The Orange Platypus

 

I travelled to the Central West New South Wales town of Orange. Despite its name Orange is actually known for producing apples and cherries.  The town's name originated from The Prince of Orange, William II (1792-1849) the King of the Netherlands.  Orange is located on Wiradjuri land.  Mount Canobolas known as Gaanha-bula in Wiradjuri Language is an ancient volcano within Orange and it stands at 1395m above sea level. Gaanha-bula is a sacred site to the Wiradjuri people and was used as a men's initiation site where corroborees and ceremonies (burbung) were held. Mount Canobolas is also a spiritual site to the Wiradjuri people and connects them to Baiame (the Creator God and Sky Father).  Stone tools and cravings can be seen at the peak of Gaanha-bula.

 

Lake Canobolas is located at the foot of Gaanha-bula. It is a man made reservoir originally created in 1918 to provide water to the town, however due to a rapid growing population by 1957 the lake was no longer sustainable to provide adequate water supply to the town and other options were explored. The Lake still provides water to rural communities around the Orange region.  The lake is a lovely place to go bird watching and there is a looped walking track around the lake.  

 

 Wiradjuri culture is also celebrated with two beautiful murals on the toilet blocks. The murals feature dreaming stories and were created by Ricky Ah-See, Brian Ah-See and Justin Hammond. The first mural is a wonderful story of the creation of Gaanha-bula (Mount Canobolas) this is located on the mens toilet block. The second mural is located on the female toilet block and this depicts the creation story of the platypus. located on both murals is a QR code that can be scanned to hear the stories told by Wiradjuri Elders Uncle Neil Ingram (Gaanh-bula) and Auntie Iris Reid (platypus story).  You can read about the stories here.  

 

Lake Canobolas is a great place to visit and connect with nature and Wiradjuri culture.  A lakeside cafe is also located beside the lake. 

 

I also visited Cook Park a heritage listed Victorian era style park in the heart of Orange's city located on Summer Street. Alfred Patterson was the head curator of the gardens from 1873 to 1950. The park features a duck pond, Ferneries, aviary, Blowes Conservatory and a bandstand. 

 

 Orange is a lovely big country town and a nice tree change. Below are some other highlights form my trip. 

Crimson Rosella

King Parrots

Art Deco Royal Hotel I stayed here they are renovating the rooms and was great to stay in an iconic part of history.

 

Below is a video with more footage from my trip.