Rover Scouts Victoria is part of Scouts Victoria. The Rover section in Victoria has a long history, stretching all the way back to the publication of Rovering to Success in November 1922. The first records of Rover Scouting in Victoria report 81 rovers. In 2024, Scouts Victoria reported there were 1,143 registered rovers in Victoria, in roughly 100 units.
Early years During World War I, Baden-Powell turned his mind to how Scouting could support the development of the young men who had served. Rules for Rover Scouts, published September 1918 was the first attempt to organise this older section of the Movement, followed by the two-part Notes on the Training of Rover Scouts in April and November 1920. The section was firmly established when Baden-Powell published Rovering to Success to encourage young men to join the section, inspiring them with tales of chivalry, knighthood, and his own adventures in manhood and outdoor adventures.
In 1922, there were 80 rover scouts registered in Victoria, under the leadership of Rover Commissioner A. L. Shattell. Shattell presented the rovers a shield which became the prize for an annual hiking competition named in honour of Matthew Lance Evans of South Melbourne, a notable Rover Scout in those early days. (Evans had enlisted and was killed in action during The Great War on 18 September 1918 in France, aged about 23; the award was to the rover with the highest points from an annual hike.) Starting in 1925, with four rovers, by 1928, over 70 rovers were expected to compete the hike over a mountainous and wooded district, and held around Easter or the 'Eight Hours weekend'. The location and route was usually kept secret until the commencement of the trip, although 1933 included Lake Mountain.
The rovers were then led briefly by Tom Russell, the founder of Gilwell Park, Gembrook for a short time before Mr A. E. Currey was appointed Headquarters Commissioner for Rovers in 1923. Bill Waters first became involved with Rover Scouts Victoria in 1927, when he was called upon by the Chief Scout of Victoria, Lord Somers, to assist in the organisation of a series of hikes in Gippsland. Following these successes, Waters was asked to manage the Matthew Evans Competition Hike, and he was soon appointed Assistant Headquarters Commissioner for Rovers.
Bill Waters era
May 1930 saw the reorganising of the rover section within Victoria, 'to bring the rover into the movement, and make him an essential part of it'.
In 1930 W. F. "Bill" Waters was appointed Headquarters Commissioner for Rovers. The brief he received from Chief Commissioner of Victoria Charles Hoadley was to use his experiences with the Melbourne Walking Club and Ski Club of Victoria to build up the outdoor side of Rover Scouting. At this time, the section’s major activity was the Matthew Evans Shield competition hike with rover crews largely left to their own devices at other times. The crews at this time tended to be mostly social clubs, with little attention paid to the development of individual rovers. There was no systematic approach to the training of rover squires, and there was very little support provided to rover leaders to implement proper rover activities.
Waters led efforts to build interest in more challenging outdoor activities by leading expeditions to hike, ski, surf, and rock climb. This ‘fixture card’ of activities was first published in the July 1930 issue of Victorian Scout, and soon other activities were added to the fixture card like working bees at Gilwell Park, social activities, and training courses to develop skills and a feeling of esprit de corps amongst the rovers. When the headquarters team began to organise private transport, attendances increased as rovers took advantage of the opportunity to take their adventures further afield and explore exciting new areas of the state.
By 1936, the activities on the Fixture Card were so popular, that the Rover Leaders' Advisory Council decided each rover would be expected to attend six of these weekend adventures each year – with at least two hikes, a skiing trip, and a working bee. Beyond this, they were also expected to attend their own crew and district activities.
Rover Skiing Waters was a passionate skier, and the first skiing activity he ran for the rovers was in May 1931, in Mooroolbark. This training day was followed up by a trip of 65 rovers from as far afield as Ballarat to Mount Donna Buang, and in 1932 the first Rover Winter Parties began on the Bogong High Plains. Skiing quickly became a signature activity of the Victorian Rover Scouts, and in addition to operating a range of ski tours, the organisation acquired a collection of ski equipment as well as the plans for members to construct their own. A special rover skiing uniform was also developed, consisting of long dark blue trousers and scout belt; green flannel shirt with long sleeves and collar, scout scarf, normal rover badges and shoulder knot, peaked ski cap, with tenderfoot badge in front and R.S. hat bar above it.
Bogong Rover Chalet
On the Bogong High Plains, Rover Skiing was originally based at Cope Hut, but soon proved so popular they expanded to house rovers at Wallace's Hut from 1937. Wallace's Hut was later taken over by the State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SEC) and developed to provide accommodation during the early stages of construction for the Kiewa Hydroelectric Scheme. When the SEC returned the hut to the lessee, Rover Scouts Victoria purchased the chimney and iron roof they had installed to prevent these essential facilities being removed. The rovers continued to maintain Wallace's Hut for decades, until the area became of the Alpine National Park.
As the Rover Winter Parties continued to grow, the rovers decided to build their own hut to avoid monopolising the little accommodation available in the area. By 1940, £700 (£300 of which had been donated by Eric Mockler-Ferryman after joining the rovers for a Winter Party in 1938), had been raised and Waters selected a site between Cope Hut and Wallace's Hut where the Bogong Rover Chalet was constructed using volunteer labour over the course of several weekends. Since being constructed, the chalet has been extended several times and it now has facilities to accommodate 35 people in comfort. The Chalet operates on the patrol system, with each participant responsible for a range of tasks to keep the winter party running smoothly.
The early rovers to complete a Winter Party were invested into the Bogong Rover Crew, but since 1940, rovers and adults who complete a Winter Party have instead joined the Alpine Rover Crew. The Bogong Rover Crew continues to exist as an honorary organisation consisting of people who have made substantial contributions to the development and running of the Chalet. Since 2000, Venturer Scouts who complete a Venturer Ski Week at the Chalet have been invested into the Alpine Venturer Unit.
The Bogong Rover Chalet is operated by the Bogong Chalet Management Group on behalf of the Victorian Rover Council.
J. W. McMahon Ski Lodge
Skiing was also taken up by the rovers in Gippsland. The Yallourn Rover Crew began to ski the Baw Baw Plateau, and during the 1930s they cut the first ski runs in the Mushroom Rocks area. In 1938, the crew built their own ski hut for accommodation at the Mushroom Rocks Campsite. It was officially opened in July 1940. After the hut was initially constructed, the kitchen was extended during the 1960s and additional loft accommodation was added in the early 1970s. The initial construction was funded by the grateful parents of two children who had gone missing in the area and were found by the rovers.
J. W. 'Johnny' McMahon was Yallourn Rover Crew's Rover Scout Leader during the 1930s, and this hut is also known as the Captain Hurley Rover Hut, following the Yallourn Rover Crew's move to Morwell. Frank Hurley (1885–1962) was a photographer and adventurer.
Rover Memorial Chalet
As World War Two began to draw towards its close, discussions began to be had about a suitable memorial to those rovers who had died during the conflict. £110 were raised by November 1945 when the property was purchased, with over £200 raised by May 1946. However, postwar building restrictions meant that the building was not completed until 1949.
While the rovers had been using a former logging hut on Cement Creek track close to the summit of Mount Donna Buang for over 15 years, they only enjoyed the use of the memorial chalet for a short time. The snowfall on this mountain was always erratic, and access to the Victorian ski fields was increasing. During the 1970s, responsibility for the facility was transferred to the East Suburban Area which mainly used it to deliver training courses and cub scout pack holiday activities.
No longer managed by rover scouts the Rover Memorial Chalet is now known as the Warburton Trails Adventure Centre, a venue for mountain biking activities and occasional winter snowplay.
W. F. Waters Lodge
After starting skiing in the Mount Erica area in the 1930s, rovers began to ski around Mount Baw Baw from . As the area began to rise in popularity, Waters negotiated with the owners of Neulyne's Mill, located at what is now the entrance to the modern alpine resort, to use the Mill's accommodation on weekends during the winter. Starting from 1952, Rover Scouting on the mountain was based in the mill buildings. However, the mill was gradually being converted into car parks for the growing resort.
In 1964, when the Alpine Village was established, a site was allocated to the rovers and after receiving a grant and a loan from Scouts Victoria, the W. F. Waters Rover Ski Lodge was opened in time for the 1967 ski season. Since then, the Lodge has been substantially expanded, increasing capacity from 16 to 35. The Lodge also maintained a day visitor's room to facilitate ski and snowplay activities by Scouting and Guiding groups until Scouts Victoria acquired the former Baw Baw Ski Association building at the other end of the village, now the Scout Alpine Adventure Centre.
The W. F. Waters Lodge is operated by the Baw Baw Management Group on behalf of the Victorian Rover Council.
Service Baden-Powell created Rover Scouts as a fellowship of the open air and service, while Waters believed a dedication to service was one of Scouting's most important principles. He pioneered a number of service initiatives, from the working bees at Gilwell Park and the Bogong Rover Chalet, to more advanced projects.
Frankston Jamboree Rovers played many important roles in the first Australian Scout Jamboree in Frankston in 1934/35. The event took place during the Great Depression when Frankston was still a seaside resort town. Rovers were employed to clear and develop the jamboree site in the lead-up to the event, but also volunteered at the event itself to run activities, the hospital, and many other functions required for the event to operate.
The most important contribution from the section towards the event was the jamboree hikes, the last activity of the jamboree. Seven-hundred and fifty Scouts took part in the hikes, led by 108 rovers, while other rovers staffed the expedition headquarters and field hospital at Powelltown, as well as their own fire observers on Mount Donna Buang and Spion Kop. Other rovers were engaged full-time with providing communications between the parties and expedition headquarters, which was a serious challenge at the time. The major obstacle however, was that while some of the area had been mapped by the military or the Forestry Commission, around 30% of the area that the hiking parties were to travel through was uncharted.