Free Camping: Had No Complaints From The Neighbours,

Gday
While riding my motor bike in Qld in the late 60s , i pulled up on a nice piece of grass for the night. Early next morning i was woken by farmer Brown with a kick in the arm, and offered breakfast.. I had camped on his front lawn which was about 40 or so meters long. I had not seen a house but they had watched me set up.
Murray

Oh yes !
The local tip, twice ! (once actually, as the other attempt was thwarted by a bush bee stinging SWMBO and we were out of there almost before stopping).
A large well known (but not by me at 3am after driving across Qld in a day) council park. The maintenance guys woke me up at 7am...how rude !)
And of course when I was a kid, Dad parked us in a safe spot twice: once behind a bank (police weren't impressed) and once in a fog shrouded main street. Rolled out of my swag to find the street full of people going about their business...funny thing, that.

When on the road I've learned that it doesn't do to drive past dark :)))

A mate and I hired a Citroen BX in 1987 and drove all around Europe, ferried it across the Aegean and eventually into Turkey at Izmir. We drove down towards the Gallipoli peninsular intent on visiting Anzac cove. It was getting late one night so we dropped a groundsheet on a bed of soft pine needles in a grove of pines we had seen in the vehicle headlights not too far off the road. All was well until about 11.30 p.m. when we were rudely awoken by a bunch of blokes waving torches and bloody big automatic rifles in our faces. It seems we had strayed onto a Turkish military base and had set up camp inside their perimeter (no fences mind you). There were a few harsh questions directed our way until it emerged that we were Australians heading for Gallipoli.Well, we were brothers all of a sudden. Carted off to the barracks, forced to drink the local version of ouzo and thick Turkish coffee until all hours and then given a bed in the Officers mess.

Cheers Mick

We were travelling home with the van after SWMBO had just had major surgery. Couldnt travel too far in one hit, so we decided to make short hops, stopping at major dams on the way.
First night at Wivenhoe Dam, and it was so pleasant, we stayed a few nights.

Next stop, Bjelke Petersen Dam, near Murgon. We had left Wivenhoe fairly late as it wasnt a great distance. Turned off the main highway, and detoured the 10km to the caravan site.
To our surprise, at the caravan park there was a sign announcing the park was closed (had been for a year - low water).

No one around, and we couldnt travel to the next town as SWMBO was feeling pretty sore. So we just found a nice site, and camped. Getting pretty cold at that time (winter) so we checked out the power, and yes it was still on. Great, we could use the heater.
Late that evening we had a knock on the door announcing that the park was closed. We explained the situation, and that we were happy to pay.

Must have found the right fellow, as he said, OK, as long as you are gone the next morning.

So I like this type of free camping. Powered sites, solitude, and water view. What more could you ask!
Col

g'day Dazza,

Many years ago we were towing a large caravan down towards alice springs.
We had left the Devil's Marbles and were heading into a strong southerly wind, boardering on a gale.
It was difficult/impossible to get out of third gear into forth without flogging the old girl(60 series), so we decided to stop for the night at the next suitable spot.
We left the road and found a large level area not too far off the highway.
All was well till about 2am when we were woken by the sounds of cars, bikes and a bus arriving. When I stepped out in the morning, we were surrounded by 100 - 150 mostly aboriginals.
We had camped in their "land rights meeting place".
They were friendly enough but we moved on towards Alice.
I think the area was called The Pebbles or Devils Pebbles or something like that.
Funny in hind sight but was more than a little nervous on the night.
Cheers Nifty.

The Mrs and I camped out in the scrub South of Alice one night in the back of the car (stark naked).
We awoke to a horible noise outside the car. When I defogged the windows we were greeted by outback balloning and about a dozen tourists.
LOL

Not exactly camping.

Back in the days when doing surveillance work, tracked a chap from Geraldton to Albany [all in one hit]. He pulled into a property, the only place available to me so as to watch his next move was a large empty carpark a little down the road.

It was dark and I was knackered.

Awoken at 5.00 am by a bunch of Jehovahs tapping on the window. Explained I had been on the road for many hours and stopped for a bit of a rest.
I got told in a very unchristian manner to move on from their carpark.

Now I do the same when they come to my door....hahaha !!!

Cheers....Lionel.

Friends of ours travelled oz on bikes. not a lot of room for gear so some inventive ways to camp. Wait inside till an underground carpark is being locked up for the night, then roll out the swag. Safe and dry camping for the night. As church is held on sunday morning behind the church is good any other night, unless they have a prayer meeting dinner on another night which then meant they got a free feed. Set up swags on the beach once until told by a local they could not sleep there, he did however tell them there was room at his house which included a cooked breaky. These guys had a real lot of fun on their trip.

Cheers
Josh

I pulled up in Blackwater QLD late one night and rolled my swag out on the ground in a little park (a museum thing there now) At some ungodly hour in the morning the Sprinklers started and near drowned me. Learnt not to do that again.

Regards
John

My brother and his wife pulled up late one foggy night a hundred meters or so off the road, and 8 or 9 hours later, in the early morning light, discovered they were right at the main entrance to the local Prison. Can't remember the town, but I think it was around Taroom,Qld. area. He was heading for Emerald. Cheers.


Roger B................

HAHAHAHA!

I love it!!!!

"I understand he was to embarrassed to tell any body"

In a CEMETARY!!!!

Hang on....it's not Friday!!

Cheers,

Greg..

Really stuffed one night in North QLD. Stopped in some carpark somewhere and rolled out the swag. Strung a little tarp up against a sign (which I didn't bother to read...).

Lots of shuffling noises in the night, got up and noticed what the sign said,

".....BEWARE. LARGE CROCODILES INHABIT THIS AREA. NOCAMPING!..."

OOps....packed up the tarp quick. Didn't even roll up the swag. Drove to the highest hill I could find and bombed out for a sleep.

Cheers,

Mark