Meetings

Tuesday, 19th November 2024  at 7.30- 9.00 pm via Zoom

Topic:  Freedom to Roam- Options for bushwalkers? Presenter: Bill Boyd – Former President BNSW and Northern Rivers
Bushwalkers Club (NRBC), Current Newsletter Editor, NRBC . “Warning! Friendly Forest Workers Ahead!” Thus claimed a sign in the highlands of Scotland, some 700 km into the Scottish National Trail. Scotland’s law provides the Right to Roam, law that has opened the country up to (almost) unfettered hiking access. England’s Public Rights of Way, Bridleways and Permissive Access supports Freedom to Roam. And Europe is criss-crossed with a well-developed network of clearly signposted short (PR) and long (GR) distance tracks, giving hikers access to just about everywhere. Is there something we could learn here in Australia?

Agenda

Tuesday 21 st May 2024 at 7:30 – 9:00 PM AEST via Zoom

Topic: CBC Flourishing with Leadership Training. Presented John Evans from Canberra Bushwalking Club. John Evans told how Canberra Bushwalking Club (CBC) has taken to our leadership training course with gusto and has achieved fantastic results such as enhanced team spirit.

Minutes

Agenda

ONLINE 7.30 pm Tuesday, 20th February, 2024

Topic: National Park Closures.Speaker from NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. An informative and fascinating talk by NPWS that considered how climate change is affecting our national parks and reserves and increasing the likelihood of park closures. This was a unique opportunity to hear first hand how closure decisions are made and to ask questions on potential future park closures, conditions leading to closure and likely remediation strategies.

Minutes

Agenda

ONLINE 7.30 pm Tuesday, 21st November, 2023

Topic: Rewilding Lake Pedder. Presenter: Tabatha Badger – campaign director of Restore Lake Pedder. It has been 51 years since Lake Pedder’s temporary flooding and it is now the conclusion of Pedder’s impounding dam’s lifespan. Lake Pedder’s revival is inevitable, amidst a climate and biodiversity crisis the Tasmanian and Federal Government could restore this global icon and show that humanity can turn the tide on environmental destruction. Registration essential.

See the Agenda and past minutes here.

Video

Note the Special Motion: To grant honorary life membership to Bushwalking NSW Inc. to Keith Maxwell & Margaret Covi

ONLINE Tuesday 16 May 2023 at 7.20 for 7.30 pm

Topic: Member Jungle: Making club management easier. Presenter: Peter Whitely, Northern Rivers Bushwalking Club Membership Officer

Peter  discussed the administrative issues previously being faced by NRBC along with a real time demonstration of how the club uses the new system. He also discussed benefits delivered including:
● more time for membership work (53 new members joined over
9 weeks)
● reduced overhead of President
● $7 per member for full automation package
● 40hrs to renew 350 members reduced to 1-2 hours
● ease of joining events and discussing weather
● new members attracted to committee due to less work required.
Agenda

ONLINE Tuesday 21 February 2023 at 7 for 7.30 pm

Topic: Splendour Rock: A Bushwalkers Memorial. Presenter: Keith Maxwell, Bushwalking NSW’s Honorary Historian, former President of BSAR. Splendour Rock honours thirteen (13) bushwalkers from bushwalking clubs who died on active service during WWII. The book answers so many questions such as, who were the thirteen (13) young men, how did they die and what did they contribute to bushwalking? How have they since been remembered? Who cast the Splendour Rock plaque and when /how was it installed and then dedicated? Who were the bushwalkers who served and returned? What is the story behind the other four memorials near Splendour Rock?

Minutes

Agenda

ONLINE Tuesday 17 May 2022

Topic: Commercial Development in National Parks?

We are concerned that commercial enterprises are gaining access to build private lodges in our National Parks. These developments may displace traditional camping options, but more importantly, they destroy the character of wilderness which our National Parks have been established to preserve. As Bob Brown says: “a wilderness lodge is a non-sequitur”.

Are these developments legal? What framework allows these developments to occur? What are the implications of the recent amendments to the NPW Act that appear to give the Minister power to approve developments in national park estate that are not consistent with a plan of management? Does this mean that the community will have no opportunity to comment on proposed developments or even know about them in advance? Hear Dr Christopher Birch S.C. on this important topic.

Read the Agenda. See the video of the presentation. Read the minutes.

ONLINE Tuesday 15 February 2022 

We heard two keynote speakers discuss their latest books.

Author talk by Dr Les Higgins: Connect with Nature: One of the Best Things You Can Do for Yourself, Others and Planet Earth. In his talk, Les shared something of the journey that has taken him – via bushwalking, trekking and other nature activities – from an acquaintanceship with nature to a deep subjective connection with it. He will also explain how he came to write a book that is both a practical manual and a book with a message for our times – that connecting with nature is good for everyone and good for nature.

Author talk by Leonie Bell: LOST: Tales of getting lost in the NSW bush. Entertained us with this delightful collection of historical accounts of people getting lost in the NSW bush! The book contains accounts of these and more: Lost Locals, Lost Children, Lost on a Stroll, Lost in the post.

See the meeting  agenda. Read the Minutes. Watch the video of the meeting.

Tuesday 16 November  2021 at  7 for 7.30 pm via Zoom
Topic: Meet the management committee. At this month’s Bushwalking NSW General Meeting we had an opportunity for delegates to get to know the Bushwalking NSW Management Committee (BNSW MC)! It is important for members to know the Management Committee — effectively Bushwalking NSW’s Board of Directors. Each committee member gave  a short introduction to themselves and their role on the BNSW MC.

Read the minutes. See the Agenda here

Tuesday 18 May 2021, 7pm General Meeting via Zoom

Topic: Luxury Lodges = Wilderness Lost. Speaker: James McCormack, Editor of Wild Magazine joined us online via Zoom to talk about the critical issue of luxury lodges encroaching on our National Parks.  James has researched and written a two-part series in Wild addressing the push for luxury lodges and other accommodation to be built inside our national park estate. Check out the Agenda. Read the minutes.

Tuesday 16 February 2021, 7pm Online General Meeting

Dr Melissa Harper, from the University of Queensland, presented the most recent edition of her book: The Ways of the Bushwalker : On foot in Australia. This witty book reveals how the ordinary act of walking can become extraordinary. Read the minutes.

Tuesday, 24th November, 2020, 7pm Online Special General Meeting plus General Meeting

Topic: Making Tracks: How to attract $7 million+ in new walking tracks.  Our clubs were invited to our Special General Meeting immediately prior to the November General Meeting with the purpose of approving the updated Constitution of Bushwalking NSW Inc.  Read the Agenda. Read the Notice of Special General Meeting Watch the video: Making Tracks Bushwalking NSW General Meeting presentation

Tuesday, 19th May, 2020, 7pm ONLINE

Topic: Adapting to the new bushfire conditions.

Speaker: Professor David Bowman, Professor of Pyrogeography and Fire Science, University of Tasmania, spoke to us about the new bushfire conditions we are facing and the surprising things we need to consider to adapt to them. Our recent unprecedented bushfire season disrupted many of our outdoor adventure plans and devastated our national parks and wildlife. Unfortunately, with rising temperatures and drier years, this is only part of a trend. Hear David’s incredibly deep and broad understanding of: how bushfire affects our natural environment, what future we can expect for the national parks and wild places we love to walk in, and how we can adapt to the new conditions.  Watch David’s talk.  David recommended this book:Fire Country – How Indigenous Fire Management could Help Save Australiaby Victor Steffensen.  David recommended this film which explains everything he is talking about:Wilder than Wild: Fire, Forests and the Future.  Read the meeting  agenda. See the minutes.

Tuesday, 18th February, 2020, 7pm 

Topic: Exploring with teenagers and young adults. Chris Gersch (Blue Steel Dash club walks leader) shared how Blue Steel Dash managed to take a group of teenagers away for 3 weeks walking across Nepal’s Annapurna Circuit. Chris went into some of the prior preparation that allowed for this, the attitudes of the group members whilst in Nepal, and the dynamics between the older and younger members. Chris also covered approaches Blue Steel Dash took to create a safe environment for the younger members and instill that level of trust from not only those members, but their parents as well.

Plus  Constitution Update- Review Bushwalking NSW’s new draft constitution here. The Constitutional changes were discussed at the February 2020 General Meeting. Agenda.

Tuesday 19 November 2019 Redfern Town Hall 7 pm. Topic: The Great West Walk, 

See The Great West Walk slides here.

Presented by Ian Napier, President of The Walking Volunteers. This 65-kilometre walk stretching from Parramatta to the foot of the Blue Mountains, crosses a kaleidoscope of varying landscapes, including protected Cumberland Plain woodland, local river systems, public parklands, some of Australia’s oldest architecture and Western Sydney’s iconic urban landscapes. While the terrain is relatively flat and an abundance of shared paths make for easy walking, it is the scenery that is the great surprise. Our presenter, Ian Napier  shared photos to illustrate the flavour of the route, its surprises and memorable stretches.
Ian also touched on the role of The Walking Volunteers in the process of creating the route, and the government’s concept of the Green Grid.

Read the agenda. Read the minutes. See some photos of the meeting here.

Tuesday 21 May 2019 Redfern Town Hall  7 pm. Topic: Engaging with Young People in Outdoor Adventure. Speaker: Matt Sawyer, Sport Integrity Unit, Office of Sport. Matt’s presentation looked at the benefits of including young people in Bushwalking Clubs,  creating a club suitable for young people, support available to include young people, Member Protection and your Bushwalking Club. Read the agenda. Listen to the audio of the night. BNSW presentation.   Duke of Edinburgh Awards presentation.   Office of Sport presentation. 

Tuesday 19 February 2019 Redfern Town Hall  7 pm. Topic: Bushwalking with a Purpose. There is more to bushwalking than bush walking.Speaker: Bush Explorer Yuri Bolotin talked about the difference between walking in the bush and bushwalking with a purpose. He argued that adding a purpose to your regular bush adventures could exponentially raise satisfaction and enjoyment levels of your bushwalking activities. It could even be a key to life’s happiness!See the presentation. Read the minutes. Read the agenda.

November 2018Topic: The ‘Save Kosci’ protest walk – a report from the front line. This year the NSW Government passed the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act 2018, giving feral horses and other feral animals the right to continue damaging this unique NSW National Park, and endangering a host of threatened native species.  The ‘Save Kosci’ protest walk aims to make repeal of the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act an issue in the March 2019 NSW election.   Read the minutes. Read the agenda.

20-21 October, Annual Bush Camp, Bungonia. Members enjoyed day-walks, a sausage sizzle, a talk by Sharon Fulcher on ‘Are you a bio-secure bushwalker?’, and ‘How to keep your club on track’ workshop, and met old friends and new from across NSW & the ACT. More details.

May 2018  Topic: What is the impact of raising Warragamba dam wall? Alex Allchin, President, Bushwalking NSW  informed us about the latest in the NSW state government’s plans to raise the Warragamba Dam wall. The proposal would, during flood events, inundate 4,700 hectares of pristine World Heritage listed national parks and 65 kilometres of wild rivers – twice the length of the Franklin River that was under threat in the 1980s. Read the minutes. Read theagenda .

February 2018 Topic: Keeping Your Club on Track- Tips for the smooth running of bushwalking clubs. Read the agenda. See the presentation. Share your tips for how you or your club, keeps your club on track using this form. Read  the minutes.

November 2017  Our keynote speaker was Carol Isaacs on the topic Adventure Conservation Adventures. Do you enjoy going beyond? Do you like going to wild places that few other people get to see?  By engaging in Adventure Conservation you can ‘go beyond’. Instead of just admiring nature, you can support its flourishing, and travel to very remote wild places. Carol is an experienced Adventure Conservationist with a few stories to tell about what it is like, and how you can engage in this exciting activity. Read the Minutes. Read more.

May 2017  Our keynote speaker was Sharon Fulcher, Dip. Ed. Sharon is an Environmental Educator and NPWS Conservation Volunteer, who is currently completing a Masters of Environmental Science. She spoke on the topic ‘How can we Leave No Trace’ when bushwalking?’.  Minimal Impact Bushwalking (MIB) strives to minimize our impact on the outdoors while allowing our immersion in it. Bio-security is everyone’s responsibility but has largely been missing from our MIB code. This presentation looked at the latest MIB information and resources as well as raising issues around bio-security, and how bushwalkers can aid in keeping our environment ‘clean’. View Sharon’s fabulous presentation, read the agenda and the minutes.

Feb 2017 GM Our keynote speaker was Greg Kirk, Special Ambulance Rescue Team Paramedic on the topic “How bushwalkers can prepare for rescue operations”. Here is the agenda and the interesting presentation with information on how to maintain bushwalker access by preventing the sell-off of Crown Roads. The minutes are here.

Nov 2016 GM The keynote presentations was by Matt McClelland and Helen Smith. The topics were “Bushwalking 101”, a website all about helping people better settle into bushwalking with information on everything from how to tie your shoelaces, through to collecting water in remote places, and “Naturally Accessible”, bushwalking for those with people with mobility restrictions.

Bushwalking NSW also released new Risk Management Guidelines which were developed by:

Read the agenda and more about the speakers  here.  View the minutes here.

May 2016 GM We heard speaker, Anne McLeod present her biography of Marie Byles “The Summit of Her Ambition: the spirited life of Marie Byles”. Read about her presentation and view the agenda  here. View the minutes here.

Feb 2016 GM: Our keynote speaker Dr Les Higgins talked on bushwalking in the light of what is known about our need for nature and the astounding array of benefits that flow from meeting that need. You can download Les’ slides from here, and listen to his talk by clicking the forward arrow below. Please note that the recording is in it’s ‘raw’ format. You may like to fast forward through the beginning when the audience are providing their feedback. Listen to Les’s talk:

The following links will provide the February 2016 General Meeting Agenda, Bushwalking NSW Presentation and Minutes. You can find out more about Les here.

17 Feb 2015 GM: Read the minutes.

19 May 2015 GM: Read the minutes.

17 Nov 2015 GM: The keynote speaker at the November General Meeting was Yuri Bolotin talking about the Gardens of Stone in Focus photographic competition. Here is the meeting Agenda and Presentation and Minutes.

18 February 2014 GM: Read the minutes .

18 February 2014 GM: Read the agenda .

20 May 2014 GM: Read the minutes .