Rachèl Ozinga and Nikander Damianos hear from Sue Halliwell from the Whangārei District Council about responsible freedom camping. Photo / John Stone
Rachèl Ozinga and Nikander Damianos hear from Sue Halliwell from the Whangārei District Council about responsible freedom camping. Photo / John Stone
As Northland gets into the holiday swing with travellers coming from near and far, many parking lots fill up with freedom campers and their camper vans.
While local councils welcome tourist traffic in the region, some freedom campers have a reputation for causing disruption and leaving behind unwanted waste –a trend that Whangārei District Council is trying to break with its Responsible Freedom Camping Ambassador Programme.
Programme co-ordinator Sue Halliwell has been out at Whangārei's popular parking spots since December 13, encouraging visitors to behave responsibly while staying in the area.
Halliwell said this year council was able to develop the programme and further focus on educating freedom campers as well as enforce rules around overnight stays.
"We are part of a nationwide programme trying to encourage tourists all over New Zealand to care for the places they are staying at," Halliwell said.
"In Whangārei, we're doing what we can to work towards sustainable freedom camping."
Together with a team of 13 volunteers – trained and "community-minded people", as Halliwell described them – Halliwell daily visits some of the 13 most popular sites in the district and knocks on campervan doors to talk about waste disposal, code of conduct on the parking lot, road rules and how to donate to local charities.
Camping ambassador Sue Halliwell with John Sharp inside his camper van. Photo / John Stone
Nikander Damianos and Rachèl Ozinga, a Dutch couple touring New Zealand in a rental van, stopped for a night at the Reyburn House Ln carpark last week when Halliwell paid them a visit.
"We've been travelling around New Zealand for almost a month and have used quite a lot of the freedom camping sites," Damianos said.
"The sites are all very nice – way better than the ones we've seen in Australia. The other campers are nice, the toilets are clean; we even had wi-fi in some places."
Ozinga said they appreciated the camping culture in New Zealand and liked the idea of having freedom camping ambassadors.
"Because we save money on accommodation, we can spend more on the great tours you can do here everywhere," she said.
The pair had stopped in Whangārei to go to the Abbey Caves and were on their way to the Bay of Islands to go skydiving.
Their neighbour on Reyburn House Ln carpark, John Sharp, is an experienced freedom camper, having stayed over 3000 nights in his camper van and calling Whangārei his second home.
"I'm out here because I enjoy nature," he explained. He described the sites as mostly safe and clean.
Because for some sites there is a one or three-nights maximum stay policy, he is often on the move and knows most camping spots around the area.
Halliwell said the car parks are getting busier each year, and are often at capacity so as part of the programme they have collaborated with commercial campsites in the vicinity to re-direct the overflow their way.
Next to the freedom camping ambassadors, the Whangārei sites are also policed by Armourguard Security Whangārei to ensure all campers feel safe and general rules are being followed.
All information around freedom camping in the district can be found on wdc.govt.nz/FacilitiesandRecreation/ReservesandOpenSpaces/Pages/Camping-in-public-places.aspx.
Council Non self-contained sites in Whangārei District
Bascule carpark (Port Rd) A.H. Reed Memorial Park (Whareora Rd) Kowharewa Bay Manaia walkway carpark Marsden Bay Reserve Matapouri (Wehiwehi Rd) Ngunguru Library Ocean Beach carpark One Tree Point boat ramp Parua Bay Reotahi Sandy Bay (toilet block carpark) Tamaterau Tarewa I-Site Waipū Caves Wellingtons Bay (Whangaumu Reserve) Whananaki North Woolleys Bay (western carpark)
