When Covid came to the anti-vax capital of Australia

A noisy minority in NSW's northern rivers are pushing back against Covid-19 restrictions

Benny Zable has lived in Nimbin on and off since 1973, when he arrived in town for the Aquarius festival - the event that seeded counterculture and escapist lifestyles into the northern rivers of New South Wales.

The 75-year-old artist and activist is a storied figure in this part of Australia, now a heartland for alternative health and wellness advocates, and notorious for low immunisation rates. He was also the first person from Nimbin to show up for a Covid-19 vaccine.