Forest to Farm

There’s a place we sometimes stay, when heading south from the Gold Coast.
It’s called Eungai Rail and is on the mid north coast of NSW — the most southern part 0f Nambucca Shire.
A few trains still rattle by daily.
A small cottage that was once a schoolhouse is where we spend the night. It’s nestled in amongst farmland, with Mount Yarrahapinni in the distance. The lush green grass and an occasional visit from cattle tells us we are in farming country.
Most mornings and afternoons, kangaroos hop by or stop and graze. It’s a lovely peaceful sight.
“Oh, such a typically Australian view” you would think - and rightly so, I suppose.
But delve into the past of this pastoral scene and you discover that the land was once completely forested. It was a place for hunters and gatherers to live; a place of food and shelter for First Nations People.
When early European settlers discovered vast forests of valuable cedar, a booming timber industry soon completely depleted the wooded area and, once all other hardwood had been harvested as well, the land was perfectly cleared for cattle grazing.
It became transformed land. Where once First Nations People had lived for thousands of years,  farmland for the newcomers appeared.
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We will still stay at Eungai Rail when we can. We will still admire the scenery and welcome visits from kangaroos, but we will also try to think of what the area once was.