Merino station getaway showcases working farm life - warts and all

There aren't many high-end farm-stays in the central west offering the chance to watch life tick along on a working farm.

Callubri Station at Buddabadah - between the remote country towns of Nyngan and Tottenham - is a fourth-generation, 28,000-acre merino and cropping farm offering unique accommodation and experiences.

Co-owner Angie Armstrong comes from the Yarra Valley in Victoria and brings with her a love of food, wine and the land.

She and her husband, co-owner Michael Armstrong, have created get-aways and small event packages - including weddings - that are steeped in Australian and pioneering history.

The couple launched their agritourism business to diversify after the terrible droughts that plagued the central west this past decade.

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They launched in 2019, right before COVID, and have only recently been able to offer their events packages again.

After COVID, the floods hit. "We had boats tied to our house," Mrs Armstrong said.

Like all Australian bush businesses, the weather is the biggest challenge, whether it's flooding or access down rained-out dirt roads.

"Tourism in outback Australia ... there's so many exciting things on offer, but such challenges, particularly west of here. When the roads flood, we have to reschedule guests."

But the guests have been coming, and Callubri Station has launched some exciting new activities for locals, including a cocktail and canapes night and markets.

Most customers are from Sydney - many arriving on chartered flights for a luxury getaway. One of the biggest draw-cards is the food, about which Mrs Armstrong is meticulous. Then there's the inside look into the hard yakka of farm life - warts and all.

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"I'm really passionate about the food and food providence, and describing to people about why I've created it and how the flavours go together," she said.

"And giving them insight into how a family farm operates every day. As people operating in the agricultural world, we need to maintain that connection with consumers at a grassroots level. The authenticity is at the forefront - we don't sugarcoat it."

The business received a Destination NSW grant to build its Sky Suites, a luxurious three-level complex for group getaways, offering a pool and sun-lounges, and four king-sized rooms with ensuites.

Experiences can include all-inclusive packages complete with charter flights, multi-course meals, picnics in the pine forest and sun-downer drinks. People could be travelling through to Broken Hill, for example, and require a night's stay and they could purchase a self-contained package with a hot meal and bottle of wine.

The Shearers Quarters is an event venue designed around a wartime Officer's Mess, offering an under-cover deck with church doors, dance floor, chesterfield lounge and library area.

Mrs Armstrong said the chartered groups wanted to escape the everyday hustle and bustle of the city and immerse themselves in the landscape and fresh air of the country.

Mrs Armstrong said there is a particularly strong community among the women out Callubri Station way - sisterhood enduring in the country.

"We're all going through similar challenges. They're beautiful relationships," she said.

"Even though we don't see each other a lot because we're geographically isolated, you know there's someone there to support you, which is important. Number one is the way women step up and support each other out here."

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