The Travelling Novocastrians: Bundaberg, Childers, Burrum Heads, Gympie

Friday 23rd September 2011: Bundaberg is the birth place of Bert Hinkler, who in his brief lifetime of forty years, became one of the world's greatest pioneer aviators.
As Bundaberg is relatively flat, the city's water supply gains pressure from large water towers. The most interesting of these is the East Water Tower (built in 1902). It is a masterpiece of bricklaying with walls up to 1.4 metres thick in places.
The city and North Bundaberg is divided by the Burnett River. The district produces a significent percentage of Queensland's sugar crop most of which is raw sugar that is shipped from the Port of Bundaberg. The port is 9klms east. At the Bundaberg Distillery the famous Bundaberg Rum is made from a sticky black syrup called mollasses (a by product of sugar milling).

The impressive bridge over the Burnett River

A water fountain on one corner of the main street
and

a memorial on the other corner

The Post Office

East Bundaberg Water Tower......

this tower is now out of service and is Heritage listed on the State Register
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The Bundaberg Distillery............................................

The Bundaberg Distilling Company was born in 1888

when a band of sugar millers turned a horrendous molasses surplus into fine rum!

'Spring Hill House'

This sugar plantation house

which has been restored, now houses a museum, souvenir store and bar.

This car, with advertisement, was parked in the car park!!!

Me......with the world's biggest rum bottle

There is to be a launch of a new rum matured in barrells used to make port.

The bottles are numbered.

These people are in line to be first to get a low numbered bottle - some have been camped outside the distillery for over three weeks! You have to be joking!!

The new rum.......not released till Sunday 25th September 2011
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The beautiful countryside around Bundaberg.....................
Sugar cane plantations, Macadamia plantations, green crops, red fertile soil and blue sky - very picturesque!

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Childers:
A quaint town with many well restored old buildings........
In 1902 a disastrous fire destroyed much of childers but the subsequent rebuilding has givern the town an amazing variety of asrchitectural styles still largely intact today.

The Grand Hotel

The original Grand Hotel was moved in from Horton to its current site

The Palace Building.........

Today is the Visitor Information Centre on the ground floor. Upstairs an art gallery and backpacker memorial.

Post Office built in 1887 has been maintained in its original form.

Chris resting on the seat out the front

The RSL Club was built in 1901 for the CBC Bank.

Childer's Cannon.........story below.........

Click on Photo to enlarge and read about the Childer's Cannon.

The Soldiers Room Memorial.....

is in the former Isis Shire Chambers opened in 1926
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Burrum Heads....
A picturesque holiday coastal village for swimming, fishing and water sports.

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Another beautiful camp spot on the Mary River at Tiaro...............