The name Tumbarumba has a ring to it. 

Accepted to be of  Wiradjuri/Ngarigo Aboriginal origin, it’s thought to translate as the sound of walking on the earth, or thunder, or “place of big trees”.

I prefer another story, that it’s the sound of Kangaroos bounding on the hollow earth, making a toom-ba-roomba noise.

I love saying it: Tum Ba Rum Ba. Very addictive.

There’s a lot to explore here for a few days.

We arrive and as usual, it’s coffee first, then the visitor’s centre to get our bearings. 

There are three coffee stops in town according to my phone, and I’m going to go to one a day, spreading the love and supporting the local economy. 

Today’s is a very quirky one, Nest, a combo of cafe, town meeting place and cinema. Coffee, and a slice of heavenly carrot cake hits the spot. 

The visitor centre doubles as the town museum, which gives us an overview of what life was like living here in the foothills of the Snowy mountains in the late 1850s, when gold was discovered nearby. 

Family histories, the old school, farming practices, the loss of many local young men in War, and the fascinating story of Australia’s first major civil aviation disaster, the disappearance of the Southern Cloud, and how its wreckage was accidentally discovered 27 years later, are all well documented. I enjoy poring over the old photographs, and the many artefacts on display, including some very interesting, heavy looking timber skis, a million miles away from today’s sleek counterparts, but in their time no doubt highly successful.

The museum is well worth a visit, and expect  to spend some time here. 

Off to set up the van.

With driving rain over the last few days, the sites are particularly boggy. Getting the van level, and circumnavigating the mud requires time and patience. Which today, mercifully, we have. Tomorrow we explore,we climb  to a lookout, and we visit one of the many wonderful wineries of this region.

The new day dawns, the air crisp, brisk and the sky brilliantly blue. I walk around our park to get the body ready for the day’s exertions,and discover lots of shaded, cold campsites dotted between seriously muddy puddles. 

Where you find puddles you will inevitably find kids,even at this early and cold hour, some in galoshes, beanies and puffer jackets, some with scant attire for this rather teeth-chattering environment. Oh the fun to be had when you’re camping with mum and dad, somewhere in the great outdoors, and you’re free to roam and get dirty! It was great to see these tough little kids playing in the mud, oblivious to the cold.

The Snowy Valleys Sculpture trail is represented in the town with quite a few interesting installations, including one called Set Square, a striking timber structure by an artist named, I noted, Stephen King. Presumably not the prolific American horror author. 

The bakery is doing a roaring trade at this early hour, as is the IGA, which is a hub for not only the local community but the myriad of tradies working on the Snowy Mountains hydro Scheme 2. 

This is Australia’s largest renewable energy project, controversial and costly, not due for completion til 2028. The tradies certainly are keeping the town going it appears.

We make our way through town, aware of the big logging trucks constantly rumbling past,  and start a moderate climb to the lookout. 

Gravelly and rocky in places, the trail is a loop, just over 2.6kms in length, meandering through bushland and rewarding us with expansive views over the town below. At the very top, Eagles Nest, we rest. There is a small grave with headstone, unreadable due to mould and age, under a stand of trees, and in a little grove carpeted with the greenest grass, a small whimsical table & chair setting complete with a chessboard and a discarded old billy tea can. Remarkably, it had been there a very long time, and left in peace from vandals or damage. Poignant, quiet, and also eliciting a sense in us of those who’d been here before. 

The night ahead is going to be exciting,we’re off for dinner at a local  winery, one of the many in this very fertile cold climate wine producing area. 

We enter the restaurant from a fairy lit garden, into a space reverberating with the cacophony of toddler noise and adult reprimand. This is unexpected.

There is a family dinner in progress to celebrate a birthday, it’s early on in the proceedings, but the kids, scurrying around tables, are definitely restless. And our table for two, cosily set up by the fire, is right next to the action. Take a deep breath Carol, it’ll be interesting.

Maître De secretively raises her eyebrows, and with smiling eyes offers us a sweet apology, which, over the next hour was proven to be unnecessary. Whether it was the wine, the first glass quickly sipped, or the stunning food, or the glow from the fireplace, who knows, but from a formidable looking start, we had a most enjoyable evening. The family politely embraced our company, and the kids were wrangled under control.

The next day sees us sightseeing in this truly beautiful Snowy region. We drive to Paddy’s river Waterfall with its impressive flow, the rain of the last few days no doubt contributing to the rush of water. We spend some time and lots of energy getting ourselves down what seemed like a thousand steps for better photos, and then of course, there’s the climb back up, a punishing workout for the knees. 

One disconcerting moment was had when we glanced back up  from below to the roadway and viewing platform, where we saw some children in the process of carrying large rocks to the end of the platform, presumably to throw down into the pools below. Unfortunately, there were people directly below, they’d been there with us, and these kids above couldn’t see them. 

A potentially dangerous situation was averted when hubby bellowed out to these kids in no uncertain terms to cease, and mercifully they did, quickly escaping back to their unsuspecting parent waiting in the car. They took off before we got back to the carpark, which was a good thing all round.

Time now to get back before dark, and wildlife on roads unfamiliar to us. Time also, to eat.

Curry night at the local motel doesn’t sound all that appealing to some no doubt, but it had come on recommendation from a local, so off we went. No microwave rice dish for us tonight.

The Elms is no ordinary motel with attached restaurant. 

It is tastefully presented, with lovely big cushiony sofas set  around a fireplace in the bar area, ambient lighting, helpful staff, once again a very good local wine list, and what turned out to be the most delicious curries and accompaniments. 

Did I mention a special of $5 per glass of quality local wine with your meal? Most appealing.

All in all, a very pleasant way to end our stay in Tumbarumba.

Tomorrow, we cross the Murray River into Victoria, continuing the adventure.