A history of the Bendigo Alpine Club/Bendigo Bushwalkers from 1989
The Bendigo Alpine Club in the early 1990s was a large club with a long list of activities. At that time, we canoed the Loddon, Campaspe, Yarra, Murray, Big, Ovens, Goulburn, Howqua, King, Coliban, Snowy and Glenelg rivers. There were a hundred or more mainly local day walks. There were as many overnight walks and base camps in the Grampians, Alpine areas, Warrumbungles, Wilson's Promontory, South Coast, Lower Glenelg, Hattah Lakes, Wyperfeld, Tasmania, Flinder's Ranges and Larapinta. Many members completed the whole of the Alpine Track during that time.
Our cyclists covered much of Central Victoria, as well as participating in the Great Victorian Bike Ride. We used to rock climb at Melville Caves and Mt Arapiles. We skied all over the Victorian Alps. We were regulars at the Aardvark Ski Club at Mt. Hotham. Rock climbing and skiing were curtailed because of the difficulty in complying with insurance policies. It was as a consequence of this that we changed our name in July 2004 from Bendigo Alpine Club to Bendigo Bushwalkers.
Our socials included bush dances, progressive dinners, sell and swap nights and ice skating. We participated in track clearing weekends run by Federation of Victorian Walking Clubs and in various revegetation projects.
We ran courses in orienteering, rock climbing, first aid, canoeing, navigation and skiing. Our guest speakers at monthly meetings added to our commitment to training and education.
By the mid 2000s numbers of members had declined, their ages had increased and consequently there were fewer activities on offer. It made sense to increase numbers of members and activities by amalgamating with the Bendigo Outdoor Club. We did this in 2008, and the signs are that this has been beneficial to both clubs.
