The Den at Cave Hill Creek, of course!

Tucked away, across the oval behind the Lakeview Lodge there’s a building that has a long history across generations with Beaufort and nearby communities.

Here at Cave Hill Creek, we’ve seen so many people and groups come through our gates, sharing lasting memories and experiencing the rich history of the place, and no part of Cave Hill Creek has more history than “The Den”.

So for this week’s instalment of our ’30 Stories For 30 Years’ series, let’s take a look at where the oldest building on our grounds began its life, it’s moves and uses, and a rivalry between brothers that got a little out of hand…

The building (affectionately) known as “The Den” began its life in 1914, as a new school house for the reopening of the Eurambeen State School (school no 1137). The nearby Eurambeen and Eurambeen East stations were substantial 19th-century squatter’s properties, owned by the famous Beggs Brothers. The brothers shared a (somewhat) healthy rivalry, each building opulent bluestone homesteads, expansive woolsheds, and not to be outdone by each other, schools to educate the children of farm workers.

A victim of the depression the Eurambeen State School closed in 1932, and ‘The Den’ was moved to Beaufort State School (School no. 60 – later the Beaufort Primary School). Here it was used as a Sloyd room for manual wood-working and trade-training, providing a haven for students from the monotony of rote-learning and regular schoolwork.

During its life as a faculty building in Beaufort, as noted in the Beaufort Historical record; The Den’ witnessed the change ‘from chalk to computers’. It later housed acorn computers and dot matrix printers (remember those?) as part of an early IT classroom. and even served as Tim Chandler’s (current custodian of Cave Hill Creek) grade 1 classroom. So you could say its been in the family for a while!

In 1994 the rural recession saw a downturn in school numbers and the Victorian Education Department put the building up for public tender. Tim’s parents, Julie and Ian Chandler purchased The Den and moved it to Cave Hill Creek.

Restoration and renovation (using hundreds of tubes of No More Gaps) was a summer holiday job for Tim. It has since served as an adaptive room to educate kids on school camps and summer camps, keeping its long-standing function as an educational building, and paying homage to the rich history that has seen many teachers and children pass through its doors.

Today ‘The Den’ has enough room to sleep 10 people and boasts a kitchenette and en suite bathroom. Full of history and character The Den’s lemon timber lining boards, high ceiling, 9-panel triple sash windows and spectacular mountain views serve as the perfect space for a bridal party preparing for their big day at Cave Hill Creek.

From the building’s beginning in 1914 as the Eurambeen State School, moving to Beaufort, and eventually ending up at Cave Hill Creek, ‘The Den’ is a building with such a rich history in our community, and we’re glad it is still being put to a good use – a use that maybe even the Beggs Brothers would be proud of!

For Next weeks installment of our ’30 Stories for 30 Years’ series, we’ll take a look at how Cave Hill Creek has become renowned as a great wedding destination, and delve into what makes this place such a unique location to marry your loved-one.

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Have you ever seen a Platypus in its natural habitat? Perhaps you’ve heard that Cave Hill Creek is one of the best spots in Australia to witness notoriously elusive animal?

Did you know // Less than 1% of Australians have witnessed a Platypus in the wild!

The Platypus is one of only 3 species belonging to the Monotreme group in the world (the other two being the short and the long-beaked Echidna!) Monotremes are extremely rare and are a bizarre leftover from island evolution- a unique combination of mammal and marsupial characteristics. They are peculiar in that they are the only species of mammal to produce eggs when birthing offspring!

Often mistaken for water rats, the Platypus is very shy, rarely appearing to be seen by onlookers. With some platypus populations hibernating during the southern winter months, the Platypus is not regularly seen through autumn and winter, however they tend to show themselves heading in to spring and summer, appearing on the surface of the water for 10-20 seconds at a time, before ducking down underneath the surface for 50 seconds to a minute making them very difficult to spot!

There’s even more to this weird and wonderful animal than meets the eye!

When first witnessed by early Victorian settlers and botanists, the Platypus was originally thought to be a hoax- a sort of animal Frankenstein!

It was initially thought that the Platypus must have been stitched together as some sort of joke! Early settlers believed this as the platypus has the bill of a duck, the spurs of a Gamecock and the fur of an otter- it was thought that no such an animal could exist!

Unfortunately, due to drought and other human factors, the once strong population of platypus in the nearby Wimmera River has seen numbers drastically reduced in recent years. Now listed as a threatened species, a great way to help their conservation is to share your platypus sightings at www.platypusspot.org

But, here at Cave Hill Creek, we’ve been lucky enough that the lake has become somewhat famous for being one of the best places to see the Platypus in Australia!

Keep in mind that they are always difficult to spot. Dawn or dusk is generally the best times to see these beautiful and very unique Australian animals, and the best way to do that is with a group stay at Cave Hill Creek!

For next weeks ’30 Stories for 30 Years’ instalment, we dive back into the history of one of Cave Hill Creek’s most historical buildings, and investigate a brotherly rivalry that changed the face of the surrounding area!

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Cave Hill Creek has always been a place to inspire. The combination of our beautiful Australian bush setting, lake reflections, expansive mountain vistas, time in the outdoors, and friendly hospitality relaxes the mind and stimulates creativity. Over the years we have been lucky enough to host our share of creative groups and some truly talented guests. Some of them have repaid our hospitality in spades by sharing their artworks with us.

So we thought it a great idea to share them with you as this week’s instalment of our ‘30 stories for 30 Years’ series.

This first piece is a beautiful work by artist Tammy Jones from Ararat.
Tammy visited Cave Hill Creek with friends on a ‘Kreate with Kaszazz’ paper-craft weekend retreat. Painted in July 2017 on recycled timber pailings, Tammy was inspired by brilliant late autumn colours of the Liquidambars and Silver Birches.

Ronda Harms and her extended family holidayed at Cave Hill Creek returning over many years in summer, fishing, canoeing, swimming and relaxing. A limited edition print of her pastel, Ronda’s piece captures her family enjoying a summer’s day on the lake. The work has been a feature on our office wall since February 2004.

Careful attention to detail has been paid to the jetty and embankment areas by the lake, with the realistic and skilful depiction of the trees in the distance, this piece really captures what it feels like on a carefree afternoon at Cave Hill Creek with family and friends.

The final piece is a beautiful work by professional artist Kimberly Riddet. The oil on canvas was commissioned as a gift to Cave Hill Creek by our very good friends at ‘Camp Awakenings’. Camp Awakenings is a leading Australian youth development program for year 9 students with a strong focus on building support networks for the participants through friendship and trust. The painting is based on a photo taken in August 2015. Early wattle blossoms at that time of year appear on the right of the picture.

Kimberly’s work is reminiscent of federation-style representations of the Australian bush – conveying a shimmer of tranquility with the suggestion of a winter storm on the way.

For next week’s ‘30 Stories for 30 Years’ installment, keep an eye out for a truly unique Australian creature. Stay Tuned!

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In 2007, Ian (Cave Hill Creek founder and Tim’s dad) was the 283^rd ranked hot air balloon pilot in the world, and the 9^th ranked Aussie! The ranking has often provoked a healthy mixture of jest and pride at family gatherings.

But ballooning as a hobby for many years has been an important part of the Chandler family identity. And of course, that went hand in hand with Cave Hill Creek where it continues today. On 10-12 August we are again hosting Hot Air Balloons at Cave Hill Creek. In fact, it is the 26^th consecutive annual ballooning weekend. We suspect, at 26 years, it may even be Australia’s longest consecutively run balloon meet!

A spectacular sight from both the ground and the air, the balloons bring joy to the faces of young and old alike. Members of BAV (the Balloon Assoc of Victoria) love gathering here for a weekend of fun, frivolity and flying. Their colourful balloons take to the skies, often inflating at Cave Hill Creek and flying down the Raglan valley and beyond, weather permitting.

Weather not permitting it is also Australia’s best social balloon meet with inflated stories full of hot air blustering about the place over a big breakfast cook up!

Many Beaufort locals well remember a Saturday morning flight taking off from the old Beaufort PS oval heading south toward the recreation reserve. The Beaufort Crows were hosting a home game with the juniors kicking the frost off the oval in the early morning. Seizing the moment, one pilot dipped low, drifted through the goalposts and out across the oval shouting “Kick it to me!”

Other memorable flights include floating on the surface of the lake, and taking off and landing in the same paddock in Raglan after a big loop. From the sky, it is also fun to drift over the Mount Cole State Forest and chasing kangaroos and waving to unsuspecting campers rising from their slumber.

Although the meet is for private balloonists, the general public is very welcome to spectate from local roads. The balloons typically take off shortly after dawn to take advantage of cooler temperatures and more stable atmospheric conditions. Occasionally pilots sneak in a late afternoon flight before dusk too.

If there’s one take away from one of our countless flights from Cave Hill Creek, it’s that if you’ve haven’t been in a hot air balloon somewhere over our country’s beautiful landscape, you absolutely must.

Nothing can compare to the stillness of the morning, with the gentle wind and once you’re off the ground and when the burner isn’t roaring, the silence is surreal.

If you would like to join in and follow the balloons, we will post regular flight and weather updates via our Social media channels throughout the weekend. Bring your camera and share your shots with us at #cavehillcreek. And if you too catch the ballooning bug join us following the exploits of 4 talented and dedicated Aussies attempting their rise up the world rankings at the World Hot Air Balloon Championships in Poland later this month.

For next week’s instalment of our ’30 stories for 30 years’ series, we take a look at some of the beautiful art bestowed on us from some of our very talented guests over the years.

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Over the years at Cave Hill Creek, we’ve hosted many summer camps and school camps; thousands of children have come through our doors to enjoy the bush surrounds and to engage in interactive outdoor activities and to learn about the environment.

A few years back…

A boy named Luca arrived for Summer Camp at Cave Hill Creek. Luca was a shy kid, hesitant to join the others in many of the outdoor activities. His aversion to outdoor activities turned out to be self-consciousness as Luca didn’t know how to ride a bike. While all the other kids were going for long bike rides in the bush, to save himself from embarrassment, he declined all the invitations to join in on the outdoor activities out of fear of being found out-

Our Cave Hill Creek staff pride themselves in promoting only the most encouraging and supportive behaviour from campers- and Luca- instead of being met with ridicule from his peers, was instead encouraged to learn in a safe environment.

Initially, Luca stumbled- falling off the bike several times, but with encouragement from camp leaders and peers he kept trying and trying, and after a day or so he could ride with barely any support. From there, Luca took off; electing to go on bike rides every chance he got throughout the camp. His confidence grew the more he traversed the Cave Hill Creek bushland.

By the end of Summer Camp when Luca’s Mum & Dad came to pick him up, he had something to show them…

While other kids were greeting family and saying goodbye to new friends made, with a smile he asked Tim if he could borrow a bike. He grabbed a bike, beckoning his Mum & Dad to watch him as he proudly rode the bike around, showing them what he had learned during his summer camp at Cave Hill Creek! Such a gold summer camp moment!

For next week’s ’30 Stories for 30 Years’ edition, we will take a look at some of the beautiful gifts bestowed upon the owners of Cave Hill Creek and we will a look at some of the talented and o! so beautiful artists too! Watch this space!

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In 1986, Tim’s parents, Ian and Julie Chandler, were looking for a change.

Ian, a farmer, and Julie a school teacher- were both creative, visionary people who loved the outdoors and were keen to try a new adventure of their own.

The seed of an idea to build school camp was planted, and the perfect location soon came along with it. Back then the block of land at the base of Mt Cole was an untouched sheep paddock with a lot of potential, a blank canvas. There was no lake, no buildings, and just a handful of mature trees. Ian and Julie approached the owners to purchase the land and had their offer accepted.

Ian and Julie had amazing vision and they set to work, often persisting when faced with challenges and resistance, to design and build a stunning location where many happy memories could be created, both for them and their families, and for every person who visited Cave Hill Creek.

Julie’s networks as a school teacher slowly helped to build a starting client base from the education industry and her practical skills helped her to develop exemplary hospitality processes. Ian’s practical skills, hard work, project management, and foresight were the driving force behind the beautiful venue that we have today. Tim (at 10), his sister Kate, and brother Pete were also much involved in the project, helping on the building site with all manner of jobs.

In May 1988, nearly two years after the land was purchased, the lake had been built, and a dining hall and on-site accommodation had been completed. Cave Hill Creek opened with 66 beds and started the exciting business of hosting school camps – teaching kids about the environment and encouraging them to enjoy the outdoors.

The first group to stay at Cave Hill Creek was a “Life Be In It” camping group – friends and family were on deck the night before their arrival to make sure the venue was ready for their first camp. Since then Cave Hill Creek has hosted thousands of camps and is a destination for all manner of functions, weddings, camps, and retreats – a place to create and share memories with others.

Every person that visits is so lucky to benefit from Ian and Julie’s amazing legacy.

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