GROUP MEET 2016

coled1970 · Oct 3, 2016

Hi All,

Just wanted to say thanks to all at the meet up, had a great time meeting the everyone i hadn't met and was good catching up with Chartrock again after 2 years. It was a long slog on my own getting there and back home but it was worth every bit of heartache and huge amounts of fuel (all sorted now) to get there. Being on my own its hard to know what to expect but everyone was warm and welcoming which made my time there so much easier. My trip home was fairly good with skippy playing chicken with the car in front of me just before Broken Hill but all good and about 4k's of flooded road just out of Warren. Van got wet in the foot well so will look into that. The truck has been cleaned and ready to hopefully head of Wednesday for a couple of nights somewhere. Thanks again to everyone for a great time and can't wait for the next one.
By the way if anyone got some pic's of the new truck in action could you pm me as i would like to get a copy of them if possible.

Cheers Colin.

Smergen · Oct 3, 2016

coled1970 said:
Hi All,

Just wanted to say thanks to all at the meet up, had a great time meeting the everyone i hadn't met and was good catching up with Chartrock again after 2 years. It was a long slog on my own getting there and back home but it was worth every bit of heartache and huge amounts of fuel (all sorted now) to get there. Being on my own its hard to know what to expect but everyone was warm and welcoming which made my time there so much easier. My trip home was fairly good with skippy playing chicken with the car in front of me just before Broken Hill but all good and about 4k's of flooded road just out of Warren. Van got wet in the foot well so will look into that. The truck has been cleaned and ready to hopefully head of Wednesday for a couple of nights somewhere. Thanks again to everyone for a great time and can't wait for the next one.
By the way if anyone got some pic's of the new truck in action could you pm me as i would like to get a copy of them if possible.

Cheers Colin.

Great to meet you mate, and great to hear you got home OK.

Got a few pics of the might BT mate, will see if I can dig them out....

coled1970 · Oct 3, 2016

Smergen said:
Great to meet you mate, and great to hear you got home OK.

Got a few pics of the might BT mate, will see if I can dig them out....

Thanks greatly appreciated.

Dobbie · Oct 4, 2016

So....just catching with this major event and it seems you really had adventures.

To save me digging through innumerable threads, updates etc can I ask....

How many got there?

Who had access troubles? Floods etc

How much rain you had?

Who had fun getting out of there?

How much JD was consumed?

Etc

I know South Australia blacked out in sympathy for a couple of days but you chose the weather well.

Smergen · Oct 4, 2016

All worthy questions Dobbie... I'm about to head off on the annual Bathurst Pilgramage so my trip report and photo journey will be occurring next week.

But from all reports, all fingers and toes are accounted for.

Dobbie · Oct 4, 2016

I look forward to the details...or some of them at least.

Is it Bathurst time already? Enjoy!

I'm really out of the loop....and, as usual, lazy.

achjimmy · Oct 4, 2016

coled1970 said:
Hi All,

Just wanted to say thanks to all at the meet up, had a great time meeting the everyone i hadn't met and was good catching up with Chartrock again after 2 years. It was a long slog on my own getting there and back home but it was worth every bit of heartache and huge amounts of fuel (all sorted now) to get there. Being on my own its hard to know what to expect but everyone was warm and welcoming which made my time there so much easier. My trip home was fairly good with skippy playing chicken with the car in front of me just before Broken Hill but all good and about 4k's of flooded road just out of Warren. Van got wet in the foot well so will look into that. The truck has been cleaned and ready to hopefully head of Wednesday for a couple of nights somewhere. Thanks again to everyone for a great time and can't wait for the next one.
By the way if anyone got some pic's of the new truck in action could you pm me as i would like to get a copy of them if possible.

Cheers Colin.

Hey Colin what day do you go into a Broken hill? Did you stop near olary ? I might have saw you pass us while fueling up at Yunta then again stopping for lunch?

DRW · Oct 4, 2016

Hi @coled1970 we missed the trip this time unfortunately but will be there with bells on for the next one, did you take the drone? if so would love to see some pics, cheers

coled1970 · Oct 4, 2016

DRW said:
Hi @coled1970 we missed the trip this time unfortunately but will be there with bells on for the next one, did you take the drone? if so would love to see some pics, cheers

Yeh i did but not able to use in National Park and being on my own didn't get to try the follow me option on the new drone. have to get some more practice then give it a go. Sorry was hoping to get heas of footage but just never happened.

coled1970 · Oct 4, 2016

achjimmy said:
Hey Colin what day do you go into a Broken hill? Did you stop near olary ? I might have saw you pass us while fueling up at Yunta then again stopping for lunch?

Passed through those towns on Tuesday the 27th and stopped at Broken Hill O/Night. Don't think i stopped but may have, had a couple of quick driver/reviver stops. Was a big slog driving to the hill from Wilpena Pound.

achjimmy · Oct 4, 2016

coled1970 said:
Passed through those towns on Tuesday the 27th and stopped at Broken Hill O/Night. Don't think i stopped but may have, had a couple of quick driver/reviver stops. Was a big slog driving to the hill from Wilpena Pound.

Ah no worries it was Wednesday must have been another SC 16'

mrsmfexpanda · Oct 5, 2016

For @Dobbie and others interested
Attendees at wilpena were

@expanda and kids
@Tone , @Smergen , @davemc , @17triton, @Andre307 all with wife and kids
@chartrock and elaine
@coled1970 ,
@Eeram55 , and dominic
@mfexpanda with heather and no kids whoohoo

all of had arrived to Wilpena by the Sunday with a great lunch at The Prarie hotel in Parachilna and a return drive through the georges.

The next day was Skytrek we had 7 cars in total lasting about 8 hours what a fantastic drive with @Tone doing aerial shots with the drone
Tuesday some people had already left and @mfexpanda and I went for a bike ride then joined and @davemc for a drive on the morlana scenic loop road to Hawker and back to camp
whilst @Tone and family went for a hike around the area
By wednesday it was a pleasant morning until 10Am went park management told us to bring in the awning as the storm had already hit Cooper Pedy @davemc and us decided to manoevre the vans away from large trees then the rain set in and cabin fever for 2 days
thursday was the twins of @davemc 5th birthday celebrated in their van with madeira cake not quite the party they planned
by Friday we were the last to leave with @davemc and over watching dvds
travelling through flooded waters of SA did 700+km to Barmera great free camp $5 on the oval
To mildura to watch the footy Go Bulldogs yeah

It was great to meet new faces and the old familar ones,
it was a shame the caravan park was not up to scratch the toilets were dirty lack of toilet paper, no night lighting to the toilets and a fair way from the campsites.

It was lovely to have the wildlife of kangaroos and emus in between the vans

The footpaths to the toilets were potholed and full of water and no camp kitchen although it is in a lovely location a little capital injection of funds would greatly improve the area when compared to Rawnsley.

A camp kitchen would have been wonderful on the wet days and been a great communal area for a get together although we did have a fantastic fire behind @Smergen caravan on the sunday night were we celebrated @chartrock birthday with cake
most of the photos have already been posted above of the flooding

mrsmfexpanda · Oct 5, 2016

For some reason having problems posting pic of attendees maybe some one else could do it

crackacoldie · Oct 5, 2016

Great report @mrsmfexpanda

Billrw136 · Oct 5, 2016

So sorry we had to pull out of this get together - next time!

chartrock · Oct 5, 2016

mrsmfexpanda said:
For some reason having problems posting pic of attendees maybe some one else could do it

Here are a couple of pics of the crew.

Dobbie · Oct 5, 2016

Thanks for that report.
I was out of the country so couldn't quite get the bigger picture...

You managed to get mouldy but if alls well and you enjoyed it then there are some good stories to be told.

It seems you all managed to get home...or out of there....ok.

:clap2:

:hail:

17triton · Oct 5, 2016

Here is a bit of what we did and some pics off the phone. We left Ballarat and got to Kapunda for our first night then on Saturday morning stopped at Burra for a quick look around and a coffee.