
grabs.
“All the items have been very kindly donated to help support this worthy cause.”
The evening will also feature a silent auction enabling those who get along to bid
for a B&B voucher and artworks including a valuable piece created especially for the
event by local multimedia artist, Tahlia Stanton.
Doors open at 5.30pm for a 6pm start. Entry is $25.
Link: www.trybooking.com/CCTRS
Words: Eve Lamb
Wildlife fundraiser
“They truly are
amazing people.
I call them
wildlife heroes.”

The Convent at Daylesford has been chosen to host the Brandenburg
Orchestra, which will perform its Baroque Fusions in the chapel on
November 17 at 5.30pm and 7.30pm. The event is free but ticketed.
Baroque Fusions is about French elegance, Italian passion and German rigour.
Musicians include Mikaela Oberg (baroque flute), Timothy Willis (baroque violin),
Shane Lestideau (baroque violin) Monique O’Dea (baroque viola), Jamie Hey
(baroque cello), Tommie Andersson (gallichon, theorbo & baroque guitar) and
Nicholas Pollock (theorbo & baroque guitar).
Bookings on 1300 782 856 or www.brandenburg.com.au

The much-anticipated Romsey Ecotherapy Park was officially opened to the community on
Wednesday, October 26.
In attendance at the opening were the Hon Mary-Anne Thomas MP, State Member for Macedon,
representatives of Macedon Ranges Shire Council including Mayor Cr Jennifer Anderson, and
members of the Romsey Ecotherapy Park Inc committee who championed delivery of the
park over 14 years.
Constructed over three stages, the Romsey Ecotherapy Park is the result of a community-led initiative
by the REP to build an inviting and accessible recreational open space for people of all ages and
abilities to enjoy a unique sensory and therapeutic experience through engagement with nature.
The park consists of an active nature space with a cubby house and nature-based play elements, a
climbing forest, a ropes course, lookouts and a climbing net. It also includes an events space with
picnic and BBQ facilities, an area showcasing several artistic features, a sensory garden, a ‘woodland
ramble’, a hut-building frame and on-street parking to make it easy to access the park.
The total cost of the project was $2,737,000, with funding received from Regional Development
Victoria ($1,333,000), Macedon Ranges Shire Council ($996,000), the Australian Government
($215,000), Romsey Ecotherapy Park Inc. (113,000 + Art in the Park), and Lancefield Romsey
Community Bank (Bendigo Bank) ($80,000).

After a Covid hiatus, Trentham’s Twilight Night is back!
Held on Friday, November 25 from 4.30pm to 8.30pm, with the theme of Eat,
Drink, Shop, Celebrate, the event really does have something for everyone.
There will be a selection of food and wine from all your favourite cafes and
restaurants, music and entertainment from the Trentham Singers, Trentham Primary
School and local teenagers, lighting of the Christmas Tree in the Sqaure, a Santa
photo booth and elfs.
Making sure your Christmas shopping is done and dusted nice and early, the
shops will remain open, along with market stalls and there is even a wrapping station
ready to help with that pesky paper and sticky tape.
Keeping the kids happy is a “12 Days of Christmas” wombat treasure hunt with a
gift bag for everyone at the end – with goodies from local traders.
And don’t forget to vote for your favourite Christmas window!
The Twilight Market was started by The Green Store’s Kasie Watson in 2017 and
was gaining momentum when Covid hit, followed by last year’s June storm and then
the coldest winter in memory this year.
To get it back on its feet and celebrate community again, the market and
surrounding events have been taken on in a joint partnership by Hepburn Shire
Council and Community Bank Trentham & Districts. See you there!

THE Mount Macedon Realty: Wooling Hill Run 2022 has been run but
it’s not yet done raising funds for Kyneton Health’s palliative care in
the home service.
The community was invited to visit the grounds of the Wooling Hill Memorial
Estate to run, walk or wheel the all-abilities course from October 1-30. Locals
Hayden Walsh and Erin McMahon showed their support of the event by creating
their own crowdraisers and getting out on the track.
Central Highlands Rural Health’s board member Karen O’Sullivan celebrated
the final day of the event and congratulated the award winners with Troy and Liddy
Upfield, owners of the estate. Awards were presented for the most funds raised, fastest
lap, most laps and fastest wheeler for wheelchair participants.
Troy and Liddy said the current total raised by the event so far was over $16.5K
and they are accepting donations to the Mount Macedon Realty: Wooling Hill Run
2022 until November 13. Head to www.givenow.com.au/woolinghillrun2022
Funds raised from this year’s charity run will assist the Macedon Ranges
Community Nursing team in providing the best care to every person, every time.

With nice little sheds, you see individual style and history come together.
They can be the most loved building on the property. Nice little sheds are often
handmade and doing them on the cheap is usually the goal, so recycled materials and
help from friends to build them is part of the tradition and what gives them their
character. They have a knack of staying standing long after the foundations have given
way and they are often full of personal treasures and mementos.
Do you have a shed shot to share? Email us. Images: Brendan Murray

Tickets are now on sale to all major events at
ChillOut Festival 2023.
Festival director Emma Ireland said 2023 would
include all the favourite events like Pool Party, All Ages
Sound Shell, Bush Dance, Ballroom Blitz and Carnivale.
“Last year we learnt that having outdoor parties
works really well in Daylesford, and we’re having
Ballroom Blitz, Bush Dance and Poof Doof at Victoria
Park again.
“This also means that we can grow our festival each
year – so we really will have something for everyone. On
the Friday Night, our favourite corporate queen Karen
From Finance will be performing her one woman show
Doing Time in the Ballroom at the Town Hall, while
Ballroom Blitz will be at Victoria Park.
“One of our new events that I’m really excited about is Hey Hunny!. It’s is an
all-femme dance night that will get you laughing and flipping up your skirt on the
dancefloor.”
Events include:
Ballroom Blitz | Friday 10 March | 8pm – midnight | Victoria Park;
Karen From Finance is Doing Time | Friday 10 March | 7pm | Daylesford Town
Hall;
Pool Party | Saturday 11 March | 11am – 5pm | Daylesford Pool;
Hey Hunny! Saturday 11 March | Daylesford Town Hall | 7pm to 1am;
Bush Dance | Saturday 11 March | 8pm – midnight | Victoria Park;
Carnivale: Sunday 12 March – Victoria Park; and
Poof Door After Party: Sunday 12 March – Victoria Park – 7pm to midnight
Tickets: www.chilloutfestival.com.au

THE Great Dividing Trail Association is offering a one-off opportunity
for the public to walk and explore the 1840s Aboriginal Protectorate
site at Franklinford this Sunday, November 13.
The 6km walk, mainly around the back streets of the Franklinford township
features interpretation of several important historic sites, many associated with the
former Aboriginal Protectorate (1841-1849) and Mount Franklin Aboriginal Station
(1850s-1863).
The confronting history behind some of the sites on this walk were first brought
to light by the late Edgar Morrison in the 1960s and 1970s.
In brief, the Aboriginal Protectorate set up in 1841 centred on present day
Franklinford in southern Dja Dja Wurrung Country, following on from an aborted
attempt at setting it up in 1840 on the Loddon River north of Baringhup.
In an era of truth telling, this local walk on southern Dja Dja Wurrung Country
is very timely.
Hundreds of First Nations people from north of the divide were encouraged to
leave Country and seek the relative safety at the protectorate at a time when squatters
were forcefully and sometimes violently seizing their traditional lands.
The intention was to concentrate, civilise and Christianise people from diverse
nations into four small areas within present-day Victoria, each area just 10 miles
across, in the process relinquishing language, culture and Country.
The protectorate at Franklinford overseen by assistant protector Edward Parker
understandably failed. The system was abandoned in the Port Phillip Colony in 1849
to be replaced by a local guardianship system administered by Parker at the foot of
Mount Franklin.
The people still living on site in the 1860s including children attending the
Aboriginal School, were mostly removed to Coranderrk near Healesville.
Although by the 1870s less than 20 Dja Dja Wurrung people remained, there are
now around 2000 descendants keen for this story to be told.
The walk led by Barry Golding, commencing with a Welcome to Country and
smoking ceremony by Elder Uncle Rick Nelson at 9.30am at the Franklinford
Streamside Reserve on Larnibarramul Yaluk, includes the Protectorate-era
Franklinford Cemetery, Thomas’ Spring, the monument to Edward Parker on the
main town intersection, views over Larnibarramul Lagoon towards Mount Franklin,
and the original main protectorate site, later the site of the Aboriginal School.
There is a $15 cost payable on the day in cash. Registration is essential before
November 10.
Link: www.gdt.org.au/2022/10/franklinford-aboriginal-protectorate-gdtamember-public-walks
Words: Barry Golding

Regional Community Vet Clinic, a Mt Alexander Shire based non-profit
organisation, has received $50,000 from the state government’s Living Local Regional Fund.

The funding brings the organisation to a total of $250,000 in grant funding
towards its target of $400,000 to build a dedicated facility for not-for-profit
veterinary care in Campbells Creek.
The clinic will service pet owners across the region who want to keep and care for
a companion animal but are struggling due to financial or physical disadvantage.
While the long-term goal of the clinic is to establish its own dedicated facility, the
organisation is committed to helping those in need in the community now through
pop-up clinics, social outreach, and donating food and medication sourced through
partner organisations into the community.
Founder and chair Dr Yvette Berkeley said the word was spreading through the
community and the organisation was starting to see how and where their services
were needed most.
“With the help of Vets for Compassion we’ve been able to run multiple pop-up
clinics de-sexing over 100 cats in the region.”