Neil Henderson is well-known in the livestock industry with a résumé of livestock agent, CALM assessor/manager, pharmacy representative, and East Gippsland farmer.
The Henderson name is well known at Gelantipy, and Mr Henderson owns part of the original family farm.
Travelling around, talking to farmers, grazing his own cattle, and having a good general knowledge of East Gippsland, has given him great insight into farming.
Mr Henderson has worked on drought-proofing himself by leasing a farm at Darnum, then buying a property at Wombat Creek, near Orbost.
Both of these farms are in an area that almost guarantees grass all year round.
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Closing in on retirement, he bought a farm near Orbost, again working on having high country, along with wetter low country, and using the Darnum farm to finish off cattle.
The best laid plans can go astray, and he said the way early 2018 was working out, having a farm at Woodside could add some different country to his portfolio.
However, 2018 and 2019 have been two very difficult years.
For Mr Henderson, Gelantipy was very dry, and then the drought caught up with Wombat Creek, then Woodside.
This left the Darnum property to fill a big gap.
Fortunately, the late spring saw him cut a lot of silage and hay at Darnum, giving him some much needed supplementary grass.
Added to this, December rain at Gelantipy grew some much needed grass, giving some relief.
Selling cattle at Bairnsdale on Friday, Mr Henderson was pretty happy with his sales.
His attendance at the sale, however, was interrupted by the VicEmergency app.
It announced a fire had started at Timbarra, which, while not that close, could impact his Gelantipy farm.
On Saturday, Mr Henderson said the fire had almost reached the back of Karoonda Park at Gelantipy, which is not very far from his place.
Fortunately, a change came through, and the wind change was moderate, which saved the fire from spreading further.
