History & heritage
For at least 20,000 years Aboriginal tribes have been living and travelling around the High Country, making the annual trek in summer to feast on Bogong Moths.
Explorers Hume and Hovell were the first Europeans to discover the region in 1824. Gold prospectors were next to arrive, seeking their fortunes. They were followed by the infamous bushrangers and their daring exploits. Cattlemen also set up home, driving their herds to the alpine grasses and leaving the legacy of the huts they built as shelter.
The region's heritage, reflected in streetscapes and mountain huts and picturesque townships, also inspired some of Australia's most endearing legends including bush poet AB 'Banjo' Paterson's The Man From Snowy River and bushranger Ned Kelly.
Explore the legacy of gold throughout the region, particularly in former mining centres like Beechworth, Chiltern, Yackandandah and Woods Point.
Visit the site of the infamous Kelly Gang siege, and learn about 'Mad Dog' Morgan at the many bushranger related attractions in the region.
Ride, walk or cycle your way up to the historic huts built by the courageous and skilled cattlemen who roamed the High Country.
Take a self-drive tour of Ned Kelly country, from Melbourne to Beechworth, and stop to visit important historical Ned Kelly sites along the way.
Notorious bushranger, popular icon and national identity, Ned Kelly was hanged at Melbourne Gaol in 1880. It was the final curtain in one of the most...