#echuca

Miss Fisher Australia Tour (26)

Bert and Cec had been best mates for a long time. They fought the Great War together, worked at the docks together, opened the cab business together, and joined Miss Fisher’s detective agency together. Until Cec fell in love with Alice, the two Red Raggers were inseparable. I imagine that Bert had already felt a little left out since Cec started courting Alice. To him, the announcement of the engagement sealed the fate of their friendship/partnership, which put him in a dark mood. Alice’s mention of her uncle’s offer of “a concessional ten-acre allotment off his farm in Echuca” finally pushed him over the edge. Poor Bert clearly suffered from separation anxiety. I always found his acting out hilarious, but after learning how far Echuca was from Melbourne, I actually felt for him.

So, how far is Echuca from Melbourne? It’s 214 km (or 133 miles) according to Wikipedia. Although Miss Fisher’s Hispano-Suiza could top 85 miles an hour, most motor cars topped out around 45 back then. If Cec moved to there, it would take Bert at least three hours to pay him a visit. Imagine that!

In terms of the town itself, it was established in the 1850s, and by the 1870s it became Australia’s largest inland port. However, by the 1890s the paddle steamer fleet was in decline, and so was the town. Today Echuca’s main industry is tourism. The port is home to the largest paddle steamer collection in the world, which includes the world’s oldest operating wooden hulled paddle steamer, the PS Adelaide built in 1866. The largest waterski race in the world, the Club Marine Southern 80, is held here every February. Other annual events include Riverboat Music Festival (February), Echuca Rotary Steam, Horse and Vintage Rally (June), and the Echuca Moama Winter Blues Festival (July). As interesting as they sound, I won’t be visiting it, at least not this time, since it was only mentioned in passing in this episode and not an actual filming location.

A flock of birds flies above a property in Northern Victoria. 

I’m here in Echuca working to document the people at the heart of the Australian Dairy industry. Keep a look out for updates in the coming weeks.