YARRAWONGA

Yarrawonga is a town in the Shire of Moira local government area in the Australian state of Victoria. In the 2021 census, Yarrawonga had a population of 8,661 people. The town is located approximately 264 kilometres north-east of the state capital, Melbourne, situated on the south bank of the Murray River, the border between Victoria and New South Wales. Yarrawonga's twin town of Mulwala is on the other side of the Murray River.

Yarrawonga's main attraction is Lake Mulwala, formed by the damming of the Murray River. The lake is a popular location for activities such as boating, kayaking and fishing. There are two crossings of the Murray between Yarrawonga and Mulwala; across the weir (Walking path only); and a bridge over Lake Mulwala. This bridge contains an unusual bend and dip in the middle, a result of miscommunication between the two state governments...

The "dead trees" in Lake Mulwala are a distinctive feature of the landscape, resulting from the lake's creation in 1939. Originally, the area was cleared for the lake, but some trees were left standing when the area was flooded. These trees have since died and become a unique part of the lake's scenery, providing a striking visual element and habitat for some wildlife.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

SMALL TOWN SUMMER

Hot day in country Victoria, everyone is either indoors or at the town's aquatic centre. Sun beats down mercilessly on the main street. Only mad dogs and Englishmen (and the odd photographer) are out in the noonday sun...

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

DAYLESFORD

Daylesford is a spa town located in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, within the Shire of Hepburn, Victoria, Australia, approximately 108 kilometres north-west of Melbourne. First established in 1852 as a gold-mining town, today Daylesford has a population of 2,548 as of the 2016 census. As one of Australia’s few spa towns, Daylesford is a notable tourist destination.

The town’s numerous spas, restaurants and galleries are popular alongside the many gardens and country-house-conversion styled bed and breakfasts. The broader area around the town, including Hepburn Springs to the north, is known for its natural spring mineral spas and is the location of over 80 per cent of Australia's effervescent mineral water reserve. It is also the filming location for the third season of "The Saddle Club", and scenes from the 2004 film "Love's Brother".

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

MALDON GOLD MINE

Maldon is a town in Victoria, Australia, in the Shire of Mount Alexander local government area. It has been designated "Australia's first notable town" and is notable for its 19th-century appearance, maintained since gold-rush days. At the 2016 census, Maldon had a population of 1,513. The district where Maldon now stands was first visited by white European colonialists in 1836, during Major Thomas Mitchell's famous Victorian expedition. It was settled soon afterwards by pastoralists, and two sheep runs were established in the area, at the foot of nearby Mount Tarrengower.

In December 1853, gold was discovered at Cairn Curran (the name given to one of the sheep runs), and Maldon became a part of the Victorian Gold Rush. The goldfield which was named "Tarrangower Fields" after Mount Tarrangower (now usually referred to as Tarrengower), immediately attracted numbers of people eager to make their fortunes at the diggings. One month after gold was first discovered, the Chief Commissioner for Goldfields reported 3000 miners had arrived at the diggings. The same report noted that anotheer month later, the goldfield's population had already grown to 18,000, though only about 1000 had taken out mining licences.

The Maldon goldfields proved to be one of Victoria's richest quartz-mining centres, though with poorer alluvial results than others such as Castlemaine or Ballarat. Quartz mining extended southward through Sandy Creek to Newstead, along to Mia Mia and Muckleford, eastward to Fentimen’s and Smith’s Reefs, and even to the apex of Mount Tarrangower. In all, over seventy reefs were proven to contain gold deposits. Maldon was known as a poor man’s diggings, with many excellent yields from very small claims.

Today, the township displays overall historical and architectural importance, particularly in its gold town buildings. The significance lies in the variety of building styles, and the area of mining is of interest with one mine still open to the public. Maldon boasts that it is largely unchanged since the 1850s, and has attracted considerable interest from tourists for its 19th-century atmosphere.

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme.

BACCHUS MARSH

Bacchus Marsh is a rural centre and regional locality in Victoria, Australia located approximately 57 kilometres north west of the state capital Melbourne and 15 kilometres west of Melton at a near equidistance to the major cities of Melbourne, Ballarat and Geelong. The population of the Bacchus Marsh urban area was 20,345 at the 2016 census. The State Suburb by the same name is home to 6,394 people and contains the central business district.

Bacchus Marsh is the largest rural area in the local government area of Shire of Moorabool. Traditionally a market garden area, producing a large amount of the region's fruits and vegetables in recent decades it has transformed into the main commuter town on the Melbourne-Ballarat corridor with its affordable starter homes proving popular. It was named after one of its original inhabitants, Captain William Henry Bacchus, who saw the great value of this locality as it was situated on two rivers — the Lerderderg and Werribee.

One of the first white men to reach the Bacchus Marsh valley was pastoralist Kenneth Scobie Clarke (c. 1806–79), a native of Sutherland in Scotland. Clarke was a manager for the Great Lake Company of Van Diemen’s Land and arrived in the Port Phillip District from George Town on 25 March 1836. Captain Bacchus credited Clarke as being the first man to shear sheep in Victoria, although the Hentys had arrived in Portland with their sheep some two years earlier.

On 29 November 1836, Clarke headed west from Port Phillip with a large flock of sheep, arriving in the Bacchus Marsh district a few days later. He built a hut on the west bank of the Lerderderg River near Darley, and lived there until early 1838. According to pastoralist George Russell, Clarke had acted on information obtained from Mr Aitken, an Edinburgh man, who was most put out when he discovered that Clarke had beaten him to the Pentland Hills run.

In 1838, Englishman Captain William Henry Bacchus (1782–1849, originally of the 2nd Royal Surrey Militia) and his son William Henry Bacchus junior (1820–87) also brought sheep from Tasmania and came to the district which now bears their name. On their arrival, Clarke made an arrangement with them and ceded his run, moving to the nearby hills known as the Pentlands. The then very swampy valley was not really suitable for sheep, as they were prone to footrot. Clarke stayed in the district until 1840 or 1841, and later went to New Zealand, where he died in 1879.

The township was originally known as Ballan, a Post Office opening under that name around July 1844 (Bacchus Marsh from July 1, 1850). The Bacchus Marsh Road District Board was proclaimed on 30 September 1856, with one of its first tasks being to construct a gravel road through the town, as at that time the road was barely passable in winter. Bacchus Marsh was created a district on 14 October 1862, and the Road Board was the governing body until the Shire of Bacchus Marsh was proclaimed on 23 January 1871. The railway came to Bacchus Marsh on 15 February 1887, and the through line to Ballarat was built in 1890.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Travel Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

WARRANDYTE

Warrandyte is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 24 km north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District. Its local government area is the City of Manningham. At the 2011 census, Warrandyte had a population of 5,520.

Warrandyte was founded as a Victorian town, located in the once gold-rich rolling hills east of Melbourne, and is now on the north-eastern boundary of suburban Melbourne. Gold was first discovered in the town in 1851 and together, with towns like Bendigo and Ballarat, led the way in gold discoveries during the Victorian gold rush.

Today Warrandyte retains much of its past in its surviving buildings of the Colonial period and remains a twin community with North Warrandyte, which borders the Yarra River to its north. The Yarra River is a prominent feature of the town and the lush vegetation on its banks provides ample opportunity for pleasant walks and leisure activities.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Travel Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

BRIGHT VISIONS OF THE FUTURE

In 1994 Apple Computers released the QuickTake 100, a colour digital camera made by Kodak. With a steep selling price of $795 this camera was able to capture a 640x480 pixel colour image and came with a fixed focus 50mm lens. It used three AAA batteries for power and weighed only ≈450 g. It stored up to 32 images at 320 x 240 pixels or 8 pictures at 640 x 480 resolution and connected to a computer via a serial port. I was one of the early adherents of digital photography and here are my first photos taken with this camera:

The photos by today's standards are terrible, however, I saw the potential! The photos were taken in Bright, a town located 311 km NE of Melbourne in northeastern Victoria, Australia, 319 metres above sea level at the southeastern end of the Ovens Valley. At the 2006 census, Bright had a population of 2,684. It is in the Alpine Shire local government area.

The main industry of the town at the beginning of the 21st century is tourism, with much focus on the autumnal colours of the European trees planted in the area. A major cultural event is the Bright Autumn Festival. During the summer months Bright enjoys consistently warm, sunny days with comfortable overnight temperatures.The town is close to the Victorian Alps, and various alpine national parks including the Mount Buffalo National Park.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme.

INVERLOCH, VICTORIA

Inverloch is a seaside village in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Bass Highway 143 kilometres southeast of Melbourne, at the mouth of Anderson Inlet, in the Bass Coast Shire and is located close to Australia’s southernmost stand of mangroves. At the 2006 census, Inverloch had a population of 4,140.

Inverloch is a popular tourist destination, particularly for surfers, kitesurfers, windsurfers and fishers. The town hosts a jazz festival each Labour Day long weekend in March. According to the Bass Coast Shire Council Inverloch's amenities include a visitor information centre, two Pubs three motels, seven bed and breakfasts, three caravan parks and a foreshore camping reserve. Like most other Australian coastal towns Inverloch has a local surf lifesaving club.

This post is part of the Scenic Sunday meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme.

WALHALLA, VICTORIA

Walhalla is a small town in Victoria, about 180 kilometres east of the state capital Melbourne. It is located in the Great Dividing Range, in the steep Stringers Creek valley, approximately four kilometres upstream of the creek's junction with the Thomson River. The area around the town is designated as an historic area which then adjoins the Baw Baw National Park.

It was founded as a gold-mining community in early 1863 and at its peak home to around 2,500 residents. Today, the town has a population of fewer than 20 permanent residents, though it has a large proportion of houses owned as weekenders. It attracts large numbers of tourists and is a major focus of the regional tourism industry. The town's name is taken from an early gold mine in the area, named for the German hall of fame, the Walhalla temple (Valhalla from Norse legend).

Gold mining was already becoming largely unprofitable int eh early 20th century and the last of the major mines closed in 1914. With the disappearance of the main industry in town, the bulk of the population soon left. Until the growth of the tourist industry in the 1970s and 80s, Walhalla survived as a ghost town for most of the twentieth century. Several major public buildings including the Mechanics Institute and Star Hotel were destroyed in two fire events in 1944 and 1951 and a number of buildings were destroyed without being rebuilt. The school closed in 1965 and further fires, floods and neglect slowly chipped away at the remains of the town.

Since around 1977, Walhalla has experienced something of a renaissance with a booming tourist industry and the restoration or reconstruction of numerous historical buildings in the town, including the Star Hotel, Mechanics Institute, Windsor House, Elliott's Bakery and reconstruction of the Thomson–Walhalla section of the former narrow-gauge railway.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme.