Thousands descend on Trundle for bush tucker day

A dessert served to the operatic tunes of Luciano Pavarotti has taken Trundle Bush Tucker Day's cooking competition to a whole new level. Bush cooking in all of its forms was celebrated on 5 September as more than 2000 visitors descended on the town for the annual event that included the National Bush Cook Championship. A highlight of the competition was Matt Rogers' 'Pavarotti Pavlova' which won best presented award. The pavlova was created using traditional bush cooking methods and was served on a wooden stand with an embedded speaker playing music by Luciano Pavarotti. A highlight of the cooking competition was Matt Rogers' 'Pavarotti Pavlova' which was given the best presented award. PHOTO: Marg Applebee In other displays of top cooking, Andrew McNaughtan was named overall bush cooking champion with his sweet lamb curry. Trundle Bush Tucker Day secretary Stacey Edwards said they had strong numbers through the gates, which they were thrilled about after a quieter year in 2025. Ms Edwards said while cooking entries were down a little, they had some great quality entries and spectacular guest judges. Along with watching some exciting competition on the bush stoves, guests were able to enjoy free bush tucker tastings, the popular billy boiling sprint, market stalls and live music by Tori Darke, Scarlett Gee and Ballz N All. One of its biggest drawcards to the Trundle Bush Tucker Day is the National Bush Cook Championship, Wayne Ward spotted here taking part. PHOTO: Images Instantly Ms Edwards said it is fantastic the event is still running strong after 39 years, though she said it's a lot of hard work by volunteers and endless hours behind the scenes. "We have such an awesome group of volunteers," she said. They have a great mix of seasoned and younger volunteers which helps provide a grounded approach to planning the annual event. While they didn’t have an official count of money raised at the time of print, Ms Edwards said the money they make is put back into the Trundle community through a variety of local community groups and organisations. Heading into next year, the Trundle Bush Tucker Day will celebrate its 40th year, and Ms Edwards said they have a lot to refine and plan. "We've got some big ideas in mind," she added.