I drove through the tiny town of Turriff on my way to and from Mildura. It’s in the Mallee between Hopetoun and Ouyen.

That’s a desolate drive. Like other wheat growing areas of Australia, farms have got bigger, families smaller, populations diminished, shops closed and services gone.

These towns once had much more than the silos and derelict railway sidings they retain today. There were schools, shops, hotels and football teams.

I don’t want to belittle Turriff, but the entrance sign caught my fancy and I couldn’t resist a comment.

It proclaims: “Turriff — original home of the Mallee Field Days.”

That’s sad really. Not only has Turriff lost much of its community, it lost the annual farm machinery field days to the nearby and (only slightly) bigger hamlet of Speed.

The tale reminds me of my long-held negative view toward any town which claimed itself to be the “gateway” to somewhere.

That usually means the town itself isn’t worth stopping in; continue to your destination.

Myrtleford had a sign calling itself “Gateway to the Alps”. Myrtleford has a lot to offer and that was a stupid sign.