News
Moogji Aboriginal Council - Come and Try XC Skiing and Biathlon Weekend
Published Fri 08 Sep 2017
On the weekend of the 2nd and 3rd September, youth from the Moogji Aboriginal Council participated in a Come and Try XC Skiing and Biathlon Camp’ at Mt Hotham.
The Camp was run by the East Gippsland Biathlon Club (EGBC), with administration support from NSW Biathlon, provided a unique opportunity for Moogji youth from Orbost in far East Gippsland to visit Mt Hotham and experience some snow sports.
The Camp began early on Saturday morning with everyone meeting at the Moogji Centre in Orbost and driving up to Mt Hotham in convey. On the way up to Hotham, snow was seen and for some it was their first time seeing snow which added to the mounting excitement.
The Camp started with a XC Skiing lesson before lunch at Wire Plain and then another lesson and ski up the Wonderland trail after lunch. It was amazing to see the attendees pick up XC skiing so quickly and enjoy the challenge. Everyone was amazed at the natural beauty of the environment. The participants learnt about the importance of drinking lots of water and how to dress appropriately for XC skiing, amongst other things.
Saturday night was spent camping out at Swifts Creek P-12 School, playing card games and socialising together. On Sunday morning the group woke early to extremely high winds and a number of trees down over the road on the drive up Hotham. Due to the high winds it was decided not to undertake the Biathlon shooting session at Whisky Flat, however, everyone enjoyed the tour of the Range and learning about the sport from 2006 Biathlon Olympian and EGBC Club Coach Cameron Morton. Due to the severe wind warning it was decided to go tobogganing and enjoy some fun playing in the fantastic snow Hotham had to offer.
The EGBC and Moogji Aboriginal Council would like to thank Hotham Resort Management for its support of the program and the Swifts Creek P – 12 School for their generosity in letting us camp out at the College.
Due to the enormous success of the weekend, it was decided to aim to make the Ski camp at Hotham an annual initiative for the youth of Moogji.
