Hill End, New South Wales

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630lb gold nugget from Hill End, unearthed in 1872

Hill End is a former gold mining town in New South Wales, Australia, in Bathurst Regional Council. It owes its existence to the New South Wales gold rush of the 1850s, and at its peak in the early 1870s it had a population estimated at 8,000 served by two newspapers, five banks, eight churches, and twenty-eight pubs. Its decline when the gold gave out was dramatic: by 1945 the population was 700, and today there are less than than 100 full-time residents.

In the late 1940s it was discovered by artists Russell Drysdale and Donald Friend, and quickly became an artists' colony — the Hill End artist-in-residence program aims to ensure the continuity of this connection. Today, Hill End is a popular tourist destination.

1 Modern Day Hill End
2 Visiting Hill End
3 Bridle Track
4 Annual CSU Theatre & Media induction
5 Access
6 Camping
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] Modern Day Hill End

One of the original houses from the gold rush era.

Modern Hill End is classified as a Historical site by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), however it is still home to a handful of residents operating the local pub, general store, cake store & antique store.

NPWS has installed signs around the town to give visitors an idea of what was once in place on the now empty lots of land. Currently only a hand full of buildings remain in their original form. However most of those buildings still serve the purpose they did back during the gold rush.

The most popular tourist activity in Hill End is gold panning, with some of the older members of the community running gold panning tours in the very same fossicking areas that yielded the gold which brought on the gold rush.

[edit] Visiting Hill End

Hill End is no longer the tourist town it used to be, however the Royal Hotel and the local Bed and Breakfasts offer nice and warm accommodation at very reasonable prices. There is also a wide array of camping options with in the town limits.

Whilst the town does host tourists, it is not a busy tourist town, and as such the local business are not fully prepared for catering to the demands that an influx of visitors can bring. For one with special dietary requirements, it might be better to prepare to be self sufficient for the stay, or talk to the hosts before arrival. Communications in Hill End are limited to CDMA mobile phones and the local payphone.

Hill End B&B (Hosies) Gifts Crafts & Collectables..

[edit] Bridle Track

Hill End remains as an excellent 4WD destination. The most exciting of these is the Bridle Track which runs from Duramana (North of Bathurst) directly to the town centre of Hill End. Generally the track can be classified as an easy track, however extreme care must be taken as the road surface has been known to change during the different seasons and after heavy rain.

The Bridle Track begins as a narrow tar covered road, however it later changes to dirt. Much of the last 20km is single lane, and will not allow any overtaking which makes things awkward to come across on-coming traffic. It is also strongly suggested not to attempt to travel along the track after nightfall or after heavy rain, as the track does skirt around some very large drops. Ideally a vehicle should be fitted with Low Range to complete this track. In February/March look out for theatre students who may be using the track as part of a rite of summer.

[edit] Annual CSU Theatre & Media induction

Each year the Theatre & Media course at Charles Sturt University in nearby Bathurst run an innovative induction process in which students participate in a site-specific event along the Bridle Track concluding at The Royal Hotel in Hill End. The only publicly known part of the event is that each 1st-Year student must walk the 30km track over 2 days (during the heat of summer), during which time they must simultaneously teach and learn a number of very valuable lessons. The process was believed to have been devised by CSU lecturers Bill Blaikie, Jerry Boland and John Carroll. Much of the event is shrouded in secrecy, rumoured to possibly involve the Dark Arts, and seems to reflect a decidedly libertine ethos. The graduating students are bound by a blood oath to keep the event from public knowledge. A certain amount of evidence points to the connection between this induction process and the extraordinarily tight-knit loyalty of graduates from the Theatre & Media Course at CSU.

[edit] Access

From Sofala, New South Wales which is ~ 38km along unsealed road.
From Mudgee, New South Wales which is around 75km and the route passes through Hargraves.