Bear Grylls Survival Academy, Grampians: Surviving the wild just three hours from Melbourne
By Paul Chai
Enjoying the views in the Grampians.Credit: Visit Victoria
I'm not sure what British adventurer Bear Grylls would make of my attempt to "commando crawl" along a rope strung between two trees at the foot on the Grampians.
Most of the kids at the Bear Grylls Survival Academy manage this feat with aplomb but it is a huffier, altogether more red-faced affair when I try.
The trick is to suspend yourself under the rope like a sloth, then do a few contortions before finally flipping yourself up on top of the rope in a position to then crawl forward. The flip is quite a challenge for a hefty old bloke but provides plenty of amusement for the young, except my two kids who are, or course, mortified.
The kids seem to manage this one better than the adults.Credit: NRMA Parks and Resorts
We are on a weekend getaway at the NRMA Big4 Halls Gap Holiday Park, the only park in Victoria to run Bear Grylls' take on surviving in the Australian bush also known as Kids Vs Wild. It is a four-part course designed to keep kids amused and teach them some survival skills, with the family joining in for a final fifth adventure together at the end; you can do one or all the courses, it is very flexible.
The course is run by Andrew de Groot who also owns and runs the holiday park with his wife, Claire. De Groot says the Grampians course is the most popular in the country, something he puts down to its position.
"People come to Halls Gap for the nature and I think that's why it has been so popular here because of people wanting to be with nature and get out there and get into the bush," he says.
"Some of the kids who start off really shy, it's amazing how some of them come out of their shell."
Challenge one is "Protect: Hide to Survive". Here de Groot takes kids - and adults as we are joining in - through the joys of covering yourself in camouflage face paint and the proper way to hide in the bush. The final challenge is a bush version of hide-and-seek where the kids take off into the rocks and hide while we turn our backs and then turn around and try to find them.
Given they are using special "camo" blankets this does not go well for the adults: we lose.
After a short break we are back for "Rescue: Get Out Alive". This activity starts innocently enough with a session devoted to knot tying but escalates quickly into me dangling from the aforementioned rope.
For lunch we head off to Livefast cafe, set in a series of shops along a creek in the centre of Halls Gap village before we return for the afternoon session.
"Water: Navigate the Island" sees the team get their head around orienteering, learning to work out north without a compass, measuring distance through steps and playing a game where you fill up a pipe with water to reach a key and find a safety beacon. With longer legs to run back and forth to fill up the pipe, the adults take this one out. In your face, kids, the adults finally get a win.
We are done with surviving for the day so we take a drive up to the Boroka Lookout that offers views directly down on the park, as well as an amazing view of the rest of the Grampians, revealing inland lakes, lush vegetation and dormant waterfalls.
For sunset we take a stroll where the local kangaroos congregate on the Halls Gap footy oval.
They barely bother to lift their heads as we saunter past, our youngest madly Snapchatting some American friends who are agog at how up-close-and-personal we are getting with half the coat of arms. We grab dinner at the Halls Gap Tavern but turn in early because in the morning we have our final challenge.
For this we face "Food: Feast in the Wild" and we are pleased to see a campfire burning away because it is a particularly icy morning. De Groot helps us all make damper while he gives us some bush tucker facts like: Never eat the yellow berries. Always bad apparently.
When the damper is ready we all have a try. It's not bad for novices but the final Bear Grylls Survival Academy challenge leaves a bad taste in your mouth. De Groot challenges us to eat mealworms. These are dried, a favourite of chickens apparently. Popping it into my mouth it starts off ok, kind of woody and nutty, but there is a very strong, bitter end to them and we are all glad that De Groot has some other worms, sour gummy worms, for us to wash away the taste. I can feel Bear's disapproval all the way from the UK.
THE DETAILS
DRIVE
Halls Gap is a three-hour drive west of Melbourne.
STAY
The NRMA Big4 Halls Gap is a family-run park just at the entrance to Halls Gap. It has 13 cabin and villa options ranging from $102 a night in the Standard Studio to $344 a night in the three-bedroom executive villa. See nrmaparksandresorts.com.au
DO
Bear Grylls Survival Academy NRMA Members $15 a child or adult a mission. Non-Members $20 a child or adult a mission. Participants must be resident at the park. See nrmaparksandresorts.com.au
DINE
Livefast cafe is the perfect breakfast and lunch spot with an eclectic staff of young artists, musicians and travelling creative types; livefast.com.au. The Halls Gap Tavern is run by ex-cabbie Chris West who offers some of the best regional hospitality in town; hallsgaptavern.com.au
MORE
Paul Chai was a guest of NRMA Parks and Resorts.
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