We made the 90 km trip down to Glen Innes for the opening ceremony on Friday, 1 May.

About 10 km south of Glen Innes is a huge granite rock overlooking the New England Highway. It was named St Swithin’s Bluff in 1842 by a couple of early settlers. It is now referred to more simply as Bluff Rock.

The area surrounding the rock is infamous for a massacre of indigenous people around 175 years ago in retribution for the killing of a shepherd and sheep on a nearby property. The event and evidence is shrouded in time and narrative. But it is said that numerous aboriginal people were either shot or thrown from Bluff Rock. There is a plaque in a park on the roadside telling of the event.

We did not linger long at Bluff Rock, the opening ceremony was scheduled for 11am, but the story continues to add to the quantum of these sorts of places that we have come across during our travels.

This year the Celtic Festival is dedicated to Scotland, next year it is Ireland and the Isle of Man.

The ceremony took place in the Town Square outside the 1887 Town Hall, flags of all the Celtic Nations flying together with the Australian, Aboriginal and NSW flags. Quite a sight.

The Lord Mayor and other guests receive the Celtic nations flag bearers, piped in. They were followed by various Clan representatives in full celtic dress with their banners.

We then had the Australian National Anthem and The Flower of Scotland, performed by Australian Celtic Women.

The crowd dispersed and so did we, headed back to Tenterfield.

We changed lodgings from the Peter Allen Motel to Annie’s Place, an AirBnB. Friends from Brisbane were joining us there for a couple of nights and the Festival on Saturday.

Along the way we called into Deepwater, about halfway between Glen Innes and Tenterfield. Deepwater is a small village, it has a pub at one end and another pub at the other end. So you know when you have arrived and when you have left town, whether you are driving north or south.

Our target though was not the pubs but the Deepwater Brewing Company on the outskirts of town.

Their craft beer and lunchtime pizza is gaining wide recognition. The beer was ok and the pizza was excellent! While in town we checked out the heritage listed Railway Station.

Tenterfield called and on we went to Annie’s Place.