One of NSW's oldest outback stations has been passed in at auction.
Booroomugga near Cobar failed to attract much attention in an online auction today (Thursday) and reached $4.55 million but failed to meet the reserve.
Agents from Nutrien Harcourts Cobar will now negotiate to try and make the sale as the bid was said to be "narrowly" short of that reserve.
Booroomugga takes in 16,458 hectares (40,750 acres) and was founded in the 1860s as a "back station" as it was remote from the favoured permanent water like the Darling River.
It is less than an hour's travel time from Cobar and Nyngan.
Booroomugga is looking lush at the moment from a wet winter but historically the station relies heavily on seasonal waterholes in the Mulga Creek system and 24 large earth dams spread across the property.
The property receives an average annual rainfall of 380mm.
For instance, the insurance for the home block from a run of dry seasons is a huge double dam and several large rainwater tanks.
A bore has been drilled in the creek but is not presently in use.
The station is not carrying much stock at the moment other than a small flock of Dorpers but has run 350 breeding cows in the past.
It is estimated the station is 98 per cent destocked at the moment, opening up opportunities to a new owner.
MORE READING: Auction will decide how much this SA farm is worth.
The station has been cashing in on wild goats, catching and selling almost 1000 of them a year.
The property is said to be "slight" undulating to flat red loam with chocolate loam in the creeks.
It is mostly timbered with pine, mulga, rosewood, red gum and box along creek system, heavily grassed rangeland with a large variety of native grasses and herbages, clovers, corkscrew crowfoot and copper burr.
The station owns a cultivation licence of 2143ha of which about 525ha is being sown to wheat.
A further 685ha has been pulled and mostly all raked.
The homestead is a large four-bedroom brick veneer structure built in 1989.
It has a paved undercover barbecue area, cool room, lockup car garage, established lawns and gardens.
There is a two-bedroom cottage on the station as well and various shedding.
Just one historic feature of the station is the original 1890 era timber and pine shearing shed which is now equipped for seven-stands.
All steel and mesh sheep yards, 3-way draft, steel loading ramp, yards handle 3000 sheep.
It also has steel panel and cable cattle yards, CIA crush and steel loading ramp with baulk and walkway.
Agents said Booroomugga was one of the best regarded old stations in the area with soft sweet heavy carrying country, superb mulga creek basin farming soil.
"Truly a great old station."
For more information contact the selling agent David Russell 0418 636050 at Nutrien Ag Solutions.
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