The City of Greater Bendigo is calling for expressions of interest from experienced mural and street artists to create a new paste-up artwork for central Bendigo.

The large-scale artwork will be pasted onto the exterior red brick wall of the former Fire Station Building, facing into the Dudley House Garden located at 60 View Street Bendigo. Artists must have extensive experience in creating and installing works of scale, with the maximum scale of the artwork to be 6m high by 11m wide. 

City Creative Communities Coordinator Maree Tonkin said this was an exciting opportunity for someone to deliver a new, vibrant piece of public art.

“There is no theme for the work but artists will need to propose an original piece that best demonstrates creative practice, talent and skill, and has not been repeated elsewhere,” Ms Tonkin said. 

“The City is excited to have secured another large-scale canvas ready for someone to leave their creative mark. Any artist working in Victoria is welcome to apply. 

“The finished artwork will be a great addition to the street art scene across Greater Bendigo, which includes Pennyweight Walk, Chancery Lane, Myers Street and Bath Lane.” 

Expressions of interest close Friday February 9, 2024.

Victorian fire agencies are reminding residents to be cautious when charging lithium-ion battery operated devices following an e-scooter house fire in Wendouree earlier this month.

The two-storey townhouse was protected by CFA and FRV crews who arrived quickly, after occupants removed themselves safely due to working smoke alarms.

Wendouree Fire Brigade Lieutenant Kenneth Mitchell said an e-scooter was on charge at the time of the call, Friday January 12, and exploded inside the kitchen and dining area.

“We arrived on scene and immediately removed the hazard from the house to stop the spread in a timely manner, and thankfully were able to halt the fire extending to the house,” Kenneth said.

“These devices can go off quite quickly and violently, so the best way to deal with them is to call Triple Zero at your earliest convenience. A fire extinguisher can be used in the first instance too. 

“For firefighters, the only way crews can alleviate the issue is to remove the hazard from the structure and then place it in a bucket of water to cool it down.

“Once in the water it can pose a risk of off gassing, which is the spread of dangerous substances from inside the battery that can be let out when it catches fire.”

The e-scooter scare is a wake-up call for residents right across Victoria, with Victorian fire services responding to lithium-ion battery fires almost every day.

Acting Assistant Chief Fire Officer Community Safety Kieran Lenehan said Victorians who are considering buying a product with rechargeable batteries should only buy from reputable suppliers and only use chargers supplied with the device.

“When lithium-ion batteries are damaged, misused or fail to meet compliance standards, they pose a serious fire risk, particularly while they are connected to chargers,” ACFO Lenehan said.

“We’re now seeing an increase in the uptake of e-scooters and e-bikes, power tools and general charging devices, so residents must remember to always enact the appropriate safety measures.

“Do not overcharge electric devices, only charge them when required and the safest option is to switch them off overnight before you go to bed. We recommend charging them in the garage, on their own power point.”

CFA Lieutenant Mitchell said that he had noticed that within the district people were plugging too many items into power boards, which can cause them to overheat and catch fire.

While it is the first in the Wendouree region for quite some time, Victorians should not become complacent as they can arise at any time.

The City of Greater Bendigo is again partnering with Festival Directors Chris Howlett and Howard Penney to present the fifth Bendigo Chamber Music Festival beginning this month. 

The Festival kicks off at The Capital on Wednesday January 31 and runs across various Bendigo venues until Sunday February 4. It will feature a diverse program of chamber music performances, masterclasses and conversation sessions.

The five-day Festival has become a hallmark event on the Greater Bendigo cultural calendar, showcasing world-class chamber music performances in unique and intimate settings across the city. This year’s Festival promises to be a celebration of artistic excellence, featuring renowned international and Australian musicians, as well as emerging talents.

City Manager Bendigo Venues and Events Julie Amos said the organisation was committed to providing audiences with exceptional musical experiences.

“The Festival has proven to be a highlight for both locals and visitors alike, aligning with our strategic goal to foster a thriving arts and cultural scene in Bendigo, contributing to the city’s reputation as an arts and culture destination,” Ms Amos said. 

“Premium passes sold very quickly, with some of the more intimate concerts now at capacity. There are still single tickets available for performances at The Capital, so don’t miss out.”

Co-Director Howard Penney said the Festival offered a hugely varied program that included a continued partnership with the Young Concert Artists Trust London.

“Via the Trust, we are thrilled to welcome violinist Irène Duval and oboist Armand Djikoloum. They both have extraordinary performance CVs, having performed in some of Europe’s major concert halls and festivals, and they are coming exclusively to Bendigo,” Mr Penney said. 

“The lineup also includes the absolute best Australia-based artists, some regulars and some performing at the Festival for the first time. We have also added some vibrant young emerging talents from the Australian National Academy of Music, including Bendigo-born Noah Lawrence. This lineup is the ultimate dream team.”

For more information is available through the Bendigo Chamber Music Festival website.

The former La Trobe University Bendigo Athletics Complex has been renamed Lar Birpa Athletics Complex, which means a place to run in the language of the Dja Dja Wurrung.

The Department of Transport and Planning recently confirmed the proposed name met the statutory requirements for Naming Rules for Places Victoria, and the name Lar Birpa Athletics Complex was gazetted in the Victoria Government Gazette this month, Thursday January 11, 2024.

City of Greater Bendigo Director Healthy Communities and Environments Stacy Williams said the name change followed the City’s 2020 acquisition of the athletics complex on Retreat Road, Flora Hill from La Trobe University.

“This meant we needed a new name for the complex that did not reference La Trobe University,” Ms Williams said.

“The naming of existing and new City-owned facilities in Traditional Owner language is in line with the City’s Reconciliation Plan Barpangu 2021-2025, and our strong commitment to supporting Aboriginal place naming and the use of Traditional Owner language in public spaces across the municipality.”

Naming of all roads, features and localities in Victoria needs to follow the statutory requirements of the Naming Rules for Places Victoria – Statutory requirements for naming roads, features and localities (2022).

New signage will be installed at the site to reflect the facility’s new name.

Early next month the Hepburn Shire Council will host a workshop to help local farmers work on strategies to deal with the increasing prevalence of extreme weather events.

The workshop will take place at Creswick’s Doug Lindsay Recreation Reserve from 9am-1pm on Thursday February 8.

Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said that unseasonal and extreme weather was unfortunately becoming more prevalent locally and across the globe.

“We are helping farmers take a more proactive approach to farming practices to prepare for such events and therefore minimise damage to valuable crops and livestock,” he said.

The council has organised a lineup of highly regarded keynote speakers that will present case studies outlining proactive initiatives for local farmers.

“This kind of extreme weather is a reality and we need to be prepared.  Farmers will hear from skilled agricultural professionals on solutions that can be modified to prepare farm infrastructure and livestock for future extreme weather events,” said Cr Hood.

Speakers scheduled for the event include:

• Dr Kirsten Barlow (Principal Scientist) – Precision Agriculture
• Geoff Ross – Precision Agriculture
• Andrew Bohay – Civil Agricultural Design
• Sinead Barker – Meridian Agriculture
• Mark Hutchings – Hutchings Plant Hire

The event is funded by the Victorian Government through Emergency Recovery Victoria’s grant program in response to the 2022 Floods which impacted Victorian communities including residents and farmers of Hepburn Shire.

More details and registrations are available through the council’s website.

Work has commenced on improving the experience and provision of facilities for hockey across the region at Ballarat’s Prince of Wales Park.  

The $1.3 million-City of Ballarat funded project will see the replacement of the synthetic ‘hockey turf,’ upgraded ball protection fencing, new player shelters and improved infrastructure for players. 

A feasibility study, jointly funded by the City of Ballarat and Sport and Recreation Victoria, which was completed in 2022 highlighted the increasing demand for enhanced hockey infrastructure in Ballarat.

This project is the first stage in developing improved facilities to cater for the future growth of hockey in Ballarat and the surrounding region. 

Current works are expected to be completed by end of May.  

The Hepburn Shire Council is currently inviting expressions of interest from members of the community who are interested in joining its Reconciliation Advisory Committee.

The committee aims to provide a forum for the council to consult key stakeholders and seek advice regarding the process, development and implementation of its next Reconciliation Action Plan.

The council is currently inviting potential new committee members to complete an expression of interest by Thursday 15 February via https://participate.hepburn.vic.gov.au/reconciliation

The Hepburn Shire Council is inviting all residents of the shire to attend a special free event celebrating its community award winners for 2024 and welcoming its new Australian citizens on Thursday January 25.

The free event will be held from 2pm on Thursday 25 January and will be held at the Daylesford Town Hall.

Refreshments will be provided and during the event the council will announce its Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year and Community Event of the Year.

Community events are also being organised by local community groups at Clunes and Trentham on Australia Day/Survival Day Friday January 26.

At Clunes, the town’s Tourism Development Assoication is hosting a sunrise walk and flag raising ceremony with a 5.45am start from the Mt Beckworth Reserve (meet at the Dam). A pancake breakfast atop Mt Beckworth is also on the program.

Then at 12 noon there’s a flag lowering ceremony, community barbecue and live entertainment at Collins Place in the town’s Fraser Street.

At Trentham there’s a flag raising ceremony, a community barecue and entertainment in the town square.

The Trentham Lions Club is hosting the event and music starts at 10 am with the main event including flag raising and speech from Hepburn mayor Cr Brian Hood scheduled to get under way from 11.30 am.

As we all settle down into the rhythm of 2024, it is worth considering our New Year’s commitments and resolutions and if they are likely to be stuck by, or just drunken rhetoric and false promises.

Some statistics say that over 90 per cent of resolutions have been parked or failed by February and about eight per cent travel the course of the year.

If it is a fitness promise you made there is only yourself to blame if it fails and as to why we make these stupid ‘guaranteed to fail’ promises to ourselves, I guess it is the same reason we continue to buy Lotto tickets, chasing the elusive better life.

In terms of fitness my go to is Pilates. “What’s that?” I hear you ask. Well mostly the guys out there. So a quick bit of history from the ever-reliable Wikipedia.

Pilates was developed by Joseph Pilates from Mönchengladbach, Germany. His father was a gymnast and his mother a naturopath.
Pilates developed a system of exercises while interned for four years during WWI intended to strengthen the human mind and body, believing that mental and physical health were interrelated.
Pilates accompanied his method with a variety of equipment, which he called “apparatus”. Each apparatus was designed to help accelerate the process of stretching, strengthening, body alignment and increased core strength started by mat work.

The best-known and most popular apparatus today, the Reformer, was originally called the Universal Reformer, aptly named for “universally reforming the body”.

So that’s Pilates, and by and large I seem to be one of the only blokes in the class while I see other 50-somethings getting around with bad backs and stiffness in the legs, knees and hips.

I started my Pilates journey when my back went on the blink. Bulging disc – you know the sort of thing. Very painful. I worked for quite a while with my surgeon to try and avoid back surgery but when it became inevitable I continued doing Pilates right up until the day of surgery.

(I know not everyone can afford private health cover but I can’t afford not to pay it now after starting it at the age of 30. And it worked out well. When I booked in for the surgery it was pretty much “what day next week?” and then “morning or afternoon”. It finally paid off.)

Anyway, I was given a post-surgery plan by the surgeon and as soon as I was able I was back on the Reformer and as a result I cut down my surgery recovery time by about half.

The sport is truly amazing and gets you thinking about how you move around including stopping you from lifting a fridge or table without thinking – classic big boy behaviour – and it has truly extended my flexibility and core strength.

But still it’s overwhelmingly a woman’s game and of course there are lots of jokes from my buddies about me sitting down the back of the class watching for the downward dog, but if they paid attention, they know that would be a Yoga move.

Pilates terms are more “the nutcracker” – which when you think about it is really a bloke’s move, or the “hello boys” as we stretch our thighs. And if you get the right trainer, hello Erin, it is a lot of fun while getting fit.

There are plenty of Pilates classes around in our villages and towns with an explosion in Daylesford among a plethora of other fitness pastimes, so there is no excuse not to get active in whatever sporting vocation you choose.

Yes, the first five minutes for the first time can seem daunting, but most of the fitness places also have breakaway social groups, so go on, get in amongst it.

Move into the New Year rant over…

By Donna Kelly

Sometimes I wonder if the world is going mad. Or is it me? Probably me.

During the Christmassy period we looked at footage from one of our cameras and found someone wandering on the property, with their dog, later seen peering through the front door.

We were away for a few days at the time so I posted the image on social media and asked if anyone knew “this clown” and asked them to email me if they did.

I mean, in the country things do go missing, so you need to be a bit careful. And Glenlyon has a pretty nice community who looks out for each other. So, just putting the word out as well. Who knows who’s next.

Then I got an email from “the clown”.

He said he was really sorry, was just interested in having a quick look and promised not to return. All good.

Nah. Of course he didn’t apologise. He said he was just wanting a look at the school, which everyone knows is up for rent while we try town life (as in Daylesford) for a bit, without the agent. Strike one.

Then he said he entered through the main entrance but of course another one of the cameras spotted him walking across the yard. Strike two.

Finally he said having a beer while walking a dog under our Eureka flag on our property was acceptable in his world. Strike three.

I wrote back and mentioned that in any logical world it was trespassing, we have an agent for a reason and a simple sorry would have been appreciated.

I think that was a pretty reasonable reaction. Nothing too crazy. Told the police not to worry about it. And didn’t think much more about it.

Until last week when I noticed a comment from a new participant under the original “anyone know this clown” saying they think I am the clown. WTAF? Apparently people should be allowed to wander on private property. Who knew?

I wonder if anyone has told the police, lawyers and the courts this snippet of information. Going to make a hell of a difference to the court lists.

The other thing that was a bit nuts this week was someone posting, again on social media, that a certain business was not offering great service. Just their personal opinion – no facts to back anything up. Who does this stuff?

Wouldn’t you just mention it to their face, or send an email or even just stop going there. Nah, rather be a keyboard warrior.

The annoying thing was, and there was a torrent of comments saying how wonderful this business actually is, it was also one of the many essential services that saw us through the pandemic. And they did it really well then too.

As did many other businesses, trying to survive yes, but also dealing with a pretty hard-to-handle public at times. I remember one staffer in a shop saying to me that the big takeaway from Covid was who were the arseholes.

So, although Covid is slowly wandering away, or at least not as scary as it was once, a big shout out to those businesses who kept their doors open and made us feel welcome and safe. And cared about QR codes, licences and wearing masks and providing sanitiser.

We, and many others, remember you. That goes to Tony too, our delivery driver, who fortnight in and out, and weekly for a bit there, delivered local good news to our readers.

Oh, and to our staff who when we said we had to let people go because we were doing it too hard, offered to work for free, to help us ride out that initial storm.

Let’s be kind everyone. Been a tough few years. And everyone has their own recovery time. But please, unless you would like to rent a wonderful old school, keep off my property. Just sayin’… (Oh, I deleted my social media post.)

Do you recognise any of these bowlers?

The Daylesford Bowling Club will celebrate its 125th anniversary in April this year.

The club is keen to record and copy any photos, objects or records related to the club activities that current or former members may have at home or with family and friends.

The Daylesford & District Historical Society is assisting to photograph and scan items for the anniversary.

Email history@daylesford.net or contact the club committee representative Dot Bull on 0419 482 866 or Daylesford & District Museum curator Gary Lawrence on 0412 665 087.

The Daylesford Bowling Club was formed on April 17, 1899 and was opened on December 20, 1899 with 64 founding members. The first club president was J Wheeler and the first secretary was J Anderson.

In 1904, the club joined the North Western District Bowling Association and in 1907 the Daylesford Tennis Club was brought in.

This combined body then became The Daylesford Bowling and Tennis Club. The Bowling Club had four rinks and the Tennis Club had two asphalt courts.

with Eve Lamb

Lalgambook (Mount Franklin) crater rim walk

If you haven’t yet done the Lalgambook (Mount Franklin) crater rim walk, now’s a great time to get cracking.

I first sampled this little must-do hike several years ago as part of a longer guided walk led by Professor Barry Goanna Golding AM. The guided Golding trek had focussed on the significant Dja Dja Wurrung Aboriginal history of the wider landscape here, particularly including the Franklinford area, known to the Dja Dja Wurrung people as Larne-ne-barramul or the home of the emu.

Ever since then, I’ve always wanted to return to take a little longer to focus on the ancient extinct volcanic feature itself.  This prominent local landmark, Lalgambook (648 metre elevation) is part of the Hepburn State Regional Park jointly managed by Djaara (Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation)  and Parks Victoria.

The crater circuit stroll is just 1.7 km in length, so there’s few excuses for not doing it. But despite its very leisurely post-lunch length, that won’t do much to enhance your reputation as a serious bushwalker or rid you of that extra padding acquired over the festive season, this is a great little short walk.

To properly appreciate it, it’s best to understand something of both the geomorpholology of this ancient area and the Aboriginal mythology and significance of Lalgambook (Mount Franklin).

Situated about 10 km north of Daylesford and accessed off the Midland Highway via a road that traces an ancient breach path of lava exuded from the crater, Lalgambook was created by a fiery volcanic eruption about 470,000 years ago. Today it’s classed as a prominent, breached conical scoria cone with a deep crater.

The resultant caldera (large crater, formed by the eruption leading to the collapse of the volcano mouth) is one of the deepest in the Central Highlands. 

Lava flow from Mount Franklin and other volcanoes that preside over the surrounding rolling ancient plains had buried gold-bearing creeks that would become the ‘deep leads’ sought out and excavated by gold miners during the subsequent rush era.

The volcanic eruptions of Mount Franklin are believed to have been witnessed by members of the Dja Dja Wurrung Aboriginal tribe who referred to this ancient country as the ‘smoking grounds’ and to the mountain itself as Lalgambook. 

The literature records that “Mount Franklin and the surrounding area appears to have been a place of considerable significance to the Aboriginal people. Both ethnographical and archaeological evidence indicates that frequent large ceremonial gatherings took place in the area.^”.

Research had also led me to the following traditional creation story, as previously told by Justice B Nelson – Dja Dja Wurrung, Jaara – and published by Culture Victoria, telling the tale of two feuding volcanoes named Tarrengower  (overlooking today’s township of Maldon off to the north) and Lalgambook:

“A long, long time ago, long before anyone but the Traditional People walked our Country, our lands, rivers, mountains and animals alike, all had magical life. They had personalities, purpose, speech and they could think for themselves.

Tarrengower in the Dja Dja Wurrung means to be big and heavy and indeed he was just that; big, bold, wise and a very proud old volcano who had become very tired throwing out rocks and lava and preferred to sit humbly watching over the plains.

Another volcano called Lalgambook was a young, loud and cheeky volcano that started to challenge old Tarrengower’s wisdom and authority, and began grumbling and building up anger towards the old volcano. But Tarrengower, being the wise old volcano that he was, decided he should just try to ignore this cheeky little volcano.

Lalgambook grew even angrier that Tarrengower wasn’t acknowledging his threats and started to put on a display of smoke, ash and brimstone to impress the land and animals who were also watching, but this didn’t intimidate the wise old Tarrengower. Instead he just laughed at Lalgambook.

Lalgambook became so frustrated that he began to throw large rocks at Tarrengower who grumbled with annoyance at this cheeky volcano and Tarrengower now began to taunt young Lalgambook by telling him he wasn’t very strong at all because the rocks couldn’t reach him.

Lalgambook exploded with great fury, spurting out lava and smoke high into the sky and hurled gart gart in Tarrengower’s direction, but still could not reach him. This caused Lalgambook to completely blow his core!

Tarrengower’s anger eased and he just grumbled at this cheeky little volcano who was now just coughing and spluttering with no energy left at all.

All the rocks thrown by Lalgambook at Tarrengower can still be seen today and have formed what is known in the present day as the Guilford Plateau where the Jaara people would perform ceremonies on the Bora grounds also known as Yapene.”

Reflecting on this lively heritage, my tireless walking companion Paddy H and I elect to  start with a picnic inside the Lalgambook caldera which these days is an arboretum featuring established leafy exotics including silver birch, white poplar, sycamore and Sequoia sempervirens (Californian Redwoods).

It’s an attractive spot offering free camping complete with composting loos, and following our lazy picnic here, we start out on the signposted crater rim walk from the western side of the caldera.

It’s a very gentle climb through pine trees and other exotics, gaining some expansive views to the west to gradually reach the summit.

All the while I’m keeping an eagle eye out for rumoured semi-precious gemstones as I remember Prof Golding saying something about their being here. I’ve since read that, as a consequence of the now extinct volcano erupting all of those thousands of years ago: “the coarse ejecta exposed around the summit includes red and green olivine and megacrysts of high-temperature (some of the largest known Victorian examples) and orthoclase (to 7 cm long) and augite (over 9 cm long).”  

Megacrysts? The potential research associated with this place is probably endless…

By about the half-way mark I still haven’t located any megacrysts, but we’ve reach the summit telecommunications tower and don’t spend too much time here before we begin the descent, sunlight filtered and flickering through the pines.  

It need be noted here that the country around Mount Franklin was described in 1855 as “thickly timbered with box and stringbark”. Unfortunately, in 1944, a devastating bushfire destroyed most of the native vegetation on the mount.

As a result, the inner and outer slopes of the crater were planted with the exotic species we see today, mainly conifers. The caldera was planted with the leafy ornamentals I mentioned earlier, and whose shade we soon reach again to find that during our walk, more campers have rolled up to forest bathe in its charms.

At this time of the year, summer school holidays, the short but heritage-rich Lalgambook crater rim walk is a choice option for young families to sample, while this beautiful leafy free camping and picnic area is well worth a visit in its own right.

Words and Images: Eve Lamb

The Central Victorian folk-roots musical festival, Newstead Live, has announced its line-up for 2024.

There are almost 40 acts who will all perform multiple times over the four days of the festival with headliners including Austral, Sam Buckingham and the Tuck Shop Ladies and Greg Champion, who bring their unique comedy styles alive with music.

Other acts include Apolline, Khristian Mizzi, JoJo Smith, Dingo’s Breakfast, John Flanagan Band, Lucy Wise and the always glamorous and highly infectious The Royal High Jinx.

According to Golden Guitar winner and stalwart of the long running Coodabeen Champions radio show, Greg Champion, Newstead Live holds a special place in the festival calendar.

“As the festival scene has kept evolving in recent years, Newstead has taken prime place on the festival landscape. What Newstead offers is getting rarer, a weekend of great artists doing great shows.”

Running over the January 2024 long weekend, Newstead Live offers six performance stages in easy walking distance around Newstead and there are always impromptu performances and jams in the streets between venues and around the pub.

There is a wide range of food and drinks from the local Newstead traders as well as a selection of van options. And there are plenty of accommodation choices in the district, including two specialty campgrounds in Newstead.

Festival director Kelly Skinner is always amazed when first-time attendees tell her Newstead Live is the best-kept secret.

“Every year I have people come up and tell me how they have been blown away by the quality of our festival and what a fantastic time they have had, like they are really surprised by that.

“However, although we are a small town, we know how to put on a big success of a festival, so I hope to have plenty more people tell me this year how surprised they are.”

Circle Saturday, January 27 on your calendar.

Harry Hookey is coming back to Mollongghip Hall on that date.

The evening is set to get started with food and drinks at 6pm followed by Harry’s music from 8pm.

Harry Hook Is Real, also known as Harry Hookey, is an ARIA-nominated artist and songwriter with a rich history of performances across Australia, Europe, and the USA.

From state theatres to small halls, he’s played alongside Kasey Chambers and supporting legends like Lucinda Williams, Paul Kelly, Ryan Bingham, and Busby Marou.

Entry to catch him live and playing in person is $25 with under 16s free.

A free workshop, produced by Justice Connect, “Preparing for your future: A conversation guide for the LGBTIQA+ community” is specifically designed to encourage older people to engage with the process of future planning.

A facilitator from Justice Connect will expertly lead people through the conversation guide, answer questions and help discuss ideas.

The workshop, on Monday, January 29 at the Daylesford Neighbourhood Centre, is funded by Justice Connect, The Country LGBTIQA+ Inclusion Program – Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health and the Silver Rainbow Social Club – Castlemaine and Hepburn Shire.

Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health spokesperson Belinda Brain said talking about older age was not always easy.

“However planning now means that you take the steps you need so you can live the life you want as you age,” she said.

“People are invited to attend this free 2.5-hour workshop that will help them clarify what matters most to them and help them communicate their wishes and decisions to the people around them.”

The workshop runs from 11am to 2pm and lunch will be provided with RSVPs essential for catering. Register at www.surveymonkey.com/r/PFYFJan29

Words: Donna Kelly