Chidlow Tavern Run
Neal Crocker
This was our first car run, after our outing to Rod Boyd’s home, after the restrictions were lifted and it was great to see such a large turnout with 28 people enjoying the wonderful spring day! I think a lot of other people in Perth also had the same idea to get out and about after restrictions as we had a number of issues trying to book the venue.
Unfortunately, the Sunday was completely booked so we had a last-minute change of plans. We could do the Childlow Tavern on the Saturday (a departure from our regular Sunday’s) or choose to go the Parkerville Tavern on the Sunday, as they had seats available. After some quick email voting the majority of club members decided to visit the Childlow Tavern, as most could remember that we went to the Parkerville (back in May 2018!) and also a Saturday was a welcomed change from the regular Sunday!
The morning kicked off with us all meeting at our regular service station of choice. The Caltex servo near the corner of Toodyay Road and Roe Highway. It was a great day for a car run, the sun was shining and the weather was perfect, what more can you ask for when taking a leisurely drive in the country for a pub lunch!
It was great to see John, Johnny and Susie as well as Rob Roherty all come up from down South! They came up in a small convoy together enjoying the early morning drive. A few club members were soon having a look under John Ingham’s bonnet to find the cause of an unusual sound. Within no time at all, we were all off on the drive up to Chidlow.
We all departed the Caltex service station, but it was a bit difficult for us all to cross onto the busy Toodyay Road with a lot of people out and about that morning. Luckily Tom and Bridget pulled over on the side of the road not too far away from the service station to allow us all to congregate together. Then once the last of us arrived we edged onto the road and formed a long convoy and made our way up the Darling Ranges!
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Steeped in history and over a century old, The Chidlow Tavern is just 45 kilometres east of Perth. Chidlow was originally a busy railway town on the old Eastern Railway, built in the 1880s but decommissioned in 1966. Today Chidlow is a popular destination for people wanting to enjoy the outdoors and these days the Chidlow Tavern (chidlowtavern.com.au/history) is a favourite in the region after undergoing a major refurbishment bringing it back to its former glory. Current refurbishments, inside and out, aim to recapture the Tavern’s historic relationship to its origin as a railway station.
The drive up to Chidlow was really nice and when we arrived at the Tavern we had a choice of not one but two parking lots so there was plenty of room for our cars.
We all made our way into the Tavern and proceeded to sit down in the outside patio area reserved for us, next to the beer garden. Once seated we placed our lunch orders at the bar and also grabbed a nice cold refreshing drink to keep cool.
It was a great place to relax and have a nice meal together and everyone had a good day. Paul and Lyn Ferguson brought their parents for the run and they enjoyed the drive. It is definitely a great reminder that our club welcomes and encourages you to bring family members to our runs…
Even though providing some details on things to do and see after our lunch, nearly everyone made their own way back home after the nice meal, but not without leaving the tavern with a tub of the locally produced honey!