6th Bridgewater (Vic) Vintage Extravaganza 18-21 Feb 2021

[bert66]

Without tempting fate too much we are very hopeful that the 6th Annual Bridgewater get together will proceed as planned. I know that lots and lots of you are booked in and are hopeful too. We will make the most of whatever it looks like 😁. We know things are uncertain and subject to what might be rapid change.

A great opportunity to come together again and talk Caravans and relax at a fantastic location.

So here’s the plan subject to any further COVID restrictions ( with some super exciting additions from last time we met )

Booking
If you have paid a deposit already then please pay in full before the get together as this will allow for COVID contactless check-in.
Rhonda from the park will send out invoices after the Australia Day weekend by email if you have paid a deposit but it would be good if you can confirm and pay as soon as possible to secure your booking.

There are still a very limited number of sites available at Bridgewater Caravan Park
Dog friendly, vintage caravan friendly.
If you have decided you can’t make it but have a booking please cancel so others can join us.

Friday
Friday afternoon car rally from the inventive and ingenious minds of Cory and Maggie - a boot load of fun and adventure.
( don’t worry, it won’t be as long as the year 1 epic we put together ! )

BYO BBQ on Friday night with live music and local wine tasting.

Saturday
Join in Saturday's "Out of your Garage" Garage Sale - set up a stall and sell your vintage and other caravan items or browse and snap up a bargain.

We will arrange a Saturday ‘morning tea’ with delights from the Bridgewater Bakehouse courtesy of the raffle donations from last year’s trivia night.

Local events that hopefully will also be on that weekend:
Maldon Antiques and Collectables Fair ( Sat. and Sunday )
Newstead Swap Meet - Sat. from 7am still TBC ?
Local wineries including Pete and friends at Waterwheel in Bridgey.
Shopping in vintage stores in Castlemaine, Bendigo and Inglewood.
Explore surrounding towns or relax by your van, catch up with friends new and old, and enjoy the surrounds.

Saturday Dinner and Trivia spectacular
Trivia will be on again at the Bridgewater Hotel !
You need to book directly with the pub on 5437 3576 sooner rather than later as places are limited. Order off the menu on the night.
Prize donations for the half time raffle are very welcome and much appreciated.

Coffee will be on site again over the weekend.

Join us on Facebook and share with others if you haven’t already.

Bridgewater Vintage Caravan Weekend 


Hoping to see you there and that all Borders are open!

[aussieute]

Sorry Bert had to cancel due to health so one site available to any one wanting to go cheers chris

[bert66]

Hello again, just a quick update.

Things are looking positive for a big weekend and the park will be full.
There are still some bookings which have not been confirmed so if you are one of those please contact the caravan park and speak to Rhonda or Darren to confirm or discuss further ASAP to ensure you are not disappointed and so we can maximise participation - 5437 3086.

If you haven’t booked there may still be some options as the park is keen to fit as many in as possible - give them a ring to discuss.

The park won’t be taking bookings for 2022 until after this years event.

A reminder that this is not a public event for sightseers.

If you will be attending dinner and trivia at the pub please ring and book - Bridgewater Hotel - 5437 3576. Tell them you are with the Vintage Caravanners. Let’s hope the weather is ok as we will all be outside again in their super duper beer garden.

Now is the time to start thinking about getting your things organised for the “Out of your Garage” Garage Sale stall.

Donations for the trivia night raffle appreciated.

If last years winners could bring the perpetual “ Trivia Champions Cup” with them that would be great - let’s see if you can retain it .......

Looking forward to see you again! 😁☀️🎪🏆

[bert66]

Mmmmmm
We are still hopeful of going ahead - obviously the restrictions on travel are out of our hands but we are still hopeful they will be gone come Thursday morning and the sun will be shining.
Can I ask that you not contact the caravan park re refunds etc. I will speak to them and put up a further post. I will provide an update when I have some news.
Obviously if you feel the need to cancel at this stage that is a matter for you but we are hoping for the best.

Thanks

[bert66]

Ok, update from the caravan park - they are keen to make it work if restrictions allow. Let’s hope so.

In the event that we can’t viably go ahead your fee can be transferred to your site for next year or alternatively they will provide a full refund.
There is unlikely to be any further news about whether we can proceed until the Govt. announce any change in restrictions next week.

Thanks and let’s hope for the best.

[nickd15]

Thanks for the update and we have our fingers and toes crossed.

[bert66]

Dan says “Pack the Van”

Bring a mask and sunscreen - see you there !
😀👍

[bert66]

Time to rebook.
Thanks to everyone who made it such a great weekend and particularly to the caravan park and pub.
If you can rebook and haven’t done so already then now is the time.
Next years dates are again 17 to 20 Feb.
If you were unable to make it this year or couldn’t secure a site then get in now.

There will be a few changes next year and it will no doubt it will be bigger again.
The park will endeavour to keep all modern vans at the South end of the park so if you have friends booking who don’t have a vintage van they can expect to be at that end of the park and not next to your vintage van - it is a vintage caravan week end after all and we want to keep the vintage vans together in one area. We know you will understand.

Some of the sites are very large. If you were on a large site and think it would be ok to share it with friends who also have a vintage van then please let the park know. This allows us to maximise attendance.

The Park are very enthusiastic and will be working with us to make sure the weekend next year is a great one so feedback now will be welcomed and assists planning.

For example do you think we should have a specified time for public attendance. As the news gets out it is I inevitable that more of the public will be filtering in - if we limited it to say ( Sat 2 til 4 ? like the Nationals ) then people could choose to have their vans open or closed rather than have the public in all week end. Otherwise we can tell the public not to attend outside those hours and the Park will support that.

If you have any suggestions or constructive criticism that we can learn from then please post or send me a private message about that.

Safe travels til then.

[bert66]

It appears there is now a waiting list for next year. This means it would be greatly appreciated if you could consider sharing your site with someone else if your site is one of the larger ones. That will help maximise attendance.

If you are prepared to do so please contact the Park and speak to Rhonda or Darren. ph. 5437 3086

Thanks again
😀

[Don Ricardo]

Hi all,

Well the 6th Bridgewater Vintage Extravaganza held on 18 to 21 February 2021 has come and gone. But what a great weekend it was! Congratulations and thanks to Bert66 and Florence who once again organised an absolutely brilliant weekend.

The Bridgewater Caravan Park is a wonderful place for a get together, and as always there was a great range and number of vintage and classic caravans. I think it was the biggest number ever.

I took lots of photos and thought I would post them here for everyone's enjoyment. Because of the number involved, I will mostly only post one photo of each van, but if there is a particular caravan you are interested in seeing more of, yell out and I may be able to show you some more photos. Because of the number of caravans attending, I will also break the photos up into several posts.

It was impossible to get everyone's names, so apologies to those caravan owners who are nameless.

Here we go...

Railton and Anne's mid-50's Kings caravan:



A replica Eccles:



Leroy, a home built tandem with some links to Franklin:



Little Audrey, whose ID is yet to be established:





Olympic Riviera:



Melanco's Carapark Zestline which has recently been redecorated  inside with great effect:







Nickd15's Travel Home:



1971 Franklin Regent:



Chris & Raelene's 1940's homebuilt caravan:



Maplegum's Miami Princess:



Note the crocheted decorations...



Greg's Franklin-built Wanda:



Late 60's Sandrover:



Sandra & Dennis' Greythorne Roadstar...



...and matching tow vehicle:



1960 Franklin, serial number 785...

...and matching tow vehicle:



Brett & Gaylene's 1940's Hawthorn...



...and matching tow vehicle:



1947 teardrop owned by Nerene, built by Norman Angow in Ballarat and restored by Mike & Lyn:



BriRay Microvan:



1974 Franklin Regent:



Maggie's mid-50's Korong 16:



More to come...

Don Ricardo

[Don Ricardo]

Next instalment of photos from the 6th Bridgewater Vintage Extravaganza...

Roadhaven, serial number 145:





Gidget's very shiny Airstream Bambi:





Carolyng's Don 140:



Michelle's very shiny Carapark Ten-Nine:



Coronet 10 footer:





The very distinctive "Arlette":

Stephen & Janine's Castle Windcutter:



A very vintage camping outfit:





Loretta's mystery caravan - does anyone have any ideas about the manufacturer?





Franklin-built Skyline:



1964(?) Viscount Duralvan:



1967 Franklin Safari:



Valiant, approx 1965(?):



1966 Franklin Caravelle:



Tooleyau's gorgeous Lady Evelyn in all her restored glory:





Playtime:



1968 Viscount Ambassador:



Late 50's Viscount:





Coronet's little Travel Home:



1966 Viscount Ambassador:



Jenny's mid-60's Vacation:





Lisa's 1968 Viscount Ambassador with all her special vintage touches...



...and matching tow vehicle:



Gary's very shiny little Franklin Premier "Dottie":



Mike & Lyn's 10 foot Furness:



Our Don 140:



Still more to come...

Don Ricardo

[hughdeany]

Hi Don,
Lorettas caravan is a Roma,about 1967-69.
Also sold as a Pedigree or Blue Horizon.
Cheers
hughdeany

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Hughdeany,

Thanks for identifying Loretta’s van. Loretta and Colin will be really interested to know because they haven’t been able to work out what it is.

I’m interested you say it’s 1967-69. I would have guessed that that style cladding would have been unusual for the 60’s and would have been more typical of the 70’s. Do you know roughly when it was introduced?

Don Ricardo

[nickd15]

great set of photos Richard. Thanks for sharing.

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Hughdeany,

I had a phone call from Wal Robinson today regarding our discussion about Loretta and Colin's van. Wal was able to tell me that Colin had reclad the van with new cladding, which explains the difference between the 1967-69 build date you referred to and the more modern cladding. I must say Colin has made a pretty professional job of it.

Don Ricardo

[Don Ricardo]

Third instalment of photos from the 6th Bridgewater Vintage Extravaganza...

Wal and Anna's little Olympic Debonair:



Bara68's 1968 Baravan:



1971 Franklin Arrow:



Rapido Export-Matic:



Graeme & Betty's Wayfarer:



Franklin Hunter:



Annesfx's Rowvan:



Nice caravan - origin unknown:





Yve's Franklin Futura:



1975 Franklin Hunter:



Beautifully refurbished Vacation:



Susie's Petersville Tag-a-Long Expandavan:





A bight little York livin' the dream:



1968 Viscount Ambassador:



1965 Franklin-built Panorama:



Skyline59's new tandem Scenic:





KCK with her beautifully restored Don 120:



Wallythewayfarer's 1969 Wayfarer:



Neat little York:



Jayco Songbird:



1967 Viscount Duralvan:



1974 Franklin Regent:



Neil and Maria's 1960 van built by Neil's grandfather, Charles A Stewart:



Millard:



Korong branded van of unknown origin:





Modified Globe Trotter:



Still more to come! 

Don Ricardo

[grandad]

I will admit the pic of the Baravan had me going. Where, exactly, is the door? I googled other Baravan photos and saw that the doors are quite hard to see when closed and are down towards the back. I still can't see it quite frankly but I'll go on trust that it has one.

But my main reason for commenting is to thank you most sincerely for posting these pics. I am thoroughly enjoying them. Thank you.


Jim

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Grandad,

The Baravan does make you look twice doesn't it? We are so used to caravan doors being in front of the wheels in Australia, that that's where we look. As far as I know, only Baravan and Carapark with some of its Voyager caravans regularly used the 'behind the wheels' door design in the vintage era.

Here's a pic of the same Baravan I took in 2018 where the location of the door is a little clearer (but only a little!):



Don Ricardo

[Mike & Lyn]

Regarding the Repro 1940's teardrop built by Mike & Lyyn and now owned by someone new
This caravanette was built in 1947 by Norman Angow in Ballarat and was restored in 2010ish by Mike & Lyn. It is now owned by Nerene.

[aussieute]

Thanks for posting the photos Don looks to be a good range of different vans will be there next year was sad to have missed this one
Again thanks for the time you put in cheers chris

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Mike & Lyn,

Thanks for the info about the teardrop. I think I might have confused it with a reproduction one painted in a similar colour! I’ve corrected the caption - it’s good to record the correct details.

Don Ricardo

[Don Ricardo]

Thanks to everyone who has said they're enjoying seeing the photos from the 6th Bridgewater Vintage Extravaganza.

This is the fourth and final instalment, plus some photos of a couple of the social activities.

Presley's Don 110:



Scot's Country Club Minor:



Adrian & Amelia's Carapark Hunter:



Another little York:



Franklin Regent:



Damien and family's 'Not-a-Franklin':



Tubbygra51's 1956 Flynn:



Florence and Bert66 sitting in front of their 1966 Franklin Premier "Audrey", watching the ABC News item about the Bridgewater event (see link below):



Shesgotthelook and Mr Shesgotthelook relaxing in front of their recently refurbished 1972 Viscount Royal:





1972 Franklin Regent:



Shesgotthelook's 1963 Viscount...



...and tow car:



1970's Franklin Arrow:



Intriguing fold up caravan:



Late model Sunliner:



1968 Viscount Duralvan...



...and tow vehicle:



Shelley's mystery van with unique paint job and decorations:







1950's Skyline:



There were so many vans that I missed a couple of them, and just caught a couple on their way out...



...including Ralphndi's 1940's teardrop:





The Bridgewater Caravan Park is ideally located on the banks of the Loddon River:



On Friday night we were entertained by the "Millard" duo...



...and Saturday night it was dinner at the gorgeous Art Deco Bridgewater Hotel, followed by the usual excellent trivia competition led by Bert66 and Florence:







On Saturday during the day Wally's Dog Cafe provided coffee and a variety of food items and a special stall selling 'Spike's Choice' dog treats that were enjoyed by the many pooches in attendance (as well as some that had had to stay home):



All in all, an excellent weekend. Thanks again to Florence and Bert66 for their arrangements and also to Rhonda and Darren, the Caravan Park managers, who bent over backwards to make sure everyone had a good time.

Here's to the 7th Bridgewater Vintage Extravaganza in 2022.

And just to get you in the mood, here's an item on the 2021 event which was broadcast quite extensively by ABC News:



Don Ricardo

[Jennison]

Good photos DonR and good to see a few recognisable faces and vans on the ABC news piece as well(Hi there Lisa and Graham)
jenno

[bert66]

Mar 4, 2021 8:20:25 GMT 10 grandad said:

I will admit the pic of the Baravan had me going. Where, exactly, is the door? I googled other Baravan photos and saw that the doors are quite hard to see when closed and are down towards the back. I still can't see it quite frankly but I'll go on trust that it has one.

But my main reason for commenting is to thank you most sincerely for posting these pics. I am thoroughly enjoying them. Thank you.


Jim

 It’s for sale it anyone is interested.