Colin Shapland describes the home he and wife Lorna built as "heaven", but now the couple in their 80s have been left homeless after it was destroyed by the Alpha Road Tambaroora bushfire in the NSW Central West.
The Shaplands' home is one of six lost to the inferno, sparked by lightning more than a week ago and scorching more than 18,000 hectares.
"It's something I didn't expect," he said.
They are living in a motel in Mudgee with their dog Fluffy and their only belongings — a laptop, a couple of suitcases, and a canvas print of the couple with Mr Shapland's daughter.
"I know there's nothing to go back to," Mrs Shapland said.
"I've lost a lot of stuff [that] I've taken through two marriages, my mother's stuff, that can't be replaced."
They believe their insurance company will rebuild their home in the community they love.
Livestock losses
This area is famous for its historic gold mining past, and more recently for playing host to artists inspired by the rugged and isolated terrain, like Margaret Olley and Ben Quilty.
The hills are also home to superfine merino wool shipped to Italy to produce high-end fashion.
About 200 sheep have been euthanased by vets due to their injuries and most farmers are too distraught to speak publicly.
Many surviving livestock are now roaming free because the fences have burned or been cut by graders building containment lines.
Ralph Price's 2,500 head of sheep survived the blaze but estimated 75 per cent of his property has been charred, including 200 bales of hay.
It means his income has evaporated and he will be forced to sell stock sooner than he planned, at a time when prices have dropped.
With little rain since late last year, he said "it's made a drought now — with everything burnt".
"It's going to be a big job now keeping the sheep going and the cattle going. I'm going to have to do a lot of feeding to keep them going until rain comes," Mr Price said.
He said replacing around 20 kilometres of fencing would be a costly but essential priority.
"This is the worst fire that's been around the Mudgee area ever, I think," he said.
"Hope it's a one-off."
It is thought to be the most destructive bushfire in NSW since the Black Summer fires of 2019-2020 and is primarily burning through parts of Mid-Western regional council and Bathurst regional council areas.
Nationals MPs Dugald Saunders and Deputy Premier Paul Toole represent the areas but government assistance is yet to be announced.
Mr Price said he felt forgotten.
Looking ahead
The bushfire is now contained, though the NSW Rural Fire Service is expecting conditions to deteriorate again on Thursday.
It is forecast to be at least an extreme fire danger day, and total fire bans are likely to be in place for several days in the central ranges.
Despite the devastation, back at the smouldering ruins of Colin and Lorna Shapland's beloved home, a few blades of green grass are already poking through, and somehow, so is their optimism.
"We don't have a thing now. We're too late to really start again. But to anyone out there they can start again, we're proving it," Mr Shapland said.
