Freedom Camping Abuse

Hi Jimbo, I agree 100% with everything you said. Well worth the effort of writing it. Cheers

Hi Jimbo,



Ain't it always the way that the 1% stuff it up for the remaining 99%.


Regards

Barry H

How many vehicles are truely 'fully self contained'? I thought caravans, RV's etc with a toilet and shower and their own power source were self contained, but from reading above if their sink / shower water goes out a grey water outlet / hose etc into a bucket, then they are not... These sites must be only for the select few (I would imagine!)
Ps - I only have a tent....

Keep the pigs out We thought Gwalia was a wonderful place and full credit to those who are/were refurbishing the old buildings. We went there by accident and spent the whole day there Was most interesting and the history even more so.

Was just telling a neighbor about it yesterday.

If they dont behave close it down ,would be a shame to mess the place. (and any other ) up like that

A very good post Jimbo; each and every paragraph.

Those few who spoil it for the rest of us, will continue with their behaviour, after those willing to do it right have been excluded when these amps are closed because of the behaviours of that few.

Well said Jimbo, I agree whole heartedly

I agree with most of what has been said here. The one thing that annoys me is the statement "no open top buckets or containers which can overflow." This would rule out ALL containers including in built tanks. To allow water to enter a container there must be a vent to allow the air to escape and by their very nature vents will allow excess water to escape ie overflow, when the container is full.

G'day Jimbo,
I agree wholeheartedly with what you are saying, and you get your point across really well.

However, sadly, I believe (hopefully on this august site) that you are preaching to the converted.

Regards

We have just been to Gwalia and agree that it is well worth a visit. They really have done a great job at preserving this village. Unfortunately the "one percenters" are not only causing issues as outlined here but also causing havoc at most roadside stops where used toilet paper abounds. We are constantly dismayed that wherever we stop this is an issue. Even in free camping areas this tends to make one rather hesitant to stay. I do appreciate that caravan parks can become expensive over time but the way people are abusing free camping and roadside stops is concerning. We recently stayed in the refurbished Menzies caravan park. It has excellent facilities and cost less that $20 for a powered site.

G'day Jimbo.wa and good day to you all.

Jimbo, I don't know you or your connection to Gwalia/Leonora but you very obviously care about the negative impact being created by thoughtless people and it is sad to read that many "grey nomads" are clearly the ones abusing the privilege of free/low cost camping sites.

I am not able or allowed to identify myself on this web site, but as a local resident and active promoter of wilderness touring and camping throughout the inland Pilbara, strikingly similar negatives have come to mind, but in this situation the problem may in time force the closure of every unregulated free camp in the close proximity of the town of Newman.

The free to use gas barbecues picnic tables etc at the 'day use area' on the shores of the Ophthalmia Dam have already been abused not only by locals but also by campers be they grey nomads or just families heading through the region to some place else, the abuse comes in form of damage and litter/garbage being left behind, admittedly the garbage is left behind on the ground in garbage bags when the refuse bins are obviously full and the gas barbecues left in a filthy state once the abusers have finished being there. I have no first hand knowledge of the 'free to use' gas barbecues being left on at this venue, but the 'free' to use electric barbecues at the Radio Hill lookout picnic facilities have been deliberately left on and filthy after being used by the visitor/user.

My main concern comes from something I witnessed from the lofty cliff tops above Kalgan Pool on the upper reaches of Kalgan Creek north east of town, just last Saturday afternoon. Kalgan Pool is the setting or scene that featured in the Australian feature film "The Japanese story" starring Aussie actress Toni Collette and Japanese actor Gotaro Tsunashima, the move was shot/filmed at several locations throughout the Pilbara, but Pilbara and Kalgan Gorge and the waterhole were the highlight ~ for me at least.

Last Saturday afternoon there were nine separate groups of 'free campers' in the gorge at the waterhole, there were three camper trailers a single large off road caravan and five large 'family size' tents set up and not a single dunny or anything the remotely resembled a bush toilet, so my guess is that every single person there apart from possibly the camper trailer and caravan people were doing their business in the scrub and bush up stream of where they were/are camping. I did see a person walking down stream along the watercourse then duck into a thicket of scrub, a little while later re appear ~ probably after a job well done.

I eventually drove down from the cliff tops so my companions could capture an image or two of the movie star cliff face and waterhole before we left the area when I recognized one particular camper, a woman who had been seeking information at the NVC about access to this waterhole ~ four days previously ~ this woman and her family were one of the tenting brigade, where several school age youngsters playing with dogs, family pets possibly.

With no 'public toilet' facilities and this waterhole/gorge purely a day visit and not a long term free camp area, the crunch will come if not by the government, be that local or state it will come from the mining company that has the lease on the area, I know it will be adverse and sad for all those who do the right thing including responsible campers and day trip visitors as we will all be excluded at some point in the future, how soon is a pure guess but I know it's going to happen because one of my companions just happened to be someone from ~ you guessed it, the East Pilbara Shire Council who actually raised the health point and started a debate about sanitation and water borne contamination from human waste and all I could think of at the time was "Oh sh1t" here we go but he's right.

Safe travels : Joe Fury

G'day Jimbo

I appreciate the rapid comeback to my response, sadly my friend the majority of 'free campers' are screwing things up rapidly for themselves and the absolute innocent people who have never been to or seen the places being talked about, not only here but across Australia.

There is no BHP connection as such in this instance, it's the other multi national miner who may or may not give a toss about these wilderness areas in or on their leases, but the Shire guy was livered at what he saw and his seeing Kalgan Pool was his very first time.

Long drop dunnies or any other man made/fixed structures would be next to useless in a place like Kalgan's as this and all other gorges in the region carry huge volumes of flood water during the wet season, even standing native vegetation gets a hammering, I've seen large boulders shifted to a new spot along the watercourse after a good wet.

Sadly the 'waterhole circuit' as it once stood has been irreversibly changed due to the very people who might just lock us all out.

Jimbo, I appreciate your fight and passion for the bush and if it's of any consolation, I am out there too, fighting tooth and nail to help preserve our wilderness.

Safe Travels : Joe Fury

Can someone please enlighten me as to the meaning of this term "freedom camping". Presumably it means something more than free camping? Maybe the connotation of "freedom" sends a message of "I can do as I please" and as such the term may be unhelpful in terms of getting people to do the right thing wrt disposal of waste.

Cheers,

Val.

I have often wondered about the sustainability of free camp sites especially within the confines of an established town. It always seemed to me that it was a huge leap of faith that the facility would not be abused by the few such that the local authorities would close them down. I could never understand the economics of a town with existing caravan parks providing free facilities in competition to them and why they would want to chase business from people who didn't even want to spend money to stay in caravan parks, which are at the cheapest end of the accommodation option.

Generally the basis to a business case is that people are prepared to spend money. That appears to be absent with free campers. From what I've seen of the facilities in towns I visit, the local authorities are rapidly coming to this same conclusion as too many of the free campers simply aren't worth the trouble they cause. Sorry if that doesn't apply to you, but it seems to be increasingly the case.