In fact, that’s the title of his latest book.
Which is why the last place you’d expect him to be in Echuca-Moama — but the first place he stopped in on his flying visit to the twin towns — is the local Anglican church.
But as a collector and curator of Australian pub yarns, Colin knows pubs don’t stand alone in a town.
And behind each local watering hole is a vibrant history of zany tales and kooky characters worth telling.
Which is why he stopped at Christ Church Anglican last Wednesday to learn more about English convict Henry Hopwood, who established Echuca — and Echuca’s first pub.
The church not only houses a chalice and a stained glass window dedicated to Echuca’s founder — but also owes much of its existence to Hopwood, who donated 25,000 bricks for the original building.
However, Colin said Hopwood was anything but a saint.
‘‘He and most of the other publicans along the river were incredible rascals, they were just terrible, litigious, nasty people,’’ he said.
‘‘The founder of Moama, James Maiden, was Hopwood’s main rival, they hated each other. But they had the same skeletons in the closet — they were both convicts.’’
Sit a few minutes with Colin and you’ll realise he’s a wealth of knowledge when it comes to pub history.
Because this is his passion and past-time.
It’s not unusual to see the Sydney-sider zooming across Australia on his motorbike armed with cameras, camping gear and a brain teeming with pub stories he’s unearthed from libraries across the country.
His most recent project: Drinking the Rivers Dry.
It’s a book of yarns from pubs along Australian rivers — the Murray, Edward, Murrumbidgee, Lachlan, Darling, Castlereagh and Flinders.
‘‘What I’ve already found is each river has it’s own flavour, it’s own underlying theme,’’ he said.
‘‘The reason I love the Murray is all the guys along here had the same business plan. They’d open a punt — and then they’d open a pub right beside it.’’
And Colin won’t just be digging through the history of pubs but also searching for the stories of characters often found warming a seat at the bar.
‘‘I’ll often call up publicans in advance and ask them who’s the funniest, who’s the biggest drunk, who’s the biggest character,’’ he said.
‘‘And it’s a real privilege to talk to these guys. In any relationship you have to give intimacy to get intimacy. It’s the same with people in a bar. I’ve had a very varied life so I’ll often share stories with them first.
‘‘Eventually they become less reticent and open up. An hour later, it’s like taking a sip from a fire hose, you can’t get them to shut up. It’s like no-one ever asks them about themselves.’’
That night, Colin said he’d be staying at Echuca Hotel.
And he was keen to see what stories publican David Connally had to offer.
‘‘Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t,’’ he said.
‘‘But if there’s one thing my travels have taught me, it’s that there are so many interesting people in this country who have amazing stories to tell.’’
To keep track of Colin’s travels and any upcoming books, visit his Facebook page Nothing but the Pub.
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