Winston Hills Exhibition

Once again this year I journeyed out to Winston Hills for the Rotary Club's exhibition. This is a small local exhibition and seems to get good support from the locals. It is held in the Public School with the main hall and several classrooms used. There were 15 displays plus a couple of trade stands, a white elephant stall and a couple of craft stalls. Also there were Thomas rides and a jumping castle which both seemed in want of customers.

This year did not appear as well organised as previous years. There were fewer layouts and they were spread out across too many rooms. The main hall only had exhibits around the walls which left a big gap in the centre. In one of the rooms the layout was just inside the door with the empty room behind. It would seem a better idea to use less rooms and put more layouts in the main hall. When you walk into a half empty room it leaves an impression of how few layouts there were.

The other unusual thing I noted was the "Ticket Office" where you paid your entry was in the middle it would have been possible to bypass it and get in for free. In fact there were 2 tables where you could pay but both were in strange positions. One good thing was there were flyers for 2 coming events which promise to be better, Blacktown and Hawkesbury, I would suggest the organisors of this event visit both and make plenty of notes.

One of the problems with using facilities not designed for shows is the lack of facilities. Just a couple of examples, the "Refreshment Room" was in a classroom with a BBQ outside the door supplying the food and the parking was inadequate.

There is a small parking area but it is easy to miss the entrance and it was full most of the time I was there. Most visitors parked on the street and as it is a narrow and busy road that is not the best.

The food available, while limited in range, was quite good. There were only Steak and Sausage Sandwiches, cheese sandwiches and a variety of cakes and lollies plus tea / coffee and cool drinks. While adequate and of good quality a larger choice would have been nice. I always think the food is important as the organisors want people to stay for a while. There were few places to sit and eat too. Good food and clean toilets are the basics of any good event.

So the important question - will I go next year year? Probably not.

More from Steamfest

As promised here are some more pictures from Steamfest. As you can see it didn't have to be powered by steam to feature. The coach gave rides around the market area past the helicopter (also not powered by steam!).

I'm not sure they are the historically correct breed of horses for a coach but they did a good job. Even having the helicopter land behind the photographer didn't spook them. At least not as much as it did the photographer. It is not easy holding onto your hat and taking a photo at the same time.

The traction engine featured in the rally area and here has just backed up the attach a trailer which it proceeded to haul around for a while. It was just one of the engines in steam.

There were also stationary engines that pumped water around and round. Some that weren't connected to anything seemed very unstable, they just sat there shaking.


Also on display were several old cars and even a blitz wagon Bush Fire truck.

Maitland Steamfest

Okay I know it is now called Hunter Valley Steamfest but for some of us it always was and always will be Maitland Steamfest. After all it is centred on Maitland.

On approaching Maitland from the New England Highway heading south, or should that be east?, I noticed there was nothing to let visitors know there was something on in town. I understand there were signs coming from Sydney and from Kurri.

3801 arrived from Sydney in its new grey livery. Many people commented how it wasn't original but of course it is the livery it wore for the first few years until after WW2.

There were the usual stalls up the main street and plenty of food stalls but still I got a feeling of "seen it all before". Is it me or are some of these events getting a little stale?

Small traction engines and a donkey cart ran up and down the street but most of the action was in the steam rally which is over the line and by itself. Lots of traction engines, stationary engines and vintage vehicles as well as live steam model railway rides.

See the Golden Fleece tanker in the background? Now there is an image from my youth.

It was an enjoyable day although I didn't visit the small model railway display in the CWA hall. Will I go again next year? Probably after all it is almost a given but let's wait and see.

I have more photos and will upload some during the week. Next weekend is Winston Hills Exhibition for a real change of pace.

Why this Blog?

Why this Blog? Good question. I visit many Model Railway Exhibitions, Rail events and similar during the year and wanted to share my impressions. I don't travel very far so normally only visit events within a couple of hours drive of Sydney NSW.

I hope you find this interesting and look forward to seeing your comments.