Chittering Valley


Just under an hour north-east of Perth, the Chittering Valley is far-removed from the hustle and bustle of the city. Nestled in the foothills of the Darling Range, its gently rolling hills form a tranquil backdrop to the myriad of orchards, farms and vineyards that dot the hillsides. Situated up to 300 metres above sea level, the climate and soils of the Chittering Valley are quite different to those of nearby orchard and viticulture regions. The soils of the Valley are predominantly sandy brown and red loam over clay with some granite outcrop, while the climate is typically Mediterranean with cold, wet winters and hot dry summers. These conditions are ideal for fruit and grape-growing with winter frosts ensuring good fruit set and hot summer days and cool summer nights guaranteeing ripening.

The district has many walk trails with one of the most popular being a visit to Blackboy Ridge with it's wonderful vista of farmlands, orchards, vineyards and forrest. Check out the beautiful Grass Tree sculpture at the entrance to the ridge.

In Spring the Valley comes alive with wildflowers and in September the town of Bindoon hosts its annual Wildflower Festival. The Taste of Chittering food market is held in August and weekend markets are held on the fourth Sunday of each month. You can enjoy a tour of the working orchards and take home freshly picked fruit during the citrus or fruit season. The annual Bindoon Agricultural Show is held on the third Saturday in October.



Local Produce
With its temperate Mediterranean climate and rich soils you can sample some wonderful fresh produce such as citrus fruits, olives, honey, wines and all manner of tasty organic treats. For several months of the year the aroma of orange blossom is the backdrop of the town of Bindoon and mandarins, oranges and lemons are sold from roadside stalls. At other times of the year avocados, mangoes and pumpkins are available, freshly picked by the farmer. The Taste of Chittering, held in September showcases all things Chittering in one place on one day and weekend markets are held on the fourth Sunday of each month. You can enjoy a tour of the working orchards and take home freshly picked fruit during the citrus or fruit season.

The Bindoon and Districts Agricultural Show is a showcase of the districts of Bindoon, Chittering, Gingin, Bullsbrook and other surrounding districts, featuring cattle, poultry, fruit and vegetable exhibition and competition, horses in action, floriculture, cookery, art, general crafts, needlecrafts, photography, amateur wine making and home brewing, home produce, children's exhibition and pet parade and much more. This annual event is held on the third Saturday of October each year.

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Golden Horizons Drive


Enjoy a picturesque drive to the fringe of Perth where you can enter the perfect example of Western Australia's wheatbelt and immerse yourself in the rural lifestle of the Golden Horizons.

A Sea of Flowers - experience wildflowers through touch, sight and smell at 10 sites scattered throughout the region, Chittering offers its Annual Wildflower Festival and a number of walk trails.

Getting Back to Nature - discover the natural environment that is unique to the wheatbelt, Chittering boasts Peace Be Still (walk trails), Julimar Lookout, Blackboy Ridge (walk trails, toilet facilities, picnic area) and Spoonbill Lake (picnic area).

From Paddock to Plate - learn about the history of the development of the region and its unique lifestyle while sampling some fresh and tasty produce, in Chittering you can visit Golden Grove Citrus Orchard, Kyotmunga Estate, Stringybark Winery and Restaurant, White Dog Farm, Burroloo Well, Apricot Acres Farm, Bindoon Bakehaus, Bite Cafe, Briery Estate and the Scottalian Hotel.

Art and Heritage - find that unique 'something' and explore a little history of the region, Chittering is proud to share with you the Brockman Centre (home to Bindoon Arts and Crafts, Bindoon Heritage Museum and the Men's Shed), Holy Trinity Church, the (ever-expanding) Sculpture Trail, the Catholic Agricultural College and the Wannamal Heritage Walk Trail.

Blackboy Ridge - Plenty of tables and some grand walks around, up and over this 64 hectare reserve, rich in wildflowers and views across the Brockman River flats. Winter creeks make this pristine, tree-clad hideaway on Chittering Road a special place for young and old.

Julimar Lookout - If you're taking the forest road to or from Toodyay, this is the place to absorb the splendid scenery you've encountered, or about to savour. Turn off the Julimar Road near the junction with the Chittering Road, where you'll also find picnic tables by the river. It is well signposted.

Chittering Valley Trails Visit the Chittering Valley website for full details of the Chittering Trails Network, which includes walks, drives, bridle and mountain bike trails.

Picnic Grounds


Visitor Centre, Bindoon - The shady gazebo and picnic tables, next to the Information Centre, are ideal if you've just bought food from the shops opposite and want somewhere to eat. Clean toilets and drinking water available.

Clune Park - Just north of Bindoon townsite on the Great Northern Highway and only a short distance from the shops. This is the place to stop if you want to give the children a break on the modern skill-testing swings, monkey bars and other physical challenges. Well maintained toilets, gardens and plenty of space. A skate park and Rotunda have recently been constructed. BBQ's available.

Spoonbill Lake - Get away from the traffic and spot the birdlife at this creek-fed lake in Upper Chittering. Wood and black ducks, dabchicks and waders can usually be seen. Turn off the Great Northern Highway at Hart Drive. There is easy access to the grassed waters edge for 2-wheel drive vehicles.

New Norcia


Often incorrectly called a town, New Norcia has never been officially gazetted as such, as it is a Benedictine Mission. 132 km north of Perth, along the Great Northern Highway, New Norcia is Australia s only monastic community and the only way to discover it is to take a guided tour, as it is not open to the public. Town tours take visitors behind closed doors and reveal the town s many layers and 160 years of fascinating stories. Other highlights include the beautiful chapel at St Ildephonsus  and St Gertrude s Colleges and the Abbey Church.

European Space Operations Centre
Since its creation in 1967, the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) has planned missions, operated more than 50 satellites and ensured that spacecraft meet their mission objectives. New Norcia Deep Space Tracking Station is part of its network. The station's dish itself is 35m in diameter so it is not large in comparison to the Parkes Radio Telescope but it serves both as a powerful transmitter as well as the ear  to listen for the faint radio signals sent back from so far my the relatively low-powered transmitters on the satellites.

Southern Cross Cosmos Centre



The Southern Cross Cosmos Centre at Gingin houses Australia's biggest public Observatory, the Gingin Observatory, that boasts of having the largest telescope for public access. The Gingin Observatory runs in conjunction with the Gravity Discovery Centre next door to give the public and students a chance to view the sun and also experience stargazing evenings. The Gravity Discovery Centre includes a 45 m tower that leans at an angle of 15 degrees that allows students to complete free fall experiments. Both facilities are next to the Australian International Gravitational Observatory.

Gingin


40 km north of Bullsbrook and 84 km north of Perth along the Brand Highway, Gingin is an agricultural town well suited for agriculture with a mild climate and available water sources. Explorer George Fletcher Moore first recorded the name in 1836; the meaning of the word is uncertain but is thought to mean "footprint" or "place of many streams". The town of Gingin is host to the annual British car rally, which is held on the third Sunday of May.

Muchea



The village of Muchea stands not far from where the Brand Highway braches off from Gt Northern Highway some 57 km north of Perth and 13 km north of Bullsbrook. The origins of Muchea lay in the establishment of market gardens producing fresh vegetables for the metropolitan area. The main attraction at the time was the easily tillable flatter and sandy landform with an abundance of underground water supplies. Its name is derived from the Aboriginal word Muchela , a name first recorded by a surveyor in 1845 when surveying a property for George Fletcher Moore. When a railway siding was built in the 1890s, the L  was accidentally dropped when the Midland Railway authorities were preparing the timetable. The sign writer copied the timetable error onto the railway station name board, thus unwittingly changing the name a district.


Muchea Tracking Station

Muchea Tracking Station
Muchea Tracking Station was established in 1960, and built specifically for NASA s Project Mercury. It was Station No. 8 of 14 sites around the world used throughout the project. Muchea was closed in 1963, soon after the end of the Mercury Project. It was replaced by the Carnarvon Tracking Station for the Gemini and Apollo Projects. A tower is all that remains of the Muchea Tracking Station, although the Shire of Chittering has erected a small display about the local history.
Boys Town


Catholic Agricultural College Bindoon is a Year 7 to 12, co-educational College for day and residential students. It is set on a 3300 hectare working farm 10 km from the township of Bindoon. The property on which the college stands was gifted to the Christian Brothers in the 1930s by a wealthy landowner and widow, Mrs Catherine Musk, for the purpose of establishing a farm school for orphaned and socially disadvantaged boys. Construction of the notorious college started in 1940, with the official opening in 1941.
Brockman Centre



The Brockman Centre is a community hub focused around the Old Roads Board Building where enthusiastic volunteers lend their time to both the Heritage Museum and Arts & Crafts Centre. The Centre is equipped with a ceramics and pottery workshop and jewellery making equipment. The Brockman shop sells handmade, local art and craft items. Located 4km south of the Bindoon townsite on Great Northern Highway, it is home to the Brockman Museum, Bindoon Arts and Craft and the Chittering Road Board building, along with being the base for the Bindoon Men's Shed.

Walyunga National Park



An attractive bushland reserve renowned for its vistas over the Swan River coastal plain. A 1,790 hectare tract of bushland in the Darling Scarp on Perth's north-eastern perimeter, the park is particularly popular among bushwalkers; the River, Kangaroo, Echidna, Kingfisher and Aboriginal Heritage Trails are of varying lengths and degrees of difficulty. Swimming is permitted at Walyunga pool though the water quality is questionable. White water canoeing on the Avon River is popular after rain, when the Park's string of placid pools turn into a raging torrent. It then becomes one of Australia's best white water canoeing courses and is part of the annual Avon Descent race each August. Wildlife seen in the park can include Kangaroos, Emus, Echidna, Black Duck and Teal.

Location: 37 kilometres north east of Perth. How to get there: by car, via Great Northern Hwy; follow signs to park. Transperth buses run to the highway turn off only some 2 km from the park entrance.

Avon Valley



Located just an hours drive east of Perth is the picturesque Avon Valley. A colourful patchwork of gently rolling hills and winding streams set the backdrop for peaceful drives and countryside getaways. The Avon Valley is a perfect destination for a day trip from Perth or for a weekend getaway. Stretching from Brookton in the south to New Norcia in the north, the Avon Valley region boasts eight intriguing towns for you to explore; Beverley, Bindoon (Chittering), Brookton, Goomalling, Northam, Toodyay, York and New Norica (Victoria Plains).

A unique contrast of old and new the Avon Valley offers a wide variety of experiences for the discerning traveller . Whether you are tempted by an adventure holiday, a romantic weekend, a family getaway or the chance to explore some of the Avon Valley's rich history, the Avon Valley is the place to be as you discover a new holiday experience close to Perth.

Chittering Valley Wine Trail



The Wine Trail passes through the beautiful Chittering Valley - one of the State's best kept secrets - and winds its way through dramatic scenery of hills, orchards and vineyards. The climate is typically Mediterranean with long, warm summer days and cool, crisp nights providing the perfect conditions for grape growing. The characteristic grapes of this region - Shiraz, Verdelho, Grenache, Viognier, Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay - are just a few of the varieties you can enjoy. There are five wineries, each with their own unique character and style, each dedicated to giving you an exceptional wine experience.

Bullsbrook


Pearce Air Base

An outer suburb of Perth 25 km north of Midland, Bullsbrook is a semi rural community near the confluence of Monger, Bulls and Ellen Brooks, three tributaries of the Swan River. The original Bullsbrook townsite is located slightly west of the current town, on the 17 km mark of the Midland Railway. The name originates from the railway station, established during the construction of the Midland Railway in the 1890s and named after an adjacent watercourse, Bull's Brook. The watercourse may have been named after Lt Henry Bull who was granted land here in May 1831.

Six Mazes are located within beautiful shaded picnic and BBQ areas of the Bullsbrook Maze. Other attractions include Koalas, Emus, Kangaroos, Coffee Shop, Mini Golf, shop and restaurant. 1625 Neaves Rd, Bullsbrook, WA. ph (08) 9571 1375

Bullsbrook is home to the RAAF Pearce airbase, a major training facility for the Royal Australian Air Force. It is primarily home to No 2 Flying Training School and No 79 Squadron. The Republic of Singapore's No 130 Squadron is also based at Pearce. Pearce is the busiest RAAF base in the country in terms of total aircraft movements, including civil movements at the Joint User bases. Although its primary role is pilot training, it remains the only permanent Air Force base on the west coast, and thus has a significant logistics role.

Pearce Air Show
The Defence Force Air Show is held annually over two days at RAAF Pearce airbase. Featuring a variety of aircraft - both civilian and military - the event attracts over 50,000 visitors.

Pearce Air Show

RAAF Gingin
RAAF Gingin is a small airfield located near Pearce that is also used for flying training. The airfield is owned by the Air Force and is managed by RAAF Base Pearce. A rotation of Air Traffic Controllers travel from Pearce each day to provide services, when requested by the flying units.

Bindoon



Bindoon is a pretty rural town 84 km north of Perth and 19 km east of Gingin on the Great Northern Highway within the Shire of Chittering. Its agricultural achievements are reflected in The Flavours of Chittering, a one-day food and wine festival which celebrates the Chittering Valley and its wonderful produce. The village has a number of picturesque stone buildings and a museum filled with mainly agricultural machinery. The name Bindoon is thought to be Aboriginal in origin and is thought to mean place where the yams grow . The name has been in use in the area since 1843 when an early settler, William Brockman, named the property he had surveyed as Bindoon. The townsite was gazetted in 1953.

The Bindoon Heritage Museum's main building houses a large collection of machinery, tractors, stationary engines, plant, tools and memorabilia. Open Wed, Sat and Sun 10am to 3pm. Tel: 9576 1325 or 9576 1090.

Bindoon townshite heritage walk
The majority of training and selection for the Australian Special Air Service Regiment takes place at Bindoon. Some of the facilities include live-firing ranges, the Brigade Special Training Facilities and full scale Boeing 747 mockup to simulate the storming of an airliner.











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