Run Report for
Nelligen family camping weekend.
10th & 11th of Feb 2007.

We left Supercheap at about 8.15am and climbed out of Queanbeyan heading for the coast. The traffic was reasonably light given we were traveling on a Saturday morning and the weather was overcast with a light drizzle of rain. The quicker cars took off out front. As I was towing a Caravan, I brought up the rear. The first leg of the trip was reasonably uneventful with the exception of the usual idiots who for some strange reason want to put there own and other’s lives on the line every time they drive down the Kings Hwy. Double white lines, crests, blind bends didn’t make any difference. They just plowed on.

We all met at Braidwood to grab some welcomed breakfast for which we seemed to wait for ages. There was some sort of horse event on nearby and I haven’t seen the town that full of people for a long time. This obviously added to the extended cues for food at the takeaways.

After breaky we headed off on the last leg of the journey down the Clyde to Nelligen where we checked into the Caravan Park.

Tents erected, Caravans Parked and boats launched, we headed into the bay to buy some provisions for lunch, some salads for the evening BBQ and stock up on fishing tackle and bait.

John, his mate Ben and Trevor all bought new fishing rods with John’s mate getting a real bargain when the shop assistant read the wrong price on the rod.

After returning to the Park we settled down for a nice lunch followed by afternoon activities such as boating, fishing and swimming.

Rowan and I took the small boat down the river and fished under the bridge while others fished the banks. Everyone caught fish however most were too small to keep and so were returned to the deep.

Some of the group enjoyed the warm waters of the river and took the opportunity to brush up on there swimming, diving and snorkeling skills. Others looked on and made jokes about the shape of some peoples heads in the water. One of our members referred to a movie she had seen where Tom Hanks played the part of a castaway who had been marooned on a small Island following a plane crash. The point she made was that Tom Hanks had (in the movie) made an effigy from a soccer ball and called it Wilson. This was supposed to give the cast away something to talk to and stop him going bonkers.

She couldn’t get over how Trevor’s head bobbing up and down in the water reminded her of the soccer ball in the movie. So much in fact she kept cupping her hands over her mouth and screaming out to Trevor “ Come back Wilson Come back” a scene and line I believe from the movie.

So if you hear some people in the club refer to Trevor as Wilson, You will know what is going on.

After the aqua events, the evening saw us relax around the table with a few medicinal beverages until around 8.00pm when we cooked the BBQ. The steak, sausages and salads as always were fantastic and all had their fill.

John and his mate decided to go into the Bay claiming they were on a promise with a couple of the local aged overweight bingo players. (Hope you had a good time fellas!)

After the meal we gathered at Party Central outside the Caravan and relaxed with a few reds and a beer or two or three.

While the day had been sunny and hot, the evening saw the heavens open up. A couple of storms past over head and missed us and we thought that was it. Until at about midnight. When the biggest storm I have seen for a while parked itself right overhead. Turning the Caravan park into a river. That was our Q to hit the hay. It just did not stop all night. Despite the storm however the morning would reveal that the tents stood up to it quite well.

We were hoping to do a little more on the Sunday but given the weather conditions we decided to pack up early.

The club put on a breakfast of bacon and eggs for all and at about 10.00am we headed for home.

The drive home was pretty treacherous in terms of the weather and yes you guest it, those idiots that were back on the road again!

A pretty uneventful slow trip home.

The weekend, despite the Saturday night storm was better than I thought it would be. We had a great relaxing weekend and I would recommend we place another trip on a future calendar.

I don’t know if you have ever stayed at this Caravan Park before but they have really done a lot with it. It is now a pretty modern park with good facilities. At $22 a night for a powered site that has picturesque views of the river, it represents very good value for money and I would recommend it to anyone. It is only 10 minutes from the bay but isn’t overwhelmed by tourists.

Well that’s it I think, another great trip shared by some great people.

Thanks to those who cooked the BBQ and thanks to Laureen and Rowan for supplying the plates etc and washing up.

Thank you to those members who attended for supporting this club event.

Those who attended were:

Trevor, Marissa & Al
Paul, Laureen and Rowan
Craig & Carly
John and Ben
Steve, Maree, Casey & Eve.