THE Swan Hill Food and Wine Festival’s Twilight River Cruise has been a favoured way to open the weekend-long festival for several years.
This year 102 people enjoyed pre-cruise drinks and finger food in perfect weather conditions at the Pioneer Settlement in Swan Hill on Friday evening.
They then enjoyed a two-hour cruise onboard the paddle steamer Pyap.
With people travelling from across the state to attend, the night went off without a hitch as guests of all ages enjoyed the chance to catch up with friends, sample local wines by Andrew Peace and food catered by The Port.
Elias Lanyon had the river rocking, providing entertainment for the duration of the cruise and Imparja Pettit impressed on land with his performance on the didgeridoo.
Swan Hill Inc. business development manager, Stephen Colombo said the twilight river cruise was the perfect prelude to the Food and Wine Festival on Saturday.
“It’s just a friendly and relaxed way to ease into the festival and we had people who came by themselves who just melded easily into the group,” he said.
“With perfect weather and an amazing sunset complementing the amazing backdrop that is our part of the majestic Murray River, guests relaxed and mingled enjoying a taste of what Swan Hill has to offer.
“Not only did they sample gorgeous food and wine on the Pyap, but they also caught a view of some of the amazing wildlife our region offers, including an array of birds, a kangaroo and even a possum who welcomed us back at the wharf.
The cruise made a leisurely path along the river to Murray Downs at sunset and returned to port in Swan Hill at 9pm.
