OKA Weekend at Edi Cutting Friday 9th – Monday 12th March 2007

What a great time I had at the OKA Rally on the long weekend in March at Edi Cutting! I travelled with my friend Rowena in her OKA. I had just experienced a few bad days as my motorhome had a wrecked gear box and was out of action. I was stranded. Rowena came to my rescue and I went with her to Edi, north of Whitfield where the bushfires had raged over the hills a few months earlier. The area was still very dry but the cool, refreshing, running water in the King River made you forget about those devastating fires. The campsite was good, not overcrowded and mainly flat under the shade of the gum trees. The central campfire was the meeting place for all the OKA owners and their families.

On the Friday evening just Rowena and I were camped beside the river. I was a ‘ring-in’ as I had my tent – a bit different to my Mazda bus motorhome. What would this weekend be like with all these 4WD enthusiasts? I would wait and see. Friday evening saw us light the campfire and cook tea. I always enjoy this part of camping – the campfire, the stories told and the friendliness of the campers. However, there were just two of us. Then Tiger, the friendly dog from the campers next door paid a visit and jumped up on my lap. She was quite content there for quite awhile.

Next morning Greg and Maree Boyle arrived with their four children, twins Thomas and Phillip, Emma and Robert in their OKA with everything from firewood to an extra tent for the kids. More OKAs were expected. After the quietness of the previous night, Saturday was full of excitement. Each OKA, as it arrived, did the mandatory horn blast as it quickly surveyed the campsite from the highway above. The dogs next door did not know what was happening! Was it some alien spaceship arriving to destroy the tranquil and sereneness of the King River? By the time the fifth OKA arrived, the dogs plus the campers were accustomed to the special OKA welcome and the sight of the large off road vehicles!

The five OKAs were all different although their basic shape was the same. Some of the owners showed me their vehicle and how they had adapted it to suit their needs. Andrew’s was decked out like a motorhome with a special platform out the back so you could sit and watch the scenery or watch the world go by without getting muddy or wet in the out-of–the-way places his 4WD vehicle could go. Chris and Arlene had a fold out slide-on camper on the back with a tent for their two sons, Bradley and Wyatt. Peter and Serina arrived with their young son, Cameron who had a great time playing with the other kids.

The children certainly enjoy their many OKA camping weekends. They played and swam in the river, took turns in riding Brad’s and Wyatt’s bikes, played cricket or a special OKA version of cricket, stoked up the campfire from the ashes each morning and generally had a thoroughly good time together. The adults enjoyed a swim or paddle in the river which doubled as the bath, each other’s company around the campfire, all the interesting and varied conversations or just relaxed with a book or magazine away from the bustle of home life.

Unusual entertainment was when Chris, Greg and Peter were standing near the opened front passenger door of Chris’s vehicle when he suddenly yelled, “Snake!� Greg leapt up into the vehicle from a standing start while Chris and Peter broke the jumping backwards record! A 2 foot (60cm) red belly black snake was eventually caught but not until it had been outwitted by the fellas in its ‘hide and seek’ game! Everyone else congregated at a safe distance around the OKA. The resultant discussion on snakes by Maree to the assembled youngsters reminded them to take care in the bush. A great “hands-on� teaching episode. Little Cameron nervously asked if the tail section of the snake was safe to hold so that he could go and show his parents part of the unwelcomed intruder.

That night while all were gathered around the campfire, the children toasted marshmallows for their special treat. Later the Boyle children shared Glow in the Dark sticks with their friends. Rowena entertained us with her didgeridoo playing while I accompanied her on the clap sticks. Some of the children also wanted to participate so Rowena had different accompaniment rhythms with a youngster tapping the sticks. We have some budding percussionists within the group!

On Sunday afternoon Ian and Paul arrived in one OKA to join the group and were immediately told of the snake episode and the previous evening’s entertainment. Paul had just arrived back from Darwin that morning so it was a marvelous effort for him to come. Just shows that some people just can’t stay away from their OKA rallies! Another great night followed and some could not pull themselves away from the interesting topics that were discussed around the campfire. I believe it was about 1am before the fire was allowed to wane and the last OKA owners retired for some sleep. Just as well it was a long weekend!

Next day most OKAs departed at varying times during the day while Andrew, Ian and Paul remained for another night’s get together. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the weekend and all were pleased they had made the special effort to attend. It started out to be a record low for the number of OKAs attending a rally (only one and a tent for Friday night!) but the weekend grew to six OKAs plus an extra owner gaining a ride! For most it was their first visit to the beautiful free campsite of Edi Cutting with pit toilets. What a great way to find out about different parts of Victoria with your friends in the OKA Club. Many thanks to Rowena for organizing the weekend and to everyone for accepting me as an Honorary OKA member for the weekend.

Margaret Cooper