The Goldfields is a beautiful region just north of Melbourne in Victoria, which has beautifully preserved Gold Rush boomtowns like Bendigo, Ballarat and Heathcote and some great wineries, producing cool-climate wines. Bendigo Art Gallery hosts a number of exhibitions worth travelling for every year and every June, the winemakers in the region flock to Heathcote for Heathcote on Show, one of my favourite annual wine events. There is so much to do in the Goldfields and it really is one of Victoria’s best kept secrets.

I acknowledge the Dja Dja Wurrung and Taungurung people as the First Nations owners of the lands now recognised as the Victorian Goldfields. I pay respect to their Elders, lores, customs and creation spirits. I recognise that these lands have always been places of great natural beauty, culture and community.