No need to hurry on the Murray
January 27th, 2008 Posted in Pets Guide Helen McGarry lets time pass her by on a surprisingly
comfy and spacious houseboat.
It is hard on a beautiful sunny day cruising sedately up the
Murray River to imagine what it must look like in flood. Today it
is serene, navigating its waters the most relaxing way to unwind
imaginable, but when the Murray raged in flood in 1993 you could
step on to the lower deck of a paddle-steamer from the old red gum
wharf at Echuca - which towers 11 metres above the present level of
the river.
Years of drought have taken their toll but the Murray at this
point in northern Victoria, while down, is still running free and
boating is a major tourist attraction.
We stayed on the Luxury Of The Murray 5, one of a fleet of
houseboats owned by Luxury on the Murray which operates out of
Echuca-Moama - Moama being on the NSW side of the river. It’s a 2
1/2 hour drive from Melbourne but we flew from Sydney to Albury and
then drove to Echuca in about 3 1/4 hours.
Forget cramped cabins and primitive plumbing - this river boat
is built for comfort and style. It has four cabins, each with its
own surprisingly spacious en suite bathroom - even the shower is
roomy and the water pressure very good.
The cabin’s king-size bed is very comfortable, with crisp white
linen, and there’s an LCD television to send you off to sleep if
the gentle sound of lapping water doesn’t do it for you.
It’s a comfortable spot for a siesta during the day, too, as
someone else navigates the boat. Slide back the floor-to-ceiling
door and a delightful breeze will send you off to sleep while the
passing river traffic drifts by.
Considering how modern and well fitted-out the boat is - it also
has a washing machine, dishwasher, elaborate sound system and an
eight-person spa - it’s a shame they didn’t install
air-conditioning in the bedrooms. The first night was cool, with a
lovely breeze from the water - I slept like a babe - but the second
night was a stinker, heavy and close and I didn’t get to sleep
until a thunderstorm finally cut through it.
The main cabin - a sitting room, dining and kitchen area - is
air-conditioned, though with its windows and doors on three sides
there are ample cross-breezes to make it comfortable, even on a hot
day. Comfortable couches and a large plasma screen TV would no
doubt come in handy on a rainy day with the kids getting cabin
fever.
The large kitchen has a full stainless steel gas cooktop but it
didn’t get much of a workout - apart from tea and toast in the
morning. Why cook when someone else can do it much better?
We moored near the old port at Echuca and strolled along the
bank to Oscar W’s, built high up on the wharf, which has a rustic
atmosphere but a menu far from what you would expect in a small
country town. The regional taste degustation menu of six courses
with accompanying wines ($100 a head) included saltbush lamb,
artichokes, peas, tapenade and oregano garlic yoghurt served with a
2005 Flynn’s MC shiraz from Victoria, and butter toasted brioche,
tea poached peach and creme anglaise served with a 2006 Margan
botrytis semillon from the Hunter.
Echuca has such a good selection of eating options that you
could eat out at every meal - so we did. Ceres Restaurant in Nish
Street is a converted flour mill with a great tapas menu. I had the
Spring Bay scallops ceviche with lime juice, spanish onion, chilli
and coriander ($17.50) for lunch but tasted the house-made
spaghetti with mussels, Australian prawn tails and scallops,
candied lemon, chilli, garlic and olive oil ($24.50), also
excellent.
A glimpse at the dinner menu showed mains including free-range
pork and chicken which was good. But, save for the tapas menu,
there wasn’t much for vegetarians - anywhere we went, actually.
Cruise down the river and walk through the bush to Morrisons
Riverview Winery and Restaurant. Specials included risotto of local
rabbit, pancetta, snow peas, chives, fresh parmesan cheese ($20.50)
and fresh glazed figs, house-made toasted almond ice-cream, rhubarb
syrup, toasted almond bread ($14.50). Another interesting option is
a three-hour dinner cruise on the paddlesteamer Emmylou ($90 per
person) also catered by Ceres Restaurant. Entrees included rocket,
walnut and pear salad with grilled Greek cheese. The mains included
grilled lamb cutlets on spinach, lemon and fetta risotto with
buffalo yoghurt sauce. The lemon yoghurt cake was to die for.
Watch the sun go down on another perfect day to the hum of the
engine and the silence of the night only broken by the chink of
glasses and the evocative sound of the paddle-steamer’s
whistle.
The writer was a guest of Tourism NSW and Tourism
Victoria.
PORT OF ECHUCA
ECHUCA - it means meeting of the waters in the language of the
Yorta Yorta people - is where the Murray, Campaspe and Goulburn
rivers meet. Australia’s largest inland port in the 1800s, its old
wharf built of local red gum was used by more than 240
paddle-steamers a year in its heyday and it is known to many
through the TV mini-series All The Rivers Run starring Sigrid
Thornton and John Waters.
The historic port, which had fallen into decline, was restored
in the 1970s and is now home to a fleet of working paddle-steamers.
Eleanor Auditori, in fetching Victorian garb, leads a tour of the
port which takes in the Star Hotel (it has a sly grog shop in the
basement dating from 1897 when it lost its licence, with a secret
escape tunnel in case of a police raid) and the wharf. Accompanying
her at a discreet distance are ambassadors Nan and Don, also
elegantly costumed, on hand to answer questions and guide tour
stragglers.
The wharf was built on three different levels so work would not
be disrupted during floods. The most memorable flood recorded there
was 96.19 metres in 1870 and the most devastating drought was
1912-14, when the river nearly dried up between Swan Hill and
Mildura.
Kevin Hutchinson, a shipwright, is as much a part of the port as
the paddle-steamers he has been working on for 34 years. He and his
team are putting the final touches to Hero - a burnt-out wreck
which they have restored to its former glory. He has seen flood and
drought. Ask him if we will see another flood on the Murray and he
answers “yeah”, without hesitation. But if this river is to run
free again our pollies will have to make some tough decisions to
justify the faith of these passionate upholders of tradition.
TRIP NOTES
Getting there: Regional Express has deals from
Sydney to Albury for $98one way. Phone 131 713 or see http://www.rex.com.au. Echuca is a 3
1/4-hour drive from Albury. Or you could fly to Melbourne, which is
a 2 1/2-hour drive from Echuca. Car hire company Hertz, phone 133
039 or see http://www.hertz.com.au, has an
office at Albury airport.
Staying there: Luxury on the Murray has a fleet
of houseboats and operates out of Echuca/Moama Phone (03)54836244,
see http://www.luxboats.com.au. High
season rate for Luxury 5 is $5050 for a week, and $2900 low
season.
Dining options: Oscar W’s Wharfside, Redgum
Grill %26amp; Deck Bar, 101 Murray Esplanade, Echuca. Phone (03) 5482
5133, see http://www.oscarws.com.au. Ceres
Restaurant, 2 Nish Street, Echuca. Phone (03) 5482 5599, see http://www.ceresechuca.com.au.
Morrisons Riverview Winery and Restaurant, 2 Merool Lane, Moama.
Phone (03) 5480 0126, see http://www.morrisons.net.au.
Paddlesteamer Emmylou, Murray River Paddlesteamers, 57 Murray
Esplanade, Echuca. Phone (03) 5482 5244, see http://www.emmylou.com.au. The Star
Hotel, Wine Bar and Cafe, 45 Murray Esplanade, Echuca. Phone (03)
5480 1181, see www.starhotelechuca.com.au.
Source: The Sun-Herald
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