Gold Coast BioBlitz – Numinbah Valley

A weekend of wildlife surveys!

We are very excited to announce our third Gold Coast Bioblitz! In November 2022, we will be exploring and surveying in the incredible Numinbah Valley flora and fauna. No matter your experience, this is the perfect opportunity for all natures lovers to spend time in the field with an enthusiastic expert. You are guaranteed to learn something new, develop your ID skills and connect with some fellow nature lovers.

There are a wide variety of surveys to join, so you’re sure to find something you love! Go on as many surveys as you like, choose from birds, reptiles, fungi, gliders, crayfish, mammal trapping, fish, glow worms, bees, macropods, flora, frogs, bats and more!

If you want to learn more about Gold Coast’s fascinating biodiversity then this is the event for you! As well as our many wildlife surveys we have a whole program of environmental workshops, presentations and activities going on at basecamp, so join us with the family for the whole weekend!

This year we are excited to announce the introduction of kid’s surveys. These will be fun, educational, and interactive walks around basecamp for the little ecologists. You can book bunk beds, spend the weekend doing wildlife surveys, attend workshops and connect with other environmental enthusiasts.

Tickets will come on sale October 13th.

More info on our website: https://watergum.org/gold-coast-bioblitz/

Weekend Package 

The ultimate package for a weekend of all-inclusive food and accommodation.

• 6 meals and 2 nights accommodation – $180 per person

Accommodation

Make the most of the weekend and stay with our accommodation at the Bornhoffen Centre. Children under 5 are free.

• Bunk beds for individuals – $35 per night
• Bunk beds for small groups/families – sleeps 6-8 – $200 per night

Meals

You will have the option to purchase meal tickets for the following meal times:

• Breakfast: Saturday and Sunday – $14 per person*
• Lunch: Saturday and Sunday – $18 per person*
• Dinner: Friday and Saturday – $20 per person*

*Fees apply for adults and children aged 5-12 years. Children under 5 are free. Dietary options are available. Please indicate when purchasing your tickets of any dietary restrictions. You are NOT allowed to bring your own meals, meal tickets must be pre-purchased.

Day Pass

If you are looking to visit during the day and attend workshops or surveys, a daily fee will apply for the days of visit.

• Adults and children aged 12+ – $10 per day
• Children 5-11 – $5 per day
• Children under 5 – free

Surveys 

Choose from a range of guided surveys featuring a range of flora and fauna options, perfect for every interest. Please ensure to check the difficulty grade of the survey before purchasing.

Easy – easy terrain/steady pace/short distance

Medium – maybe some slippery rocks/steep bits/further to travel

Hard – moderate terrain with obstacles such as rocks, logs, long grass/may require some scrambling

Mountain Goat – difficult terrain/going off the path, scrambling and climbing, very steep ground

Surveys are suitable for people aged 12 and over – $20

Children

This is a family-friendly event, however, children must be supervised at all times. Before you purchase survey tickets for children, please make sure the survey is age and difficulty appropriate.

For children under 5 years of age, accommodation and catering are FREE!

Kids surveys are suitable for children aged over 5, accompanied by a paying adult. If you plan to attend a survey and leave your child behind, please make sure they are left with a responsible adult.

How to book your ticket

• Example A: Peter (29) wants to join the BioBlitz for the whole weekend. He chooses the full weekend accommodation and meal package ($180). He then selects individual survey tickets; one for the Friday night ($20), one survey ticket for Saturday morning ($20), one for Saturday night ($20) and one for Sunday morning ($20). He won’t purchase a ticket for the Saturday afternoon as he is keen to sit in on some of the workshops at the basecamp (FREE!). His BioBlitz cost will be $260. Peter reckons that’s a pretty good deal for a full weekend of flora and fauna goodness.
• Example B: Virginia (68) is keen to join 2 surveys on the Saturday. The Saturday morning surveys starts at 5:30AM so Virginia chooses to stay the night on Friday so she doesn’t have to get up very early to get to the event. She selects to stay in a single bunk ($35) and then books a Saturday morning survey (easy grade) ($20) and the Saturday afternoon survey (easy grade) ($20). Because of her bad knee, she can’t join the Medium and Mountain Goat grade surveys. She also takes out 3 meal tickets for Saturday Breakfast ($14), Saturday Lunch ($18) and Saturday Dinner ($20) as she is going to stay in the evening to join some presentations (FREE!). Her BioBlitz cost will be $127.
• Example C: Susan is looking to bring her family of 7 on the Saturdy night as the family have a keen interest in learning about the Gold Coast flora and fauna. Susan chooses to book the family cabin ($200) so that the family can be together. The family will require Saturday dinner ($140) and breakfast Sunday ($98). Susan has a two 6 year olds, a 7 year old, an 8 year old and a teenager. Susan chooses to book a survey for the teenager and the dad to go on Sunday morning ($40) and decides she will take the little ones to a kids survey (FREE!). Her BioBlitz cost will be $478, only $68 per person!

Safety Guidelines

Please take into account your physical abilities whilst purchasing tickets. Please make sure to read each individual ticket description carefully as this will mention if it is easy, medium, hard or mountain goat. Don’t overestimate your abilities as you will be out in the bush for multiple hours! There are plenty of free presentations and workshops at our basecamp throughout Saturday and Sunday so you will be able to enjoy the event even if you can’t join our surveys.

Covid Safe

The event will run in accordance with Government advice. This will be monitored and updated as per all requirements.