Bathurst, New South Wales

Machattie Park

Machattie Park in Bathurst, NSW, is one of those places you find when you are not really looking for it, and what started as a walk to pass time, turned into hours of photography!

On a trip out to Orange to shoot amazing sunsets, that did not happen, we stopped off in Bathurst on the long journey back to Sydney for lunch at my favourite Cafe called The Hub.

They were not able to seat us for 40 minutes so we went for a walk to pass the time, and strolled up to the nearest park, Machattie Park. We had no intentions to do photography, but once we got in there we discovered a photographers paradise.

Photographed using

Machattie Park

Machattie Park was formally opened in December 1890 and is built on the site of the old Bathurst Gaol, which was demolished in 1888. Machattie Park is an historically significant example of a late 19th century Victorian country town park.

It exhibits the principal elements typical of the Victorian period in terms of the form and layout and is particularly valuable because of the quality of the decorative features. Features include the Bandstand, the Caretakers Cottage, Crago Fountain, Fernery, Lake Spencer and the Munro Drinking Fountain.

Apart from the wonderful grounds, Machattie Park is filled with local wildlife, from duck and birds to a truly large number of bats. We could hear the bats as we approached the park and once we found them decided that we would return after lunch with cameras in hand.

It was this shoot in Machattie Park that made me decide to buy the Sony 200-600mm Lens as my 70-200mm is simply not enough reach for bird life or the bats that sit way above in the trees. I will be returning to Machattie Park to put the 200-600mm to the test!

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