The table below sets out the weekly schedule for 2026. When you register as a volunteer you will need to nominate the weeks that you would like to attend.

It is usual for volunteers to register for two weeks (eg. 1 & 2, 3 & 4 etc). Preference will be given to those volunteers registering for a block of two weeks. If there are still vacancies then participation for one week may be accepted.

Week	Dates in 2026	Tasks/Notes
0	Wed May 22nd to Fri May 24th	Setup activities. Discuss with Bill Brock or Kerry Storer.
1	Sat May 23rd to Sun May 31st	Pls arrive for induction on Fri 22nd May.
2	Sat May 30th to Sun June 7th
3	Sat June 6th to Sun June 14th
4	Sat June 13th to Sun June 21st
5	Sat June 20th to Sun June 28th
6	Sat June 27th to Sun July 5th
7	Sat July 4th to Sun July 12th
8	Sat July 11th to Sun July 19th
9	Mon July 20th to Wed July 22nd	Discuss with Bill Brock.

After registration, if there are too many volunteers for particular weeks, the registration coordinator will contact you to discuss alternative weeks. There is a need to ensure a minimum number of volunteers across the whole programme to efficiently operate the Bakery and Cafe and to undertake restoration activities, whilst also ensuring there are not too many volunteers in a particular week as it becomes too difficult to accommodate at the campground and coordinate the activities.

There are also several other events at Farina and surrounding districts. These are the activities that we are aware of and their dates in 2026.

Marree Camel Cup - Event organisers are yet to confirm the date and time.

Marree Races and Gymkhana - Exact dates not yet confirmed.

Finke Desert Race - 5th to 8th June 2026 (See Finke race website for further details).

Big Red Bash - Cancelled for 2026.

The Camp Coordinators run a daily schedule of volunteers for each of the Roles described here. When you register you can nominate multiple roles and undertake a number of them during your stay at Farina. Talk to the coordinators when you arrive and there's time at the daily "Happy Hour" meeting around the campfire to discuss your schedule.

The Farina Restoration Group expects all volunteers to undertake the assigned duties for at least 4 hours per day for 6 out of each 7 days spent at Farina. Some roles require standing whilst working for long periods, and others require negotiating often rough terrain (eg. Stonework), so volunteers must evaluate whether their current state of health and fitness will enable them to volunteer. It is also expected that during the rostered work activity, volunteers will not have to provide care for pets or partners and can devote their full attention to the activity.

You can also undertake a different role in the morning and afternoon (eg. Visitor Greeting in the morning and Stonework in the afternoon); Activities usually start at 8am and conclude each day by 4pm. Then there is time to shower and change ready for the Happy Hour meeting at 5-30pm around the campfire.

New for 2026 - The Cafe will operate from 8-30am to 3-30pm, 7 days a week; the Bakers and Bakers Assistants will operate 6 days per week and take Wednesdays off. On Tuesday's the Bakers will prepare stock to be sold in the Cafe on Wednesdays. This change has been ,made by the Committee to reduce the workload for both Bakery and Cafe operations, whilst still serving our visitors and tourists.

Starting times and shift times at the Cafe and Bakery may be adjusted during the work program by the co-ordinators to suit the level of tourist visitation.

For roles requiring a Food Handling Certificate, we provide a link in the Volunteer Information Sheet to do this online.

 

Baker - This role is usually for people who have worked professionally as a Baker and have considerable experience; It will involve early starts around 4am most days; You will need a current Food Handling certificate. The Bakers will have one day off per week.

Bakers Assistant - Assisting the Bakers in the preparation and baking of Bread, Pies, Cakes, Slices and the many other wonderful products sold in the Cafe at Farina. The role can be learnt at Farina however prior experience in baking is an advantage. The role will involve early starts around 5am most days and like the Bakers will involve a 6 day week. The role can be demanding and you should consider your suitability for the role.

Bakery Cleaning - This role involves cleaning the Cafe and Kitchen areas each afternoon from 3-45pm to 4-45pm; Very little experience needed, just a willingness to give it a go.

Cafe Counter Sales - This role involves taking and filling orders from customers and taking payment; One person on each shift will be the Barista making coffee; You will need a current Food Handling certificate. You will be assigned to either the morning or afternoon shifts so will be on duty for a minimum of 4 hours; From 2026, two of the four staff rostered for the morning shift will commence at 7-00am, and two at 8-00am; This can be rotated during the week; Be aware that the Cafe has become very busy with a high number of Tourists visiting, which means that his role can be quite mentally and physically demanding.

Merchandise Sales - This role involves running the Merchandise Sales counter, assisting visitors in selection of souvenirs and taking payment; From 2026, this person may also take sales of bakery merchandise and drinks on display in the Cafe area (eg. Bread, Biscuits, Drinks etc)  Little experience is needed for the role, however if you can sell "ice to the Eskimo's" then you'll be a natural fit for this role.

Onsite Reporter - This role involves travelling around the Farina site talking with Volunteers and members of the public, taking photos and writing a little about what is being done; The Farina Restoration Group is creating its own history every year, and it is important to document this as well as documenting the earlier history of Farina; All photos and words are passed daily to the Farina Webmaster and Social Media Editor who will publish on the website and on the various social media platforms; Video is also an option and can be posted to the FRG YouTube channel.

Visitor Greeting - The person undertaking this role will circulate around Patterson's House and greet visitors, give them a little history of Farina and direct them to where things are; It also involves checking the public toilets periodically, replenishing toilet paper and advising Essential Services if there is anything needing fixing; It is essential that the person filling this role has an accurate and broad knowledge of Farina and its history.

Stonework - Many of the remaining buildings at Farina are constructed of stone, so this role is critical to the preservation of Farina; It will involve several tasks, from digging out and cleaning up fallen stone, mixing mortar, raking out loose/old mortar, repointing between stones, capping and pointing walls and partially or fully rebuilding walls; The role can be learnt at Farina starting with simpler tasks to gain confidence and then progressing to rebuilding of walls; Much of the work can be done from the ground, however there is a need for a number of volunteers to work on scaffolding however you will only be asked to work on scaffolding if you feel confident and safe doing so; The Committee is making stonework a priority in 2026 to prevent deterioration to a number of stone buildings.

Laundry and Campground Cleaning - This role requires the washing of aprons and tea towels from the Bakery and Cafe, and cleaning of the volunteer toilets and showers each day; there is a washing machine set up at the Volunteer Campground for this task.

Essential Services - This is the role for people who like to travel and have variety; In a supplied vehicle with trailer, the two Essential Services volunteers travel around Farina emptying rubbish and recycle bins, disposing of the garbage at the tip, topping up fuel in the diesel generators, restocking firewood at the Volunteer and Public campgrounds, cutting firewood for the underground oven, emptying the trailer drawn portable toilets, cleaning the public toilets, carting water for the public toilets and undertaking minor repairs to site facilities; The role usually results in lots of contact with visitors and this is often a highlight of the role.

Projects and Maintenance - During each yearly work program there are regular maintenance tasks like checking and clearing walking trails, cleaning up and weeding the cemetery etc and there are scheduled construction projects like laying railway track, painting carriages, building signs etc; This is usually taken on by volunteers who wish to undertake construction or maintenance, where some tasks require previous experience (like carpentry and welding) and some simply require a desire to give it a go (like painting, weeding, mowing).

Storeperson - This is a new role for 2026 designed to assist the Head Baker with managing the supplies for the Bakery. It requires the volunteer to maintain and inventory of supplies, liaise with suppliers, track deliveries and arrange for supplies to be moved from Tom's Shed to the Bakery as needed.

 

 

 

 

The Farina Restoration Group uses a campground area which is not available to the public. As you enter through the gate to the public camping area, bear right and go through another gate to get to the volunteer camping area. There is a sign on the gate identifying the FRG Volunteer Campground. There is a shower block (hot water), septic toilets (flushing) and limited laundry facilities. The capacity of the facilities is limited to about 50-60 persons, and this governs the number of volunteers on site at any given time.

A limited 240V power supply is available for caravans & campers in the early evening each day. It will not power electric stoves, ovens, micro-waves, hair dryers, kettles, toasters. Check the operation of your caravan fridge and make sure it is working efficiently on gas. You should expect to get about 10 – 12 days running a stove top for cooking and gas fridge from a 9kg cylinder of gas. Gas resupply is available at the Leigh Creek South Motors on a cylinder exchange basis.

There is no drinking/rain-water supply. Fair quality untreated dam water is available for washing, showers, and cleaning. It is recommended that you bring at least 2 x 10 litre containers of drinking water in addition to your normal caravan supply.  (10L boxes of water are available at the Leigh Creek store). The rainwater in the tanks at Tom’s Shed is only available for use in the Bakery and for mixing Stonework mortar. Current information from Farina Station indicates that the bore water is salty, and the supply is limited.

The FRG has a washing machine at the campground for the washing of linen from the Café and Bakery and it is not available for the use of Volunteers. Availability of water for any washing apart from bakery will be dependent on how much we have in the dam at the time. Usually water is not available for personal clothes washing and if rainfall has been unusually high then it may be made available. The coordinators will provide advice at the time. The Leigh Creek Caravan Park has relatively new coin operated washing machines. The Caravan Park will also allow FRG volunteers to take water even though we are not staying at the park. Speak to the manager first. Hand washing at the campground is available.

A dump point has been established at Farina to receive waste from cassette toilets/porta potties. Please do not dump into the toilets – it destroys the septic systems. During the site induction the location of the dump point will be described, however, if you are not sure please ask the co-ordinator or another volunteer to show you. The Dump Point is for the use of Farina Volunteers only, not for the General Public. Please do not direct members of the public to the dump point.

There is limited campfire timber and campfires are only permitted in designated areas. If you wish to have your own fire please bring your own wood.

Volunteers do not pay any camp fees to camp at Farina.

Note that the Volunteer program is designed for the participation of adults and does not specifically cater for children. Volunteers are allowed to bring domestic pets (cats and dogs) with them to Farina however they must maintain control of the pets at all times and pets are not allowed at any time into Patterson's House (Bakery and Café), on the veranda, the Underground Oven, Tom’s Shed or at a Stonework worksite. Pets must be kept under control in the Campground at all times.

The FRG have a caravan for the use of volunteers, and Farina Station have some limited accommodation. This accommodation is intended to be used by the Bakers. If the accommodation is not booked for the use of a Baker then it may be available for other volunteers for a fee.

Motel style accommodation is available at the Lyndhurst Hotel and at the Marree Hotel and this should be booked directly through the hotels.