Farewell to Summer

One of the things I love about living in North East Victoria is that we have 4 distinct seasons. Come the third week in March and just after the equinox its like someone hits a switch and the new season is upon us.

But there are other clues to seasonal change. At Baranduda the robins return from their summer sojourn - one of my favorite sights on a short easy walk at Baranduda is a family of scarlet robins playing leap frog along the fence line as I stroll along trying to capture a photo. This photo is by Neville Bartlett of Baranduda

Last Week of Daylight Savings

Wednesday March 28 - an easy after work evening walk on new trails recently created by Parklands Albury Wodonga and the GreenCorps team - leader is Peter Presutti - this event will be followed by a bbq at the Marsh's place (byo everything).

Thursday March 29 - relax with the final evening after work paddle and bbq - if you havent joined us for this incredibly popular activity yet this is your last chance until October 2012

Sat March 31  Make a day of it with an easy bike ride in the morning led by Kay and the best part of stage 2 of the Hume and Hovell track in the afternoon with Hans

Sunday April 1 Join Tony and the Friends of Chiltern Mt Pilot NP at Chiltern Valley Dam No 2 to help repair a walking track around this wonderful birding location.

Easter Eggs and Beyond

Birdwatching Short Walks

Commencing on Wed April 4th I will be running regular easy short walks and birdwatching in the various WREN (Wodonga Retained Environment Network) reserves on Wed afternoons 2pm to 3-30pm - check the WRENS reserve program here

Easter 2012

Im offering a chance to do an easy overnight walk in the Chiltern Mt Pilot NP on Good Friday and Easter Saturday - you could join me for all or part of both days.

Abseiling is back!

Neil has returned from his holiday in Reunion - an island off the coast of Madagascar and has scheduled more abseiling events - check the abseiling program here

Public Meeting May 11

We are organising a membership drive and public meeting with a guest speaker from Parklands Albury Wodonga on Friday May 11

How To Book in for an Event

As always you can use the booking enquiry link on the right of event details pages or contact leaders by any of the ways listed in the event details if you wish to join an event. 

Having trouble with the Booking Enquiry form? - if you cant see or get to the Submit button try this  - hold the Control key down and tap the Minus key a couple of times. You should then see the button.

Regards

Tony Marsh

Secretary Murray Valley Bushwalkers Inc

Autumn At Its Best

Welcome to new members - Jan and Jaime Schmidt - their first activity with the club was the evening walk and farewell to daylight savings bbq at Baranduda on March 28.

 And welcome to the colourful season - did you know there are some wonderful examples of australian native trees that rival the exotics for the colours that we get so excited about at this time of the year?

A Deciduous Beech tree in the Central Highlands of Tasmania (Source: Rob Blakers) - apparently Anzac day is the time to put on the boots and go walking to find the beech trees in autumn splendour - what could be more patriotic than that? you can read more about this unique Tasmanian plant thats a remant of our supercontinent past here

By the way did you know you can follow us on Facebook - thanks to Peter and Neil for getting this happening.

A number of club members participated in the inaugural Parklands Albury Wodonga (PAW) charity run/walk on March 25th which gave us access to tracks along the Kiewa and Murray Rivers and parts of the Wodonga creek not normally available to the public. Congratulations to PAW on another ground breaking achievment for outdoor recreation in our area.

When I reflect on the summer achievements of our club three things really stand out

1. Canoeing - an amazing 20 events were held and more than 220 instances of persons paddling which represents more than 2,000 river kilometres - in our first year of operation this is an extraordinary outcome. It would not have been possible without the fantastic support of Dave Breedon and Murray River Canoe Hire - our club's roots are now firmly implanted in the river.

2. Weekend and evening walks - these activities will always be the bread and butter stuff of our club - thanks to Hans for the enormous effort he has put in to ensure that nearly every weekend had a walk on offer

3. Abseiling - we are thrilled that Neil Brown was able to work through the issues associated with this activity and deliver a safe and diverse program in local areas that we believe will grow stronger this year - the next event is abseiling for beginners at the Albury quarry on sunday April 29 and intermediate abseiling on saturday may 12 - full details of abseiling events are available on the MVB Abseilers page

Kay organised the first club cycling event on March 31st - this was a delightful ride from Noreuil Park out to Thurgoona for breakfast at the Kinross and return.

In the afternoon of the same day Hans led a walk on the first half of stage 2 of the Hume and Hovell track which is a really interesting walk.

Easter Tony organised a two day overnight walk in the Chiltern Mt Pilot National Park which 6 club members participated in.

Whats On

There is an ongoing program of Wed afternoon bird observing and easy walking activities in the Wodonga Retained Environment Network - we have now visited 4 WREN reserves - management plans for these areas are currently being prepared by Glenda Datson of Baranduda Landcare. This is a great opportunity to learn about the birdlife of north east victoria. Check out the bird watching program here

Iris Joss is leading a Mt Feathertop walk this Sunday April 22nd

A short walk (about 4km) and guided tour of the Bonegilla Block 19 migrant facility on Saturday April 28

Neil Brown is offering another abseiling for beginners event on Sunday April 29

Geocaching - we have established a geocaching group in the club called Team MVB with its own email list and a premium account that allows us to download and explore this fun activity.

Public Meeting May 11

We are organising a membership drive and public meeting with a keynote speaker from Parklands Albury Wodonga on Friday May 11 to be held at the Thurgoona Community Centre hall - full details here

Club Development

Wodonga council is offering a series of 3 club development workshops held on weekday evenings in April, May and June. Peter will be attending the first on financial management Monday April 23 Neil will be at the second on digital and social media We are looking for a third person to represent the club on Wed June 6th which will be looking at ways to boost membership. Alll are from 6pm to 8-30pm at the council offices Hovell St Wodonga with light refreshments and snacks provided.

How To Book in for an Event

As always you can use the booking enquiry link on the right of event details pages or contact leaders by any of the ways listed in the event details if you wish to join an event. 

Having trouble with the Booking Enquiry form? - if you cant see or get to the Submit button try this  - hold the Control key down and tap the Minus key a couple of times. You should then see the button.

Regards

Tony Marsh

Secretary Murray Valley Bushwalkers Inc

Hello Murray Valley Bushwalkers members

This message is to let you know that we are going to kick off an after work canoeing program next Tuesday night October 11. If you have ever had the desire to have a soothing, leisurely paddle on the Murray river after work this is a great opportunity. Previous paddling experience is desirable but not essential. We can teach you what you need to know. The cost will be $10 and there will be a byo bbq after the event. For further details you can view this event on the club website.

Please contact Tony by any of the ways listed in the event details if you wish to join us.

regards

Tony Marsh