4WD CLUB

Noojee Night Drive

 

 

Dates

25th June 2011

 

Event Organiser

Vince & Sue Bosua

 

Attendances

 

 

 

Visitors *

 

Vince & Sue Bosua

Neil & Sharon West

Paul & Maxine Burke

Kate McCracken & Roy Anderson

Matt & Tamara Ahern

Grant, Karen and Molly Thomson

Alby Armour & Rod

Clayton Bryant

Jim & Liz Paxton

Cameron & Robyn Parslow

Ray Lynch & grandson

 

*Les & Kaye Laity

 

 

What another great roll-up.

 

Vince & Sue as organizers, looked like being the last ones to the assembly point as most members arrived early in anticipation of a great outing. And it was!

 

 

 

Off to Gladesdale and Blacksands Rd. Coffee break at Starlings gap along with a campsite full of hardy souls tenting it for the weekend. Blacksands Rd was a pleasant, if damp drive and getting cooler as we went along.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After Starlings gap it was on to the Ada Tree via Big Creek & Federal Short Cut Rds, to check out the new car park and facilities. We arrived just after 4pm but the gate was open.

 

A quick photo stop before it got too dark, and Robyn, true to form gave us a demo of how to throw away a perfectly good camera doing the Toyota Ad jump.

 

 

 

Back out to Big Creek Rd and on to McCarthy Spur Road, heading south towards Noojee. The

winds in this area have been strong recently and the amount of leaf and bark litter on the road unbelievably heavy. Around a couple of well worked timber coupes and into Camp Creek Rd. At the bottom of the hill, hard left into Boys Camp Rd saw us into Noojee around 5:30pm just after dark. By now outside temperatures had plummeted, the moon was hiding and it was dark.

 

Our dinner booking at the Tool Shed Bar (part of the Outpost retreat Complex) was for 6:30 so some enjoyable time was spent at the bar and by the huge open fire, (guess where the girls were!!).

 

 

 

An early call into dinner saw us seated, fed & watered by 8:00pm and back on the road. (The meals were great). Grant, Karen & Molly headed back to Phillip Island after dinner, while the rest of the party headed bush.

 

North up Loch Valley Rd in the heavy fog that had descended on Noojee, saw us finally in clear skies on Gunns Rd headed back towards McCarthy Spur Rd. Recent wind damage in this section of the mountain saw us frequently stopping to clear and cut up trees to make forward progress. Ray Lynch was in his element, closely followed with Paul and the chainsaws.

 

 

 

Some 150metres short of McCarthy Spur Rd & Gunns Rd intersection saw us come upon a tree that even Ray refused to have a go at. A stump and trunk some 4ft in diameter had come down across the road, right on a bend and creek embankment, making it impossible to continue.

 

 

 

Nothing else for it but to do the U turn and head all the way back to Noojee. 10pm saw us back at Noojee, where an impromptu meeting was held to discuss options, with a decision being made to call it a night and head back towards Yarra Junction via the main Noojee – Powelltown Rd.

 

By 11pm every one was back at Yarra Junction and headed off to their various home locations, all agreeing it had been a great night and we need to do this again.

 

Thanks to all those that came and contributed to a great night. Although Jim & Liz could not make the tracks trip, they were able to come for dinner which was a great effort, given the things they had on at the time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Report by Vince Bosua