Welcome to The Orange Wild Weekend

Our Orange Wild Weekend experience aims to share the region’s wildest places and produce, meeting locals along the way that share our vision to live according to the seasons, and better understand our natural world.

There is no better way to reconnect with nature and your creativity than in the unique sub-alpine surrounds of Orange, NSW.

Your host, Ali Shillington of Lokale Blumen, will take you on a wild weekend journey with local winemakers, producers, conservationists, botanists, chefs, food foragers and creators absolutely driven by their passion for seasonal & regional living.

Whether it is your first time to Orange, or as a returning visitor to F.O.O.D week, or a local, the magic of The Orange Wild Weekend is in switching off and tuning into our bespoke experiences including:

// meet Chef Tony Worland at famed local restaurant Tonic. Tony will be cooking up a storm with local produce including a seasonal degustation experience on arrival

// get a sense of the rich native plant-life on the mountain on a unique bushwalk and spotting expedition with local botanist, conservationist and entomologist, Colin Bower

// experience a high-altitude wine tasting with Justin & Meg Byrne at Strawhouse Wines, a unique eco cellar door mountain-side.

// learn how to forage for edible mushrooms with local forager Robbo in the pine forest.

// experience your freshly foraged mushrooms in a three-course regional feast with local chef Charles Woodward (Former Pilu at Freshwater chef). Charles has been inspired by foraged local produce ever since arriving at Sister’s Rock restaurant in Borrodell Vineyard on Ghannabulla/Mount Canobolas, and our evening together will be no exception

//make your own foraged Autumn tablescape with Lokale Blumen during a very special Autumn brunch with local legend Josie from the Old Convent, and take this creative process home to your table

//make a whole lot of new friends, including those joining the Wild Weekend, and among the incredible Orange community itself

What we provide:

// Comfortable bus transfers Friday & Saturday, pick-up details provided on booking

// Bespoke food and wine experiences exclusively prepared for us by our local producers and special guests.

// A foraging tote for your weekend, including your snips and botanical / fauna spotting list.

//A taste of this wild landscape. Spot the alpine gums along the drive, an eager echidna - it's all part of it.

//Your Wild Weekend workbook to capture all of your notes from our local producers and floral workshop along the way…

A typical day with us:
We find the more spontaneity we leave in, the better the days get. Timings will be outlined as the wild unfolds, however a taste of our schedule below:

+ Breakfast & lunch on the go during a wild mountain bushwalk with local conservationist and botanist

+ High altitude wine-tasting with local winemaker, Justin from the Strawhouse

+ Lesson in mushroom-foraging with local legend, The Market Cat

+ Evening 3-course dinner featuring our foraged mushrooms, local produce + wine with Charles at Sister’s Rock, Borrodell

The Cost:
The cost of our 3 day retreat is $990 per person all inclusive of food, wine, foraging tote & snips, transfers & activities.Submit your details here to sign up for future events.

If you are interested in finding out more, simply submit your details by clicking here

What our guests have said about our previous Wild Weekend experiences:

“The world will need more of these amazing experiences in the future”
Anna

“The weekend uncovered so much more... connections with new people and people already known to me, unexpected but deep connections to the past, learning information about new and ingenious farming practices, connecting with NSW country life, connecting to the local indigenous spirit. Thankyou for giving us that depth of experience.”
Annie

“The weekend really was so special on so many levels - but most of all because of your passion for what you do”
Jill

It was just great great GREAT.
John

What an unbelievable weekend! Ali and her team made us feel instantly relaxed and taken care of from the get go. The Wild Weekend flowed beautifully, from the first (incredibly delicious) meal at Tonic to wandering the extinct volcano learning about the native plants unique to the area, to the low-key (high-end) wine tasting at Rikards. Each path we wandered down was so meticulously planned and so beautifully considered that we were able to focus purely on the experience and nothing else. Exactly what you want from a weekend away from the city. The foraging and floristry workshop at the end was the cherry on the cake to a wonderful experience I'll remember and cherish always. Thank you, Wild Weekend team!
Ella

“You have created something special here. A family”
Geoff

“Thank you so so much for organising such an incredible weekend away. It really is one I'll never forget and for all the right reasons.”
Natalia