Mount Browne (Tibooburra) Closed to Prospectors - "No Exceptions"

Yes we love going out there as well and very dissapointed that something like this has happened.

Why do prospectors get the blame? I am not sure, but it seems like that it's prospectors that like going out there that will be trying to make it right so as to try and gain access to the property again for detecting.

There is a point that needs mentioning here though. Mt Browne is a Free Camp area and is listed in the "Camps Australia Wide" book. So anyone traveling through the area can camp there for free. Is this also being stopped as well?

It's not going to work out to well if its only the prospectors that are banned, and its the prospectors that are trying to get things fixed with no way of knowing if people from anywhere can just come and camp.

cheers dave

I am amazed that the owner of Mt Browne has stopped prospectors detecting there. He was making good money out of it and doing SFA for the campers. He neglected to pump water into the tanks so the toilets would flush, he neglected to empty his rubbish trailer and there was rubbish everywhere. He neglected to deal with the rubbish pits out in the paddock - there was rubbish strewn across miles of the landscape.

The shearing quarters were a filthy health hazard - you had to hang food from the ceiling to stop the rats and mice eating it. The camping area was like a junk yard.

The owner always had time to drive down and collect the money, but I am surprised he had the energy to write that sign.

When I was there last time, I spoke to a lady who had grown up on the property. She was so disgusted by the look of the place she was thinking offering to coming back and clean all the junk up.

Maybe he closed it because his neighbours downwind were copping too many plastic bags. Maybe he closed it because he suddenly realised he had no insurance cover on his paying customers (maybe he did have insurance, who knows). Anyway, I doubt if buying a new solar panel will solve the problem - I think the reason for the closure will prove to be something else entirely.

The phone for mount browne is 08 80913588 we feel that we would compromise the situation by calling ourselves,please understand.john.

jayvee wrote:The phone for mount browne is 08 80913588 we feel that we would compromise the situation by calling ourselves,please understand.john.

thank you mate ill ring tomoro john

Milparinka Solar Panels

As regular Visiting Volunteers for the past seven years as part of Ruth's programme at Milparinka we too were appalled when we heard about the theft of the solar panels that power the water pump that pumps water from the town dam. The lowlife beings, who commit such acts of selfishness, do not consider the impact on the people who live, work and volunteer in these remote places. Apart from the unnecessary expense with the loss and replacement of stolen and vandalised equipment, the inconvenience caused is significant. Repairs and replacement of such items simply cannot happen overnight due to distance and time to source new ones and to have them installed.

In a recent phone conversation with Ruth, Chairperson of Milparinka Heritage and Tourism Association, she described how she sourced the replacement panels from a company at Tailem Bend, had them freighted up to her, then with her loyal and supportive husband, Jon, travelled the 180 or so km from their station to Milparinka and together installed them.

How about we concentrate our efforts on the issues at hand so we can all benefit from it, Milparinka, Mt Browne & Detectorists Australia wide.
Cheers
Ashley

I do sympathize for them, but putting up a 'no prospecting' sign will not prevent thefts, they would have to put up a 'no trespassing' sign to prevent thefts.

1-Are these people(Ray & Charlie Hotchin)* authorized to put up either 'no prospecting' and/or 'no trespassing' signs at Mount Browne Station??

2-Do they* have titled ownership to that land or just a lease??

3-Can they* legally prevent(stop) people from prospecting(No propecting allowed) on Mt Browne Station??

(Does anyone know an answer to one or all of these questions?? Thank you.)

Beer beeper Ray is charlies father they own Mt Browne station, they do not have the mining lease it is someones elses lease.
They have every right to stop access to the station it is there land, regardless if it is leased its not like WA.
I pointed out last year that there was no prospecting signs planted all over Fig Tree etc, they are now mining (more like scraping) the area i think the original fax is because of this,not panels and a relutance of the son to police/maintain the area. My understanding this has been brewing for a while now looks like it come to a head.

Regards

PS Seems everyone seems to have not noticed that Mt Poole is no longer accessiable (Good Friday, Warratta Crk etc) and if Hobo is correct Marks place as well if this is true. Gum vale doesnt allow propectors either gee we are screwed arnt we.
I might also suggest to lay of calling the owners, unless your a regular and known to the owners lay of the calling and Vee jay since when do we post private Ph Nos on a public forum...we dont..... good on ya.

Beer beeper Ray is charlies father they own Mt Browne station, they do not have the mining lease it is someones elses lease.
They have every right to stop access to the station it is there land, regardless if it is leased its not like WA.
I pointed out last year that there was no prospecting signs planted all over Fig Tree etc, they are now mining (more like scraping) the area i think the oringal fax is because of this,not panels and a relutance of the son to police/maintain the area. My understanding this has been brewing for a while now looks like it come to a head.

Regards


THE WHITE PAGES HAVE NOW BEEN INVENTED,ARE ARE AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET.


PS Seems everyone seems to have not noticed that Mt Poole is no longer accessiable (Good Friday, Warratta Crk etc) and if Hobo is correct Marks place as well if this is true. Gum vale doesnt allow propectors either gee we are screwed arnt we.
I might also suggest to lay of calling the owners, unless your a regular and known to the owners lay of the calling and Vee jay since when do we post private Ph Nos on a public forum...we dont..... good on ya.
[/quote]

hi all,, i made a phone to mt browne today and spoke to a guy name charlie,, i ask him about the situation about the closure of mt browne... he told me ,,, yes it is close indefinite,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, he told me people came on the property with out ringing him and went to he s sheds??????i thinks he sheep sheds,,, and took things,,, all so the a mess they left behind the place,,,,,,,,,,,, plus ,,, they went on to his uncle property,, and dug a LOT of gold up ///// and they didnt say a word to him...i could he had a bit of anger in his voise,,, i dont blame him.. then he told me to ring next winter it might be open again......... all so i ask him about thr sola panals /// he said I AM NOT BLAMING PROSPECTS FOR THIS .....
I TOLD HIM THERE ARE PEOPLE A takeing A COLLECTION UP FOR HIM..... he said your kidding.. i said you have a lot of friend s out here,,, who realy like you and your place ,,, he was very happy to hear that//// ok boys i hope this helps yous good luck all nuggertman

nuggertman[/b], that was real nice of you to talk to him. Sounds like he was surprised so many people were trying to right the wrong done. MAkes a lot of sense. Thanks.

Thank you nuggetman.for a person who did not know where mt browne was ,you have excelled your self.john.

nero_design wrote:
nuggertman[/b], that was real nice of you to talk to him. Sounds like he was surprised so many people were trying to right the wrong done. MAkes a lot of sense. Thanks.

Thanks Nuggertman for talking to the owners on everyones behalf and getting the problems identified. We just cant take it for granted that our favorite detecting areas are always going to be open for us. To the lowlifes that are hell bent on wrecking it for everybody, You will get your own someday. No guarantees but hopefully our shown concern & actions will help repair our tarnished image with the good people from the corner country.
Cheers
Ashley

Ash100456 wrote:Thanks Nuggertman for talking to the owners on everyones behalf and getting the problems identified. We just cant take it for granted that our favorite detecting areas are always going to be open for us. To the lowlifes that are hell bent on wrecking it for everybody, You will get your own someday. No guarantees but hopefully our shown concern & actions will help repair our tarnished image with the good people from the corner country.
Cheers
Ashley

thanks boys

WELL I wouldnt worry too much, was up there recently and there was about 20 plus prospectors cruising around the property everyday and even if only half of these people were paying there $!0/day, but think most would, thats still $700 per week cash tax free,buys a lot of solar panels over the year, tax free cash,and I ve been before when there was a lot more people camped there. Also over the week recently there was no water pumped into the tank for showers, there was heaps of garbage full of mice sitting behind the shearers sheds which just made the mouse plague that much worse, so I'd say the owner wasnt too keen on doing anything to encourage prospectors anyway. As for mustering I covered most of the property that covers the prosoecting area and I was lucky to see 50 sheep in that area',no doubt the place is special but reckon the missing cash will soon have the place open again, Phill

Don't see any problem helping out a fellow Ozy even if Prospectors had nothing to do with the problem.
I say we become part of the soulution...... so where do we send the donations, and those that don't want to donate, thats fair enough too , but those that can... dig in, and try, if nothing else restore a bit of human faith in the operators of the station....... and that will be a good thing.

Harb

Good one Harb & well said ! See other post on "Lets get the ball Rolling on Tibooburra" for details on any donations.
Cheers
Ashley

Disappointing news, but not really a surprise. Was up there in September and trouble was brewing. Observations at the time:
1. Charlie was annoyed that detectorists were lobbing in without advance notice. Some of them were using the shearer’s quarters uninvited and helping themselves to gas in the kitchen and using the facilities and equipment etc. A group from Victoria really pissed him off. However over the course of the ten days I was there I reckon only half of the people paid, if that. I tracked Charlie down at the pub on a Friday night in Tibooburra after I had left Mt Browne because in the ten days I was there I did not see him once! Although apparently he breezed through. So my comments are based on conversation with him and his wife. He was cranky because he reckoned people were visiting and not paying. In some cases that is true. But if he visted when people were out detecting how can the transaction happen? There was no set time for him to come by.
2. Tere was no properly organised method of paying the money and controlling entry. Nor are there any proper instructions at the venue to explain what people can do and where they can do it. According to some, Charlie was also very hard to contact in advance.
3. There was a lot of garbage in the trailer – which Charlie takes to the tip nearby when it is full. There is a bit of crap around but no more than you see in many other places.The flush dunnies worked! Luxury.
4. He did fill the tank when I was there – which was bit of a problem because the pump was broken. One of the other visitors with some mechanical know how helped him on that one.
5. As I understand it the Mining lease was being run by some kind of in-law or relative of an inlaw. The lease locks up a large part of the area which has the effect of concentrating activity in the other part. While there were signs around warning people off the lease, these were not always effective so far as I could see. It was also difficult to actually know where the lease began and ended so some of the intrusion may have been accidental. Again no information available for visitors. Charlie was telling people they could not go there, but two days later there was another group. Again no consistent information. And not a map in sight. Maybe the ban has to do with expanding mining leases as well.
6. The place is listed as a free camping area in some kind of national guide book. This is a problem. You can go there as a camper – use the venue and the water etc. All free. However if you pull out a detector you need to pay $10 a day. So the place has its share of visitors who don’t detect. Perhaps one of them flogged the solar panels. Or someone closer to home who actually knew they were there! The hole in the dam wall sounds like a dig hole, which was really stupid. Not sure why anyone would want to go there in the middle of summer to detect. It would be just too hot. I’m told the busy season is in winter. So if the panels just went missing at this time of year, the odds of it being a visitor are slight. Was the theft reported to the police?
7. All the place really needed was some kind of easy online booking system where people pay when they book and put in their rego numbers etc. But I am not sure Charlie was interested in that. On onsite caretaker would be great but the place could not pay it. The visitors centre in Milparinka was also never open – i called in their four times to pay my money but it was always closed.
8. Yes there were mice in the shearer’s quarters. But on a dark and stormy night no one cared a rats. It was also on the tail end of a plague so it was to be expected. Just keep your mouth shut at night when you sleep.
9. Mt Browne and the other leases that allow prospectors bring a lot of money to the area. It is not just the fees charged – but the fuel, the beer, the groceries, the caravan park etc. I easily dropped $400 in town when I was there. If a lot of people can no longer go there, it will have a negative effect on the town and surrounding area. Even the Milparinka pub is closed. With respect to the history and environmental buffs, most people on this forum went there to detect! If there is a drop off in visitors town folk might lobby the property owners who at the end of the day also do alright out of it for little effort on their part. A bit more organisation by the owners would be a great help help. A booking system, some decent maps and some common rules (and signs) should not be that hard to organise.

This is indeed sad news. I had not managed to get there yet.

Dicko..

I'd hoped to get there this winter. It is a shame, still you never know we might get there yet. It sounds like a great place to go detecting.
Sparrowfart.

Thank you Imadogman for a correctly informed summery of what has happened at MT Browne.
The wall in the dam at fig tree wall done by the lease holder not a huge detector hole , i know of one here he got some nice gold from the wall.
Regards

PS Hey Jay Vee yer white pages what a good idea why didnt you post that instead or PM the number to the other member, i still stand by you never post people PRIVATE phone numbers without there permission on a public forum !!!!!!!! end of story.

SORRY,to all,i did not know that it was a no no on this forum,i will also ring ray and apoligise to him (mt browne) thank you for pulling me up,i know, IGNORANCE IS NO EXCUSE.john.

freshwater wrote:Thank you Imadogman for a correctly informed summery of what has happened at MT Browne.
The wall in the dam at fig tree wall done by the lease holder not a huge detector hole , i know of one here he got some nice gold from the wall.
Regards

PS Hey Jay Vee yer white pages what a good idea why didnt you post that instead or PM the number to the other member, i still stand by you never post people PRIVATE phone numbers without there permission on a public forum !!!!!!!! end of story.

Having read most of the blogs, some quite derogartory, the fields are closed because it is under a mining lease and it is now active and the company has been very leniant up until now due to holes being dug on worked ground and issues with lease boundary posts and bunting being removed.
As an active mining lease for insurance purposes and OH&S the fields are CLOSED as it has been proven time and again that some prospectors do not respect others property so they have made this happen to all.
As for the mice and rats that was a plague that came down from Qld and EVERYBODY has had to battle with them and these are some of the problems that are caused through excessively good seasons.
Ray has not flown for approx.4 years and never "spied" on campers or prospectors may have had to fly over to get to other "waters" or to check stock.
We feel our son Charlie is doing a good job and we back him all the way with decisions concerning the property
Mount Browne has now been removed from the Camps 5 book and their website.
Over the years we have made many acquaitances and have made some very good friends and thank most of you for being polite and honest.
Ray & Deb Hotchin

Ray & Deb Hotchin

Mr & Mrs Hotchin, I wish you all the best with the future of your property, lord knows you people out in the corner country deserve it after so many years of drought. Please don't take some of the negative comments made here to heart, at times some people tend forget their manners when writing things up to the net. Maybe one day Mt Brown will again open its doors to detector operators who have truly appreciated their time spent in your part of the world, although I have never been to Mt Brown I have spoken with lots of happy prospectors who have had many enjoyable trips spent out there.

Lastly sorry about sending so many mice down your way from sunny QLD, they ran out of room up this way due to all the excess water.

Best regards,

Jonathan and Frieda Porter
Prospectors
Clermont
QLD

Nicely put JP

Thanks Ray and Deb Hotchin for putting that in perspective and explaining the reasons behind the change. I commend all of the Hotchins at Mt Browne for their hospitality over the years, although as I am new to detecting I only visited once, and that was four months ago. I am sure it is always a struggle to maintain what for you is acceptable balance between all the competing elements of running such a large and historic property and the needs of visitors. And you guys do the best you can, and from what I can see you do it pretty tough in flood, drought and plague. They clearly breed 'em tough in corner country. I very much enjoyed meeting Charlie and his wife as the new genration of Mr Browne and was more than happy to pay my access fee. I greatly admire families who can maintain such a property through the generations (mine could not!) and your familiy is to be congratulated on that. If ever you decide to revisit the issue of detectorists visiting Mt Browne (and of course I hope you do) using some of the individuals from this forum to establish some information and rules for visitors and a system that might work would be a good idea. I think both lease and others could co-exist if it was more controlled, but in an isolated environment it will always be a challenge to satisfy everyone. Best wishes!

Hi Ray and Deb !
I would also like to wish you all the best in the future. Coming from the land I can sympathize with you on how hard it is out there and not needing more problems than you already have given where you live.
I never got the chance to come out and say G'day , that was going to happen sometime in the future, but for now My families best wishes to yours and have a great 2012 +++
And as JP said, don't take what has been said with to much seriousness, what you have done in the past has obviously made many Prospectors happy, and provided a great destination for them and there families.

Harb & Family

Very well said J.P. , Imadogman & Harb. A sad loss to the vast majority of detectorists who do the right thing & we respect the decision made by the Hotchin family. Shame on you who have stolen property & broken the trust that existed in that part of the country. The worst part is those same individuals will do it all again somewhere else and ruin it for many more detectorists until they are caught. Be vigilant and report any wrong doing is probably all we can do to help keep the golding grounds open to us.
Cheers
Ashley

Well put JP and Imadogman.

My wife and I were planning on revisiting Mt Browne this year and we are naturally disappointed at now not being able to.
We were lucky enough to spend a few weeks at Mt Browne in September 2008 May 2009 (correction, OldTimer disease).
We met Ray, Debbie and Charlie who were at the time in the middle of sheep shearing.
Ray was very helpful in advising the best place for us (new chums) to camp and giving us an overview of the property and where to go.
Although we couldn’t use the shearers quarters, for obvious reasons, they allowed us to use the shower facilities and water.
Everyone was very friendly and helpful. They made our stay enjoyable.

To Ray, Debbie and Charlie.
Thank you very much for your past hospitality.
We hope that you will be able to reopen the area in the near future!

Regards
Trevor

Hello members,
Firstly thanks to Harb, Scrat, Jayvee, Jonathon & Imadogman to mention only a few, your comments can only strengthen the relationship between pastoralists and prospectors with your positive comments.
For those of you who can only look at the negatives, stop and step back and think about what damage you minority are doing to a lasting relationship on the land.
We all hope to carry on for generations to come whether we are working the land or a casual visitor trying to find gold.
I know I will probably get howled down about freedom of speech blah blah.
However, the minority, if you wish to continue with bringing down the freedom we prospectors enjoy, because the majority of us "do the right thing", go somewhere else, you are not wanted on this forum!
More rightly so get out of the prospecting scene altogether and go join a "hate forum" and sling your mud there.

Peter