CodeCon 2007

Start: 2007-09-21 14:00
End: 2007-09-23 14:00
Timezone: Etc/GMT+10

Location:

near Bungleboori Camp Ground, Newnes State Forest

Description:

A weekend of coding and camping, uninterrupted by the unreasonable demands of spouses, children or parents. This year it is in the Newnes State Forest (because they allow great camp fires and generators, unlike those NPWS party poopers). Nearby is the picturesque Gardens of Stone National Park, should you accidentally look up from your laptop.

If anybody comes over and asks what we are doing, the answer is Whale Watching.

The nearby Bungleboori Camp Ground has toilets but no water.

The generator will be there around 12 noon on Friday 21st. You can arrive on Friday night or Saturday morning, but many people are planning to take Friday off. Do it, you know you want to.

Who is it for?

The expected attendees will be open source coders.

Contact

Peter Miller <millerp@canb.auug.org.au>

Please let me know if you are thinking of coming, so I have some idea of numbers.

What to Bring:

A 5 to 15 minute talk on a coding subject. Whatever you are passionate about, or some problem exercising your brain cells at the moment.

A lap, a laptop, a warm sleeping bag. A chair is usually very handy. A tent would be useful.

Lots of warm clothes. Not for during the day but at night: it will be early spring and 1000m altitude.

You need to bring your own food, although there are shops about 45 minutes away at Mount Victoria. A stove to cook it on would be handy, but there is a camp fire, if you are adept at that kind of cooking.

Flavored ethanol is traditional.

The camping area has no water so you will need to bring everything you intend to drink, or clean your teeth with. The organiser will bring 20L of water, just in case some of you forget.

Some folks find torches useful.

What will be Provided:

A generator, shade and a roof, a data projector.

Getting There

If you tell me first, we can arrange for someone to pick you up from Katoomba or Mt Victoria stations. There is no mobile phone reception, so if you don't pre-arrange a pick-up, you will be stuck.

Unless you live north west of Sydney, I'm guessing it will be easier to get there via Katoomba. Those familiar with Bells Line of Road may choose to go that way, but these directions start at Katoomba


From Katoomba, keep on 16.9 km (16 min) to Mount Victoria, turn right at big green sign. Then go 10.0 km (8 min) to Bells Line of Road, and turn left. Then go 8.1 km (7 min) through winding gently descending roads until the Zig Zag Railway turn off. Turn right and you will be facing a sign for Newnes Forest Road, so go right again.

The dirt road starts here. It is fairly well maintained as this is a working logging plantation forest. Two wheel drive cars should have no difficulty. Reset your odometer, the rest of the distances measure from this point.

At 4.6 km (5 min) at sign-less intersection: tend right.

At 8.9 km (10 min) you reach the intersection with Glow Worm Tunnel Road: turn right. (Look back and remember this intersection, because on the way home you will need it, or you will end up in Lithgow).

At 10.9 km (13 min) you reach the Bungleboori camp ground, but this is not where we are camping even though this is where the toilets are (way too many motorbikes) -- at night you will probably only see the Fire Danger sign, or the Black Fellows Sands Track sign, don't turn, just go mostly straight straight and a little right.

At 14.3 km (18 min) at Waratah Ridge Rd: go straight ahead.

At 15.2 km (19 min) at Old Camp Rd: go straight ahead.

At 16.2 km (20 min) at Red Hill Rd: tend left .

At 19.0 km (23 min) ignore nameless road and tend left (you are at start of the “double” road).

At 24.8 km (30 min) at signs for Wollemi National Park and Galah Mountain Rd: turn right.

At 25.3 km (31 min) turn right again: you are at the camping area. Look for the blue tent.


You can also try whereis.com.au with “Glowworm Tunnel Road, Wolgan Valley” as the destination via Katoomba.

Google Map of the Camp Ground, 1:25 K “Cullen Bullen” map ref 435103. That wide white stripe is a wide double road.

Fun Things To Do

There is coding

There is whale watching

There is talking about coding

There is coding

There is visiting the glow worm tunnel {150.226 E 33.239 S} while talking about coding. Bring your torches, the tunnel curves and it's quite dark. The glow worms (actually, larvae of the Fungus Gnat Arachnocampa richardsae, a type of fly) are only 1mm long, but there are plenty of them... but you have to turn the torches off.

There is coding

On Saturday, if you accidentally look up from your laptop, there are some complete beginner canyons in the area, which do not require abseiling or swimming, including:

There is coding

Cartophiles

1:25K map sheets: Ben Bullen, Cullen Bullen, Rock Hill

Attendee Blog Posts

History

2004, 2005, 2006

See Also


This page has been accessed approximately times since 7-Oct-2010.