Yaralla Festival 2018
Thousands of people joined in the family fun of the 2018 Yaralla Festival, soaking up the spring sunshine on the grounds of the beautiful Yaralla Estate.
The Yaralla Festival is held annually as part of Sydney Local Health District's vision to promote health and wellbeing and to encourage the use of the Estate as a community resource.
Our youngest guests were enthralled by the reptile display, which offered the chance to pat a crocodile and hold a python. Face-painting, bubbles, balloon art and the LEGO workshop were popular while the giant inflatable slide and jumping castle had kids bouncing.
Over at the stables, the 1st Yaralla Sea Scouts served a delicious Devonshire Tea while the Canada Bay Historical Society held tours of late 19th century buildings, including the stables, grotto, squash court and dairy.
Nature-lovers were treated to the Estate’s large collection of rare and important trees and shrubs, many more than a century old and of botanical and horticultural significance.
Sports clinics were held by Sydney Thunder, GWS Giants, Wests Tigers and Netball NSW. Our health promotion teams were on hand to remind us about the importance of healthy eating, oral health and being active.
The highlight of the day was the much-loved dog show with tricks, tips and competitions for best dressed, best trick and cutest dog. As MC Julie McCrossin says, it’s probably the most unique dog show in the world.
The Cockroaches had us toe-tapping with a lively performance of rock ’n’ roll classics while Kyle Freeman and the Freeman Dancers had the crowd enthralled with their traditional singing, dancing and didgeridoo music.
A variety of market stalls, food trucks, and a BBQ cooked up by the Scouts, imbued the festival with an old-fashioned country fair vibe.
The Dame Eadith Walker Estate, also known as Yaralla Estate, is 37 hectares of land on the banks of the Parramatta River at Concord.
It is of outstanding cultural significance to NSW, having direct historical links with the early days of the colony of NSW and remaining an exceptionally rare complete example of a large Edwardian private Australia so close to the city.
Sydney Local Health District maintains the estate in accordance with the wishes of the Walker Trust. Set up in the 1930s by the important mercantile and philanthropic Walker family, it is the largest community bequest of its era to survive in an intact form in NSW.
For more information about Sydney Local Health District events, see www.slhd.nsw.gov.au/SydneyConnect.
Carols at Yaralla 2018
The popular family-friendly event Carols at Yaralla will return on Friday, December 7, 2018.
More details soon.
