Shots were fired, a pub was set ablaze and an Aussie legend was made. We took a trip down history lane in Glenrowan, VIC.

The final chapter of Australia's most infamous outlaw gang, The Kelly Gang, took place in a small Victorian town called Glenrowan, just off the Hume Hwy. The outlaws were tracked 200km north of Melbourne throughout bushland to the Glenrowan Inn, a local pub, where a siege and a shootout would soon follow.

My fiance and I had decided to take a road trip down to the Macedon Ranges, VIC, for one of our best friend's wedding. Not only was it cheaper than any domestic flight to Melbourne at the time, but we thought we could take the opportunity to check out a town I had been dying to visit ever since I was a little girl and learned of Ned Kelly and the Kelly Gang.

Who were the Kelly Gang? They would have to be one of Australia's most well known gang of outlaws made of up Ned Kelly, his brother Dan, Joe Byrne and Steve Hart, who were all on the run from the police after many incidences (including assaulting a police officer, killing 3 police officers and robbing a bank dressed up as police officers - I'm sensing a theme here).

We had set of from Sydney on a Tuesday evening. Fritz (our recuse dog) was in the care of some very capable dog minders as our B & B we were travelling to wasn't dog friendly. By the time we arrived to Glenrowan, VIC, in the morning, we had been travelling from Sydney for most of the night and were a little worse for wear thanks to being stuck in a lightning storm and not being able set up camp for the night - so we slept in our car (ouch, my neck!). The very first thing we wanted (more like needed) when we arrived was a decent coffee and a big breakfast.

We stopped off at Vintage Hall Cafe and ordered our big breakfasts, LARGE coffees and worked out what we wanted to see around town, it is quaint but there's Ned Kelly memorabilia everywhere. Side note: the food and coffee were AH-MAY-ZING! Definitely recommend the scrambled eggs on toast!

The things you can do in Glenrowan include:

Heritage Siege Walk
Live reenactment of the last stand of the Kelly Gang at a theatre
Beer and Wine tasting
Warby Ovens National Park
Cycling tracks

Since it was early in the morning when we arrived and we needed to get back on the road to continue our road trip to the Macedon Ranges- we decided to check out the Big Ned Kelly, explore the Heritage Siege Walk but skip the beer and wine tasting (Next time Glenrowan, next time...)

Caption: The Big Ned Kelly that stands guard in the centre of Glenrowan, VIC

The hertigage walk begins at the old site of the Glenrowan Inn, which no longer stands as it was set ablaze by the police during the seige in the hope that it would flush the outlaws out.

We then followed in history's footsteps and walked the same steps of Ned Kelly as we made our way through the heritage walk. From where Ned had horses waiting to where he was finally captured after being wounded, the heritage walk really allows you to visualise the last stand.

Caption: This site is where the Glenrowan Inn used to be and the log 'characters' are dressed up as members of the Kelly Gang and the police to represent where they were during the siege and shootout. 3 members of the Kelly Gang died in the Glenrowan Inn.

One of the most surreal places along this Heritage Walk is standing in the same place that Ned Kelly was found wounded and finally captured. In the stories that we hear about Ned Kelly it seems like he was farther away from the actual siege site when he was finally caught, however when you're standing there you realise that he was so much more closer (probably less than 200 metres) away from the pub. I also learned that Ned Kelly received medical treatment in the building at the Glenrowan train station which is just under 1km from where he was captured.

Final thoughts...

Most people when they travel to Australia want to go to major cities and beachside towns, but if you want to truly experience Aussie culture and history I would definitely recommend checking out Glenrowan and other small country towns that have played a role in our history.