SPRING VILLAGE BUILDING CAMP
Wednesday 7- Sunday 11 October 2026
Near Dungog
This camp is about coming together, building community and creating resources for our village camps. This can be anything from creating songs, activities, supportive frameworks, and spaces for future camps, as well as landcare and farmcare. And because we love wildness so much we also spend time each day practicing and passing on survival skills and bush crafts.
This is a camping event – tents. swags, even the odd campervan/caravan will be ok, unless it is really wet.
Mentors will be supporting the camp by offering morning warm up and games, leading village building activities, sharing of survival skills, bush crafts and nature connection, holding space and more.
What do I pay?
If you know you will be keen to help at any opportunity, you can pay a lower rate. If you are more in need of a chill out camp, then contribute a bit more financially. If you are not sure what you will be up for, you can also just pay a deposit and pay the balance just after the camp based on how much you ended up helping.
Some activities that will likely be on offer
‘Lantana Lovers’ – There is some lovely Lantana that is taking up a few spots we would like to enjoy. Lantana therapy is the new age method of relieving anger, creating space, and finding your inner power (Note: we are only working on areas with low infestation so it feels achievable and means the birds and wallabies can still hide from predators in the dense patches)
‘Trackers’- Our walking tracks always can always do with a bit of love.
‘It’s a sign!” – Life is easier when we can follow the signs – so making signs is one of the jobs.
‘Farm Friends’ – We have goats, chickens, vege garden, and compost that also need love. There may also be the odd construction job too, with the right helpers.
‘Firekeepers’ – The best way to build a village is to have a lovely warm fire to gather around each evening – and fire needs fuel – so gathering wood each day is one very helpful task.
‘Dreamers’ – For those who’d like to spend some time nutting out some music, frameworks, games, activities that help us achieve our goals of personal, community and nature connection.
How will it work?
Overall the aim is to become a tribe with a common cause. As always, with everyone tapping into their own needs and the needs of those around them and that of the land.
Each morning, we start with a village circle, game, song and warm up and then the rest of the morning is the ‘energy’ time where people can choose to participate in a village building activity. This often ends up with a few different teams heading off to do different things while some stay in camp and tend their own needs. Joining one of the teams is optional. It is also fine to self-care as this is essential to any thriving community.
The afternoon are easeful and flowing – some chose to swim in the rather cool water, sit spot, chat, play, craft, sing, read, rest. A short activity will be on offer in the late afternoon sharing some bush crafts, survival skills or nature activity. Each night we have a fireside sharing after dinner with a theme of story, song, dance, talent – and one night we usually throw in a night challenge.
The current plan is that dinners are self-catered yet structured. To do this, once we know who is coming we sort out teams and each team cooks dinner for one night. Mentors cook the meal for the first night. This may change if we get a large number of helpers – then we will offer some sort of catering – TBA. People are welcome to cook for themselves is that is needed with the aim of coming together each evening.
These village building camps are so much fun and at the end we can see the difference we have made.
If you have any queries or ideas, I’d love to hear from you.
Email: wildcraftaustralia@gmail.com
Nikki 0412216485
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WHAT TO BRING
General Gear
- Tents/swag/tarp, sleeping bags, sleeping mats, towel, toiletries, something to sit on, Esky/camp fridge.
- Gas cooker and pots if making hot lunches/ breakfast. There is a Camp kitchen too – that can be used, though it is 200m from the camp area.
- Day pack (to carry gloves/PPE, snack/lunch, water and personal items)
- Water bottle/person and 10L-20L container of drinking water. We do have treated water available – just we buy it in – so great if you can bring some of your own to reduce the demand on our treated water.
- Clothes suitable for the conditions and the outdoors.
- Sensible walking shoes and maybe gumboots if it’s been wet
- Hat / long sleeve shirt / suncream /natural insect repellent (Bring pump spray or lotion – Avoid aerosols as they are too easily inhaled and are unpleasant for the village around you) – NOTE: the creek is pristine so no chemicals are to come in contact with the creek eg no sunscreen, detergent, repellent, soap, or oils near the creek.
- Personal Medications.
- Swimmers for the creek.
- Rain jacket / poncho / rain pants
- Torch / head torch
- Plates/bowls/cups / cutlery (labelled)
- plastic containers/buckets can come in handy for odd jobs.
- Rubbish bags/bins – there is no rubbish collection on site – all rubbish needs to be taken off site at the end.
- Paper and Pen
- Fishing Gear
Gear for tasks
- Gloves
- Enclosed shoes /gumboots
- Safety glasses, sunnies, ear plugs if you think you’ll be using noisy tools.
- Any tools that may be good for pruning, cutting, moving soil.
- Paints, paint brushes, unneeded sign boards.
Food
Bring all your breakfast, snacks and lunch and ingredients for one dinner.
The plan is to do shared dinners – in cooking teams. That means that one night you will help cook dinner and the other 3 nights, others will cook for you following the below themes.
Night 1: Soup night – mentors cooking.
Night 2: Mexican Theme – Nachos
Night 3: Indian Theme – Curry and Rice
Night 4: Cooking on the fire /salad theme – camp oven, fire grill, garden salad – adding in as much bush food as we can etc
Think healthy and with low packaging.
Our hope is that anyone coming to our property gets the chance to have a break from the usual vices – drugs, alcohol, caffeine, chocolate, lollies, high sugar drinks etc (keeping within the realms of sanity – eg – we know that some people get super grumpy or find it hard to function without caffeine :)) So with that, rather than passing around the block of chocolate or collecting coffee orders, we are wanting to create a culture of socialising using nourishing foods – so let’s pass around the watermelon and carrot sticks with dip instead. This will help those who are wanting to take a break and help foster an alternative way to connect with others.
A note on marshmellows: these are high in sugar and additives and can drip when cooked causing burns. Apples or damper on a stick make a better alternative and are also great fun to cook on the fire.
Optional:
Extra tarp/gazebo/shelter/umbrella to make extra shelter/shade at your camp.
Buckets, binoculars, magnifying glass, hand lens.
Play
Do you have any songs, poems, melodies, stories that may be fun to share at a nature-based gathering? Also welcome to bring acoustic instruments, as well as natural or connective ‘toys’ e.g. hoops, juggling balls, Frisbees, crafting tools, things you are happy to share. Bikes (and Helmets) are an option – though it is quite hilly. Bring any hand crafts you would like to do.
A note on drugs and alcohol
Here are Faraway, we are strictly drug and alcohol free. Instead of escaping ourselves, we are offering an escape from screens, made up time frames, vices and have tos. A chance to be our real selves, to connect with our true nature and the authentic presence of those around us. With living in a world where it is so hard to know what is real and what is made up, we are offering 5 days of truth seeking where it is normal to socialise with people with two hands free, ready to be present in whatever the moment presents. Drugs can keep us going on the same spiral, numbing ourselves, stunting our potential. Sure, they can make life bareable at times – just for these 5 days it can be the break you and your body/family needs.
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