Platypus Milling in Manildra

 

Manildra is said to mean Winding river in the local First Nations Language and it was within the winding rivers of Manildra that I saw the local platypus. Manildra is a small country town located around 40 minute drive from Orange located in Central West New South Wales Australia. Manildra is within Wiradjuri country. My reason for traveling here was to see the stunning new murals done by the amazing Wildlife street-artist Jimmy Dvate and assisted by Justin. Back in July of this year (2022) he painted a lovely mural on the side of the Manildra flour silos. The Manildra silos are the largest flour producing silos in the southern hemisphere. The mural on the side of the silo feature wildlife within the area such as platypus, wombat, cockatoo, duck and echidna. A mural on the water tank features the iconic king parrots. To the towns surprise another mural of a crested pigeon was incorporated into an existing graffiti featured on the Bear's Bridge over Coates creek road.  I meet many locals including Todd a painter that said the murals were a lovely addition to the town. 

 

The Amusu (pronounced Amuse-you) is a beautiful art deco film theatre that still is operating today. It was built in 1936 and locals and tourists travel to watch a film in an original 1936 style theatre. Once a month a film is shown and locals gather after for a dinner. The theatre was design and created by Alan Tom and built by Jim Fullerton. Allan continued to run the theatre until his passing in 1995 at the age of 93. The Tom family continue to operate the theatre. 

 

Portrait of Allan Tom

Next door to the theatre is a movie poster museum, which is housed in the historic Tom's garage. The museum and theatre are run by a team of locals and Amusu president Joan Stevenson. Its wonderful to be transported back in time to a historic film theatre when going to see the "talkies" was a special occasion. Kevin a friendly local who has lived there all his life gave me a tour around the theatre and museum and he is the ticket salesman when the theatre operates. Kevin asked what my favourite movie was I was stuck to answer as its always difficult to pick just one, he replied " he enjoyed watching comedies as he always wanted to leave the theatre being happy not sad". I found this remark lovely and agree a good comedy is always great to watch. The theatre and movie poster museum are a must to visit when in town and showcase a rich film history but also a number of vintage collectables. The theatre and museum are open Saturday and Sunday but can be viewed by appointment for more information check out their website here.

The posters in the collection came from collector Allan Strachan

Movie posters of Australian films

Sci-fi film posters

old film projectors

As well as having murals the town also features some painted Australian animals on the power poles on the main street Keiwa street. The artworks look like they were painted awhile ago and I'm unsure of the artist but they were a nice added surprise. 

Gecko

Gecko

Red eyed tree frog

Platypus

Sugar glider

Frilled neck lizard

Lace monitor

Gecko

 

The highlight of my trip was seeing a platypus in the Mandagery creek that runs beside the flour mill. As it is platypus breeding season (August-October) platypuses are more active during this time and it was wonderful to see one just swimming about happily in the creek in the middle of the day (around 2-3pm) as usually platypus are active dawn and dusk.  

 

 People often ask me as I walk around the town how I got here or where am I from as I don't have a car so they are surprised when I tell them I travel by public transport. I often tell them that I get a train and bus as most places in the Central West region can be reached by a regional train and bus.  Its great to see that Manildra has been added to the Australian silo art trail and I hope it gets more visitors as it is a charming place to visit. There isn't many accommodation options in Manildra only the Imperial Guest house or the Royal Hotel. I stayed at the Royal hotel, its a lovely place and still has the original 1925 decorated ornate ceilings. The owners are warm and welcoming and is a great place for tasty food and country pub atmosphere. More information on accommodation in Manildra can be found here. 

 

 

Manildra is a great little town to explore. Check out my video below for more footage from my trip.