One Man's Dream
Raymond “Whimpey” Reichelt is a pioneer and visionary in the fields of conservation and ecotourism in Australia. His efforts in promoting the unique environment of the Little Desert, and in particular the conservation of the Malleefowl, have seen him gain worldwide recognition over the past 30 years. As testament to his ongoing contribution to the state, Whimpey was awarded the title of “Living Treasure” from the Victorian Government in 1986.
The reason for Whimpey’s establishment of the Little Desert Nature Lodge is as evident now as it was when the concept was born:
“We’re keeping things as close to nature as we can. The lodge is comfortable but rustic, homely without being grandiose. It is a base, a headquarters for our reason for existing – to share an appreciation of the Little Desert.” (Whimpey Reichelt, October 1977).
The Accident
Whimpey’s dream – the establishment of the Little Desert Nature Lodge – was literally started by accident. Working as a motor mechanic in 1969, a piece of steel lodged in his right eye, causing serious injury. As fate would have it, at the very time when Whimpey was forced to rest quietly for 2 months, much of the local radio news regarded a conservation battle to save the Little Desert from a government proposal to clear it for agriculture. The controversy stirred people’s interest in the region and in 1970 Whimpey started taking four-wheel drive tours into the Little Desert.
Those Special Birds
A major attraction for visitors came to be the Malleefowl or “Lowan” Bird, a native inhabitant of the region, and unique in that it builds a large incubator mound for its eggs. In 1973 Whimpey purchased the 295 acre “Malleefowl Sanctuary”, which included 4 working Malleefowl mounds. This is now one of the last areas of pristine mallee habitat left in the region, and Whimpey has been recording the activities of this endangered species there for close to 30 years.