Issue #978

by Paul Taylor - Lakes Weekly Bulletin

Remember a few years ago when there were freedom campers absolutely everywhere? Wicked campervans lined up at Lake Hayes, other reserves and car parks, tent communes of backpackers and working holiday visa tourists up Bob’s Peak and out at Gibbston, people cooking on BBQs outside the library. Mostly they were young, fit, tanned and enjoying a life of freedom, adventure, alcohol, drugs, dancing and sex. I’m not jealous... honestly. That type of tourist, the freeloader, the slackliner, the hacky sacker, has been largely missing from Queenstown Lakes in recent years. Since Covid really. Things just got too expensive. Air fares, food, petrol, buying or renting a van. And with stricter local freedom camping rules, the cost of a campsite or accommodation was added to the bill, rather than just parking up somewhere, or hiking into the woods with your tent.

But this summer, they could make a return, thanks to an unlikely ally - the New Zealand Motor Home Association. The caravan club. They challenged the Queenstown Lakes District Council’s 2021 Freedom Camping bylaw and won. The High Court has now quashed the bylaw, which was pretty much a blanket ban across the district. That means QLDC can’t enforce it, and has a $400k-plus legal bill to pay. There are other rules that apply, such as the Reserves Act and national Freedom Camping Act 2011, which requires vehicles to be certified self-contained (have a toilet), but on the whole, it has just got much easier to bed down for the night without paying.

Is this a good thing? On the one hand, no. The problem, as Eleanor Roosevelt said, is “with freedom comes responsibility” and while the caravaners I’m sure clean up after themselves, many freedom campers leave a mess, not to mention taking bush poos and leaving shitty toilet paper strewn all over the place, and causing noise disturbances with late night parties. They also literally camp out on what remains of our free parking spots. But on the other hand, Jesus! when did we become such boring, NIMBY, boomer, strict, joyless control freaks?? When did we start quoting Eleanor Roosevelt?!

I think these free-spirited people are good for the town. Good for the vibe. Cheap labour for the businesses and supportive of those business offering good deals. Great for word-of-mouth and FOMO social media promotion. Queenstown used to be a party town but it feels like the council and police are killing it off. Sanitising it. Everything feels like cash-grab. DoC are now talking about us paying to enter National Parks and piloting car parking charges at popular spots.

Do we really want a world where you pay to play, and everything is manicured, controlled and easier if you’re rich. I say we live and let live, and welcome them back.