The New England town of Walcha will host its fourth Food, Wine and Craft Festival on Sunday, 31 October at the Walcha Showground.
The Festival is the town's major event for the year and showcases the abundance of quality local produce, wine and local crafts available in the region.
"Since we first staged the event in 2006, the Festival has grown to become a tremendous success," said Walcha's Tourism Manager, Gemma Clarke.
"Not only has it strengthened community spirit among the locals, it has put Walcha's name firmly on the map.
"This is the perfect platform for regional producers to launch new products and promote their produce. All exhibitors from last year are returning this year with many new exhibitors coming on board for the Festival," Ms Clarke said.
Among the food available will be gourmet BBQ with Wagu sausages, delicious lamb and beef casseroles, home made donuts and meat pies, Chinese dishes, Devonshire teas, salad sandwiches and rolls and plenty of cakes and slices.
For children, there'll be plenty of fun activities, including a jumping castle, merry- go-round, magic shows, a special appearance by NBN's Big Dog, lolly scatter, face painting, a hot dog stand, fairy floss and snow cones.
For kids of all ages, there's the Free Style Trials motorbike stunt show - two motorbikes performing amazing stunts flying through the air, flipping and thrilling spectators.
Be entertained by the smooth tunes of Champagne Charlie's jazz band, take in a fashion parade by the Australian Wool Fashion Awards or view the vintage machinery on display.
The Festival is held in conjunction with the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Mountain Bike Teams Challenge, a gruelling yet scenic 90km ride through the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park, finishing at the Walcha Showground. There are also four additional categories of bike rides with varying distances and degree of difficulty.
Around 300 riders will compete in the race to help raise funds for the Westpac Helicopter Rescue Service.
Visitors are urged to book ahead for accommodation and encouraged to bring their mountain bikes so they can enjoy a scenic ride around the roads of the district.
The Festival runs from10am to 4pm and entry is free. Food and wine is available at reasonable prices.
The Walcha Showground is in Derby Street.
IF YOU GO
Walcha is situated 447 kms from Sydney via Gloucester and the Thunderbolt's Way, or 534 kms from Brisbane via the New England Highway. The nearest airports are either Armidale or Tamworth. Walcha also has a light aircraft strip.
For more information please phone the Walcha Visitor Information Centre on 0267742460.
