Our next activation for Wednesday, 30th October 2024, was the Hunts Bushland Reserve VKFF-5151. The reserve is located about 21 km north of Stawell in western Victoria.
Above:- Map showing the location of Hunts Bushland Reserve. Map c/o Google Maps.
The park is located on the northern side of Campbells Bridge Road at the junction with Swedes Creek Road.
Above:- An aerial view of Hunts Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth
The reserve is about 8 hectares in size and was established on the 24th day of August 1982. (CAPAD 2022)
The highlight of this activation was working Tim VK3IFR aeronautical mobile.
On Wednesday, 30th October 2024, Marija and I left the Waanyarra Nature Conservation Reserve and headed towards our next activation.
We stopped briefly at Natte Yallock, a small town on the Avoca River, about 200 km northwest of Melbourne. It was named in the 1840s after Nettylloc pastoral run, which was taken up in 1841. It is taken from the Aboriginal words nattai and yalloc, both meaning water. Land in the area was taken up for farm selections in the 1860s. The village sprang up as it was located at a ford across the Avoca River. By 1862, Natte Yallock had two hotels and a school. By 1864, a bridge had been constructed on the Avoca River. In 1868, a Wesleyan chapel was built, which was utilised as a school, replacing the leaky timber slab school structure. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
We left Natte Yallock and continued on towards Edenhope. There were some nice views of Kara Kara National Park along the way.
Our next stop was the little town of Moonambel, located south of the Kara Kara National Park, in the Pyrenees region of Victoria.
The site of Moonambel was part of the Mountain Creek pastoral run, established by Colin McKinnon in the 1850s, which was 80,000 acres in size and had 16,000 sheep. (Avoca Heritage 1995)(Trove 2025)
Above:- Article re the sale of Mountain Creek station, from The Argus, Fri 8 Apr 1853. Image c/o Trove.
The creek valley was used from about 1852 as a gold escort route between the Victorian goldfields and Adelaide. Gold was discovered in the Moonambel district in late 1860, and the settlement was originally known as Mountain Creek. By December 1860, it was estimated that there were between 10,000 to 12,000 miners on the goldfield. (Avoca Heritage 1995) (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
Above:- part of an article from The Herald, Fri 18 Jan 1861. Image c/o Trove
By December 1860, the town had been surveyed and there were several substantial buildings being built. By May 1861, the township that had developed on the Mountain Creek diggings was named Moonambel and town allotments were offered for sale at Moonambel. (Avoca Heritage 1995)
Above:- Advertisement from The Age, Fri 24 May 1861. Image c/o Trove
In October 1861, Moonambel was proclaimed as a municipality. It is believed that Moonambel is an Aboriginal word meaning ‘hollow in the hills’. In 1864, it was united with the Avoca Shire. By 1861, an Anglican school had opened, and this was replaced by a brick government building in 1875. In its early days, Moonambel had several hotels, but this was reduced to one, the Commercial Hotel, which was built in 1861. In 1871 Moonambel’s population was 280 people. (Avoca Heritage 1995) (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
Above:- An article from The Avoca Mail, Sat 1 Jul 1865. Image co Trove
Moonamble has a magnificent heritage walk, with the many historic buildings featuring information boards detailing the history of the building.
One of the interesting structures is the Moonambel Lock-up, which was one of two lock-ups that were brought to Moonambel during the 1860s gold rush. There are only five examples of this type of early portable lock-up in Victoria.
Moonambel contains the Uniting Church, St Paul’s Church of England, built in 1861, and St John the Baptist Catholic Church, built in 1884.
Another building of note is Dickson’s produce store, which was built in 1859.
We continued west to our next park activation, the Navarre Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2164. The park is located about 232 km northwest of Melbourne, between Stawell and St Arnaud
Above:- Map showing the location of the Navarre Nature Conservation Reserve.
The reserve is located on the corner of Callawadda-Navarre Road and Stawell-Avoca Road.
Above:- An aerial view of the Navarre Nature Conservation Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.
The Navarre area was part of the Decameron station in the 1840s, owned by James Allan Cameron. Navarre commenced as the site of an inn, which was established by Robert Beazley in 1848 alongside a stock route that was located on the boundary between Decameron run and Woodlands run. In 1850, a second inn was established by Robert Beazley. (Blake 1978) (Filmballarathepburnandbeyond.com.au, 2025)
Gold was discovered at Mount Alexander in 1851, and this saw the two inns become a popular stopping point for the gold miners on their way to the diggings. In 1855, the town was surveyed. Navarre takes its name from the ancient Spanish kingdom in the Pyrenees Mountains. The Navarre Post Office opened in February 1856. On the 13th day of September 1861, the town was officially proclaimed. By 1868, the town had a store, a post office and a school. (Blake 1978) (Filmballarathepburnandbeyond.com.au, 2025)
Above:- the old Navarre Inn and general store. Image c/o Victorian Collections.
The reserve is about 4 hectares in size and was established on the 26th day of February 2002. (CAPAD 2022)
There were some nice views of the Kara Kara National Park and the Grampians National Park from Navarre.
Our next activation for Wednesday, 30th October 2024, was the Rathscar Bushland Reserve VKFF-5760. The park is located about 21 km northwest of Maryborough and about 204 km northwest of Melbourne.
Above:- Map showing the location of the Rathscar Bushland Reserve. Map c/o Google Maps.
Rathescar Station was taken up by Mervyn Archdale in 1841. The name is derived from Irish rath, meaning earthworks or court, and scar, meaning crag or cliff. Rathescar was about 43,000 acres in size and had a grazing capability of 11,000 sheep. (Blake 1978) (Trove 2025)
John Leslie Fitzgerald Vesey Foster (b. 1818 d. 1900) acquired part of the Rathescar Run in the 1850s. Foster was a civil servant, landowner and author, who was born in Dublin, Ireland.
Above:- John Leslie Fitzgerald Vesey Foster. Image c/o Victorian Collections.
The park is located on the southern side of the Maryborough-St Arnaud Road, near McArdles Lane.
Above:- An aerial view of the Rathscar Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 8 hectares in size and was established on the 24th day of August 1982. (CAPAD 2022)
We ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole for this activation.
Leslie James Blake, 1978, Place Names of Victoria.
Trove. (2025). CLAIMS TO LEASES OF CROWN LANDS BEYOND THE SETTLED DISTRICTS. – WESTERN PORT DISTRICT. – The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 – 1954) – 23 Oct 1848. [online] Available at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/12906207 [Accessed 24 May 2025].
Our next park activation for 30th October 2024 was the Waanyarra Nature Conservation Reserve VKFF-2220. The park is located in central Victoria, about 179 km north of Melbourne.
Above:- Map showing the location of the Waanyarra Nature Conservation Reserve. Map c/o Google Maps
This is a large park and is centred around the town of Tarnagulla.
Above:- An aerial view of the Waanyara NCR. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 2,863 hectares in size and was established on the 24th day of August 1982. It is signposted as the Tarnagulla Nature Conservation Reserve. (CAPAD 2022)
Waanyarra is derived from the original word wahn, meaning crow and yarra meaning ever moving. Thus, Waanyarra means ‘crow flying’. Other references indicate that it is an aboriginal word meaning ‘running water’. (Blake 1978) (Waanyarra 2017)
Gold was discovered in the area in 1853 in Jones Creek. The area was initially known as Jones Creek, but in 1861 the name was changed to Waanyarra by surveyor Phillip Chauncy. It was once a thriving gold mining town with 2 hotels, several stores, a school and a Post Office. The foundations of the Jones Creek School No. 339 can be found. The school operated from 1857 to 1873 with an average of 16 pupils. (Blake 1978) (State of Vic 2004)
The ‘Welcome Inn’, Morton’s Old Hotel, was constructed in 1850 by a convict, Michael Moreton. It was a replica of his home in Ireland. The building served as Michael’s family of eight, a provisions store and a public bar for the local miners. (State of Vic 2004)
We drove into the park and operated from the 4WD, running the Icom IC7000, 100 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole.
Marija worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-
VK2VW
VK2HFI
VK2AKA
VK2BUG
VK1AO
VK2MET
Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
VK5HS
VK3PF
VK3KAI
VK2USH
I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-
VK2VW
VK2HFI
VK2AKA
VK2BUG
VK1AO
VK2MET
I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
VK5HS
VK3PF
VK3KAI
VK2USH
VK7LG
We left the park and drove into the lovely little town of Tarnagulla. We have been to this historic town previously and find its history to be fascinating.
In 1852, gold was discovered in a nearby stream called Sandy Creek. Up to 5,000 miners rushed to the area, and a settlement sprang up known as Sandy Creek until 1860, when it was renamed Tarnagulla, after nearby Tarnagulla station. (Aussie Towns 2023)
By the mid 1860s Tarnagulla had two banks, five bakers, two breweries, three butchers, four blacksmiths, two bootmakers, one corn factory, four crushing machines, two chemists, two drapers, a fruiterer, a gold broker, four hotels, an ironmonger, a miller, a painter, nine general stores, three surgeons, a share broker, a steam saw miller, a tailor, a tobacconist, two wheelwrights, and a watchmaker. (Aussie Towns 2023)
You could spend hours here wandering around, admiring the many historic buildings that date back to the Gold Rush era.
Ebenezer Chapel – Baptist Church was formerly a store and opened as a Chapel in April 1864. The brick facade was erected in 1872.
Bowman’s Bakery was built in about 1861 and was operated by Frederick George Bowman who had settled in the area in 1858. He died in 1904, with his wife also passing away in that year. They are both buried at the Tarnagulla cemetery. Following their death, J. Williamson continued operating the bakery and Frederick Bowman Jr, boot maker, purchased the building from his father’s estate in 1906.
We then visited the marker recording the site of the Poverty Reef gold mine. In 1852, gold was discovered here by D. Hatt, who was wrecked at Poverty Bay in New Zealand and was rescued by a Maori woman. He named the mine the Poverty Reef. Over a 13 month period a total of 13.5 tons (13.7 metric tonnes) of gold was mined from an area measuring just 3 metres wide and 120 metres long. The Poverty Reef gold mine was one of the richest deposits of reef gold found anywhere in the world. (Aussie Towns 2023)
The ruins of the majestic Wesleyan Methodist church, built in 1864, can be found on the top of a small hill in Tarnagulla. Sadly the church was severely damaged by a bushifre in 2000.
The Victoria Hotel and Theatre was opened in 1862 and has been a public hall since 1924. Lola Montez and Dame Nellie Melba have entertained miners from its stage.
The town contains many former shops. You can close your eyes and imagine what life must have been like in this incredible little town back in the day.
Locharron was originally built in 1859 as the Union Bank of Australia. After 1888 it was used as premises for doctors and dentists and, more recently, as a restaurant.
The cornerstone of the Colonial Bank was laid in 1865 and was opened in July 1866. The bank offered a free gold smelting service, hence the tall chimney. The original chimney was much taller than the present one. It was closed in 1942.
St Saviour’s Church of England was built of locally made bricks and was opened in 1864.
St Francis Catholic Church was opened on the 18th day of February 1912 on the site of the original church. The original timber and iron church opened in 1865 and was relocated to Dunolly in 1911, where it became St Mary’s School. In 1923 ,it was relocated to Murphy’s Creek.
The Sandy Creek Post Office was built as the Gold Warden’s office in 1856. However, it never operated for that purpose and became the Post Office and Telegraph Station, opening on the 1st day of January 1861.
The Presbyterian Church opened on Sunday, the 19th day of June 1864. It commenced as a Presbyterian church and later became a Uniting Church.
We then left Tarnagulla and headed to our next park activation.
Designed by Contexture International | http://www.contextureintl.com (2017). Waanyarra Revisited | Dedicated to the ‘Golden Triangle’ locality of Waanyarra, in Central Victoria, Australia. [online] Waanyarra.com. Available at: https://www.waanyarra.com/ [Accessed 24 May 2025].
Leslie James Blake, 1978, Place Names of Victoria.
State of Victoria, 2004, Forest Notes: The Historic Waanyarra Area Dunolly State Forest.
It was now Wednesday, October 30th, 2024, and it was time for us to leave Bendigo and head to our next stop, Edenhope, in southwest Victoria.
Marija and I headed out for breakfast, and before leaving Bendigo, we visited the very impressive Sacred Heart Cathedral, which dominates the Bendigo skyline. It is one of Australia’s largest churches, and the third tallest after St Patrick’s Cathedral and St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne.
The cathedral was designed by architect William Tappin (b. 1854, d. 1905) from the firm Reed, Barnes, and Tappin. The style of the cathedral is English Gothic with enclosed flying buttresses. Thomas Cockram and Son were the builders of the first stage of the cathedral, with a contract price of £31,385. (www.sandhurst.catholic.org.au, n.d.)
The architects involved in the second stage of the cathedral were Alan Ralton and Frank Turner, with the construction under direct labour under a superintendent of works. The cathedral’s foundation consists of granite from Harcourt, near Bendigo. The walls of the cathedral are constructed of sandstone from the Geelong district. The limestone used for the cathedral’s dressings and carvings comes from the Waurn Ponds area and Mount Gambier. The cathedral’s floor is Calacatta Vagli Extra marble from Italy. (www.sandhurst.catholic.org.au, n.d.)
The nave of the cathedral has a hammer beam roof with oregon and kauri paneling used in the nave ceiling. At the western end of the cathedral’s interior is a stained glass window made by John Hardman & Co. of Birmingham. In 1905 a large pipe organ built by Bishop & Son of London was installed. occupies a large part of the western end of the building. (www.ohta.org.au, n.d.) (www.sandhurst.catholic.org.au, n.d.)
Outside of the cathedral, you can find the headstones of various Bishops, including The Most Reverend Martine Crane, the first Bishop of Sandhurst..
After leaving the cathedral, Marija and I visited the Bendigo Public Cemetery.
The first grave we visited was George Lansell’s family vault. George was born in Margate, England, and arrived in Bendigo in 1853. He was known as the ‘Quartz King’.
Robert Burowes was born in Canada in 1825. He arrived in Melbourne in 1853. He was a miner and goldmine owner of the Garden Gully reef.
He was a local government councillor and an original member of Bendigo’s first Fire Brigade. He had a parliamentary career of over 27 years, including being a member for Sandhurst in Victoria’s Legislative Assembly 1867-1877 and 1880-1893.
Above:- Robert Burrowes. Image c/o State Library Victoria.
The Bendigo cemetery is listed with the Victorian Heritage Database. (vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au, n.d.)
One of the most significant monuments in the cemetery is the monument erected in memory of the Australian explorers Burke, Wills, Gray & King, who crossed the Australian continent from south to north in 1861. This impressive monument was erected predominantly through the efforts of Thomas Pope Besnard, a childhood friend of Burke`s. (UBC Web Design, 2025)
Amy Elizabeth Bayne was born in 1865 in Sandhurst, Victoria. She was the sole heiress of her father’s fortune when she was just 10 years old. She was a lifetime benefactress of various charitable institutions and organisations.
Lady Jane Lamsey was born c. 1853 in Ireland. She arrived in Geelong in c. 1860. She took on the rank and title of ‘Lady’ upon her marriage in 1889 to Dr. James Lamsey. In c. 1888, Dr. Lamsey was awarded the Chinese equivalent of a Knighthood named Fifth Mandarin Rank.
William Dixon Campbell Denovan was a miner and goldfields leader. He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1829 and arrived in Melbourne in 1852.
He was a Member for Sandhurst in Victoria’s Legislative Assembly 1861-18762 and a Local Government Councillor 1877-1879. He was also Town Clerk from 18791892 and the newspaper editor of the Bendigo Evening News.
Above: Mr. W.D.C. Denovan. Image c/o Trove.
Martha Durward Farquarson was born in c. 1847 in Galway, Ireland. She arrived in Melbourne in 1861. Martha promoted education and training in colonial nursing.
Angus Mackay was born in 1824 in Aberdeen, Scotland, and arrived in Sydney in 1827. He was a school teacher and principal, and the owner & editor of The Bendigo Advertiser from 1855 until his death in 1886.
Sir John McIntyre was born in 1832 in Glasgow, Scotland. He arrived in Portland in 1852.
McIntyre was the first Mayor of the Borough of Sandhurst, 1863-1868. He was a Member for Sandhurst in Victoria’s Legislative Assembly 1877-1880, and Member for Maldon 1881-1902. He was a miner and miner’s advocate, and an Honorary Colonel Victorian Scottish Regiment (Aust). He died in January 1904.
Above:- Sir John Mcintyre. Image c/o Wikipedia.
John Boyd Watson was born in 1828 in Paisley, Scotland, and arrived in Sydney in 1841.
He was the richest gold miner of the period. He was the owner of the prodigious Kentish mine and several others. Watson was one of the founders of the Sydney Daily Telegraph newspaper, and was a land and property owner in Bendigo, Melbourne, and in other Australian States. He died in June 1889.
Above:- John Boyd Watson. Image c/o victoriancollections.net.au
The cemetery has a significant number of Chinese graves and a Chinese Burning Tower, which dates back to the 1870s. The burning towers were used by Chinese mourners to burn paper offerings and other items as part of traditional Chinese funeral practices.
The Honorable Alfred Hicks was born in 1860. He was a Member of the Legislative Council 1904-1921. He died in 1921, aged 61 years.
Henry Hattam was born in Cornwall. He was a former Mayor of Sandhurst and died in 1876.
George Avery Fletcher was born c. 1823 in England. He arrived in Melbourne in 1853. George was the first to hold the dual position of Town Clerk and City Surveyor of Sandhurst from 1856-1871. He was Town Clerk from 1856-1876. George designed the original Sandhurst Town Hall and introduced the planting of tree-lined streets. He was the architect of the first cemetery, Sexton’s cottage and the Chapel at Back Creek cemetery.
Anne Beacham Caudle was born c. 1812 in Bristol, England. She arrived in Melbourne in 1852. Anne was a charitable worker raising funds for the building of the Bendigo Benevolent Asylum. She was a public orator and poet and was the wife of pioneer Dr. Edward Caudle. She died in June 1865.
George Edward Thomson was born in 1826 in Coupar Angus, Perthshire, Scotland. He arrived in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1852. He was a miner and miner’s advocate involved in the Red Ribbon Agitation. He advocated for ‘moral force’. He was a newspaper founder and editor of the Digger’s Advocate and Solicitor. George died in January 1889.
You could wander around the Bendigo cemetery for days. There are so many fascinating headstones and stories to view.
We left Bendigo and headed to Edenhope. Along the way, we stopped to have a look at St John’s Anglican Church at Newbridge. The church was dedicated in 1864. The cost to build the church was £567.00. In 1964, the church held centenary celebrations during which time a commemorative stone was unveiled. (Vic.gov.au, 2025)
Newbridge is a small town located on the Loddon River, about 32 km west of Bendigo. Originally, European settlers in the area had to cross the river via a ford. In 1853, a wooden bridge was constructed, and it is believed this is what inspired the name of the town. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
Newbridge was originally settled by pastoralists, but increased in size due to the nearby gold mining centres of Llanelly and Tarnagulla. In 1859, a brewery was opened, and this was followed by a school and a flour mill in 1861. By the mid-1860s, Newbridge had three hotels. In 1861, the population of Newbridge was 118 people. A literary institute and a cheese factory were opened during the 1870s. By 1881, the population of Newbridge was 218 people. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
The site of the Newbridge General Store was granted in 1855 to John Elliot of Melbourne. In 1861, a former grocer from Edinburgh, Scotland, Mr. Pearson, became the first grocer in Newbridge. He obtained the Post Office licence in that same year.
The Newbridge Hotel was first licensed in 1859 to John Jebb and was known as the Bridge Inn Hotel. The name was changed to the Bridge Hotel and then to the Newbridge Hotel.
One of the quaint old buildings in Newbridge is the former goldfields butcher’s shop. It was initially operated by John Bayley and was built in 1866 from locally made bricks.
The former Newbridge Presbyterian church was built in the 1860s.
The Newbridge Primary School was completed in April 1866.
We continued west along the Wimmera Highway and soon reached the former gold mining town of Llanelly.
From 1853, gold was mined in the Tarnagulla district. In 1856, a rise just to the west of Llanelly, known as Hard Hills was found to contain gold. Over the following two years, gold was discovered in several reefs in close proximity to Llanelly. In about 1860, the village of Llanelly was established. It was named by Welsh miners after Llanelly in Carmarthenshire in Wales. (Blake 1978) (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
Alluvial gold was discovered in the area in 1865. An influx of diggers followed, and at its peak, the Llanelly district had a population of about 20,000 people. As a result of the gold rush, Llanelly had several stores, hotels and banks. From 1872 to 1882, the town was known as Maidentown, but the name Llanelly was restored with the announcement of the opening of the railway line from Dunolly in 1888. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
The Llanelly grain silos were opened at the Llanelly railway station in 1951. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)
The Llanelly Bushland Reserve is located at the junction of Rheola-Llanelly Road and Arnolds Lane.
Above:- An aerial view of the Llanelly Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 6 hectares in size and was established on the 24th day of August 1982. (CAPAD 2022)
We accessed the park via Arnolds Lane. The park was within the activation zone of the silo.
Above:- the activation zone at the Lllanelly silo. Image c/o SiOTA website.
Our final park for Tuesday, 29th October 2024, was the Strathfieldsaye H97 Bushland Reserve VKFF-5876. The park is about 12 km southeast of Bendigo in central Victoria.
Above:- Map showing the location of the Strathfieldsaye H97 Bushland Reserve VKFF-5873.
The park is located on the southern side of Strathfieldsaye Road alongside the Strathfieldsaye Waste Transfer Station.
Above:- An aerial view of the Strathfieldsaye H97 Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 6 hectares in size and was established on the 26th day of February 2002. (CAPAD 2022)
There was a short dirt track leading into the park off Strathfieldsaye Road. We ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole.
Our sixth park for Tuesday, 29th October 2024, was the Strathfieldsaye I160 Bushland Reserve VKFF-5876. The park is about 12 km southeast of Bendigo in central Victoria.
Above:- Map showing the location of the Strathfieldsaye I160 Bushland Reserve VKFF-5876.
The park is located on the southern side of Strathfieldsaye Road. Its southern boundary is Walmer Street.
Above:- An aerial view of the Strathfieldsaye I160 Bushland Reserve. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 1 hectare in size and was established on the 24th day of August 1982. (CAPAD 2022)
We drove to the end of Walmer Street and set up in a clearing amongst the scrub.
VK5PAS 