Omeo and Buchan Rodeos: Gippsland draws 3000 fans for Easter events

Thousands of fans will make the trek to Omeo and Buchan for East Gippsland’s famed Easter rodeos.

Cowboy thrills and spills will be on full display in the Gippsland high country as bull and saddle bronc riders compete at the Omeo and Buchan Rodeos this Easter.

A highlight on the East Gippsland regional events calendar, the rodeos feature skilled horsemanship and stock work including barrel racing, breakaway and team roping, steer wrestling as well as the rough stock sections with bull riding, saddle bronc and bareback riding.

The Omeo Rodeo has been running for 65 years and is held on Easter Saturday before the Buchan event, held the following day.

Buchan rodeo expects to draw a crowd of thousands this year. Picture: Laura Ferguson

Cowboys vie for a special All-Round Buckle and must compete in the rough riding and roping events at both Omeo and Buchan to qualify. There is also an All-Round Girls Buckle for barrel racing and breakaway roping across both events.

Competitors come from throughout Victoria, NSW and Queensland with 150 entries locked in for this year’s Omeo event, which is expected to draw huge crowds.

Omeo Rodeo secretary-treasurer Erica Coulthard said the event had always been popular with locals but had surged to a much wider audience since the pandemic attracting more than 3000 people last year.

“It has always been a really good social catch up for the local community,” Erica said.

“We’ve had two smashing big years since Covid and we are expecting a third one.”

Over the past two years, the rodeo committee has donated $55,000 directly back into local community groups including the CFA, ambulance, hospital and primary school.

“We are very proud to be able to put that money back into our community,” Erica said.

“That is what the rodeo is all about. It originally started in order to raise funds and they donated about 25 pounds to the hospital in the first year, which was a huge amount of money back then.”

The event has entertainment for the whole family including live music and merchandise stands.

“It’s just a great social day for everyone. We have a big age range of competitors too with little kids riding in our barrel racing and old fellas’ roping,” Erica said.

“Some people camp and go onto other events the next day. We have the rodeo at Buchan, polo at Cobungra and Tambo Valley Races at Swifts Creek so there is plenty on to make a huge weekend.”

Tickets for Omeo Rodeo are available at the gate. Buchan Rodeo requires pre-booked tickets.

WHAT’S ON IN GIPPSLAND THIS AUTUMN

As the season rolls into autumn, the colours of Gippsland come alive with festivals, events, outdoor and foodie experiences set against a backdrop of idyllic mountain vistas and leafy riverside reserves.

Lee Kernaghan will be a headline act at the Gippsland Country Music Festival at Lardner Park, Warragul, this autumn.

Destination Gippsland’s Kelly McCarthy said autumn was one of the best times to visit the region.

“At this time of year we have longer days, the school holiday crowds have abated, the weather is much more settled and it’s a great time to get out on the water,” Kelly said.

“There are beautiful autumn colours around Buchan and Walhalla.

“We are already seeing the maples start to turn and the colours really are stunning.”

There are a multitude of events scheduled between March and May, including the Gippsland Country Music Festival, Thorpdale Spud Fest and Tinamba Food and Wine Festival.

Thorpdale Spud Festival organiser Carly Geisler Picture: Zoe Phillips

“The Tinamba Food and Wine Festival is a really beautiful, grassroots festival run by the local wineries,” Kelly said.

“They close off the main street and set up food and drink stalls down both sides of the road.

“They release new vintages and the band sets up on the back of a rustic truck parked across the end of the street to entertain the dancing crowd from start to finish of this fantastic day out.

“The tiny Tinamba village is also near the rail trail, so you can build a really nice weekend out of it – ride your bikes, eat, drink and enjoy all the good things in life.”

Autumn is also the perfect time of year to experience the outdoors in Gippsland, with a multitude of ways to get out in nature from gentle walks and mountain hikes to bike trails and water based activities.

The Gippsland Lakes, Marlo and Mallacoota are ideal for stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking with various tours and hire options available.

The spectacular colours of autumn at Walhalla.

The George Bass Coastal Walk offers dramatic clifftop views, the Den of Nargun is set among dramatic gorges and waterfalls, and Tarra Bulga National Park is a little pocket of cool temperate rainforest where giant ferns and mountain ash trees tower above walking trails.

For an experience that is a little more deluxe, the next stage of Metung Hot Springs will open in late autumn and include a floating sauna, more pools and expansion of the site to include walking trails and access to the lake.

It already includes a nine-hole golf course and over the Easter long weekend will host Autumn Golf and Graze Gippsland – specialty food, wine and golf events.

With the end of daylight savings in early April, night-time bathing will ramp up with Dark Skies, Warm Waters, where visitors can watch the sunset over Lake King from the warmth of the geothermal waters in the stargazing pools.

East Gippsland Marketing board director Madeleine Preece said no matter what experience visitors were after, there was an option for it in Gippsland.

“You can get as wild as the rodeos or as sophisticated as the polo – there is something for everyone here,” Madeleine said.