The Victorian Miniature Railway (VMR) in conjunction with events at Woop Woop Mini Golf & Sculpture Gardens will lead the symbolic ‘Harcourt Reopen’ event this Saturday February 21.
Fellow local businesses Harcourt General Store, Rodilesa Nursery, Henry of Harcourt, the Harcourt BP Service Station and Harcourt Post Office, have already reopened, providing essential services.
VMR, whose members were instrumental in firefighting efforts and provided the initial coordination base for the relief hub, will be open for the entire weekend (February 21-22) from 8am to 5pm Saturday and Sunday to welcome the community back.
The Mail toured the tourist destination, which has been 10 years in the making, with VMR president Andrew Mierisch and VMR member Darcy Allan, late last week.
The pair said they had lost trees, shedding and other outbuildings but had been very fortunate thanks to the fire-fighting efforts of their members, CFA crews and Forest Fire Management.
“We have had to remove quite a few unsafe trees in the wake of the fire. We also lost five of our engines. These were priceless. Each one takes up to a decade to build and an investment upwards of $30,000 each. To buy one completely finished you are looking around $130,000 but its the painstaking man-hours you can get back. It’s something insurance just won’t cover,” Andrew said.
But fortunately their friends from across Victoria will be bringing their engines to Harcourt to help bolster this weekend’s event and ensure there are plenty of trains hitting the track.
“We have our friends from Eltham, Box Hill and Altona Miniature Railways joining us to ensure the weekend is a huge success,” he said.
Entry to the VMR reopening event will be $10 with funds raised to support VMR’s recovery from the disaster, and also put plans in place for a special Harcourt community celebration to be held in the depths of winter 2026.
“We normally charge $5 but we want to raise a little money to help us get back on track, and we also want to host a free, fully-catered community lunch or dinner for around 2000 people in the Harcourt and district and run free trains sometime mid-year. The focus of the event will be to bring everyone back to reconnect, check in, and keep those important connections, support, and conversations going,” Andrew said.
Woop Woop Sculpture Gardens at 171 Blackjack Road will also be open from 9am to 4pm this Saturday February 21 as part of a free event for the whole community ‘Harcourt Re-Sprouting 2026 – Help Harcourt Heal’.
There will be kids activities, free mini golf, a Jumbo Auction Fundraiser & Mega Raffle with funds raised to support the Harcourt Progress Association and the Harcourt CFA.
Wood Woops Judy Gleeson said she can’t wait to welcome everyone back.
“We have had some incredibly generous donations. We will be auctioning off everything from an in-home performance by Mayor and muso Cr Tony Heydon, Harcourt Football Netball Club identity and fire hero ‘Buzz’ Nunn’s famous thongs, a sculpture by Sir Leslie Thornton, and lots more items (you’ll need to be there on the day to bid on those!). To bid on the auction items and purchase raffle tickets visit https://app.galabid.com/help-harcourt-heal/items