Upper Yarra Reservoir Park :: Group Camping

Bec and I have been trying to arrange for our families to go camping together since the end of last year. Finally opportunity arose and we managed to procure a date. A place was decided – Upper Yarra Reservoir Park. We invited other families too.

As the date approached, our thoughts were consumed by the weather forecast. It was looking pretty bleak…thunderstorm. Historically in November, the weather in Melbourne is tremendously erratic. The contrast in temperature from day to day is vast. Warm and hot sunny days intertwine with cold and showery days in rapid succession. There are also many storms, gales and rain. 

The thought of abandoning the camping idea did cross my mind. I don’t think it would be wise to be holding onto a tent pole with lightning flashing around me. Moreover, how do we set up the tents when it is raining? I trawled through many Youtube videos. Apparently our tents can be set up in the rain and remain dry. Currently I feel that theory is easier than practice. I guess I will have to put them and myself to the test when the time comes.

I started putting aside items earlier in the week with my checklist. The rolling of the tents, sleeping bags and sleeping mats was completed by Tuesday. Despite being quite organised, I still managed to forget some things.

The night before camping day, there was a thunderstorm...thunder and lightning. It was a short dramatic affair. We watched the dazzling show from our bedroom window. We sent a message to Bec to ensure her and her family were ok as they were going to start camping that evening. The storm settled by the time they arrived and they set up ok.

The next day, it took us two hours to drive to the destination as the roads were inundated with traffic. Packing the car was much easier this time around as we decided not to bring our bicycles.

Upon arrival, two other families, Bec's and Rachel's, have already set up. Laura's family arrived as soon as we started on our second tent. The children immediately immersed themselves in the serious business of play under an oak tree. It was wonderful to see how innovative they were with a piece of rope. 

Erecting the tents was a hot affair. I could have sold my soul for a guzzle of cold beer that day. The task didn’t take as long as the first time. It was a good achievement on our behalf.

As our car was fully packed, we didn’t manage to fit firewood in it. However, upon our arrival, I saw that the ranger had some for sale at the front of his accommodation. At AUD10 a bag, we bought two. It was based on an honest system – although there was a sign with “CCTV in operation”.

After settling in, some of us ambered through the shady eucalyptus and tall fern forest along the timber planks covered with chicken wire. Some of the children ran ahead while the adults and other children followed. We were told that we went past a snake. I was totally oblivious!

A refreshing dip in the shallow cold water of the river was gratifying. The water was clear. We had shiatsu treatment from walking on the river stones. The children had a great time. Some were swinging off trees like Tarzan. Some were pretending to be fishing. Some were dragging a net around, pretending to be yabbying. This reminded me the time when my siblings and I caught yabbies in River Torrens in Adelaide near our house. We used chicken bones as bait.

Upon our return from our dipping, the camp fire was lit. The kids were naturally drawn to it. It was prodded by many sticks!

As we were going to camp only for one night, I didn’t want to fuss with dinner. I cooked chicken bolognese with carrots on Wednesday. I froze this that evening. Then I placed it in the fridge on Friday night.  By Saturday afternoon, the sauce was still be partly defrosted and not too frozen to be heated easily in a pot. I only had to cook the pasta that evening.

The other families were more adventurous and took full advantage of the fire pit. They cooked their dinner over it. It was a serious spread of deliciousness of satays, ćevapčići, corns, rice, potatoes, and salads.

A flock of Australian king parrots visited our communal area and delighted the children. The children found some spilt pine nuts and indulged the parrots with them. That required some patience to gather these nuts off the ground.

At the first rumble of thunder, we exchanged worried looks. If the weather was a repeat of the previous night, a spectacular thunderstorm was expected. The rain clouds were swirling black ominous silk organza. The smell of rain was on the tip of my nose. Ronn checked the radar and reckoned that it either have passed or would come and then disappear again. In anticipation of an impending thunderstorm, we ate as quickly as we could.

After dinner, I prepared some banana chocolate in aluminium foil and baked them in the fire. As soon as I took some out for the children, the heavens opened! The children ran to find shelter to finish their treats. The adults rescued the things that would be damaged by the rain such as closing off the tents, and keeping the firewood dry. 

The camping party scattered in an orderly manner. The children were all accounted for by their own parents. Some retreated to their tents. One family sheltered in their tents and then car and drove to the mess hall. We took cover in car. We watched a stink bug swimming up our windscreen. The lightning show was incredible. The humidity fogged up the windscreen.

When the thunderstorm passed, we rescued the rest of the baked chocolate bananas and drove to the mess hall. In mess hall, the card game, Coup. held the children’s attention. Every now and then, the lights would turn off and Ronn would reach over to press the timer switch.

We made Oreo s’mores. Some of the children had five or more marshmallows on their skewers. Some insisted burnt marshmallows were delicious. I suppose everything does taste better over the camp fire! Ella Mae burnt her hand on the fire pit. I think it was not too bad as she had forgotten where she burnt it when Bec asked her to show it to her.

After putting the children to bed, Kim and I sat by the fire and watched the stars and the moon crescent. The clouds came and played peekaboo with the moon. The stars sparkled like jewels within our reach. It drizzled a little as we drank our wine. After putting the fire out with a billycan of water, we went to bed.

All night I was listening to my surroundings. There were unrecognisable squeals, chuckles and chatters. An owl hooted. In the distance, there was a continuous deep rumble. I watched Thomas as he slept. He kept sliding down the tent all night and I would carry him up onto his mat again. And this repeated all night. Kim reported that Ella Mae did the same ritual as Thomas.

By the morning, our tent floors were slightly damp. Perhaps we needed to set them on flatter ground. Also, the middle of our tents was sagging a little. Perhaps we needed to pull the fly further away to increase the triangulation as well as increase the tension. I think we need to speak to someone from Kathmandu either via email or in person.

We surveyed the camp and it didn’t appear too apocalyptic. Items were wet and blown over, but nothing too dramatic. The worst damage was probably Bec’s pepper container. It somehow made its way to their tent and was trodden on. The pepper spread all over their tent floor.

For breakfast we toasted bread over the fire. Our eggs were boiled to perfection but we burnt the bacon onto the pot. Eating breakfast was tricky as the flies were abundant. At one point, I had to pick and flick off a fly that was stuck onto my butter toast. Bec and Kim compared their coffee maker, Aerobie Aeropress coffee maker and GSI Outdoor stainless steel mini expresso maker and their favourite blend of coffee.

After breakfast, Ronn conjured up a swing. The kids were chuffed. This swing was a source of entertainment for hours. The children were also tending the fire. Thomas unfortunately burnt his thumb on one of the sticks that was in the pit that was fished out by one of kids. Bec prescribed 20 minutes with the burnt finger under running water but it was adhered to as well as he could.

The incessant drizzle forced us to pack the tents while they were still wet. We decided to pack the wet fly, inner tent and footprint into IKEA Frakta bags. These we could dry upon our return. 

I think there was a sense of camaraderie amongst the adults. In an unspoken code we took turns to play with the children while the other family packed their camping gear. The children were playing well together. The swing became some sort of trap and the children ran around the tree and past the person on the swing who tries to catch them with their feet. Kim was the time keeper so each child take turns to become the catcher. Then, different combination of children would play together as the dynamics changed. However, at the end they needed time apart as they were a little tired.

After everyone has packed up, a group went for a small walk. Another group went to the mess hall. The children were feeding the king parrots. Ella Mae had an audience with one. First it flew onto her lap and sat on it like a miniature poodle. Then, another (perhaps the same friendly one) flew onto her arm and ate from her hand. Its sharp claws grabbed her arm but she was very calm and stayed still as the pleasure of having a wild bird on her arm was overpowering the pain. The birds must really like the banana bread that Ella Mae and I baked. This was baked on Thursday. The birds also liked the banana pancakes that Bec made fresh on the electric barbeque.

After being swamped by the flock of parrots at the mess hall, we were swamped by  gazillion of flies at the dam lookout. The water level looked surprisingly low. This dam feeds the Silvan Reservoir which ultimately plumb water to our house in Surrey Hills.

The sun slowly uncloaked herself as we slowly made our way down the mountains and forests. The kids slept in the car instantly and filled the car with their deep satisfying snores.

We were blessed with the continued sunshine when we arrived home. The tents and footprints dried on the line in no time. We also cleaned and dried the camping furniture on the driveway. The sleeping bags were unpacked and were hung on the hangers. The sleeping mats were unrolled and inflated. They have served us well in this November thunderstorm and will be getting a well-deserved rest before our next adventure.

Review of the campsite

I would come back here again to camp as it was quite easy to get to.

Below are my notes about our experience at the campsite:

• Many areas to picnic and camp
• Toilets with plentiful of toilet paper
• Accessible toilet
• No shower
•  Zip hot water boiler is broken
•  Hot water in the tap in the mess hall available partly in the morning
• There was a kettle in the mess hall on Saturday but by Sunday afternoon, it was gone.
• Ice available for purchase in the mess hall
• Many fire pits
• Continuous low rumble in the evening as we slept
• Pot holes on the roads but these were circled with yellow paint
•  Lots of flies (in the warmer months)
• Clear river water
• Drinkable tap water
•  Large mess hall with lots of tables and benches for rainy days
• Free electric barbeques
•  Mobile reception (Telstra only)
• Friendly Australian king parrots
• Walking trails
• Resident ranger
• Firewood available for purchase at the ranger’s accommodation