Winter in Bendigo is a magical time... to rug up, breathe deep, and enjoy the changing season

Bendigo has a plethora of buildings, conceived and built in the bustling goldfield days of the late 1800s. Businesses that supplied the mines were sometimes in the box seat, as it was a very lucrative and more reliable business than gold mining sometimes. Like the fuse makers. Mr Charles Perry was the originator of the fuse-making industry in Bendigo in 1876. He was a tailor by trade, but in the early years he displayed the gifts of an inventor of great ability. Mr Perry constructed his first fuse-making machine in Bendigo but he did not begin the manufacture of fuse for business purposes until 1878, when he ceased making battery gratings. In partnership with his nephew, Mr W Hunter, Mr Perry built a fuse factory in Wattle Street, and began making fuses for the mines. The fuse factory is still intact today, at 197 Wattle Street, with its wonderful architecture still there for all to see. From The Annals of Bendigo 1861 - 1867, pge 151.

LOCATED in the heart of Central Victoria, Heathcote is home to the towns monthly regional Farmers Market, connecting farmers and food producers with both the local community and visitors to the region. Grow Trade Eat, is the markets fitting motto, with an ever-growing list of local and regionally-grown and made produce. Located at Barrack Reserve in the heart of High Street, Heathcote, the park setting lends itself perfectly to a market, with picnic tables and benches scattered throughout the park so visitors can take a break and enjoy a sausage from the monthly community-run barbecue that serves locally made pork and beef sausages in sourdough rolls. While youre in town for the market, dont miss a chance to have a coffee at one of the many cafes in town, and take the opportunity to visit the numerous cellar doors offering sensational local wines. The Heathcote Regional Farmers Market has over thirty local and regional stallholders selling a diverse selection of fresh and seasonal produce: Artisan bread, beauty products, cheese, eggs, food products, fruit, herbal teas, honey, livestock, meats, olives, plants, preserves, ready-to-eat food, sheep hides and wool, sweat treats, vegetables, walnuts and fine wine.