Wasleys Accommodation, Hotels, Tours & Information

Wasleys

Wasleys might be a one main street, one shop, post office, one hotel town, but the village 17 km north of Gawler, does have a unique claim to fame: the quality of its chaff.

Arguably Australia's greatest racehorse, Phar Lap, in fact, would browse on nothing else than Wasleys chaff and bags of Big Red's favourite snack accompanied the champion on his ill-fated trip to the United States.

Sadly, chaff production, which once kept three mills churning out the product for customers as far afield as India and South Africa, is not what it used to be. Nor is the traffic or wealth generated by Wasleys golden days in the first half of the 20th century as a major rail junction.

But it retains its charm and, of course, is only a 30-minute drive from the renowned vineyards of the Barossa. It is a fair bet that several of the Barossa winemakers learnt their stuff at Roseworthy College, the historic agricultural school just a few kilometres south of Wasleys. Apart from agricultural experts and winemaker, Roseworthy produces grain, fruit, vegetables, beef and dairy cattle and wine on its model farm and vineyards.