High Camp Station Comes Alive Again

While it has been 57 years since a train last stopped at High Camp Railway Station, the old platform recently came alive again — this time with more than 30 volunteers clearing years of overgrowth and fallen tree branches. After three hours of sawing, pruning and hauling branches, the shape of the original platform began to re-emerge, along with a shared vision for the High Camp Rail and Flora Reserve as a future picnic and recreation spot.

Volunteers focused on achieving results. Photo:Tim Budge

The 22 November working bee was coordinated by the Mitchell Alliance for Tracks and Trails (MATT) and led by the Friends of the Bendigo–Kilmore Rail Trail. Volunteers included local residents and members of BEAM Mitchell Environment Group, Wallan Environment Group, Mitchell Bicycle Users Group, Mitchell Bushwalking Group, the Australian Plant Society, and Friends of the Bendigo–Kilmore Rail Trail.

Volunteers dealing with the challenges. Photo:Tim Budge

The day formed part of a broader project funded by a Victorian Government Tiny Towns grant, with additional support from Mitchell Shire Council. The grant is helping to restore and enhance the reserve, install picnic tables and signage, and creating a welcoming destination for walkers, cyclists, and day visitors. Funding will also support the collection of oral histories from the former station and surrounding farms, as well as recognition of the much older Taungurung First Nations history of the area.

The project has attracted wider attention, including a recent visit to the site by Victorian Treasurer and Member of the Legislative Council for the Northern Victoria Region, Jaclyn Symes, who met with project representatives to receive an update on the project’s progress.

On site at High Camp, Jaclyn Symes MLC is provided with a project update

High Camp may never again hear the sounds of a train passing its platform, but this project is firmly on track to welcome many more visitors — and perhaps even cyclists and walkers travelling between Kilmore and Heathcote along an extended recreational rail trail.