Australia Day in Sofala: 'There's no better place for this particular day'

The town celebrated January 26 with ample activities at the Royal Hotel, including live music, yabby racing, and the fifth annual jerky making competition, the 'Jerk Off.'

There were hundreds of people that made their way through the hotel doors on the day, including those who had travelled from far and wide.

There were people Bathurst, Oberon, Sydney, the Central Coast, and even as far as Western Australia.

Sheri Moodie made the trip to Sofala from her home in Fremantle, near Perth in WA.

Though her trip was planned so she could visit her cousin, being able to celebrate all things Australia in such a culturally significant town was definitely an added bonus.

"It's a great historical town and we've walked around the town and looked at all the old buildings, and with the history, it's just fantastic," she said.

"It's actually really great to actually know that it's Australia's oldest surviving gold town and it's still standing and that people live in these buildings and that it's a real, rural town, and it's not a ghost town."

And the best part was that she could enjoy it all with some sustenance and refreshments from the Royal Hotel, along with all the friendly local faces.

"You can't get any better than a sausage sizzle and a beer at the pub and the people themselves, and seeing them enjoying themselves," Ms Moodie said.

And she enjoyed her time in Sofala so much so, that she said she would definitely be back.

This is certainly the case for many people who attend the annual Royal Hotel events, including deputy mayor Benjamin Fry, who spends every Australia Day out at Sofala.

But this year, he had a very important job to do.

He was the special guest judge for the 'Jerk Off', which saw mate against mate and steak against steak in the original jerky making competition.

And, though the work was hard, according to Cr Fry, it was absolutely work worth doing.

"This has got to be the highlight of my time as deputy mayor in Bathurst, being the guest judge of the beef jerky competition on Australia Day at the Sofala Royal Hotel," he said.

"It looks like we've got a good round up with over 60 entries. We've got roo, beef, goat, lamb, and the one that scares me to death is 'other', so we're going to see what flavours we can unlock today.

"I'm sure there's new ones that I've never tasted. But it is my honour and privilege to do this tasting and to find the winner."

Being able to spend his day eating delicious jerky, drinking schooners of suds, meeting new people and catching up with old friends is everything that Cr Fry believes to embody the spirit of Australia.

"I come out to Sofala every year for Australia Day because this is where the real people live and this is what it's all about," he said.

"This is Bathurst and Bathurst is only made up by its people, and the best people from are in the regions. There's just no better place for this particular day."