Manangatang Bushland Reserve VKFF-5428 & Manangatang silo VK-MNG3

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Our next activation on Friday, 17th October 2025, was the Manangatang Bushland Reserve VKFF-5428 & Manangatang silo VK-MNG3.

Manangatang is about 54 km east of Ouyen and about 412 km northwest of Melbourne.

Above: Map showing the location of Mangatang, Victoria. Map c/o Google Maps.

Manangatang is derived from the Aboriginal words ‘manang‘, meaning land and ‘kaaiti’, meaning water. (Wikipedia 2025)

In about 1890, Mr. A.T. Creswick purchased Bumbang Station, which had a ’15 mile’ frontage on the southern side of the Murray River near Robinvale. He owned a hut near the site of the present township of Mangatang. (Robinvaleeuston.com 2016)

In 1911, surveyed blocks, each of about one square mile, were made available. A store was opened in 1912, and on the 6th day of January 1913, the post office was opened. In 1914, a school was opened in a Methodist Hall. In 1915, the town of Mangatang was proclaimed. In January 1919, a police station was established with mounted Constable E.E. Dunkley in charge. (Victorian Places 2015) (Wikipedia 2025)

Manangatang has its own horse racing club and a race meeting, the Mangatang Cup, is held each year in October.

Several historic buildings remain in Manangatang. This includes the railway station, the old butcher shop, and the bakery.

The Mangatang silos are located on the eastern side of Wattle Street, the main street of Manangatang.

The Manangatang Bushland Reserve is split into five different sections with a total of about 9.5 hectares. The reserve is located on the eastern side and northwestern side of the town. (CAPAD 2024)

The reserve was established on the 8th day of May 1990. It comprises typical mallee scrub. (CAPAD 2024)

Marija and I operated from the eastern section of the bushland reserve, in the activation zone of the silo. We ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole.

Above: the activation zone at the Manangatang silos. Image c/o SiOTA website.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

  1. VK3WSG
  2. VK3PF
  3. VK3KAI
  4. VK2IO/P (VKFF-2784)
  5. VK2GEZ/P (VKFF-2784)
  6. VK5WY
  7. VK3ZSC
  8. VK1AD
  9. VK3SQ
  10. VK3JT
  11. VK2BD
  12. VK3TDX
  13. VK3MGM
  14. VK5CZ
  15. VK5XE

Marija worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

  1. VK2VW
  2. VK2HFI
  3. VK2AKA
  4. VK2BUG
  5. VK6XL

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

  1. VK3WSG
  2. VK3RY
  3. VK3PF
  4. VK3KAI
  5. VK2IO/P (VKFF-2784)
  6. VK2GEZ/P (VKFF-2784)
  7. VK5WY
  8. VK3ZSC
  9. VK1AD
  10. VK3SQ
  11. VK3JT
  12. VK2BD
  13. VK3TDX
  14. VK3MGM
  15. VK5CZ
  16. VK5XE

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

  1. VK2VW
  2. VK2HFI
  3. VK2AKA
  4. VK2BUG
  5. VK6XL

References.

  1. Dcceew.gov.au. (2025). Collaborative Australian Protected Areas Database 2024 – DCCEEW. [online] Available at: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/land/nrs/science/capad/2024.
  2. ‌Robinvaleeuston.com. (2016). Bumbang Station –. [online] Available at: https://www.robinvaleeuston.com/bumbang-station/ [Accessed 24 Nov. 2025].
  3. ‌Victorianplaces.com.au. (2015). Manangatang | Victorian Places. [online] Available at: https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/manangatang [Accessed 24 Nov. 2025].
  4. ‌Wikipedia Contributors (2025). Manangatang. Wikipedia.‌

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