How the Campfire was first lit

The Boggabri Drovers’ Campfire has become a much anticipated feature for caravanners, motorhome owners and travellers along Australia’s highways and byways. The event was the brainchild of Lion Geoff Eather and was developed with the support of the Boggabri Lions Club.

Geoff recalls the Campfire’s origins:  

“A long-time dream of mine was to come up with something to promote Boggabri to the wider community and to bring in tourist dollars so the whole community would benefit.  I came up with the idea of a simple, no frills caravan,  motorhome,  camping weekend where people can come at low cost to see what Boggabri has to offer.  The  Boggabri Showground provided a perfect venue for an event such as this.  

“At the time I was the only caravanner in the Lions Club, but I took my idea to them (I have been in the Boggabri Lions Club for more than 30 years) and they thought it was worth a try. In 2006 we held our first weekend and had 27 units turn up. We had a big campfire with story telling, poems and music at night and by day, tours. The local community church provided continuous cups of tea at no cost and on Sunday morning a church service.  “From that weekend we decided that the last weekend in April would be the date and the name, ‘The Drover’s Campfire’ was adopted to reflect the theme of the event. We advertised widely with the help of the Narrabri Shire Visitor Information Centre and in 2014 had over 800 participants come for the weekend. The reputation of this iconic event continues to grow with expectation that this year it will be the biggest and best yet!

“See you at The Campfire!”

Geoff Eather,
Lions Club