Mullumbimby
Mullumbimby
The town of Mullumbimby combines 'old and new'Australia. Its vigour and depth of character is partly due to the nature of the new settlers who have moved to the area over the past 20-30 years, as well as more recent, more sophisticated 'invaders'.
In the early 1970s, the Aquarius Festival, Australia’s equivalent to the Woodstock festival, was held at nearby Nimbin. Many participants stayed on, earning the area a reputation and focus for alternative culture, with artists, musicians, actors, permaculturalists, film-makers and earth-and-nature lovers, each adding to the region’s colour. It’s known collectively as The Rainbow Region. Today, many people here utilise modern technology to work from home in an idyllic environment.
These days, the town's flavour is cosmopolitan. An ongoing stream of newcomers moving to the area from the cities in search of a different, more relaxed style of life, bring with them new skills and ideas. Walking through the town’s wide streets, there are chic coffee houses and straight-forward Australian pubs; interior decorators next to second-hand clothes’ shops; tribal fashions and organic foods next to shops offering the latest telecommunications and Internet technology and computer equipment.
Next to the Mullumbimby High School is the town's popular Olympic pool, named after local heroine, Olympic gold medallist Petria Thomas. The pool is a few hundred metres from the Post Office in the CBD.
History of 'The Biggest Little Town in Australia'
The town of Mullumbimby was established on the tidal banks of the Brunswick River towards the end of the 19th century, to service the needs of the dairy and sheep farmers and timber getters who opened up this Northern Rivers area of New South Wales.
Today, the gentle, old-time atmosphere remains, along with numerous excellent examples of the Federation style architecture which set the tone at the turn of the century. The Commercial Hotel, built in 1904 and known as the 'Middle Pub', still has the appearance of a country hotel, while several bank buildings retain such features as locally made bricks, pressed metal ceilings or original large timber counters.
The town: facts and figures
The town and countryside around Mullumbimby has a population of about 4,000. Average summer temperature is 27° C (84° F); average winter temperature is 22° C (74° F), and average annual rainfall is 1,734mm. (It's higher, about 2,000mm, in the Koonyum Range).
The subtropical climate and rich soils result in an abundance of lush green foliage both in private gardens and in the town's Heritage Park, where 300 special native rainforest trees and shrubs grow.
The nearby Nightcap and Border Ranges provide a backdrop of spectacular green hills with the town’s symbol, Mt Chincogan, rising 309 metres from the Chincogan Mountains.
Mullumbimby Medical Facilities and Health Care:
Comprehensive mainstream and alternative health care services are available including:
- The Meadows Medical Centre, the Mullumbimby Dental Centre and the 28-bed public Mullumbimby hospital attached to which is the Primary Health Services department, whose services include assessment of diet, occupational health, physiotherapy, and so on.
- Numerous alternative health practitioners offer services from Chinese herbal medicine to chiropractic; from acupuncture and meditation courses, through to all kinds of yoga.
A major new hospital to service the area is planned for Ewingsdale, near Byron Bay.
Education:
A wide range of schools services the district, including a plethora of alternative schools, such as primary and secondary Steiner schools; many schools established by religions, as well as both private and State-run primary and secondary schools. The region is also well serviced by tertiary institutions including Southern Cross University at Lismore as well as a number of TAFE colleges.
Sports:
- Adjoining the Olympic Pool is the Bowling Club, which has two greens and opposite which public tennis courts can be found.
- There are two local golf clubs: one course is located on the outskirts of the town of Mullumbimby; a second one, 10 minutes away at Ocean Shores, is of international standard.
Churches:
Churches of most denominations are within the town.
Clubs:
Just about every type of club can be found in Mullumbimby. From the RSL, to Legacy (the organisation of ex-service people), the Lions Club and Probus. More than 70 voluntary service organisations are represented in the town.
Shopping:
There are about a dozen restaurants and cafes in Mullumbimby, two supermarkets, plus three banks and a credit union, and a wide range of shops from boutiques to bakeries, to excellent health food shops, butchers and fishmongers, not to mention custom jewellery makers. The town’s industrial estates offer everything from steelworks and yoga studios, to originally designed furniture.
Arts and Agriculture:
The Old Drill Hall Theatre stages regular theatrical performances. The Mullumbimby traditional Agricultural Show occurs each November. The Council of Adult Education periodically offers a wide range of day and evening classes on everything from Egyptology to Aromatherapy.