Inglewood

Set within the Victorian Goldfields region, Inglewood can be used as a hub for fossicking and gold detecting, bush walking, winery visits and a number of other pastimes.

Known as the 'Blue Eucy Town' Inglewood is famous for its gold, eucalyptus oil, chiming clock and as the birthplace of Sir Reginald Ansett, captain of commerce and founder of Ansett Airways.

The streetscapes and historic buildings are worth stopping to view. The historic Old Inglewood site is still scoured by visitors to see what relics of the past can be located. The goldfields around Inglewood also give up their secrets from time to time and prospecting is a popular pastime.

The region has six wineries specialising mainly in red wines but also whites, fortified and sparkling wines.

A 20km drive west from Inglewood takes you to Melville Caves, which are not really caves, but a series of cavities and fissures in a cluster of huge granite rocks. The "caves" have been exploited over the years but received protection when they were declared a geological monument in 1980, the same year in which the discovery of a 240 gram nugget triggered a mini-gold rush. The rush was short-lived, but it did produce one spectacular, 2.4kg nugget.