past events

13th national meet at Peak Hill 2017

 

 

 
 
 
 

Australian CamperTrailers Group
2017 national get together
at Peak Hill NSW

 

Monday 25th September to Friday 29th September 2017 saw the return to Peak Hill for the group’s 13th Annual National Meet. With 74 Campers expected to arrive over the next couple of days the Yellow Gazebo was set up and the Rego team of Margaret & Barry Pierce (Grannyshortlegs), Sue Christie-Cox along with Jason and Kevin were ready for business. Friday saw the first of the campers roll in and a slow but steady stream arrived throughout the day. Day’s end saw around 30 campers registered and in various stages of set up. A “starter pack” of firewood was dropped off by one of the hard-working team from town, the first night of fires began and the first of tall tales and true were spun.

Saturday dawned, and it wasn’t long before the first of the main contingent of campers started arriving. The Rego team was kept busy on a hot and windy day and even though the Showground was filling up there were still spots available for those who may have had a minor technical issue with power the day before and decided a relocation to a new spot away from the scene of embarrassment was in order.

Day 3 Sunday and the Showground had filled impressively. A few campers were still to arrive and those wanting raffle tickets and to pay for the various tours organised kept the Rego Team busy. 7 pm rolled around, the Pavilion filled, and Kevin and Jason officially opened the meet with the Grand Opening. Kevin giving a welcome and history of the group and Jason running through the weeks programme. The Deputy Mayor of Parkes Shire, Councillor Barbara Newton, welcomed us all to the region and thanked us all for coming, along with wishes for a successful and enjoyable time in Peak Hill. We for then were treated to a welcome from a local Elder and a young lad playing the Digeridoo. Following this David and Joy Wilkinson’s ever popular “Getting to Know You” session was held, with all the National Meet first timers introducing themselves to the old timers. The night was still rather chilly so returning to firesides was very welcome, with the tradition of building new friendships and rekindling old ones.

Monday saw even more campers arrive, including the next generation of campers with Jess Cox being one of the campers to arrive with her twin daughters Ivy & Mia. They may have even stolen the title for youngest campers to attend a National Meet, being only just 9 months old!

A later 9.30 am start on Monday morning was welcomed and the Pavilion Kitchen filled with friendly chat from the Ladies’ Cuppa and Chat. Thank you to Donna Zwerus for hosting the morning.

Dave and Jan Cook’s Camper Walkabout again attracted a group of those interested in hearing the good, not so good and interesting bits about some of the many different campers we have attending the Annual Meet. This is a wonderful opportunity for those thinking of changing campers or for just seeing how others set up and the solutions that may have been found to common problems.

3 o’clock and Jenny Peisley and Donna Zwerus had an interested group gathered to learn about Dreampot Cooking with Curried Sausages on the menu. This is always a popular learning opportunity and a big thank you to Jenny for making the trip in from Dubbo.

One of the highlights of the Meet is the Annual Auction and this year was no different. The Pavilion was packed, and a vast array of items were donated by members ranging from folding fire pits to handcrafted knitted items and what was to be the favourite item of the night, 2 dozen scones with jam and cream donated by Leyton Davies & his wife. Sean McCombe was the lucky (or keenest bidder) winning the tray and sharing all but 3 scones with others. Many thanks to all those who generously donated items for the auction which raised $2,417. The proceeds were donated to the Peak Hill Pony Club ($2,000) and the Peak Hill Tennis Club ($417Once again, the chilly night saw firesides as the place to be.

A Guided Tour of Peak Hill Gold Mine was first activity on offer on Tuesday morning, lead by the very knowledgeable local John Van Der Reyden. Those who took part in this returned with new found knowledge on the history of gold in Peak Hill.

11am and the Pavilion Kitchen was the venue for an Information session on Installing Nutserts and Drawer Slides presented by Terry Hunstone from Ovesco. For those who don’t know what a Nutsert is, it is a female thread (nut) used in thin sheet metal or areas with no access behind the sheet. It is like a blind rivet and has at one end either a flange or a small countersunk/rimless flange, and a portion of plain barrel. Terry followed up at 3pm and gave a very informative presentation on installing Gas Struts. Again those who attended came away much the wiser.

It wouldn’t be a Tuesday night at a National Meet if the Trivia Night wasn’t on. Jan Cook with help from David & Joy and David Wilkinson works hard during the year gathering questions and putting on such a well organised and fun evening. Many tables were decorated, and the Kid’s table went to great effort. The popularity of the night even had Sherri driving all the way to Peak Hill from Sydney especially for the Trivia Night! $280 was raised from Gold Coin donations gathered at the door & this money was donated to the Peak Hill Tourist & Business Association at the closing ceremony.

Wednesday is Community Day and we weren’t disappointed with the great brekky cooked up by Peak Hill Junior Rugby League Club. Followed up at 11.00am by John Van Der Reyden taking a group on a Historical walking tour around town. John yet again proved to be extremely knowledgeable on all things Peak Hill.

Wednesday afternoon took a slightly sporty flavour with the Nyngan Cup Hardys -v- Softys being the sporting event that the Nation stops for (ok it might have only been 10 people, but the potential was there) and Barefoot Bowls being hotly contested in town.

The annual Nyngan Cup boules tournament was held at Peak Hill this year in hot, muggy conditions. Teams hotly contested the right to represent the "Hardies" or the "Softies". After preliminary rounds, Anita Beer and Joanne Roche won the "Softies" banner. Joanne was 2016 champion with her better half who was a late scratching this time around. The "Hardies" were represented by Dave and Jan Cook. A closely fought contest resulted in a 11 - 10 victory to Dave and Jan. Congratulations to the "Hardies". The Hardy’s v Softys trophy (kindly hand crafted by George Mavros) now sits proudly in the corner of Dave and Jan’s Loungeroom

A big Thank you to Ted and Pat Barker for showing some inexperienced players the ropes with the lawn bowls – a great effort to step up by 2 first timers at any Campertrailer meet, let alone a National Meet.

Kevin Phillips started Thursday morning off with an informative talk on Tow Weights. This is an often-overlooked part of preparation but so very important. Kevin stepped through all the various scenarios, weights, and definitions in an easy-to-understand way and discussed options for weight reduction and distribution. Towing safely as well as legally was the take home message.

After lunch it was off to Trevor Johnson’s camper for a new workshop added this year, Chainsaw Maintenance. This proved to be a very popular workshop with Trevor speaking and demonstrating all about general maintenance such as sharpening the blade, cleaning and oiling, and of course most importantly using your chainsaw safely.

Next off that afternoon was at 3 pm and it was Jill’s turn for her what has become an annual event, Cobb Cooking. Again, Jill demonstrated the techniques of using a Cobb Cooker & highlighted some do’s and don’ts before preparing the Skinner Clans evening meal.

The ever-energetic John Van Der Reyden led a Sunset Tour of Peak Hill Gold Mine, presenting those who took part some wonderful photo opportunities. As the sunset and darkness fell it was off to John Kleidon’s camper for the LED Lightstorm Lighting Show. John has developed an impressive range of lights and there was a very interested group assembled and John was only too happy to answer questions and explain about the lights.

Before we knew it, the week had passed, and Friday morning dawned. The day started off with the Caravan Walkabout lead by Kevin Phillips. This was well attended and gave those who took part an opportunity to get the lowdown on assorted styles and kinds of caravans. There was a wide variety to look at and there just may have been more vans than camper trailers at this year’s meet. Les Scott gave a very interesting talk on the Use and Abuse of Stainless Steel, in the Pavilion Kitchen with those who attended coming away more the wiser on this topic.

4pm saw the migration of campers to the Grandstand area for the Closing Event. We were treated to a wonderful display from the local Aboriginal Dance Group. It was great to see young locals who had embraced their culture and danced and played the Digeridoo with great enthusiasm.

Kevin and Jason presented Certificated of Appreciation to those who had contributed to the success of the week by running workshops, or those from the town who were involved and assisted. The Raffle, which raised $410, was drawn and the prizes awarded. Monies raised during the week were then presented to representatives from the Peak Hill Pony Club, Peak Hill Business & Tourist Association, and the Peak Hill Tennis Club.

The Spirit of the Group was awarded to Sean McCombe. Sean had been nominated by a few members for his enthusiasm & generosity during the Auction nights, his willingness to lend a hand if needed & his general nice guy demeanour. The Peak Hill Silly Billy award went to Craig Quinn for his adventures or misadventures with power supplies.

As the Ashes urn was not at the meet, ashes were collected in another Aussie icon, a Vegemite jar and will be added next year. Kevin announced that next year’s meet would be held in Bungendore NSW and declared another year over and the meet closed.

Sue, Jason & Kevin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

MONDAY

 

TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
 

Morning

     

8:00 Pavilion Kitchen
cooked breakfast  
Peak Hill Junior Rugby League Club

 

 

 

 
 

9:30 Pavilion Kitchen
ladies cuppa & chat

 

 

9:00 Gold Mine
guided mine tour
Jon Van Der Reyden
 

 

 

 

 

 

9:30 Pavilion Kitchen
tow weights

Kevin Phillips

 

9:30 Kevin & Karen's Van 
caravan walkabout
Kevin Phillips

 

11:00 Dave & Jan's Camper
camper walkabout
Dave Cook

 

 

11:00 Pavilion kitchen
installing nut serts

& draw sliders info
Terry Hunstone from Ovesco

 

 

11:00 Lindner Building
town history tour walk

Jon Van Der Reyden
 

 

11:00 Grandstand
travelling with dogs
Jim and Joanne Roche

 

11:00 Pavilion kitchen
 use and abuse of stainless steel
Les Scott

         
 

Afternoon

 

 

 

 

 

1:00 Grandstand
Nyngan Cup

hardy's Vs softy's 
bolle competition

Greg Carthew

 

 

1:00 Trevor & Deb's camper
chainsaw maintenance

Trevor Johnson

 

 

 

3:00 Ed & Donna's Camper
dreampot cooking
Donna Zwerus & Jenny Peisley

 

3:00 Pavilion kitchen
installing gas struts
Terry Hunstone from Ovesco

 

 

3:00 Bowling Club
barefoot lawn bowls

 

3:00 Gus & Jill's Camper
cobb cooking
Jill Skinner

 

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

4:00 Grandstand
closing event
Rob, Kevin & Jason

 

       

5:00 Gold Mine
sunset guided mine tour
Jon Van Der Reyden
 

 

 
         
Evening  

7:00 Pavilion
auction night
proceeds to
Peak Hill Pony Club

 

 

7:00 Pavilion
trivia night
Dave & Jan Cook
Dave & Joy Wilkinson

gold coin entry
proceeds to Peak Hill Business & Tourist Association

 

   

7:00 John & Wendy's camper
LED Lightstorm lighting
show
John Kleidon

 

 

the week
photos
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