Camp Cooriemungle and students locked out of valuable experiences

The owners of Camp Cooriemungle have been hit hard by the lockdowns in Victoria, but the financial side of the business isn’t all they’re concerned about.

Nicole Oberin from camp cooriemungle Photo by Chloe Smith Photo by Chloe Smith.

IT’S been a tough 12 months without the usual buzz of school kids around Camp Cooriemungle.

Owners Nicole and Brent Oberin said their business in the southwest Victorian town of Cooriemungle has been feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic with the move to remote learning during Victoria’s lockdowns.

“In that short lockdown we lost two school camps,” Mrs Oberin said.

“It is really sad for the kids who don’t get the bonding period and the chance to the explore the region.”

Mrs Oberin said no camps meant kids were missing out on valuable learning experiences, especially those from metro areas.

“It’s about getting kids out there, getting active and learning different things. It’s so good for city kids to see how our kids live,” she said.

The Oberins have had to change many aspects of their operations to suit the ever-changing COVID protocols, and are now looking at ways to ensure they keep afloat.

“Financially our camp business could have gone under and we still haven’t got on top of it yet.”

“We’re trying to look outside the box at what can we do differently. Things like making it more pet friendly, doing weddings and functions, taking more campers in,” she said.

The Christmas period brought a bit of respite with the campgrounds seeing more Victorians travelling around their own state than ever before.

“Our numbers were the biggest they’ve ever been in the 11 years we’ve owned it,” Mrs Oberin said.

Things have been tough not just for the owners or the students, but for businesses around the small Great Ocean Road community.

“We organise programs for the visitors in the local area — not only to make sure other businesses are benefiting but for them to see the beautiful surrounds,” Mrs Oberin said.

“They don’t realise how many beautiful things there are inland.”