In 1995, another Odd pub I found was the Silverton Hotel, 1,200 Kms west of Sydney
We spent three days getting there, over the Blueys through Dubbo and Cobo etc. a long hot drive.
The Long Haired One was in Hospital in Sydney, been there for a week, so on the day she was being released I hired a Camper Van and parked outside the hospital. I brought her out and she says `What’s that?` I says `That is your hotel for the next few weeks, ` she goes mad, then she says `Where are we going` I says to the Pub, ` she says `And where is that?` and I say `In Silverton` `Is it far?` `Only a few days, 1,200Ks. `I say. She goes mad again, `Sydney is full of Pubs what is wrong with those?`.
Any way we set off and three days later we arrive in Silverton, I had two pints of Castlemain XXXX and then drove down to Broken Hill to stay overnight before heading for Mildura. and the Mighty Murray. She said I was crazy to travel a round trip of 3,500 kilometres to have two pints in a pub
Now Silverton was a ghost town, The Silver mine closed and the town was abandoned. But over the years it has some what recovered as a tourist destination, it is in the desert, flat as a pancake and you can see to the ends of the earth.
The Silverton Hotel was very run down, the paint was faded and peeling just a wooden shack with a three legged dog on the porch, every time I said `SIT` it fell over. The barmaid, Vanessa, was very good, I was served immediately, we were the only people in town. Inside the walls were covered in old photos so I gave Vanessa a photo to pin up on the wall, of me with two 2RAR Soldiers who I had taken to Malaya in 1955 on the Georgic from Sydney. One of them was `Lofty` from Broken Hill, around 20 Kms away.
You may have seen the pub a few years ago on the XXXX beer adverts on TV where a couple of guys load a lorry with dozens of cases of XXXX and his mate says ,`What about the Sheila’s` so he puts a couple of bottles of Sherry on board and the lorry capsizes.
He then says, `I guess we over did it on the Sherry. `
I found a strange thing in the middle of the dusty road, near the pub, a grave of a young lady, covered in Chicken wire to keep the Dingo’s out, and a few dried up flowers on. I had to drive round it.
Several dozen Camels, descendents from the Ghans, were wandering around town and sleeping in the road blocking our way even though` I nudged then with the van
I have looked on the GOOGLE today and the pub has new owners and I could not recognise it, all done up and posh, it also has four cabins to sleep in. Some of the old buildings have been turned into museums.
Quite a few beer adverts were made there and a few movies including some of the Mad Max films.
For a Pub that is different, it is worth a visit. Beyond the black stump.
Cheers
Brian.
