Harcourt Bushland Reserve VKFF-4295

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Our next activation for Saturday 25th November 2023 was the Harcourt Bushland Reserve VKFF-4295. The park is located about 9km northeast of Castlemaine and about 125 km northwest of Melbourne.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Harcourt Bushland Reserve. Map c/o Google Maps.

The first European settler in the Harcourt district was Dr WIlliam Barker who ran the Mount Alexander pastoral run. He built a homestead alongside Barkers Creek at Harcourt North. The township of Harcourt was surveyed in 1853 at the junction of the roads to Bendigo and Castlemaine, near Barkers Creek. The town was named in honour of Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt (b. 1827. d. 1904), English Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Above:- Sir William Harcourt. Image c/o Wikipedia

A school was opened at Harcourt in 1859, followed by a railway station in 1863 when the railway line was opened between Kyneton and Bendigo. A Methodist church was opened in 1863. (Victorian Places 2024)

The Harcourt Bushland Reserve is also referred to as Barkers Creek Bushland Reserve. The reserve is about 36 hectares in size and was established on the 26th day of February 2002. (CAPAD 2022)

Above:- An aerial view of the Harcourt Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.

Several mineshafts can be found in the reserve from the 1850 gold rush period. The original mineshafts were round. When the Cornish miners arrived at the goldfields in 1852, they commenced creating oblong shafts, and their example was followed by subsequent miners.

We ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole for this activation. I used the special call of VI10VKFF. Band conditions were quite good apart from some loud static crashes on 40m.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

  1. VK3BEL
  2. VK3SPX
  3. VK1CHW/p (Aranda Bushland Nature Reserve VKFF-0833)
  4. VK3MIJ
  5. VK5FBIC/p
  6. VK1RF/p (Molonglo Gorge Nature Reserve VKFF-0991)
  7. VK2PKT/p (South West Woodland Nature Reserve VKFF-2724)
  8. VK3YV/p (Tyers Park VKFF-3570)
  9. VK3PF/m
  10. VK3KAI/m
  11. VK5DW/p (Moorook Game Reserve VKFF-1729)
  12. VK2MOE/p (Coolah Tops National Park VKFF-0111)
  13. VK3PF/p (Traralgon South Flora & Fauna Reserve VKFF-2464)
  14. VK2IO/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
  15. VK5HS/p (Cooltong Conservation Park VKFF-0823)

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

  1. VK3BEL
  2. VK3SPX
  3. VK1CHW/p (Aranda Bushland Nature Reserve VKFF-0833)
  4. VK3MIJ
  5. VK5FBIC/p
  6. VK1RF/p (Molonglo Gorge Nature Reserve VKFF-0991)
  7. VK2PKT/p (South West Woodland Nature Reserve VKFF-2724)
  8. VK3YV/p (Tyers Park VKFF-3570)
  9. VK3PF/m
  10. VK3KAI/m
  11. VK3MCK
  12. VK5FANA
  13. VK5KVA
  14. VK5DW/p (Moorook Game Reserve VKFF-1729)
  15. VK5HYZ
  16. VK3ZS
  17. VK7XX
  18. VK3ZSC
  19. VK3HJW
  20. VK1AO
  21. VK2MET
  22. VK3FA
  23. VK5IS
  24. VK2MOE/p (Coolah Tops National Park VKFF-0111)
  25. VK3SO
  26. VK3PF/p (Traralgon South Flora & Fauna Reserve VKFF-2464)
  27. VK5FB
  28. VK3SQ
  29. VK2BD
  30. VK3MTT
  31. VK2EXA
  32. VK3CEO
  33. VK2LEE
  34. VK5PE/m
  35. VK2IO/p (Cuumbeun Nature Reserve VKFF-1920)
  36. VK5HS/p (Cooltong Conservation Park VKFF-0823)
  37. VK3IDM
  38. VK3OY

I worked the following stations on 40m AM:-

  1. VK3SQ
  2. VK2BD

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

  1. VK4EW
  2. VK4NH
  3. VK4DXA
  4. VK1AO
  5. VK2MET
  6. VK4EMP
  7. VK4TI
  8. VK4VCO/m
  9. ZL3MR
  10. VK4FO

References.

  1. Dcceew.gov.au. (2023). Collaborative Australian Protected Areas Database (CAPAD) 2022 – DCCEEW. [online] Available at: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/land/nrs/science/capad/2022 [Accessed 2 Apr. 2024].‌
  2. http://www.victorianplaces.com.au. (n.d.). Harcourt | Victorian Places. [online] Available at: https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/harcourt [Accessed 2 Apr. 2024].‌

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