You have made the choice to head interstate, but you’ve decided to forgo the coastal route for the more efficient Hume Highway maybe in the hopes that you’ll get there sooner, or because you’re sick of staring at the ocean (only sometimes) out of the passenger window.
Whether you’re heading down to Melbourne to enjoy the privilege and honour that is being able to get into a bar after 1.30am, or up to Sydney to bask in this weird new thing called daylight, you’ve first gotta get there.
Well we suggest that you take a little detour, a quick (or not-so-quick) stopover at any of these six Hume Highway destinations, because we’re looking out for you. Remember, y’all wanna stop ‘n revive – get a doughnut, learn some stuff, finally text your mum back – not drive almost nine hours straight teetering on the edge of the speed limit like a madwoman. This is about safety and not about being this guy:
Berrima
They call Berrima, about two hours south of Sydney, the best preserved example of a Georgian (from British settlement to about 1830) village on the Aussie mainland. It’s one of those country towns you stopped at as a kid on your way to see an elderly relative/was the home of that relative, to eat something hearty before you got back on the road.
But you can do more than that – like head into Mrs Oldbucks Pantry, a delightfully old-timey jam shop or visit the Australian Alpaca Centre.
Gundagai
Gundagai, four-and-a-half hours from Sydney – so about halfway on your journey – is somewhat of an Australian icon that you’ve never heard about. The town is home to statue, Dog on the Tuckerbox, a tribute to pioneers like Charles Sturt who explored and settled regional Australia, that was unveiled by PM Joseph Lyons in 1932.
It’s the type of true blue ‘Strayan town that inspires references from bush poets – think Banjo Paterson, Henry Lawson and Miles Franklin – the home of ‘swaggies’ (transient labourers who carried their stuff in a swag) and the birthplace of the guy who co-created Aussie Rules: Thomas Wills.
Wangaratta
https://www.instagram.com/p/BgLbAGiFKyQ/?taken-at=254632179
The thing I’ve decided I enjoy most about Wangaratta is its super weird list of notable former residents, including but not limited to a slew of sportspeople and political figures, sci-fi writer Isobelle Carmody, and the post-punk poet/handsomest vampire alive, Nick Cave.
Just outside of the main town is Eldorado, with a population of 287, where you can channel the Gold Rush and try your hand at gold pannin’. Along Reedy Creek it’s heaps likely you’ll come across gemstones and crystals, like amethysts, topaz and smoky quartz.
Glenrowan
Since I was a kid I’ve been fixated on bushrangers – and of course Ned Kelly is the number one in the Australian consciousness, whether that’s fair or not. (Fun fact: you already knew Heath Ledger played the notorious bushranger, but did you know Mick Jagger starred in a Ned Kelly movie in 1970?).
Anyway I reckon you should stop in Glenrowan because it’s the setting of Kelly & The Gang’s last stand – he and his fellow outlaws were captured there in 1880 after a siege and shootout with the cops. And you can visit those siege spots, which is objectively cool as heck.
Benalla
Just down the road, but well worth a stop of its own is Benalla. In March, they played host to urban contemporary street art festival, Wall to Wall, where street artists from all over Oz and the world paint massive murals once a year on the walls of participating businesses, in laneways, and on silos across the regional town: they’ve got 28 so far, and they’re rad. Deffo worth a squiz.
Benalla – both a major site in Ned Kelly lore, and an idyllic setting for avid bushwalkers – is also the closest major town to Winton Motor Raceway, the home of the V8 Supercar Winton Super Sprint.
Now you’re well on your way to your ultimate destination(s) on the Hume, we strongly advise you stop frequently: for piss breaks, to keep your snack count high, and because you oughtta care about the other people on the road you put at risk by not doing so. Oh, and ’cause Vic Police are out in force. If you wanna be fully aware of Operation Roadwise, and the repercussions of being a supremely stupid driver, you can find all the goss via TAC (Transport Accident Commission) Victoria HERE.
