The church we attend in Tannum Sands has a group of active people that do some sort of social activity each month. The group is called “Bits & Pieces”. Various people in the group volunteer to head up each month’s activity. Nancy and I were on deck for the annual fall campout. We have been attending this church for over a year and a half now, have attended and participated in many of their monthly social events, so everyone figured it was time we took the lead for an event. We like camping so that’s we volunteer for. Not being overly familiar with local campgrounds and not being sure how far people wanted to travel we ask some of the longer tenured members for recommendations. Cania Gorge Tourist Retreat was one of the recommendations and after seeing where it was and discussing a group event with the owners we decided that’s where we were going to go. Have a look: caniagorgeretreat.com.au A big feature of the place was that it offered small cabins as well as Caravan and tent site. The sites were with or without power so everyone could choose to camp as they liked, or stay in a nice cabin.
Nancy and I, as well as our family, celebrated the 4th of July there as a test run to see how things went. Everything went well so we pressed on with signups and information posts. We had everyone make their own reservation so they could get exactly what they wanted. The event lasted from Friday evening to Sunday morning. There were some scheduled events and a number of activities people could participate in if they chose. There was no hard and fast program.
To kinda get ahead of the crowd Nancy and I went out a day early. We arrived early afternoon on Thursday and set up our caravan.
The add-on is kinda new so it takes us a couple minutes to get it set up. We had a nice day and everything went well. We finished early so I told Nancy I would take her out to Cania Lake. She had not seen it before so we drove out there.
Friday afternoon people started rolling in. We had twenty people who signed up and came so it was a comfortable group.
Friday evening everyone brought something to the camp kitchen and we all had a pleasant dinner. After dinner everyone had a chance to tell their favorite joke or story or displany any special skills they had. I demonstrated my Hooey Stick that responds to voice commands. Many folks told jokes or interesting facts. One lady played the Ukulele for us. A fun time.
Saturday was open for people to do whatever they wanted. Some people hiked, some did sand painting, some played horse shoes, some just sat around talking and enjoying the nice weather.
Saturday evening one of the members who had rented a cabin hosted an informal late afternoon tea. Then people wandered off to prepare their dinners. Some ate in the kitchen, some in their cabins or caravans. Later everyone wandered over to one of the caravans that had pleant room and we all sat around a big fire enjoying the evening and each other’s company.
One of the highlights of this campground is the bird feeding at four PM. The owners wife is a Bird whisperer and when she brings out the bird treats, birds show up by the dozens. She hands out food and who ever has some gets visited by birds … lots of birds.
Everyone enjoyed the encounter.
As evening set in, after everyone had finished eating, we gathered around a big fire. No pictures of that as it was rather dark.
Sunday morning we had a little worship service on one of the front decks of the cabins. People had to be out of the cabins by ten and the campers gone by noon so after the service we all broke up, packed our gear and headed for home.
All in all a very pleasant weekend. No injuries or problems. The Camp ownership are very accommodating so everyone had a good time. Hope you enjoyed the story.
