Five rocks byfield Qld

Hi, png62, gotta agree on the permit system in sunny Qld; takes the spontaneity of travel. Many National Parks also require booking ahead for allocated camp sites; what if you've never been their before and when you get there you don't like the spot ? Do you get a refund if for your pre-paid camp-site if you decide to not go for the weekend when the weather turns cyclonic?

I don't think the permits cost anything either (correct me if I'm wrong) so if it isn't revenue-raising, what is the point of the permit system? Do they ever refuse an application?

Should have mentioned I was refering to Qld's State Forest permit system.

I can't understand why we can't have ONE annual pass system and access to all forests/parks in Qld! How hard could it be eh!

Because parks/forests are managed at a local/regional level not at a state level per se.

Forestery passes allow the respective authorities to manage the area, close off sections, conduct controlled burnoffs in safety, establish a legal access system etc. I not sure if it is same in all areas of Qld, however the permit can be valid for up to two months up here (eg Cathu State Forest, Crediton State Forest etc) even though people don't realise this and think that they have to register for one day/weekend only. Permits also allow only limited registered vehicles access to these areas for public liabilty reasons IIRC, and to limit some access by certain non-insured recreational vehicles eg motorbikes etc.

At the end of the day, the permit is the only way that the management authorities currently have to monitor numbers of users to lots of these areas. An annual pass will not help with this situation and in fact may restrict access further due to lack of infrastructure to identify who is actually in the park/forest at any one stage.

I would personally prefer the current system of free permits rather than an annual pass which is a PITA to manage and may not solve some of the issues with access.

Andrew

Hi Andrew, I see where you're coming from, the 'free' permit system is fairly easy to accomidate in state forests, but going into a NP costs you $32 a pop for each NP you want to visit (generaly). Surely a NP Pass would make a lot of sense and save you money. I hear that Teewah Beach will soon go the same way! another $32 bucks please...

Personally i would rather see the funding for our NPs etc come out of taxes, instead of an annual pass. At the end of the day, NPs need funding to maintain infrastructure.....where it comes from is the issue.

Down south, there seems to be a huge cost involved in just setting up a NP for revenue collection, especially with the annual pass system. Drive via thredbo even for the day and they slug you a small fortune.....seperate fees from the annual pass costs. NSW parks have overpriced fees IMO and i would rather see Qld stick to the current "cheap" system. I was told years ago that the ongoing running costs for the infrastructure would possibly outweight the revenue for most of our parks. There may only be 1/2 a dozen or so Parks in Qld that could sustain the costs if any.

Be aware that the annual pass in NSW etc do NOT cover camping fees....it is more of a "traverse fee". With the NSW pass costing around $190 for one year (slightly cheaper for 2 years), I would suspect Qld wouldn't be much different if going down the same track. No thanks :-)

Andrew

I should correct myself in that the $190 per year pass is the only annual pass to include Kosciuszko National Park, and i believe it is $65 for a multi-parks pass excluding kossy.

Andrew

Good work George thanks,

Quote..The creek on 9 mile is now fenced off from traffic. you can only camp south of the creek now

This is a great idea is'nt it..after all they don't want you useing the already established tracks around the creek but instead they want you to create new ones up over the dunes and clear new camp sites..makes me wonder why when i have been going to this spot for 20 years and the cleared camp sites have never changed..i supose in 10 years they will say that the new area has too much use and create a new one further south again...hmmm...maybe in 10 years there will be only walking tracks down there and no 4wd's will be allowed..end of a era.

The reason they closed the creek from camping and vehicles is due to the EXTREMELY high levels of ecoli bacteria found in the creek. I too have been going there since i was a tot, over 20 years ago. They have made it sooo easy to get in and out of the place that anyone can go there. I have photos of a 2wd toyota crown parked on 9 mile beach. You get heaps of silly litle boys in their beefed up utes and 4WD's, driving in in the arvo, drinking, then driving home that night. Your right they will eventually close the whole area off to traffic in the near future, which is a shame.

SantaAus

With the fires- you are allowed fires as long as you bring your own firewood, and steel container to light the fire in.

SantaAus