Camps, excursions and activities. 

Year 9 Bushwalking Camp

In Week 10 of Term 1, fourteen Year 9 students, two staff members, and one parent took part in the annual Bushwalk Camp - an experience designed to challenge, inspire, and create lasting memories. 

All campgrounds and walking tracks had reopened following the 2024/2025 summer bushfires, allowing us to return to our usual route: 

• Day 1, Halls Gap – Delley’s Bridge to Borough Huts Campground (14 km); 

• Day 2, Borough Huts Campground to Stony Creek Campground via Mount Rosea (12 km); 

• Day 3, Stony Creek Campground back to Halls Gap via the Pinnacle (10 km).

   

Conditions were near perfect for hiking - albeit warm - as students covered almost 40 km over the course of the camp, carrying everything they needed on their backs. This is no easy feat and certainly not a camp for the faint-hearted. It requires resilience, teamwork, and a great deal of preparation.

The group finished their journey back in Halls Gap, where they were rewarded with a well-earned ice cream and a very enjoyable pub meal at the Halls Gap Hotel - a fitting celebration of their efforts and determination.

Whether the camp sparked a newfound love for hiking and the outdoors or was simply a rewarding personal milestone, we hope each participant took something valuable away from the experience and feels proud of what they achieved.

A big thank you to Mr Tatchell, Mrs Griffiths, and our amazing parent volunteer, Shannon Geddes, for supporting the students and making this camp possible. 

It was particularly special to have both Mrs Griffiths and Shannon complete the camp alongside their Year 9 children, Layla and Emmett, respectively - a memory they will cherish forever.

VCE Art Excursion to Melbourne Galleries

Dedicated VCE Art Making and Exhibiting students, Jaya and Kailie, spent part of their school holidays immersed in Melbourne’s vibrant arts scene on Wednesday 15 April, visiting a range of thought-provoking exhibitions.

As part of the VCE Art Making and Exhibiting study design, students are required to engage with diverse exhibitions and critically reflect on these experiences in their SACs and final exam. Jaya and Kailie embraced this opportunity, attending several interesting exhibitions, including the iconic retrospective of Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo’s fashion house Comme des Garçons at the National Gallery of Victoria. Upon entering, viewers were transported onto a runway, with flashing lights and the sound of cameras creating an immersive atmosphere. Each curated space complemented the designers’ visionary works, celebrating their influential careers.

The students also visited the Ian Potter Centre to view the 2026 Top Arts exhibition, showcasing exemplary work from high-achieving VCE Art Making and Exhibiting students from 2025. The diversity of materials, techniques, and themes was striking—from oil painting to crochet, and from explorations of self-identity to commentary on global issues such as climate change. The exhibition offered a valuable insight into the breadth and depth of student work across the state.

Continuing their exploration, the group visited Flinders Lane Gallery, where they encountered sculptural works by local Banyena artist Donal Molloy-Drum. These works provided a strong example of contemporary practice, by regional artists, within a commercial gallery setting.

No visit to Melbourne’s art precinct would be complete without a walk through Hosier Lane, to view the latest layer of street art. During this visit, themes of feminism were particularly prominent. Notably, ceramic elements had been incorporated into the street artworks, suggesting the emergence of new and experimental approaches of street art.

Overall, the excursion was an enriching and inspiring experience that deepened students’ understanding of contemporary art practices across a range of contexts.

Julie Bond

Art Teacher