A Bright Start to Winter

Australia is a very diverse country, a diversity that is wonderfully represented in its geography. Everything from tropical climates to wintery wonderlands, and everything in between, can be found on this massive continent. One thing that has always piqued my interest are the vibrant autumnal colours of the trees in parts of America and Canada (you know the pictures I’m talking about, they’re all over the web at certain times of the year). Well guess what? It just so happens that Australia has an area that is famous for its vibrant colours during autumn too, and only a four hour drive from where we live (I say ONLY a four hour drive as if it’s a trip to the shops, but in Oz a four hour drive is insignificant compared to some of the drives you can do over here). So, with the sat. nav. system fired up Bec and I headed for the township of Bright.

  

The first thing we had to do upon arriving in Bright was to check in to our accommodation, which was an upmarket eco-lodge. One of five nestled away in the countryside just outside Bright on private land.

 

We began our first day exploring the town of Bright. It was a sunny day and the colours in the flora didn’t disappoint. Bright, at this time of year is quiet and life ticks along at a sedate pace. We mooched in and out of the shops (especially the quirky ones), rested in cafes, enjoyed the sounds of the nearby river and worked out which restaurants to dine in during our stay. Very taxing stuff.

  

Obviously you can’t come to this part of Australia and not explore the countryside, and being situated on the cusp of The Snowy Mountains we decided to investigate the nearby Mount Buffalo. On our way up to the summit we came across a 2km trek to a waterfall (who doesn’t love waterfalls?) and decided to investigate. It wasn’t too challenging to traverse but had it been any longer I may have had to change my high heels for something a little more comfortable. Anyway, after a lot of grunting, slipping, giggling and mild cursing our goal came in to view; and it didn’t disappoint. The water was flowing freely and roaring proudly. No trickling streams falling 10ft here, this was a proper waterfall. Marvellous!

After a little more slipping, sliding, giggling and cursing we jumped in to the car and headed to the summit of Mount Buffalo. Sunset wasn’t far away and we wanted to make sure we could enjoy the vistas before the light disappeared, and the temperature plummeted. The road to the top twisted, dipped, rose and narrowed without warning and was a lot of fun to drive. I even added sounds effects to my driving (only boys can do this, girls don’t have the voice box to hit the required notes), it was that much fun. Bec seemed to enjoy the drive but not to the extent I did. Anyway, we got to the summit and raced to the viewing platform (with a slight detour to walk around a disused hotel complex that is the largest wooden structure of its kind in Australia, and bloody spooky looking too; I don’t mind admitting to being creeped out by the place). The vistas from the viewing platforms were stunning and proffered us unspoilt views of this beautiful part of the world.

 

Once we had soaked up the amazing scenery, and got caught out by the sudden drop in temperature, we zipped back down the mountain and in to the warmth of our lodge. We followed this with a trip back in to Bright for a sumptuous dinner in one of its many great restaurants.

Unfortunately our time in Bright did come to an end but we will knock on its door another time. Especially as there is still a lot more wineries and restaurants to try out (and I didn’t use up all of my racing car sounds either, so I’ve got to go back and get them out of my system).