Winton is a long way north-west from Brisbane, approximately 1,500 kilometres in fact, and like so many Australian outback communities it is typically a long way from anywhere else. Perhaps it's relative isolation has much to do with the town's strong community spirit and dedication to identity.
The town has strong links to Waltzing Matilda, Qantas, and dinosaurs. Winton is probably best known as the place where ‘Banjo’ Paterson wrote Australia’s unofficial national anthem “Waltzing Matilda” in 1895. Just as significantly, the first board meeting of Qantas was held at the Winton Club in 1921, marking Winton as the Birthplace of Qantas. However, long before indigenous Australians and the white settlers walked in Winton, the dinosaurs called this land home. But, it was none of these conventional attractions that pulled the Bazflyers to Winton.
Every two years Winton hosts the Outback Festival, a week of zany sports, entertainment and nostalgia. It's a memorable week where this normally tiny settlement of around one thousand folk swells beyond bursting point from an influx of up to 8,000 visitors.
Rumour has it that the next Outback Festival in 2019 may also initiate Qantas' centenary. Book us in...!
Outback Extravaganza dinner guests were treated to an amazing spectacle, a centennial reinactment of the WW1 Australian light horse brigade Battle of Besheeba.
Dinner in the Outback
Sporting events included the great Australian Dunny Derby.
Street parade lead by today's equivalent of yesteryears light horses.
Sunset over Winton
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