2025: The Year Out & About Sunraysia Helped Me Grow — and the Channel Grew With It

If I had to sum up 2025 in one word, it’d be growth.

Not just for Out & About Sunraysia as a YouTube channel and website — but for me personally too.

This year pushed me in the best ways. It gave me more confidence, more patience, more appreciation for the region I live in, and a bigger sense of purpose around why I started this in the first place: to shine a light on Sunraysia — the people, the places, the stories, and the moments that make our patch special.

Even when I started this channel reporting on floods, it was more than floods.. it was the places and a bit of history.

What 2025 did for me personally

Putting myself out there more consistently this year has been a massive step.

There’s a lot that goes into filming, interviewing, talking to camera, meeting strangers, telling stories properly, and then actually backing it up with the work behind the scenes — planning, editing, writing, posting, and trying to keep everything moving while life keeps happening around it.

But this year taught me a few big things:

• Confidence comes from doing the work. You don’t “feel ready” first — you get ready by doing it anyway.
• People are the best part. The conversations, the laughs, the unexpected stories — they’ve been the highlight.
• I’m proud of where I’m from. 2025 reminded me that Sunraysia has so much to offer, and it deserves to be seen.
• Consistency matters. Every upload, every post, every visit adds up — and over time it becomes something real.

Out & About Sunraysia has become more than content. It’s become a reason to get out, explore, listen, learn, and connect.

The channel’s growth in 2025

It’s been unreal watching the numbers climb this year — not just because stats look good, but because they represent real people choosing to watch, share, comment, and support local storytelling.

Here’s what 2025 looked like for the channel:

• Subscribers: 1955 (as of writing this)
• Total views in 2025: 127,600 with a total view count of 646,500
• Watch time 2025 : 4050 hours with a total of 25,400

More than anything, I’m grateful that the channel is reaching beyond just locals — it’s becoming a window into Sunraysia for visitors, former locals, and people who didn’t even know where Mildura was until a video popped up.

The stories and places that made the year

2025 was packed with those “how have I never stopped here before?” moments — even as a local.

This region has a way of surprising you: a quiet historic corner, an artist doing something incredible, a family-run business that’s been part of the town forever, a community event that turns a normal night into something special.

From river vibes and warm nights to local history, attractions, interviews and community events — this year reminded me that you don’t have to go far to find something worth sharing.

A huge thank you to my sponsors

I also want to give a genuine, heartfelt thanks to the businesses that backed this journey in 2025.

David at Phil Smith Automotive — thank you for supporting Out & About Sunraysia and helping make it possible to keep getting out there, chasing stories, and showcasing the region, and more importantly being a genuine friend.

Sharan at Club Merbein — thank you for getting behind what I’m building and supporting local content that celebrates community, events, and the people who make Sunraysia what it is. Sponsorship isn’t just a logo on a post — it’s a vote of confidence. And I don’t take that lightly.

Thank you to everyone who followed along

To everyone who watched a video, shared a post, left a comment, sent me a suggestion, stopped me for a chat, or said “mate, keep doing this” — thank you.

You’ve helped Out & About Sunraysia become something that actually matters. You’ve helped build a local spotlight.

Looking ahead to 2026

I’m heading into 2026 with momentum and a full list of ideas: more interviews, more hidden gems, more history, more road trips, and more reasons for people to put Sunraysia on the map.

If you’ve got a place I should visit, a business I should feature, or a story you think deserves to be told — send it through.

Here’s to a bigger year ahead — and to continuing to grow, one story at a time.