Borumba Deer Park, August 2015

Borumba Deer Park
113 Yabba Creek Road,
Imbil Qld.
07 5484 5196
email: info@borumbadeerpark.com
August 2015

The sun was shining, the weather was fabulous for August and we were off. It was the first time the P family had ever been to Borumba Deer Park. It is not a difficult drive from Brisbane, about two hours. We saw this sign when we arrived,

Sign reads: 1st gear or reverse, it's your choice

There were not many people there, so we were able to drive around and choose a spot we liked. I appreciate that in a camping ground. However, Borumba Deer Farm has allocated camping spots in the busy times, we think some of the spots are smaller than we would need with our large tent.
We chose a spot down by the creek, called Cascades. It was a great campsite, towards the end of the road. We spent the next too-long setting up, but soon it was done and we were relaxing and enjoying the sounds of the water, it was especially nice to fall asleep to it.

As it started to get dark the first evening, I looked up and saw a deer. We all stood very still and watched this deer, but it didnt seem at all scared. Once it started walking closer to our tent, I asked Red to go out and shoo it away. Of course to the deer, who was sure Red had food in his hand, this was a real bonus. She came closer and closer to the poor kid, who kept walking towards the deer saying shoo, she was very reluctant to be shooed, eventually she wandered away. I said to myself, must make sure I put the bread away in the car. Hmmm.....

Sometime that night, about 3am actually, I heard a noise in the shelter, Mr. P boldly and fearlessly, his only weapon a rather bright torch, went out to see what was going on, "That damn deer is in the kitchen, shoo, go on, get out. " Could it be that I may have forgotten to put the bread rolls away last night? Alas, it was true. I joined my brave hero and found both bags of bread rolls severely munched, the plastic bag was not torn at all, just slobbered on. We locked the remains in the car and went back to bed. Next day, I invented the deer blocker. I knew those little green tarps I kept for an emergency would come in handy.

And, for my inquiring readers, we tossed the munched bread in the bin. No more deer breakins were experienced during our holiday. This lasted until the night of the big wind, which caused it to flap so much, I got up and took them down.

Red has become the camp fire whisperer, he needs some Dad-help occasionally but is learning well. Thanks to his skills we ate the yummiest potatoes cooked in coals and toasted the odd marshmallow. I am not sure why potatoes cooked in coals are oodles better than any I do at home in the oven, but they are.

Borumba Deer Park has sites some powered, in a large flat area called Sherwood Forest. As well as the area down by the creek and Sherwood Forest, there are on-site vans and cabins for people to stay in.

The Stockyard is a large shed with a small stage/raised platform in it, picnic tables and chairs are alongside. Behind it, there is a playground with a long slide on the side of the "hill". Mini golf is to be found here as well. On the left of the Stockyard shed, is the amenities block.

The amenities block, appropriately called Bucks and Does, instead of Ladies and Gentlemen, is kept very clean. There is a disabled shower, two others and a few toilets with basins opposite. It was always kept clean and tidy during our stay. They do ask you to consider others and have short showers, also to please mop out your shower stall when you are done. The water temperature is a big factor to the happiness of my camping experience. The sign on the door of the disabled shower, says it is a requirement by law to keep the temperature down in that one and if you prefer a warmer shower to use another stall. I immediately took their advice and used the ordinary showers. I found the water warm enough if I only used hot, this is in August, I imagine you'd use less hot in the warmer months.

Behind the amenties is the dump point and the laundry block, I nearly forgot to mention a very important part of Borumba and that is the rubbish bins. Yay for rubbish bins, you will find these beside the ammenities block. The laundry area has two washing machines, two dryers and an ironing board. I didn't see an iron, perhaps you borrow it from the office. They do ask for the lids to kept closed to keep frogs and insects out of the machines. What a fabulous suggestion. As previously mentioned, Mrs P, does not do frogs.

Mr. P took Amy and Red to the kiosk where you can buy all the things you forgot to pack, and reindeer food, $2 a small tub. They hurried over to the deer fence eager to feed the deer, but the deer are not eager to be fed, only one was interested it seemed. The deer farm is also home to a rather beautiful rooster and a hen or two, who are more than interested in the deer food. The buck master is a very imposing creature, not for all the tea in China, could you have gotten me in the enclosure with him.

Amy and Red had a great time making dam walls and water paths to float their seed pod boats in. The weather was completely beautiful, those blue skies you dream about. On Wednesday afternoon we got a storm blow through, and while the rain did not last long and we were dry and safe, it brought with it some strong winds. The winds seemed to come flying over us, hit the hill opposite and then bounce back off the hill behind and shake us. Our tent and shelter withstood this rather well, the winds lightened in the morning and it was all over by lunch time. The upside of course was that there was more water in the creek, this made the streams, dams and water paths flow much faster.

You can walk back up the road towards deeper water in the creek, people launch boats, fish and use canoes. This is a hugely popular campground in the summer and I can see why, huge fun for families.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Borumba Deer Farm. The weather was beautiful, the creek was beautiful and the surroundings are beautiful. We are keen to camp there again. I was grateful for the rubbish bins, the showers and the peace and quiet - not necessarily in that order. The owner or manager told us that the river rose 11 metres during the 2011 floods, where we camped would have been well under water.

Borumba Deer Farm camp map:

Fees:
The fees vary and more pricing is on their website, but for camping in an unpowered site it is:
Adults $13 per night
Children 2-15 yrs $7 per night
Older children 16-17 yrs $10 per night

Things to know:

• Hot showers included in price
• Laudromat available
• Dump Point
• Fire rings at campsites
• Ice, gas refills and wood available
• Sites are booked on a site-name basis from what I could work out, unless it's not busy. 
• Friendly manager

For further information, please see their website here