This is not strictly wine related. There was wine. There was food. There was little to no technology. There was a lot of nature and billions upon billions of butterflies. There was even a meteor. This was the birthday 5-day escape to Turon Gates.
Turon National Park, located in Central Tablelands of New South Wales is a tiny national park surrounded by bigger and more famous ones (Hello Wollemi and Blue Mountains!). It is a little slice of paradise and only 200km from Sydney. The property has been run by a family since the 1970s, 2nd generation taking the reigns with Alejandra and Michael in charge these days. You have the option to stay in a cabin (with some amazing views, located higher up the mountain), a camping site by the river, or in one of only six adults-only glamping tents. The glamping tents are very comfortable and well-appointed. King-sized bed, with netting for when those pesky flying things decide to invade (we were pretty lucky there weren’t many mossies around), a soaking tub (to help relax after the hike up the mountain), a day bed (which is big enough to double as a bed) in the living area and a functioning kitchen. The deck is perfect for relaxing with a drink and relax or pat the roaming ponies.
The glamping enclosure has its own gates, which allows the little herd of tame ponies and horses to freely roam around the property. There are thousands of trout in the river that don’t stop jumping day and night, a herd of wild goats roaming the very steep mountain slope across the river, 3 white geese, and as mentioned above, billions upon billions of butterflies.
No reception. Wifi on demand but we took the opportunity to completely switch off for 5 whole days. This will now be an experience to repeat, not forget. Watching the clouds descend across the valley, and nature get still and ready while the thunder approached was definitely part of a magical experience. The river being a couple of steps away, felt invigoratingly refreshing on the hot and humid days. It was amazing to be able to walk, as it’s mostly shallow at this time, with the occasional swimming spot to dip into when feeling lazy. One morning, an incredible sight, when the rain created the most amazing patterns of bubbles and crosses on the surface while we were swimming.
Being so far away from Sydney, and mostly blocked by the Blue Mountains, light pollution is non-existent and we watched the galaxies move across the night sky for hours. I even spotted a meteor entering the atmosphere one evening, an exciting first for me!
A little slice of paradise.
Kitchen facilities are more than adequate so there was a bit of cooking, predominantly on the BBQ (because why not) but also on the hot plate when we had a touch of rain. After the year that was 2022, it was amazing to get some creativity to flow. I cooked. And for the first time actually felt inclined to record the recipes so I may recreate them again. Now back home, two weeks later, and am still excited about being creative in the kitchen again. I’m looking forward to more creative pursuits in 2023 and sharing the adventures to come.
If you’re interested check out the recipes, some with pictures and some without (my phone drowned on day 3)…
Lunch Day Two – to come
Dinner Night Two – to come
Dinner Day Three – to come
The Big Breakfast Day Four – to come
Anna xoxo
Life in a glass 