It’s what gets them out of the house, regularly mixing and connecting with others.
Doug Mcqueen is 55 and a disabled pensioner who moved to Yarrawonga for the fishing.
Doug has nerve damage and after several major spinal surgeries his mobility is limited, but fishing is his life.
“I try to get over here once or twice a week, especially in the cooler months,” he said.
“It gets me out of the house and meeting other people; it’s like a little community down here.
“It means everything to me to get over there when I can.”
Not everyone who visits the boat ramp at the holiday park are fishermen like Doug and his mate Neil Whitworth, who has been fishing off the bank at the holiday park for years.
Neil said there are other men who get their morning paper and call down to the boat ramp just to chat for an hour or so.
“They are all older blokes,” Neil said.
“It’s not about the fishing for them, it’s community.”
But for Doug, Neil and the others who rely on the Yarrawonga Holiday Park Boat Ramp for social connection, an upcoming decision could change everything.
Renovations to the holiday park and a $650,000 upgrade to Cullens Rd boat ramp have prompted a review by Moira Shire Council, which is considering shutting off public access to the boat ramp.
Fishing would still be permitted from the bank, but Doug and some of the others who regularly visit don’t have the physical capability to walk the distance without access to the carpark.
Public consultation by the council received 517 responses to a quick poll and 158 survey responses with 98 per cent of respondents to the poll supporting no restrictions to public access.
General manager Matthew Morgan said more work was needed before the decision comes back to Council.
“We need to do more work to understand the implications for future planning and use of the precinct, including direct conversations with key stakeholders such as the Yarrawonga Holiday Park,” Mr Morgan said.
The boat ramp was built by community volunteers and decisions involving it are complicated by the fact that nobody knows who owns it.
Goulburn Murray Water (GMW) dam safety engineer and storage manager at Yarrawonga Weir, Peter Klowss told Doug Mcqueen the date of construction and the ownership of the boat ramp was unknown.
The southern bank of the Murray River, where the boat ramp is located, is under New South Wales jurisdiction.
The adjacent land on the Victorian bank, above the boat ramp is under Victorian DEECA jurisdiction.
Mr Klowss said GMW supported the open public use of the ramp as it was accessible to all people for respective activities.
With men’s mental health one of the most pressing social issues, the men who’ve used the boat ramp for years are asking to be considered as Moira Shire makes its decision.
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