Together they're following in Windradyne's footsteps ... literally

Proud Wiradyuri man Paul Towney, along with good mate Steve Hopwood, are planning a walk in December, 2024 that takes the path Windradyne took to meet with Governor Thomas Brisbane back in 1824.

Following the Central West's Bathurst Wars, a bloody conflict between white settlers and the Wiradyuri people, Windradyne walked from Bathurst to Parramatta to address the governor while wearing a hat that said "Peace".

In January, Mr Towney and Mr Hopwood concluded a trial run of the walk, which started at Windradyne's grave in Peel on Saturday, January 13.

It's was a difficult journey for the two men, who are both in their 60s, but well worth the effort.

"It's nothing off my back to try and retrace [Windradyne's steps] and do what my ancestors did," Mr Towney said.

The official walk in December will not just be about honouring Windradyne, but is also a way to heal, to advocate for the rights of Aboriginal people, and to acknowledge their history.

This is particularly important for Mr Towney, who said he grew up without being taught his history.

That didn't change until he started attending Bathurst TAFE and Mitchell College.

"It was at this time I learnt about my history as an Aboriginal man and my Wiradyuri nation," Mr Towney said.

He said the story of Windradyne "blew me away ever since and made me feel proud" of his culture.

"This person fought for his Wiradyuri nation ... to retain and show there are humans here, there are people who occupy these nations," he said.

"They were willing to fight."

The official walk in December will commence at the site of Windradyne's grave, on the Peel property known as "Brucedale".

Mr Towney said he wanted to thank the owner of the property, Dave Suttor, for allowing people onto his land and for the continual care of the grave.

"His family have maintained and always had a good relationship with our Wiradyuri," he said.

From Peel, participants will walk to O'Connell and then continue over the mountains through to Parramatta.

The event is expected to take around 12 days to complete, with the walk broken up into 20-kilometre segments.

"There will be a lot of cultural experiences on the way for people," Mr Hopwood said.

Participants can take part in the full walk, or join sections of it.

Mr Towney said it is open to anyone.

"Jump in and have a walk with me on any part of the journey," he said.

"This is open to anyone, black or white. Come along in December."

He also plans to extend an invitation to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Governor-General, David Hurley, to meet him in Parramatta at the end of the walk.

Mr Towney said anyone interested in joining the walk can reach out to him via three Facebook pages: Indigenous Australian Film and Television, Wiradjuri Nation, and Wiradjuri Language.

To Wiradyuri people, Windradyne was a great war hero.

Mr Towney has watched the way Australia honours its Anzacs each year, and the servicemen and women who have fought in other conflicts around the world.

This information is readily taught in schools, but Aboriginal history, including the war that was fought right here in Bathurst, doesn't get passed on in the same way.

"I grew up and I didn't even learn anything about my proud, true, Wiradyuri identity," Mr Towney said.

"They never told us about the war history that actually happened here and is documented in Australian history books. It's in the old colonial journals about Windradyne and the Wiradyuri wars."

It's something Mr Towney wants to see change, to ensure great Aboriginal war heroes get the recognition they deserve.

"Pemulwuy, from the Sydney region, he was killed in 1803 by the colonials. To me, that is Australia's greatest war hero and should be commemorated - he didn't die anywhere else overseas, he shed his blood on Australian soil," he said.

"We Wiradyuris, we were the second invaded nation after all the Sydney tribes, once the government came over the Blue Mountains and into Wiradyuri country. Windradyne led the fight for as much as 10 years, resistance fighting, so, to me, that's Australia's second greatest war time hero and should be celebrated as that.

"Again, not overseas, way before any of the Anzac conflicts. This was on Australian soil that our own war heroes died.

"We've got to start discussing this. It's about sovereignty, it's about Australian history, it's about truth-telling."