Melville Caves

MELVILLE CAVES, TREKKING & PADDLING.

A Google search will show you that Melville Caves can be found in Kooyoora National Park, just out of Inglewood in North-West Victoria. The environment is one of massive natural rock formations amongst box iron-bark forests. The views from the top are absolutely spectacular and this is what the Year 9 Trekking and Paddling class experienced on a two day bushwalk.

Students from Mr Jones’ class where accompanied by James Woods, Ms Utber and Ian Fordyce as they participated in some active education and discovered by experiencing! 20KG backpacks with two day’s supplies made the uphill climbing intense, but the considerate guidance by Ian Fordyce saw all of us succeed in reaching the camping ground to set up tents for the overnight stay.

You would have thought that during mid-week you might come across an occasional camper, however on this walk we shared the grounds with 75 third-year environmental science students from LaTrobe University who were designing walks just like the one we had just completed.

After some gourmet meals cooked by each of the student groups were consumed, the evening was spent playing memory games and then a walk through Melville Caves- by torchlight! The caves are where the notorious bushranger, Captain Francis Melville, used to hide out way back in the 1800’s.

The brand new day saw most of us rested up and ready to tackle some more of the walking tracks found in the area. Again the scenery did not disappoint and the boys with their ‘parkour’, kept us entertained along the way.

Trekking and Paddling is a VMG class that teaches you about the environment while providing opportunities to experience the wonderful Australian outdoors. We are a lucky country with the variety of our environments and we are certainly lucky students that can experience it!