
CORRYONG
Corryong is the next town after Tumbarumba, for those touring the Snowy Mountains Highway.
Some 30k prior to the arrival Corryong the traveler will pass by the Australian Airlines Disaster (ANA) in the Kosciuszko Range.
Corryong is in Victoria, and the traveler will notice the change. Victoria is definitely a little more formal than NSW. Fewer convicts influenced the English Immigrants in Victoria. Corryong is the burial place of Jack Riley; that said there is a vibrant community spirit on display.
Banjo Paterson met the Man from the Snowy River in Corryong.
Jack was the legendary horseman who migrated from Ireland to Australia as a 13-year-old in 1851.
Jack worked as a tailor near Omeo but found his true passion as a stockman; he worked for the Pierce family of Greg Greg, near Corryong.
Jack lived in isolation in a hut high up in the hills at Tom Groggin. He loved the Snowy Mountain Country, a good yarn and enjoyed a social drink or two. Jack was also a good mate of the late Walter Mitchell of Towong Station, who introduced Jack Riley to Banjo Paterson when the pair was on a camping trip. They trekked the Kosciuszko Ranges and the Snowys, shared many campfires and yarns too. Jack Riley was the Man from Snowy River who provided an inspirational journey and material for banjo to write his now famous poem.
Corryong was the closest township to Riley and the locals remember he would visit three or four times a year for supplies. When friends found him very sick and attempted to get him to a doctor it was Corryong Hospital they brought him, although he died along the way.
Jack Riley was buried at the Corryong cemetery in 1914 however; Jack's spirit comes alive every year in Corryong at the Man from Snowy River Bush Festival. The festival is a celebration of the famous poem, bush folklore, the arts, music and Australia's finest horsemanship.
There are two pubs in Corryong.
Be sure to check out the 9 greatest racehourses in OZ
The Anglican
and United Churches
are century old buildings.
The War Memorial is in the cbd.
The Corryong formal and informal Museum give a good insight into the town’s history.
Be sure to stay a day or two.