Ararat

Ararat is my home town and as far as tourism goes I have always thought that it sells its region short by directing most of its tourism promotion at the Grampians. To the east of Ararat, dominating the horizon down the main street, is Mt Langi Ghiran and beyond that the Mt Buangor State Forest. The best thing about visiting these areas is that there are very few other people there. Perhaps they're trying to keep them for themselves.

Many of the town's major buildings were constructed from the wealth of the gold rush in the 1850's and 60's, the most notable being the town hall. The art gallery in the town hall is an excellent exhibition space and I had my first solo exhibition here in 1989.

Another of my favourite places here is the Chalambar Golf Course. Set on the side of the Ararat hills it is a beautiful golf course with good greens and plenty of wildlife, including kangaroos on the back nine. It's almost worth the 2 1/2 hour drive from Melbourne for a day's golf.

The Ararat hills also have some of the oldest trees in Australia and there are excellent views of the Grampians and Langi Ghiran/ Mt Buangor from One Tree Hill. There's nearly always someone up there watching the sunset.