"Victoria's first Gold Town" Clunes by Kate-Me

This is the town where it all began, the huge Victorian gold rushes of 1851, which began with the first strike here, in little Clunes, about 25 kilometres from the city of Ballarat in Western Victoria (approx 120 kms N.W. of Melbourne)
Many towns exploded into being during the gold rush, and some went on to become prosperous cities.
Others faded away when the gold rush ended, and became somewhat sleepy small towns. Clunes is one of these.
One of the reasons why Clunes' main street is so wide, is that it used to flood, in the 'old days'.

Clunes from a nearby hill

In recent years Clunes it has started to receive more visitors, especially from the city.
A few years back, Wesley College in Melbourne decided to re-locate one of it's city campuses out to the countryside, and chose Clunes.
Also about 6 years ago Clunes was put under the spotlight for the filming of Ned Kelly, starring Heath Ledger and the town was almost totally transformed.
A small photo display in the Visitor Information centre (2 kms out of town) shows what the town looked like while it was all happening - that and a small Ned Kelly stuffed toy in the window of the museum seem to be the only reminders left of the film, unfortunately.
Parts of other series/films in the more distant past like Mad Max and Halifax have also been filmed in the town..

More recently, the hugely successful Book Town weekend (May 2010 will be the 3rd year) has been staged in Clunes, where almost every shop becomes the venue for a book shop or a book stand, and there's something for everyone

This pic is Clunes on a very rainy day recently (March 2010)...but note no overhead powerlines and the still charming streetscape in the quiet.

• Pros:A sleepy town with many historic buildings and no overhead power lines
• Cons:The Tourist Info centre is out at the edge of town and not in strolling distance from town centre
• In a nutshell:A town with a feel of a bygone era.