Day 126 Mount Canobolas

Today we drove into the city centre for a look around and it was lovely to see that this is a large thriving township, as we have seen so many shops boarded up and not used in other towns. We had lunch in Robertson Park in the middle of the main shopping district which has a bandstand rotunda that was added to the park in 1913 by the Town Band Committee. The park also features the Cobb & Co-funded Whitney Fountain (1896).



City Arcade Building housed in the ornate, historic Palmers Building, often referenced as being built circa 1870–1876—it originally served as a regional bank (such as the Australian Stock Bank) and the residence of Colonel George Walker Waddell. Features 3 levels with prominent Victorian-era details including high 4.2-metre ceilings, original fireplaces, mantels, joinery, cornices, and a carved staircase.



Courthouse Building a slab and bark watch-house was erected in 1849 and used as a court house from 1851. Early church services and the first council meetings were held here. A larger sandstone Court House was erected in 1860-62. Bushranger Ben Hall was tried here in the early 1860s. This building made way for the present neo-classical building designed by colonial architect James Barnet in 1883.



Town Hall Building the stuccoed Italianate Town Hall designed by Sydney architect JJ Clarke was completed in 1888. Sir Henry Parkes spoke at the laying of the foundation stone in 1887. Built by Arthur and Oliver at a cost of £3,800, it housed the Orange Council for almost a century.



We then went for a scenic drive through the Towac Valley nestled in the fertile volcanic foothills of Mount Canobolas (Gaanha-bula), this picturesque valley is renowned for its world-class high-altitude vineyards, historic fruit orchards, and scenic lookouts. We stopped at Pinnacle Reserve and Lookout standing at an elevation of 1,200 meters, this is the second-highest point in the Orange area. A 1.7km steep climb up 230 stairs rewarded us with exceptional 360 degree views of old eucalypts, and volcanic rock formations then across the Towac Valley northern plains and orchards.









We then drove on to Mount Canobolas (Gaanha bula) an ancient extinct shield volcano standing 1,397 metres above sea level, located 13 kilometres southwest of Orange. It is the highest mountain in the region between the Blue Mountains and the Indian Ocean, offering 360-degree panoramic views from the summit.







The next stop of the drive was Lake Canobolas, formerly known as Meadow Creek Dam across the Molong Creek, below Mount Canobolas. Between 1918 and 1957, the dam was managed by Canobolas Shire Council and used for water supply to the town of Orange. The area of 103 hectares (250 acres) now comprises the lake, an earth sanctuary and a nature reserve. The name of the lake is derived from the Aboriginal words coona, meaning shoulder and booloo meaning two. It was used by the Wiradjuri to refer to the twin peaks, now known as Old Man Canobolas and Young Man Canobolas.