Trout Hatchery & More Waterfalls

Checking out the weather this morning we were a bit apprehensive about predicted winds of up to 52km an hour. We thought we would probably not travel very far today as we didn’t want to risk being up on the open and windy mountains further along the Waterfall Way.

First place we visited today was Dutton Trout Hatchery, one of two NSW government hatcheries where they breed both rainbow and brown trout. We got to see first hand how they breed the fish, stripping the females of eggs and the males of sperm and creating fertilized eggs that hatch into ‘fry’. It’s a very labor intensive process but one that has definitely increased the numbers of trout, that are then released into waterways across NSW where many people can enjoy the sport of fishing. We walked around the various ponds, feeding pellets to the fish. Cadbury seemed to get a kick out of watching the trout jump about to catch the food. At the end of our visit we bought some delicious looking smoked trout, some of which would no doubt be consumed later today during happy hour!

After our hatchery visit, and talking to the manager there who lives in the next town up the mountain (Dorrigo) we decided definitely to stay put and not attempt to tow the caravan there until tomorrow. We drove a few km up the road to Ebor Falls, where we explored both the upper and lower falls before driving to the Sports and Recreation Ground nearby for the night.

We enjoyed happy hour with cheese, trout, crackers and red wine sitting in the afternoon sun, trying to stay out of the wind. Eventually the biting wind won and we retreated inside. Time to cook dinner and get cosy for the evening.

Good night from Ebor on the Waterfall Way xxLæs mere