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Silo Art Trail North East Victoria
- Jan 6
- 6 min read
Updated: Feb 5
Silo Art Trail - North East Victoria
The North East Victoria Silo Art Trail is a wonderful road trip through rolling farmland, charming country towns and some of Australia’s most impressive large-scale outdoor artworks. Along the way, towering grain silos have been transformed into stunning murals that celebrate rural life, local history, native wildlife and community stories.
Now recognised as Australia’s most extensive outdoor gallery, the trail features eight incredible silo artworks created by world-renowned artists. Each town offers its own unique personality, making this a perfect road trip for art lovers, photographers, and slow travellers.
During our motorhome road trip, we explored small country towns, admired eight spectacular silo murals and discovered many unexpected highlights along the way.
We began our journey in Benalla, located 212 kilometres north-east of Melbourne. Benalla is a vibrant regional city on the banks of the Broken River and is widely recognised as one of Australia’s leading street art destinations.
More than 50 large-scale murals can be found throughout the town, painted on laneways, walls and buildings by talented artists from around the world. You can collect a mural map and artist information brochure from the Benalla Visitor Centre, making it easy to explore at your own pace.
After exploring Benalla, we set off towards Tungamah, stopping at four silo art locations along the way. The total distance for Day 1 was approximately 55 kilometres.
Goorambat
Goorambat is a small rural town just 16 kilometres north of Benalla. In 2018, Australian artist Jimmy D’vate painted a striking Barking Owl on one of the tall concrete silos. The Barking Owl is now considered an endangered species, and the mural highlights the importance of wildlife conservation.
In 2019, Jimmy returned to paint three powerful Clydesdale horses — Clem, Sam and Banjo — galloping side by side in harness on a shorter silo. The sense of movement in this artwork is incredible.
Inside the charming Uniting Church is Sophia, a beautiful mural created by renowned artist Adnate in 2017. Commissioned to reflect the church’s values of faith, community and inclusion, Sophia’s lifelike detail is breathtaking. The church remains open daily for visitors.
From Goorambat, we drove 12 kilometres to Devenish.
Devenish
Devenish is a small rural town surrounded by wide open farmland. The GrainCorp silos were painted by Melbourne artist Cam Scale and unveiled on Anzac Day in 2018. The powerful murals depict a World War I nurse and a modern-day combat medic, honouring both the role of women in war and the ongoing service of Australia’s Defence Force.
Fifty young men and women from Devenish enlisted during World War I, and Cam Scale created the artwork to honour the seven who never returned home. A second silo, unveiled in 2019, features the Australian Light Horse, paying tribute to their mounted service during the Second Boer War and World War I.
Local artist Tim Bowtell has also contributed several murals around town, including artwork on the public toilets and the old stables beside the Railway Hotel. These murals reflect Devenish’s railway history and feature a historic steam train. Nearby, an interesting display of old farm machinery is housed in a covered shed.
After exploring Devenish, we drove just 9 kilometres to St James.
St James
St James is a tiny farming town with a big historical story. Tim Bowtell has painted the four silos and celebrated the town’s rich past. One mural features Sir George Coles, founder of the Coles supermarket empire, along with his family’s original store. The remaining murals depict the region’s wheat-growing heritage and its history of grain transport.
St James is home to the very first Coles store. Sir George Coles grew up here and took over the family business before expanding it into the national brand we know today. The original store can still be seen on St James Road, just a short walk from the silos.
From St James, we drove 24 kilometres to Tungamah.
Tungamah
Tungamah is a small country town beside Boosey Creek in the Goulburn Valley region. These were the first silos painted in North East Victoria. Western Australian artist Sobrane Simcock created a colourful celebration of Australian birdlife in 2018, featuring dancing Brolgas and a Kookaburra. In 2019, Sobrane returned to enhance the artwork, adding a Galah, a Hummingbird, a Cheeky Owl, a Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo, Wrens, and a White Ibis. Across the road, another beautiful mural by Sobrane can be seen on the Information Centre wall.
That evening, we stayed at the wonderful Tungamah Lions RV Park.
Camping at Tungamah Lions RV Park
This peaceful campground sits beside Boosey Creek and is one of our favourite free camps in Victoria.
Facilities include:
Toilets and hot showers
Drinking water
Picnic tables and BBQs
Playground
Pet-friendly sites
Camping is by donation, with the honesty box located outside the toilet block. Local volunteers maintain the campground, and it has a lovely community feel.
On Day 2, we travelled approximately 180 kilometres, stopping in Katamatite, Numurkah and Picola before reaching Aysons Reserve Campground.
Katamatite
Katamatite is a small rural town in country Victoria, 22 kilometres from Tungamah. Tim Bowtell painted the GrainCorp Silos at Katamatite in July 2023. This stunning silo art features a Wedge Tailed eagle, and portrays indigenous figures camped along the Boosey Creek, with a Scar Tree connecting the two silos. It has also features the first passenger train that serviced Katamatite and horses pulling a scoop to create irrigation channels.
After admiring the silo art, we stopped at the Katamatite Lions Park on the lovely Boosey Creek. The Lions Park has a fun story trail and a stunning life-size metal sculpture of an eagle that artist Andrew Whitehead created from farm materials. There is also some interesting chainsaw art created by Robby Bast.
We then drove 26 kilometres to Numurkah for morning tea.
Numurkah is a small country town on Broken Creek along the Goulburn Valley Highway. Its town centre has a great selection of cafes, traditional hotels, supermarkets, restaurants and specialty shops to browse in.
We popped into Cherish Brews and Bites, a lovely cafe that is open daily for a delicious morning tea. The cafe is next to a colourful 20-metre-long mural painted by well-known artist Sobrane and features local birds, including a superb blue wren, an azure kingfisher, and a budgie. We admired the mural while enjoying coffee and muffins from the cafe.
Then we drove 40 kilometres to see the Picola Silo Art.
Picola
The Picola Silo was painted by Melbourne- based artist Jimmy D’Vate and features a Superb Parrot, with the Barmah National Park in the background. In the past, Picola was known as 'the hook' because it was at the end of the railway line, so D'Vate has hidden a hook in this painting. Please be aware that these silos are still operational and are on private property. They can be easily seen and photographed from the road.
We continued on our road trip, driving 75 kilometres to Rochester.
Rochester is a lovely country town on the banks of the Campaspe River. It has lovely heritage buildings, cafes, supermarkets and other interesting shops to browse in.
The Rochester Silos were painted by renowned mural artist Jimmy D'Vate.
in 2018 and 2021. On the tall silo is a Squirrel Glider, a small, nocturnal marsupial that is native to eastern Australia. On the shorter silo is an Azure Kingfisher, a colourful bird with bright blue and orange plumage that is found near rivers, creeks, and wetlands.
On the back of this silo is a Platypus mural. The duck-billed platypus is one of Australia’s most unique and fascinating animals and can be seen swimming in the Campaspe River. There is also a mural of the New Holland Honeyeater with its bold black, white, and yellow plumage. As we wandered around the streets of Rochester, we saw lots of large colourful murals down laneways and on the sides of buildings.
After exploring Rochester, we drove 12 kilometres to Aysons Reserve Campground.
Camping at Aysons Reserve Campground
Aysons Reserve is a spacious bush campground beside the Campaspe River.
It offers:
Flat campsites
Boat ramp
Swimming spots
Fishing and birdwatching
Toilets and dump point
Dog-friendly
Free camping
Telstra phone reception
After a lovely overnight stay at Aysons Reserve, we drove back to Benalla via Colbinabbin, a total distance of approximately 140 kilometres.
Colbinabbin
Our final stop was Colbinabbin, home to six stunning silo murals painted by Tim Bowtell. The artworks tell the story of the town through scenes such as the tractor pull, farmers’ picnic, steam train, railway station and Lulu the fire truck. We also discovered another mural on the Colbinabbin Hotel before heading back to Benalla, a drive of approximately 114 kilometres.
Final Thoughts
The North East Victoria Silo Art Trail is a fantastic road trip that combines art, history, country hospitality and beautiful landscapes. Travelling it by motorhome allowed us to slow down, explore at our own pace and truly appreciate each town’s story. If you love road trips, small towns and outdoor art, this trail is well worth adding to your Victorian travel list.
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