2007 Tilterweira Youth Camp
by senior correspondent John Dunn
The third annual Youth Camp was held at SSAA NSW’s Tilterweira Station near Wanaaring in late September to early October last year. The camp aims to introduce participants to some practical bushcraft and hunting skills in the Western Division. Last year’s camp saw 14 young people aged from 14 to 17 attend, including two girls and two young hunters who had been to Tilterweira before.
It’s a long way from St Marys to the bush, so the trip was made over two days. Under the capable leadership of Chris Avent, the group left the city on Saturday, September 29, travelling to Mudgee Range for some lunch and Lever Action Metallic Silhouette shooting, before going on to Dubbo for the night. On the Sunday, they hit the road early with the bus arriving at Tilterweira around 4.30 in the afternoon.
After a few hours to relax and unwind, everyone was fed and then given a run-down on what to expect over the following five days. The camp is run on a cooperative basis, so everyone has a range of rostered duties they’re expected to perform to ensure the camp runs smoothly. With the formalities over, the course then started properly with a workshop on Bullet Placement.
On Monday, October 1, the group was split in two with some proceeding to the range for tutoring to acquire their Hunting & Conservation qualifications, while the remainder sat through a morning of learning how to navigate with a map and compass. This included a navigation exercise with sub-groups required to complete one of two possible set courses around the homestead area under the guidance of instructors. While everyone made it safely back to the shearers’ quarters, some came perilously close to joining the ‘Wheretheheckarewe’ tribe. In the afternoon session, the groups swapped over.
Monday night provided a workshop on Tracks, Scats and Sign. This was an important precursor to Tuesday morning when the first group was taken hunting and those who remained had a morning on the range to improve their shooting skills. Another group was taken hunting in the afternoon.
Goats are the primary game on Tilterweira and during the camp each participant is given the opportunity to take two animals - usually a meat animal, plus a trophy head. Each youngster hunts with a number of different instructors to ensure they’re introduced to a variety of hunting styles and techniques. As everyone learned, hunting along the river or in the overflow country is very different to hunting in the stone country.
In line with the instructional functions of the camp, participants are encouraged to dress any meat animals collected and to take their own trophy heads. These are tasks that most of them accomplish without too much difficulty. Back at the homestead they’re shown how to break the meat down for the cool room and before the week is over, all of them have eaten it.
Wednesday morning provided another hunting opportunity. This was then followed by a barbecue lunch before the whole camp was taken down the river and introduced to the Aboriginal culture of the region by two Aboriginal officers from the Western Catchment Management Authority. The evidence of Aboriginal people living in the area can be seen in the various remaining stone artefacts that are common to the area. Despite the heat (some 38 degrees in the shade of the homestead), everyone came away knowing something about how the Aboriginal people lived in the area.
For some the afternoon finished with a swim in the river, while others went hunting again. Indeed, the instructors worked hard to ensure each participant had as much hunting time as possible.
On Wednesday evening there was an outdoor movie, the proceedings of which were unfortunately interrupted by the unscheduled arrival of a brown snake in the camp! It served as a timely reminder that these creatures do exist in the area and there’s never any room for complacency.
Thursday morning saw more hunting, while the afternoon was taken up with range practice and testing.
On Friday morning, the entire group was taken on a nature walk to view some of the overflow areas on Dry Lake and an enclosed inland swamp. From there, they moved over to Wet Lake to observe the array of bird life and have a look at an Aboriginal scarred tree. Here, they had another encounter with a large brown snake that slithered into a hollow log and watched the group go past.
Friday afternoon saw all participants briefed and tested for their NSW Game Council R Licence qualification, which allows holders to hunt in designated state forests. The evening finished with a clay target shoot, which was also attended by local SSAA members from the Wanaaring District.
On Saturday morning it was pack-up time, then back on to the bus for the long trip home.
Feedback from the young participants indicates a high level of enjoyment. Everybody had the opportunity to try Lever Action Silhouette, 3P Rimfire, Muzzleloading, Reactive Metallic Targets and Shotgun shooting over the week. They also learned some essential bushcraft skills and were introduced to the concept of ethical and humane hunting, with all participants taking at least one animal.
The camp participants were scored by each instructor on a daily basis and at the end of the week the scores were tallied and incentive prizes were awarded accordingly. The 2007 winners were:
David Moriarty: Tilterweira Camp Knife donated by Robert Dewey
Rylie Cherry: Winchester combi-tool
Bob Hawkins: Winchester hunting knife
Ryan Hollings: Compass donated by John Pond
Aaron Woolnough: Combi-tool donated by Jeff Garland
All participants also received a signed copy of The Jumbunna Collection by myself.
Thanks are extended to the following people who gave their time to make the camp successful: Chris Avent, John and Linda Pond, George Hackney, Jacob Whybrow-Lane, Tony Zoccoli and Jeff Garland.
Developing the Youth Camp is an ongoing process and the H&C team is already looking forward to the 2008 camp.
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