This week, we made our way back up to Guyra to carefully transport the new door and window that need to be installed before the kitchen gets ripped out. What made the trip even more enjoyable was joining the Guyra Garden Club for a day trip to Tingha Museum and Toppers Mountain Winery. Tingha is a great example of some of the unique New England attractions you can discover when exploring the region. In fact, a day trip to Tingha ended up being a highlight of the week. Nothing says adulthood quite like spending a weekend moving building materials around and getting genuinely excited about it.
One of the lovely things about moving to a smaller community is slowly starting to meet the people who make it such a special place. It was wonderful to spend the day with some of the incredibly talented and knowledgeable people from Guyra and the surrounding districts.
What was particularly special was hearing so many people talk about Dad and the contribution he has made over the years to the New England Garden Festival and various garden shows throughout the region. Of course, I knew he had been involved, but hearing complete strangers speak so highly of him made me incredibly proud.
Wing Hing Long Museum
Tucked away in the small town of Tingha, the historic Wing Hing Long store offers a fascinating glimpse into a part of regional NSW history that many people may not know about.
Far removed from the busy streets of Sydney’s Chinatown, this former general store tells the story of the Chinese families and workers who helped shape rural communities throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s.
During the height of the tin mining boom, the Tingha district was home to a significant Chinese population. As the community grew, so did the need for familiar foods, household goods and everyday supplies from home.
Recognising this opportunity, Inverell businessman Ah Lin purchased the site in 1881 and established what would become the Wing Hing Long store. Like many country stores of the era, it quickly became a place where locals could purchase almost anything they needed and an important part of daily life within the community.
Today, the building has been preserved as a museum, giving visitors the opportunity to step back in time and learn about the important role Chinese settlers played in the development of the New England region. So, a day trip to Tingha can also be a journey into the area’s multicultural past.
One thing that really stood out to me was learning about the opportunities that migration offered many Chinese workers. Remaining in China often meant remaining within the class system you were born into, whereas coming to Australia, despite the hardships and years of indentured work, offered the possibility of creating a different future for themselves and their families.
The volunteers who showed us through the museum were fantastic and brought the stories of the building to life. They also served us a wonderful Devonshire tea afterwards, which was reason enough to visit in itself.
We also heard more about the history of tin mining in the district and discovered that sapphires were regularly found alongside the tin. Apparently, many of them were simply thrown aside.
I still have questions about this.
Mainly: where exactly were they throwing them?
I feel that would have been useful information to share.
Toppers Mountain Winery
After leaving Tingha, we made the short drive to Toppers Mountain Wines.
I have always associated wine regions in New South Wales with places like the Hunter Valley or Orange, so I was fascinated to learn more about wine production in the New England region.
I don’t pretend to know a great deal about winemaking, but even I could appreciate that the combination of altitude, rich red basalt soils and the cooler New England climate creates something pretty special.
The winery produces a range of estate-grown wines, including a Tempranillo Blanco, which I discovered is currently unique to this winery in Australia.
We spent a very pleasant afternoon overlooking the vineyard, enjoying a charcuterie board and working our way through a wine tasting.
It is easy to forget when visiting places like this that behind every successful business are years of trial, error, hard work and persistence. This year marks 25 years since the winery was established, and hearing the stories behind the different varieties was fascinating. Incidentally, the winery makes a great stop on a day trip to Tingha if you’re looking for more experiences in the region.
As they explained, they experimented with a number of grape varieties over the years before discovering which ones truly thrived in the New England climate.
The result speaks for itself.
And as someone who was there primarily for research purposes, I can confirm the wine was excellent.
Becoming Part of the Community
By the end of the day, we had officially joined the Guyra Garden Club.
I think almost every single person we met, once they discovered we were moving to Roseville, said some version of:
“So… I hope you like gardening.”
Fortunately, we seem to be surrounded by people who know exactly what they are doing and are more than willing to share their knowledge.
Which is reassuring because although I ran a successful garden maintenance business in Sydney with dad at the moment our cold climate gardening experience consists mostly of enthusiasm and ambitious plans.
What struck me most throughout the day was how welcoming everyone was. It feels good to finally start meeting people who know the area so well and who care deeply about the community and its history.
Every time I think I’m getting to know the region, I seem to find somewhere new to add to the list. Between museums, wineries, waterfalls and little country towns, I’m beginning to realise just how much there is to explore. If you’d like a few more ideas, I’ve also shared some of my favourite New England attractions I’ve discovered so far. Actually, planning a day trip to Tingha should definitely make your shortlist of adventures in the New England area.
One day trip at a time.
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