Aussie Places
Mildura, on the Murray...
August 2025
Australia`s Fruit Bowl
Mildura (pop: 58,000) is a large regional city in north-west Victoria. Located on the southern bank of the Murray River, it`s situated near the borders of New South Wales and South Australia, making it a key hub for the entire Sunraysia region. The city is a significant service and administrative centre for this vast, agriculturally rich area and, as a regional centre, it plays a crucial role in providing essential services like healthcare, education, and retail for a wide geographical area. It`s a major hub for the production of grapes and other irrigated fruits, earning it the nickname Australia`s Fruit Bowl. While the city`s economy is heavily reliant on agriculture and associated industries, including food processing and wine production, its unique location on the river also makes it a popular tourist destination, thanks to its sunny climate, paddle steamers, and easy access to outback attractions like Mungo National Park. We stayed in town for three nights to relax and regroup from an arduous itinerary.
Palmtrees and clock tower features in this view of main street Mildura. [5928]
Gliding along in the breeze is this Australian Pelican over the Murray River in Mildura. [4763]
Looking from Mildura`s Field of Lights across the Murray to a riverside house in NSW. [4798]
Mildura is a fine city in its own right, but we were attracted to the river which, like everywhere along the Murray, teems with both history and wildlife, not to mention memorials to past glories and floods. As usual, we tried to capture (in digital images) as many birds as possible. Mildura has Lock 11 in the giant Murray-Darling water management system, and it is, apparrently, the only Lock and Weir which are separated by an island, imaginatively named Lock Island. There`s nice views and plenty of birdlife to be viewed from Lock Island, and it hosts the Trail of Lights, a commercial light show open at night. The factual descriptions of the birds we managed to photograph along this section of the Murray River are mostly AI generated from whichever websites it has harvested, probably a lot from Wikipedia.
We contemplated Lock Island island: since the border between NSW and Victoria is on the Victorian bank, it means that NSW `owns` the river. So is Lock Island in NSW? No, as it turns out - here the border wraps around the island to keep it in Victoria. It makes sense when you look at the map and walk the ground. You can`t walk from NSW onto the island, but you can from Victoria across the lock gates.
The Houseboat Rental industry on the Murray River, very strong near Mildura, is a thriving tourism sector offering a wide range of vessels for hire, catering to all budgets and group sizes, from small, basic boats to large, luxurious vessels with amenities like spas and multiple ensuited bedrooms. A standard car license is all that`s needed to operate these boats. Houseboats allow renters to explore the river`s scenery, towns, and other attractions at leisure. There are estimated to be 40 houseboats for rent around Mildura, and another 60 altogether on the Murray.
We were advised to enjoy an afternoon beverage at the Gol Gol Hotel, and we did so, but, on a perfect Sunday, were surprised to find the whole place virtually deserted. Gol Gol (meaning `meeting place`, pop: 2000) is on the NSW side of the river, about 5km east of Mildura.
With a tree showing the 2023 flood level, across the Murray can be seen a caravan park in NSW. [4704]
This engine was designed by George Chaffey, built in Birmingham England, eventually arrived in Mildura by train and barge in 1889 to pump water into Kings Billabong for irrigation. It operated until 1955.
The Lower Murray River Pump Station Mural, painted by George Rose, features Murray Cod, Cabungi Grass, indigenous tools, canoe trees, the Chaffey Brothers and irrigation channels.
Mildura never forgets its floods. The 1956 flood originated with heavy rains far away in Western Queensland three months earlier, coming down the Darling River. This 2017 mural reminds the city of their worst ever flood.
Nothing is more picturesque than the red river gums on this bend in the Murray in Mildura. [4721]
The Paddleboat Coonawarra started life as a wool barge in 1894, now converted to a floating motel with air-con rooms and a shared kitchen. [4755]
An Australian Pelican coming into land on the Murray River at Mildura. [4690]
The "black eyed pelican", an Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus), a large, predominantly white bird with striking black and white wings and a pink bill, and a distinctive yellow eye ring surrounding its black eyes. This species is common throughout Australia, found in both fresh and saltwater environments, and is easily recognizable by its long bill and throat pouch. [4760]
Good fishing here judging by the seagulls and pelicans at Weir 11 in Midura. [4726]
The seagulls look pretty excited, but the pelicans are calm, at the outfall of Weir 11 in Mildura. [4778]
An Australian Darter seems to be calling out in anger as he dries his wings on a post in the Murray River. [4804]
The sharp pointed bill and evil eye of an Australian Darter. [4746]
The Great Egret (Ardea modesta) is a large, all-white heron that is common throughout Australia in wetland regions. It features a long neck, yellow bill (which turns black during the breeding season), and long black legs. This carnivore predominantly eats fish, but also consumes insects, crustaceans, amphibians, and other small aquatic animals. This heron is sharing the riverbank with two ducks. [4768]
Sharp billed and white all over, this Great Egret casts his beady eye across the waters at Mildura. [4771]
Looking for little creatures is this carniverous Magpie Lark hopping along the rocks at the edge of the Murray River. Like magpies, these guys are known to attack people too near to their nests. [4786]
Maned Duck or Australian Wood Duck seen near the Lock on the Murray River in Mildura. Looks like a male (R) and a female (L). [4811]
This luxurious looking houseboat is one of 40 for rent around Mildura. [4915]
Billabong by the Murray in front of the hotel at Gol Gol [4907]
Dear red river gums in the Murray at Gol Gol have a certain beauty. [4911]
Downtown Mildura...
Mildura boasts several historically significant buildings that reflect its unique founding as an irrigation colony. For example, there is the 1908 Carnegie Centre, a notable public building, once serving as the town's library. The Mildura railway line reached the town in 1903, providing a crucial link for the region`s burgeoning agricultural industry to the markets in Melbourne. This connection was vital for the export of dried fruit and other produce, and it rapidly supplanted the Murray River paddle steamers as the primary mode of transport. For decades, the overnight passenger service, The Vinelander, connected Mildura with Melbourne, but it was discontinued in 1993. While passenger services no longer run, the station still serves as a bus depot, and the line remains an important freight corridor for the region`s agricultural output.
We have to express our disappointment with the Mildura RSL Club where we took dinner one night. It`s housed in a new and gaudy building dated 2017 with an extension in 2024. This high-tech audio-visual palace placed just too much emphasis on gambling, of which all types were available and encouraged - poker machines, keno, TAB and a meat raffle. Worse still, it seemed virtually every patron (of which there were many) were participating in one form of gambling or other. There is clearly a market for gambling, and the Club needs to be profitable, but here it is too tempting for people who may not be able to afford too lose too much. We did`nt hang around after dinner.
View of Mildura by night from the Langtree Cafe. [4813]
The Mildura & District Historical Society is housed in the historic Carnegie Centre, a beautiful building erected in 1908 as the Carnegie Library. [4818]
Riverside cafe in MIldura popular on warm sunny mornings. [4750]
The saddest thing about this War Memorial at Mildura`s Workingmans Club is the sheer number of their members who died in WW1. [1915]
Advertising their brand of coffee, this Grinders mural looks cool on the wall of a cafe in Mildura. [4812]
Sadly, no passenger trains have called in at Mildura for decades. [5320]
Dilapidated goods shed at the now disused (since 1993) Mildura Railway Station (except as a bus terminal). Its an artwork in itself. [5146]
Originally the Mildura Coffee Palace, the Mildura Grand Hotel dates back to the very early days of the irrigation settlement. Mildura was a planned temperance colony, part of the Chaffey brothers’ vision for Mildura as a place without an ingrained drinking culture to distract working men from their duties. In 1889, tenders were called for the building of the Coffee Palace, with original directors WB Chaffey, H Williams and A Croathwaite. [Text from https://thechaffeytrail.com.au/the-sites/grand-hotel/][5703]
Carpobrotus rossii, commonly known as Pigface or Karkalla, is a native Australian succulent groundcover with fleshy, cylindrical leaves and vibrant pink to purple flowers. It is a hardy, low-maintenance plant that spreads rapidly in dense mats, making it excellent for coastal erosion control. The plant is drought-tolerant and prefers full sun and well-drained soils. Its edible leaves offer a salty crunch, and the fruit tastes like figs with a salty tang, with traditional uses by Aboriginal people. [4754]
Very pleasant flat walking through Lock Island in Mildura. [4731]
Even in broad daylight, the setup for Mildura`s Trail of Lights on Lock Island is impressive and visually appealing. It`s only open Thu, Fri, Sat nights and has a steep admission fee.[4795]
THis water tower in Mildura is screaming for an arty mural paintjob. [4922 AI]
The Mildura RSL Club was very handy to our hotel for a meal. We were very sad to see the emphasis of gambling at this community Club. [4917]
Very nice and serene park area between the Gol Gol Hotel beer garden and the Murray River. Nice place for kids to play if you trust them to keep out of the water. [4916]
Quest Apartments in Mildura...
We spent three nights in Mildura, so it made sense to book an apartment with kitchenette and laundry facilities. The Quest fitted the bill, with the advantage of being within easy walking distance of the CBD and the Murray River. In our experience, the Quest chain is a reliable provider of adequate, well-managed, no-nonsense apartments, and Mildura matched this description. It also aligned with our experience of inadequate or awkward parking, but we coped with that OK. Check-in was interesting: we were smilingly upgraded to a two bedroom apartment, but when we got there, the second bedroom was locked. We enquired and were told that you have a two bedroom apartment, you just can`t use the second bedroom because it will then require cleaning. So our second bedroom upgrade was really just a locked door! They said that we did have a bigger living area because of the second bedroom, so for that we should be grateful. The shower featured an illuminated head which changes colours. The LEDs are powered by a tiny internal turbine. We did not know of such a device, but discovered that they are readily available for about $50. The bathroom was quite good - it had an exhaust fan which was actually effective in the windowless room, and two decent towel rails, better than many much more expensive hotels.
The lift at the Quest MIldura was sometimes very slow, but we were still surprised to see what was as good as a bed in the lift lobby! [4921]
Novices we may be, but our hotel`s multicolored shower head was a first for us. They work with a tiny turbine inside, and somehow change colour with water temperature. [1414]
Mildura has not moved to underground powerlines, but this dusk cityscape has a certain appeal anyway. [4923]
