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Plan a NSW silo art road trip

Barraba Silos, BarrabaCredit: Destination NSW

40m-high mural artwork on Barraba Silos, Barraba by artist Fintan Magee.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Plan a NSW silo art road trip

Barraba Silos, Barraba Credit: Destination NSW

40m-high mural artwork on Barraba Silos, Barraba by artist Fintan Magee.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Hashtags #lovensw #newsouthwales

Once nondescript blips on country road trips, silos around Australia are being beautified with striking giant murals. Today, you can now admire eight sites in New South Wales that have been transformed with huge artworks. Here’s how you can see them all on a four-day getaway; consider adding a few extra nights along the way to explore in more depth the country towns you pass through.  

Day 1: Tamworth–Gunnedah 

Start your road trip in Australia’s country music capital of Tamworth, a five-hour drive northwest of Sydney. Get a taste for what’s ahead at the Tamworth water tank mural at the Oxley Lookout (near Tamworth Regional Botanic Garden in East Tamworth) before driving an hour northwest to your first silo at Barraba

Pass through the historic town of Manilla before seeing the silos on your left just before you reach Barraba. Painted by Australian street artist Fintan Magee, the silos show three images of a farmer using dowsing sticks to find water, ending with his sticks crossed to show he’s found the right spot.  

Grab a light lunch at the Polkadot Coffee Room before heading 75 minutes southwest to see the latest addition to the Australian Silo Art Trail in Gunnedah. Completed in early 2021 by Melbourne-based Mongolian street artist Heesco, the silos show Australian poet Dorothea Mackellar and lines from her famous poem, My Country.  

In Gunnedah you can also see a mural by Jenny McCracken on the Gunnedah Water Tower Museum. When it’s time to eat, try the seasonal menu at Maverick Bistro, where dishes can include prawn fettuccine and duck spring rolls. You can also dine in and spend the night at the Harvest Lodge Motel. 
 

Grain Corp Silos, Merriwa, NSW Credit: Annette Green, Australian Silo Art Trail

This mural depicts an image of sheep wearing red socks in a canola field,by artist David Lee Pereira.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Grain Corp Silos, Merriwa, NSW Credit: Annette Green, Australian Silo Art Trail

This mural depicts an image of sheep wearing red socks in a canola field,by artist David Lee Pereira.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Day 2: Gunnedah–Merriwa–Dunedoo–Portland 

It’s two-hour drive south of Gunnedah to Merriwa in the Upper Hunter, travelling through the small town of Quirindi, where a silo art committee is working on plans to have their own mural. But with the stretch of road between Willow Tree to Merriwa under repair in 2021, you may need to add a 45-minute detour though Scone.  

In Merriwa, head to Hacketts Road to view the mural created by David Lee Pereira in 2019. The huge sheep in red socks are a nod to Merriwa’s annual Festival of the Fleeces, where you can see more than 200 sheep wearing red woollen socks walk down the main street.  

Travel another 80 minutes west to the Dunedoo silo to see black swans, rural landscapes and a horseracing scene on different sides. Champion Australian racehorse Winx is shown with her regular jockey Hugh Bowman, who grew up in Dunedoo, and trainer Chris Waller. The mural was painted by Peter Mortimore, whose wife Carolyn also grew up in the town.  

Grab a bite for lunch in Dunedoo’s White Rose Café or save your appetite for the food and wine hub of Mudgee on the way to Portland. From Mudgee it’s an 80-minute drive to reach the silos in the old Portland Cement Works, where Guido van Helten’s mural shows six former cement works employees. Part of The Foundations cultural hub, the Portland silos can be viewed from 9am to 5pm daily, so you may need to save this visit for the morning.  

You could spend the night in Mudgee along the way or bed down in Portland, where the Coronation Hotel is a handy option.  
 

Grenfell Silo Art, Grenfell NSW Credit: Annette Green, Australian Silo Art Trail

This mural by artist Heesco Khosnaran, is a compilation of images which represents the contemporary farming industry and landscape of the Weddin Shire.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Grenfell Silo Art, Grenfell NSW Credit: Annette Green, Australian Silo Art Trail

This mural by artist Heesco Khosnaran, is a compilation of images which represents the contemporary farming industry and landscape of the Weddin Shire.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Day 3: Portland–Grenfell–Weethalle 

Your first silo stop of the day is 2.5 hours west of Portland in the gold-rush town of Grenfell, passing through Bathurst, the home of Australian motor racing, and boutique cellar doors in the Cowra wine region along the way. The Grenfell silos were also painted by Australian street artist Heesco, and show a compilation of local farming and nature scenes adapted from images by local photographer Denise Yates.  

From Grenfell, keep heading west for just under two hours to see your third mega mural by Heesco on the Weethalle silo. This is not only the first silo Heesco painted, it was the first one in NSW when he completed it in July 2017. Only about 300 people live in Weethalle and you’re likely to meet some of the locals if you spend the night or have a meal at the Royal Hotel Weethalle
 

Rosnay Organic Wines, Canowindra Credit: Destination NSW

Couple enjoying a farm tour through the orchard with Sam Stratham at Rosnay Organic Wines, Canowindra.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Rosnay Organic Wines, Canowindra Credit: Destination NSW

Couple enjoying a farm tour through the orchard with Sam Stratham at Rosnay Organic Wines, Canowindra.

#lovensw #newsouthwales

Day 4: Weethalle — Harden-Murrumburrah 

Next you’ll need to retrace your steps for 40 minutes to West Wyalong before heading south down another road for another two hours to the twin towns of Harden and Murrumburrah. On the Murrumburrah Mill’s silos you’ll find the latest artwork by Heesco, completed in early 2021, showing scenes from the historic mill’s past.  

Continue to learn about local history over dinner at The Light Horse Hotel, which dates back to 1861, before spending the night next at the Heggaton artHouse, an 1800s former doctor’s surgery that’s been turned into self-contained apartments.  

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