Local families catch on to joy of gramping

Children can learn a lot while gramping.

Hawke's Bay families are getting in on an increasingly popular summer activity dubbed "gramping".

Gramping is the term given for whole families, including young children, parents and grandparents, camping together.

Department of Conservation media adviser Leigh-Anne Wiig said it seemed to be happening more as parents often had to work and didn't have enough annual leave to cover the entire school holidays.

She said gramping had already taken off in Australia and tourism operators in New Zealand should start preparing for it.

Hawke's Bay senior ranger Malcolm Lock said there had been a lot of grandchildren and grandparents out camping lately. Popular sites were Glenfalls and Kuripapango.

According to DoC, Glenfalls was a campsite beside the Mohaka River an hour from Napier where visitors could fish, swim, canoe or raft on the river.

Kuripapango campsite was in the Kaweka Forest Park next to the Ngaruroro river where people could have a go at rafting or fishing or swim in the river.

Mr Lock said both sites were well set up for gramping as they were next to rivers and offered lots of river activities.

Other sites the Department of Conservation recommends for gramping include Lake Tutira north of Napier. It said people could camp at the southern end of the freshwater lake. They could walk to Table Mountain Trig for views of the Kawekas and coastal Hawke's Bay. There were fishing, swimming, kayaking and sailing activities available.

A campsite at Mangatutu Hot Springs in the Kaweka Forest Park had the additional attraction of thermal springs and hot pools.

Office for Senior Citizens director Sarah Clark said gramping allowed families to take advantage of national parks and heritage sites.

Grandparents could also share stories about growing up and how life in New Zealand had changed.

"I think it's a fantastic opportunity to mix the generations up in the great outdoors," she said.

Ms Clark said she had been camping with her children and parents.

"There's magic in sharing time without all the technology and you get back to basics."

She said her parents were keen outdoors people and loved taking the children into the bush and telling them about how New Zealand had evolved and talking about the country's plants, pests and predators.

"In the context of protecting our heritage it's a really good way to open kids' eyes to the consequences of looking after our environment."

Extended families holidaying together could be cost effective and could mean parents could get a break while grandparents helped watch the children.

"I think it's an idea with huge potential and I'd really love to see it take off in New Zealand," said Ms Clark.

New Zealand had good base infrastructure for gramping but New Zealanders now needed to challenge some of the assumptions it had about older people and their capability and recognise the opportunity of gramping.

In 20 years New Zealand would have 1.2 million people aged over 65.

"The reality is that we live in an age where we've never had so many people healthy at a greater age," said Ms Clark.

Ms Clark thought gramping also had potential to attract visitors from overseas.

Local woman Pam Turner said she loved spending time in the great outdoors with her children and six grandchildren.

She said she had been taking her grandchildren camping since they were babies and enjoyed helping them learn about the outdoors. Her daughter and three of her children had recently finished a climb to the top of the Kaweka Ranges, the highest point in Hawke's Bay.