Land Rover Owners Club of Gippsland.
Three Day Volunteer Work With Parks Victoria, November 20th to 22nd, 2023.
Attending.
Trip Leader / LROCG Parks Victoria Liaison, Craig Murray.
Parks Victoria Ranger, Wayne Foon.
Club Volunteers, Gary Fouet, Annette Fleming, Bob McKee, Neville Trimnell, Vivian Lee, Lois Rose, Greg Rose, Alan Harlow.
Thunder rumbled down the deep valley, echoing off the rocky walls, large raindrops splashed on the rocks and there were a few moments of hail. We were standing looking over the scene from Dimmicks Lookout off Howitt Road. Our group was halfway through a three day volunteer activity with Parks Victoria.
Our club has enjoyed a long and positive relationship with the Foothills and Southern Alps Team of Parks Victoria. On this occasion we were base camped at Thomastown, beside the beautiful Shaw Creek. Craig and Vivian arrived about 30 seconds after Lois and I on Sunday afternoon and we selected the campsite. Most of the others club members arriving early on the following day. There were six club members’ vehicles: Craig’s ex-military Perentie, Greg’s 200 series Land Cruiser and four Land Rover Discovery 4s. Our PV Ranger, Wayne Foon, has been with us on many of our adventures in the Alpine National Park. We could hear him well before he arrived, as the trailer he was towing bounced and rattled, on the rough Tamboritha Road. Our camping arrangements included a couple of camper trailers, some tents and one person sleeping comfortably in their wagon. We set up a small insect proof tent for food preparation and Wayne brought along a gazebo in case we had rain.
All our volunteers had been logged onto Parkweb prior to the activity and had the required Working With Children cards. On day one, after the necessary safety briefing, we went onto Kelly Lane. Wayne had all the equipment we needed plus any safety gear that members might not have. The track would be opened early, from its extended Seasonal Closure once we had completed our work.
There is a large grassy camping area a short distance along the track. This was to be our first work area. Brush cutters and the mower were fuelled and we set to work. Many of us wore gaiters as it was the time of year when the creekside reptile population are out and about. Moving to McMichaels Hut, we had a short break for lunch, at the picnic table we had made on a previous volunteer activity. Then we mowed and brush cut grass in readiness for visitors after the opening. The hut was cleaned and any rubbish in the area was collected. We moved to Kellys Hut. The same work was carried out at that location. It was pleasing to note that there was not much rubbish to be removed, just a few small bags. On our first club volunteer run along Kelly Lane, with PV in November 2012, we filled a tandem trailer and 6x4 trailer with rubbish from in and around the two huts. On that occasion there were only three club members, Ian Blake, myself and Lois. We missed you on this year’s activity Ian.
Back at camp we enjoyed pre dinner nibbles organised by Lois and then a delicious meal cooked on the campfire. Bob and Annette had gone to a lot of trouble organising the hamburgers with the lot. Annette had slaved over sweating down and caramelising 1.5kg of onions only to have a slight mishap with them as she carried them to the table. The ones that remained were superb. Alan and Bob fought with the overly hot barbeque plates with Alan suffering the indignity of burning his buns. We always invite the PV folk we work with to share the meal. Dessert was homemade apple slice and custard, supplemented by slices provided by Gary. Following some campfire chat and banter we all had a reasonably early night.
Some of us were up at six the next morning, enjoying the surrounds. Not so enjoyable was the wafting aroma of a dead dingo in the rocks near the creek. We all stayed well away from that and it was well away from our camp. Starting early, we headed up Howitt Road to the carpark at the trailhead of the walking track to Gantner Hut and beyond. It showed the enthusiasm of our volunteers that Neville, who couldn’t make it to the first day, left home at 4:00 a.m. to be with us for the start of day two. The decision had been made to start at the northern end of the road as the weather was looking threatening and we could move our work sites south if the storm broke. When work completed there, we went to Howitt Hut and got out the brush cutters, mower and chainsaws and cleaned up that area.
It's interesting the people you meet in the Alps. At the top of Zeka Spur, on Howitt Road, I stopped to talk to a very adventurous gentleman who was riding the whole 5330km length of the National Trail, starting in Healesville and hoping to finish in Cooktown after eighteen months of continuous horseback travel. On the way to Howitt Hut, I also stopped to talk to two bush walkers and suggested that if they made it to the hut, I’d make them a real coffee. Sure enough they arrived and the coffee was made as promised and they enjoyed the hot brew as we worked around the hut. PV Ranger Sam Bradley called in on his way to Wonnangatta to work with the Friends of Wonnangatta volunteers.
After the work at Howitt Hut and surrounds was completed, we headed to Guys Hut carpark. A team from Melbourne Zoo had just set up their tents as a base of operations for survey work. We carefully worked avoiding their camp as rain approached.
The next work site was to be Dimmicks Lookout where this story began. Safety concerns with working on wet ground and the threat of a severe electrical storm, caused Wayne to call the day’s work to an end. The scene driving down Howitt Road was spectacular with dark black clouds in stark contrast to the white forms of dead trees. Wayne made the offer that if anyone would like to come with him to Surveyors Creek Deeca Work Camp there would be hot showers. Craig, Vivian, Lois and I took up the offer and enjoyed a steaming hot shower. Back at camp the area was dry. As is the Parks Victoria, Foothills and Southern Alps folks’ tradition, as a thank-you to the club volunteers, Wayne provided a barbeque dinner with a variety of salads that went down very well after all the work.
We didn’t have overnight rain but Sam and the team at Wonnangatta had been hammered by heavy rain and thunderstorms. The weather in the Alps is quite erratic, they were probably no more than twenty kilometres from where we were camped.
On day three we concentrated our work efforts on Thomastown and the camping areas just over the Shaw Creek bridge. All tasks were completed before lunch in order for Melbourne based members to get home at a respectable time. The early finish also allowed Wayne to travel to the work centre in Heyfield and clean the PV Ford Ranger, trailer and all the equipment. Bob, Annette, Lois and I stayed later and had lunch before Bob and Annette headed off. Lois and I left late in the afternoon. On the way down to Licola we stopped a few times to give water to riders on The Hunt 1000 bikepacking race. Some of the riders were struggling on the rough and dusty Tamboritha Road. The race on single track and four wheel drive tracks starts in Melbourne and travels 1000km through the Alps to Canberra. Riders are self-supporting but they can buy supplies at towns on the route.
It had been a fantastic activity. Everyone worked hard, but nobody over did it or had any injuries. The camaraderie was excellent and there was a great atmosphere around the campfire. It is gratifying for club members to leave the Park in top condition for all users to enjoy. The spin off is that the volunteering leaves all participants feeling recharged after a few days in the bush.
Our volunteer hours will be submitted to Four Wheel Drive Victoria to add to the tally of good work done by so many clubs throughout the state.
Craig Murray, our club’s liaison person with Parks Victoria planned the activity months in advance. Well done Craig. Thanks to Wayne Foon from Parks Victoria for keeping us safe and the equipment in top condition for the three days. The club is also thankful to the whole Foothills and Southern Alps Team for the support they have given us over so many years.
Craig hopes to plan another volunteer event for the first quarter of 2024.
Greg Rose,
Land Rover Owners Club of Gippsland.
Four Wheel Drive Victoria Regional Representative, Southern Alpine National Park.
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