Trip Report - Otways Oasis ....

As new members and also younger members, we hope you like our trip report. The Otways trip was planned for the Easter holiday. Most of the guys went down to Naracoorte Thursday night, but a few of us had to work, like me and Lee, so we went down on the Friday morning. Watching the sun come up and chatting to Lee on the CB, I knew it’s going to be a good trip!

Arriving in Naracoorte at 9.00am & having breakfast with the others, Bill and Carol told us about the day’s events. Driving into Victoria we were led on a wonderful meander through lovely towns & forests with small amounts of commentary from Carol on the history of towns and landmarks.

At the Otways we found our camping site in the most beautiful setting - a rolling green meadow with huge gum trees & ferns on each side & small stream from which you could hear the sound of trickling water. Camp sites were set up and a camp fire started and a roaring happy hour began. After tea and after a few drinks and much chatting, our new guest, Bill, Landcruiser Bill, talented Bill, got his guitar out and blew us away with the most awesome country songs. When our applause stopped you could still hear the other sites clapping across & below ours. Everyone was in awe!

"Up early & out 4WDing" is Bill’s & Carol’s motto. Meandering through the rainforest up and down small tracks, we stopped for a rain forest walk ha! ha! more a clamber and climb and a dip for some. It was heaps funny watching everyone sliding down a small creek, no wonder that was our last walk.

Driving down to the coast along hill tops with the best views, we stopped at Joanna’s Beach for lunch. In the afternoon and after the best day of rain forest mud we came across the first challenge - a mud hill road not too steep but quite long and very slippery! Bruce and Rick found the going tough with road tyres and low slung 4WDs, but nothing a snatch strap won’t fix.

Day 3 Easter Sunday we woke to kids laughing, fire crackling and the smell of bacon and eggs. Frosty grass, blue sky, awesome day ahead. Nice drive through more beautiful rain forest and then a lunch stop. Bill lets us know we are off again. Down a track that seems to be OK, then we came across a huge mud section with deep tyre tracks. Everyone made it apart from Ric and Bruce. We waited for Bruce to wash his hands, and as he hopped back into the car we hear him over the CB saying that the steering wheel, gear knob and CB are covered in mud!!

Then Lee was told to go ahead while Bill made sure everyone got through OK. Our hero!! Lee now led the group, showing us his flare for picking the worst way over and tackling the tricky sections in the track. All you hear from Lee to Bruce who was first behind Lee is "Don’t do what I did"!! or, another time, "That’s not how you do that and don’t go where I did!!!" Very funny until Lee said over the CB, "Bill you’d better look at this one". "Oh no!" I am thinking, but after much talking we decide to tackle a washout in the clayey track the safest way we could. Drop the front in and pull it through the hole - easy! - yeah right!! All was going good until Terry and Gill’s car and then it all went wrong.

After much working by the others and our hero they got Terry out with no less then 3 cars pulling & the only carnage was a missing mud flap! We came, we saw, we conquered!! Also noted that Tony drove his car through without any assistance. On with the rest of the track and no further holes. Back on the road and starting to get dark - that’s when Paul said "My alternator light has come on and then mine, so we stopped. Then Terry drives past and he has a flat tyre." It’s now dark and foggy and way past happy hour!!

We all get back to camp and head straight off again to the local swimming pool for which Carol and Bill have the key. We all have a much earned relaxing swim and hot shower!! We have nibbles and a drink or two then head back for a sit around the fire and a chat and some more drinks and lots of laughs over the day’s events.

Before we know it’s morning, time for me & Kerry to leave as we have to work on Tuesday. We say goodbye to everyone & we head off, leaving our Otways Oasis under still perfect blue sky. It was a fantastic trip!

A big thank you to our hosts BILL and CAROL!

Written by Greg Hubbard.

It was the best trip Cindy and I have gone on so far. Winched out once and snatched twice says it all. Guitar playing and singing, The Glow-worms tour and Saturday night swimming were an added bonus to the extreme 4wding.

Rick



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