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Date: May 2005
Location: Kingaroy, Queensland Australia
Kingaroy mothers would never
dress their children in white for their clothes would soon be stained with dust
from the distinctive red soil of this farming region. But today an enterprising
couple, Janelle and Richard Mason, have made the most of what was once seen as
a nuisance.
"Mum said the red soil was so hard to get out of our clothes we might as well dye them with the dirt. So we did!" says Janelle, who grew up on the agricultural property where her Mud Gear factory now stands.
Together with husband Richard, an agricultural scientist and soil conservationist,
the couple produce a range of items, from t-shirts to socks and towels - all dyed
in the rich red volcanic dirt of Kingaroy.
Their Mud Gear shows Kingaroy's true colours!
And they're not the only ones making the most of this region.
Former Sydney chef Michael Collins has left
Rae's on Watego at Byron Bay to bring his
talents to the new Belltower restaurant located just out of Kingaroy and set on
a spur of the Booie Range. More than a thousand people flocked to this eatery
to sample his exquisite culinary talents in the first week of opening. I tried
his delicious chilli prawns while admiring the splendid view of the South
Burnett landscape below. The attractive Spanish-style building consists of
blocks made from recycled ash from the nearby Tarong Power Station.
The fine restaurant is located on the site of the Booie Range Distillery and spirit and liqueur tastings and sales are available across the bar which also serves Cranes wines.
Kingaroy is known for its nuts, being the
peanut capital of Australia and towering
white silos are evidence of this. But it is also home of the navy bean, used to
make baked beans, and Queensland's longest-serving Premier, Joh Bjelke-Petersen,
and his wife, Flo, renowned for her pumpkin scones.
The South Burnett area has much to offer
- from wining and dining - to walking and exploring to counteract the effects!
And to truly appreciate it, you need to spend a few days here.
Basing yourself at a farmstay is the ideal solution and Minmore,
just 20km west of Kingaroy, is the ideal spot
to experience country life. Owned and run by Diane and Graham Wilson, this 15,000
acre cattle property is set in the prosperous peanut, fruit, cattle and grain-growing
area.
"You can drive from the sandy soil of our forest country to the red soil of farming
country and the rainforest of the Bunya
Mountains, all in the space of an hour," says Diane Wilson.
For more information:
Mud Gear
Tel +61 7 4162 2018
Booie Range Distillery & Belltower Restaurant
Tel +61 7 4162 7000
Minmore Farmstay
Tel +61 7 4164 3196
Fraser Coast South Burnett Regional Tourism Board
Tel +61 7 4122 3444
- By Helen Chryssides
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