When I wake up, it’s still a bit cold (okay… really cold), and I can hear the cockatoos outside being super noisy and waking everyone up. Inside, the cabin is warm and cosy, and people are starting to stir — a bit of chatting and some quiet laughing from the bunks.

One of our camp counsellors knocks on the door with a cheerful “Good morning, rise and shine!” I don’t know how they do it, but they’re always full of energy — even when we’ve kept them up talking and laughing way too late the night before. There are a few counsellors looking after our group for the week, and they’re always around if you need something or just feel like a chat.

Before breakfast, we clean our rooms. Everyone actually tries pretty hard because we want to earn points for the Cave Hill Creek Cup. Then the ‘Inspector’ comes through to check our rooms (which sounds scary but is actually very funny), and we wait to see how we did. Once we pass, we head off to eat, hoping we’ve earned some points!

We put on lots of layers and head to the pavilion, calling out to the kangaroos grazing on the oval as we go. The fire is already lit, which is the best. We sit with our colour clans, and it’s nice getting to know people my own age — the ones I’ll be hanging out with all week. I’m in Yellow Group. I grab some porridge and toast for breaky — perfect on a cold morning — and we all chat about what we’re doing today.

After breakfast, it’s time for activities. I was a bit nervous at first — especially when we got to the high ropes — but the activity instructors are really encouraging. They help you through it, cheer you on, and before you know it, you’re doing something you didn’t think you could. When you get down, everyone’s cheering and it feels awesome.

Later we go bushwalking in the Mt Cole State Forest. Everything feels different in winter — quieter and kind of peaceful. Our activity instructor shows us things we would never notice on our own, like animal tracks and cool little details. I’m also trying to find the longest leaf, because there’s a camp competition and a prize for whoever finds the biggest one – I’ve got to find a big one to beat those that other campers have already entered! After the walk, we have lunch at Richard’s Campground — hot baked jacket potatoes topped with bacon, cheese, coleslaw and all the trimmings, which taste soooo good after being out in the cold.

One of the best things about camp is that no one has phones. At first, I was worried about this, and it feels a bit weird, but then it’s actually really good. You end up talking more, laughing more, and just doing stuff instead of looking at a screen.

In the afternoon, we do more activities — maybe canoeing or something different. There’s heaps to do. It’s cold, but you warm up pretty quickly (especially if there’s a bit of splashing going on). I can’t wait to come back in Summer when we can really get wet! Later in the week we get “choose your own adventure” activities — I already know I want to do bikes and cooking (making Anzac biscuits… yum!).

Before dinner, we get some free time, which is really nice. I might play cards with some friends or have a game of table tennis, while other people are playing chess or kicking a footy on the oval.

Dinner is always great after a big day — and tonight is lasagne (my favourite!). Everyone’s chatting and laughing, and it already feels like we’ve known each other for ages.

After dinner, we all go to the campfire. It’s probably my favourite part. We toast marshmallows, tell stories, and sit around the fire keeping warm. One of the counsellors plays guitar and some of us sing along. When you look up, the sky is full of stars — way more than at home. Tomorrow night we’ve got a team challenge — Minute to Win It — and our colour clan really wants to win more points for the Cup!

By the time we go back to the cabin, everyone is tired, but in a good way. We talk about the best parts of the day and joke around a bit until someone finally says we really need to sleep.

At the start of camp, you might not know anyone. But by the end of the first day, it already feels different.

You feel braver. You’ve made new friends. And you’ve done things you didn’t think you could.

And you can’t wait to wake up and do it all again tomorrow.

If you’d like to know more about Winter Camp, give us a call on 03 5349 7381 or visit:
https://www.cavehillcreek.com.au/cave-hill-creek/holiday-programs/winter-camp/

The post A Day in the Life at Winter Camp appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Summer Camp OUT Bookings Now Open!

Thanks for your recent expression of interest in our exciting new Summer Camp offering for teens age 14-15: Summer Camp OUT. We are pleased to let you know that bookings are now open. Summer Camp OUT is on Mon 8 – Fri 12 January 2024, and is strictly limited to 24 places, so book soon to avoid missing out.

BOOK NOW
Summer Camp OUT: Mon 8 – Fri 12 Jan

Pricing $1,499pp

Kick 2024 off by having fun, making friends and getting outdoors!

New this year is Summer Camp OUT, an adventure program for teens aged 14-15 to run during Camp #28: 8-12 January. The program is a more adventurous version of Summer Camp, including hiking, camping, and outdoor fun designed to challenge and inspire.

The five day program will include a multi-day hike on the Beeripmo Walk with a focus on teamwork, the environment, Indigenous culture, navigation, bushcraft and cooking. Along the way, campers will participate in adventure activities such as abseiling, mountain biking and some water fun.

14 year olds can choose to participate in Summer Camp or Summer Camp Out.
Please see the FAQs on the Summer Camp OUT event page for more information.

We can’t wait to share this week with your awesome TEEN! 

The post Summer Camp Out 2024 Now Open appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Summer Camp Exclusive Booking Opportunity!

Here it is, the link you have been waiting for! We are excited to open Summer Camp and our new Summer Camp OUT 2024 bookings exclusively for you, our mailing list members.

BOOK NOW
Camp #27: Tue 2 – Fri 5 Jan
Camp #28: Mon 8 – Fri 12 Jan
Camp #28: – CAMP OUT (14-15yo) Mon 8 – Fri 12 Jan
Camp #29: Mon 15 – Fri 19 Jan

Pricing
Individual Camper
Camp #27: $799pp / Camp #28 & #29: $999
Summer Camp OUT – $1,499 pp

Discounts
Family special: 2nd child 20% off, 3rd child 30% off
Returning individual campers $50 discount (Please use code RETURN)
Returning camper discounts for individual bookings only
Sorry, no discounts for Summer Camp OUT

Bookings for remaining places will open to the public on Fri 13 Oct.

Kick 2024 off by having fun, making friends and getting outdoors!

New this year is Summer Camp OUT, an adventure program for teens aged 14-15 to run during Camp #28: 8-12 January. The program is a more adventurous version of Summer Camp, including hiking, camping, and outdoor fun designed to challenge and inspire.

The five day program will include a multi-day hike on the Beeripmo Walk with a focus on teamwork, the environment, Indigenous culture, navigation, bushcraft and cooking. Along the way, campers will participate in adventure activities such as abseiling, mountain biking and some water fun.

14 year olds can choose to participate in Summer Camp or Summer Camp Out.
Please see the FAQs on the Summer Camp OUT event page for more information.

We can’t wait to share this week with your awesome TEEN!

The post Summer Camp 2024 Now Open appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

At Cave Hill Creek, we have been successfully running camps at our accredited family owned and operated facility in Beaufort for nearly 30 years with popularity increasing every year amongst Victorian families.

So if you’re unsure of what our summer camp program offers kids, or if you’d simply like to learn a little more about our program, read on!

What makes up our summer camps?

The summer camp is a time-honoured school holiday tradition for many children across the globe- immortalised in American teenage films, from movies like ‘Moonrise Kingdom’, ‘The Parent Trap and many more! Despite some of those films largely depicting an “American” perspective, the experience in Australia is more or less the same- with a few variations…

With a heavy emphasis of getting your kids out of the house, away from the television and other gadgets, and into the great Australian outdoors!

As opposed to American summer camps, which can go for as long as several months, our summer camp program here at Cave Hill Creek only lasts for a matter of days, 4 nights & 5 days to be exact- giving you the perfect amount of time to relax, and giving your kids a great time away, having fun and making lasting friendships!

Summer Camp at Cave Hill Creek includes a variety of exciting and different outdoor activities designed to make the kids forget completely about their mobile phones, gaming consoles and other tech, and get them immersed in the magnificent landscape of Cave Hill Creek.

Activities such as archery, bushwalking, abseiling, orienteering, mountain biking, as well as a wide range of other team building and survival tasks to keep them entertained, all the while learning valuable skills.

Main Summer Camp Activities include;

-Abseiling

-Canoeing

-Archery

-Ropes Course

-Map Reading

-Crate Stack

-Raft Building

-Bushwalking & hiking

And so much more!

Summer Camp Details-

All of our staff at Cave Hill Creek have years of experience and are qualified camp specialists, receiving ATAP accreditation as well as being proud winners at the Victorian Tourism Awards-

Tim and Ange Chandler are the 2^nd generation custodians of the Cave Hill Creek grounds, running camps for more than a decade!

Summer Camp is tech-free; we get your kids off the couch, have fun and activate their minds and bodies over the school break. With over 30 years’ experience running fun and safe camps, we ensure your child is supported and cared for whilst under our supervision.

All staff have valid working-with-children checks. We foster an inclusive, friendly and safe camp community. The food is healthy and nutritious (all dietary requirements welcome), and all set in our amazing location, home to kangaroos, wallabies, echidnas and platypus, at the foot of Mt Cole – only 2 hours from Melbourne, near Ballarat in regional Victoria, Australia.

If you’re ready to cart the kids off for a week of fun at our regional camp that’s just two hours from Melbourne’s CBD, these are the specifics you need to know:

Dates: Monday 14^th – 18^th January 2019

Location: Cave Hill Creek, 110 The Glut Road, Raglan, Victoria 3373

Inclusions: Activities, fully catered meals with healthy, local ingredients
Getting there: Driving directions can be found here; alternatively return supervised transport is available from Southern Cross Station in the CBD at an additional cost

2019 pricing: $649 per person, including a camp t-shirt and a souvenir camp booklet. If booking for more than one person, a discount will apply to bring the price down to $599 per person.

Get in touch with the team at Cave Hill Creek to register your child for our 2019 Summer Camp program today!

The post Our New Summer Camp Program Is Here! appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Conveniently situated in Beaufort, Victoria, a short 40-minutes drive from Ballarat, you’ll be in the perfect spot to experience more of Victoria’s beautiful landscapes and educational attractions. Whether you’re heading out for a weekend country wedding, are dropping the kids off at summer camp, or want to extend a school camp with a few local attractions, these sites are a must-see!

Sovereign Hill

Ever wanted to experience the action and excitement of the Gold Rush as though it was the 1850s? Well, you can! Sovereign Hill is one of the most popular attractions in Ballarat and is only a stone throw away from Cave Hill Creek.

Sovereign Hill is like a living museum with working exhibits, where you and the kids can do everything from panning for gold to attending school in 19^th century Australia and taking a ride in an old-fashioned horse and cart. The costumes are authentic, the staff are in full character and the learning experience is second to none.

While exploring the fascinating history of Victoria’s Gold Rush, The Gold Museum and the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka are both also worth visiting.

Sovereign Hill

Bradshaw Street, Ballarat

03 5337 1199

enquiries@sovereignhill.com.au

Ballarat Wildlife Park

If you didn’t quite get your fill of wildlife spotting at Cave Hill Creek, there’s plenty more to see at Ballarat Wildlife Park.

Home to wombats, tree kangaroos, koalas, Tasmanian devils and emus, as well as echidnas, crocodiles and more than 100 roaming kangaroos, you’ll be able to get up-close to a range of native Australian species when you visit Ballarat Wildlife Park.

Ballarat Wildlife Park
250 Fussell Street, Ballarat East
(03) 5333 5933
wildlifepark.com.au

Ballarat Botanical Gardens

Perched on the western shore of Lake Wendouree is a sprawling garden that covers 40-hectares of open parkland, mature trees, seasonal flowers and a greenhouse. The gardens were built on land that originally housed police horses back in 1858 when the wealth of the Gold Rush filled the town with Lords and Ladies that wanted somewhere nice to take a stroll.

From rock walls and lily ponds to mature trees that are listed n the National Trust Significant Tree Register, and an abundance of statues, a visit to these gardens will be an afternoon well spent.

Ballarat Botanical Gardens
Gillies Street North, North Ballarat
(03) 5320 5135

Kryal Castle

A land of myth and adventure, when you cross the bridge into Kryal Castle you’ll be transported into a medieval world of knights and princesses, wizards and jesters.

With brilliant activities like mazes, royal jousts and the opportunity to try your strength and worthiness at the sword in the stone, children and adults alike will marvel at the wonders of Kryal Castle.

Kryal Castle

121 Forbes Road, Leigh Creek

03 5334 8500

admin@kryalcastle.com.au

Art Gallery of Ballarat

This is the oldest and biggest regional gallery in Australia. The building itself was built in 1890, and over the course of its history, it has housed a collection of art spanning from colonial to modern times. The collection is particularly interesting because visitors can see how art shifted from the likes of opulent portraits and landscapes in the 19^th century to the more recent forms of modernism and abstraction right through to the contemporary artworks that are popular today.

The gallery is also widely known for its uncanny ability to acquire Australian paintings and sculptures that are quite politically charged. The gallery’s curator doesn’t just want visitors to admire the beauty of the art; she wants them to walk away with a new perception of Australian art and culture.

Art Gallery of Ballarat
40 Lydiard Street North, Ballarat
(03) 5320 5858
artgalleryofballarat.com.au

If you want the chance to explore these attractions and attend your loved one’s wedding, or participate in a community guided walk with our team followed by a trip to some of Ballarat’s finest attractions, contact us today!

The post Cave Hill Creek: The Centre of Learning appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Are you feeling frazzled after a long year of juggling your family commitments with your responsibilities at work?

Do you just want a few peaceful days to yourself to do what you want to do for once?

Well, we can solve all of your problems with a click of a button. This Christmas, rather than buying your kids toys that they’ll just forget about in two weeks anyway, why not gift an experience? And by an experience, we mean Summer Camp!

In fact, research has actually shown that ‘gifting experiences’ rather than material items actually makes people happier in the long-term – both the giver and the recipient.

According to Brad Elphinstone, a lecturer of psychology with a speciality in materialism at Swinburne University of Technology, returning to the festive roots of Christmas lies in the ability to spread cheer and joy through experiences, rather than the more traditional concept of gifts.

Summer Camp is the perfect example of how beneficial experiences can be, especially during the formative years of your child’s development. In a world dominated by the online sphere and video games, it’s all too easy for children to spend their childhood indoors, rather than gaining new skills and meeting new people by heading outdoors.

Here at Cave Hill Creek, we believe in giving kids a taste of the great outdoors in the way it’s meant to be experienced – in person! As a completely switched-off camp, the only tech that’s taken out on our camping trip is emergency communication devices. For four nights and five days, your child will spend the New Year enjoying a combination of water and land-based activities that include bush walking, canoeing and raft games.

The Important Details

Dates: Monday January 8 to Friday January 12, 2018
Location: Cave Hill Creek, 110 The Glut Road, Raglan, Victoria 3373
Inclusions: Activities, fully catered meals with healthy, local ingredients
Getting there: Driving directions can be found here; alternatively return supervised transport is available from Southern Cross Station in the CBD at an additional cost
2018 pricing: $595 per person, including a camp t-shirt and a souvenir camp booklet. If booking for more than one person, a discount will apply bringing the price down to $545 per person. If you would like to take advantage of our accompanied travel from Southern Cross Station, it will be an extra $50 per person.

Ready to wrap up your Christmas shopping? Buy your tickets here today!

The post Grab the Kids Summer Camp Tickets for Christmas appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Here, we explore 5 things about Australian summer camps that make them so enjoyable for kids from across Victoria – and the country!

Summer Camp Runs for Four Nights / Five Days
Unlike the camps you see in famous children’s movies like ‘The Parent Trap’, our Australian summer camp isn’t quite as long, as rather than months, it only runs for one week from Monday and Friday each January.

However, what we lack in time, we make up for in fun! One week is more than enough time for kids to make new friends, learn some new skills and spend some quality time in the great outdoors!

Australian Summer Camp Encourages Children to Switch-Off From Technology
Like all great summer camps, our summer camp programs are designed to be a social and active time for children aged between eight and 14. As such, we recommend leaving any mobile phones, portable gaming devices and the likes at home.

While the kids might be unhappy about this at first, once they arrive at our beautiful camp nestled in Victoria’s picture-perfect countryside and they start making some new friends, their phones and video games will quickly be forgotten about.

Our Camp Programs Cater for All Sorts of Interests With a Wide Variety of Activities
Much like our American counterparts, Australian summer camp also includes a wide variety of fun, team building activities. All of the activities we host are revolved around the outdoors and are done in groups.

We run a combination of water and land-based activities that include bush walking, canoeing and raft games.

Camp is an Affordable Alternative to Big Family Holidays

Not everyone has the money and the time to take the whole family on a big holiday each year over the summer holidays.
After the Christmas break is over, a lot of parents have to get back to work or have things they need to get done before they got back to work. Sometimes, parents just want a bit of downtime or would like to take a romantic getaway without the kids. Rather than carting the kids off to the grandparents, summer camp is a great way to keep them occupied, looked after and happy while you do what you need to do – even if you just want to sleep in and lounge on the couch for a few days!

All Camp Leaders are Fully-Trained and Accredited Professionals
If you’ve seen a lot of Hollywood’s depictions of school camp, you might be led to think that summer camps are just hosted by any old teenagers, but this isn’t the case at Cave Hill Creek.

All of our staff have current working with children checks and are fully trained in running fun and safe camps for children. We’re also ATAP accredited and have over 28 years of experience running fun and safe camps where children are fully supported and cared for whilst under our supervision.

A Few Important Details
If you’re ready to cart the kids off for a week of fun at our regional camp that’s just two hours from Melbourne’s CBD, these are the specifics you need to know:

Dates: Monday January 8 to Friday January 12, 2018
Location: Cave Hill Creek, 110 The Glut Road, Raglan, Victoria 3373
Inclusions: Activities, fully catered meals with healthy, local ingredients
Getting there: Driving directions can be found here; alternatively return supervised transport is available from Southern Cross Station in the CBD at an additional cost
2018 pricing: $595 per person, including a camp t-shirt and a souvenir camp booklet. If booking for more than one person, a discount will apply bringing the price down to $545 per person. Early bird discounts will also apply for any bookings made before October 31, 2017. If you would like to take advantage of our accompanied travel from Southern Cross Station, it will be an extra $50 per person.

Sound great? Contact the team at Cave Hill Creek to learn more about our summer camp programs or to secure your child’s place today!

The post 5 Things You Never Knew About Summer Camps in Australia appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

At Cave Hill Creek, we have been successfully running camps at our accredited family owned and operated facility in Beaufort for nearly 30 years with popularity increasing every year amongst Victorian families.

​What is a Summer Camp?

Famously featured in countless American movies, the Summer Camp is an organised group accommodating get-away during the extended school holidays, generally associated with nature, adventure, and ‘the Great Outdoors.’

At Cave Hill Creek, our Summer Camp is a 4 night residential camp for 8 – 14 year olds, fully catered, and run by qualified and experienced staff.

Our Summer Camps consist of the traditional outdoor adventure activities such as archery, canoeing, ropes courses, bushwalking, mountain biking and abseiling… with the added bonuses of learning survival skills with raft and hut building, as well as relaxing in our picturesque natural surroundings, and learning about local indigenous traditions and the history of our land.

BENEFITS OF SUMMER CAMP

Gets kids off the couch – rather than your kids staying inside and watching Netflix all holidays… or playing X-box Live… why not get them out and about, being active and social, stimulating their minds and bodies throughout the school break? Many Summer Camps, like ours, pride themselves on being a ‘tech free zone’, and opening up our visitor’s eyes to the world beyond their phone screens.

Exposure to diversity – Summer Camp is a great opportunity for children to connect with others outside of their immediate geographical, cultural or socio-economic groups… making new friends, and importantly opening their minds to the diverse multicultural Australian landscape.

Build self-confidence and esteem – When children are forced to exit their comfort zone and cooperate with others in group activities with highly rewarding outcomes, it helps build self-confidence, team-working and leadership skills… and shows kids what they’re capable of achieving when they set their minds to a task.

In fact, the American Camp Association (the biggest Summer Camp organisation in the world) states that over 90% of kids who attend camp say that the people at camp helped them feel good about themselves.

Get in touch with nature – Having an understanding and respect for our land is an important part of Australian culture.  At Cave Hill Creek, our expert guides point out unique fascinations in the local fauna and flora, and if you’re lucky, help you spot wild platypus in the lake… one of the best opportunities in the country to see this!

Occupy the summer break – Whilst the Christmas/Summer break is a wonderful time to spend with family, unfortunately most parents only receive a couple of weeks off at best… leaving a serious overlap between work and school holidays. Summer Camp provides a positive and valuable option for kids whose parents might need to work before school’s back.

These are just some of the benefits associated with Summer Camps that Australian kids and parents are becoming more and more aware of. For further information or enquiries on Cave Hill Creek Summer Camp, check out our information online, or feel free to contact us today!

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Similar is the logic behind the origins of the name Cave Hill.  That is, the southern slopes of Cave Hill feature a large cavern created when the lower half of a large rock face collapsed leaving a large overhang.  The local Beeripmo balug aborigines refer to the cave as Bukkertillible.  It can be seen clearly to the north when driving along the Western Highway between Beaufort and Buangor.

Cave Hill Creek’s logo also finds it origin in the local forest.  It features a flowering Grevillea montis-cole (commonly known as Grevillea Mount Cole or The Glut Grevillea).  The grevillea is endemic to the eastern slopes from the Glut picnic ground  to Cave Hill Creek. It is a small shrub identifiable by its red flower from October to March. Grevillea montis-cole is listed as rare in Victoria

The post Cave Hill Creek: It’s All In The Name appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.

Camp is a challenging yet wonderful experience for kids with Asperger and Autism.  For these kids routine is a security blanket.  Dealing with anything unknown is a challenge.  And yet many times in her life Ellie will be confronted by a place, a person, food, etc that is outside her routine.  Camp is all of these, but the structured and supervised environment is the perfect place for special needs kids to overcome this challenge.  The next time they are faced with something unusual they can refer back to their camp experience and say “I can do this”.

A talented student, Ellie is already doing grade 6 work.  However she struggles socially.   Nonetheless Ellie is flourishing on camp.  Away from the normal routine of her home and school she is learning new skills, building some independence and trying new things, and all with the support of her teachers and friends.  This morning Ellie decided for herself what to wear, chose her own breakfast and made arrangements to brush her teeth, all without seeking Dad’s reassurance.  Ellie was not capable of such things two days ago.  Peter was most impressed.

And camp can be good opportunity for parents too.  They too deserve a break from the demands of an Asperger’s son or daughter.  After the success of camp Peter is already planning his first three day break while she is on camp next year.

*Please note names have been changed

The post ”I can do this” – Aspergers, Autism and School Camps appeared first on Cave Hill Creek.