Cowboy Paradise still open for business
Cowboy Paradise – an overnight stop on a popular cycle trail – is still open for business despite the discovery of a major underground cannabis bunker on the site.
Owner Michael Milne said he was still taking accommodation bookings for the accommodation operation on the West Coast Wilderness Trail while on bail awaiting sentencing – despite being warned by a judge he was likely to go to jail. Asked whether he was concerned about the effect his conviction would have on the reputation on the trail and his business, he said “that’s not my concern”.
Milne, 68, was found guilty by a jury of growing and selling 136kg of cannabis worth $1 million each year between January 2017 and July 2019 in a concrete bunker twice the size of the average house. At the time of a raid in 2019, police said they seized $5m worth of assets, including farmland, residential property, cash, vehicles, farm machinery and firearms.
A police spokesperson said they could not comment until after sentencing on whether the assets would be retained by the Crown under the Criminal Proceeds Recovery Act.
Milne also said he could not comment, but indicated he would appeal his conviction.
About 6km of the West Coast Wilderness Trail, which is part of the national cycleway, runs through the property. A report to the Westland District Council says about 15,000 visiting riders use the trail and there was only a 3% decline in cyclists between the 2022 and 2023 calendar years based on counters data.
Westland District Council district assets group manager Scott Baxendale said the easement on the land would legally carry on even if it had new ownership. He said the council did not anticipate there would be a long-term negative impact on the reputation of the trail as a result of the cannabis bunker. It was waiting for the outcome of sentencing and would take note of any effect it might have on facilities available for users of the trail. “The West Coast Wilderness Trail Trust and the Westland District Council are always concerned if there is any negative feedback on the trail and acts where it can,” he said.
He said cyclists could make their own minds up about whether to stay at Cowboy Paradise. “Because the court has released the owner of Cowboy Paradise on bail they will have satisfied themselves on matters of public risk,” he said.
The operation has mixed reviews on Tripadvisor, including negative reports of Milne being aggressive and unfriendly. “We felt unsafe in his presence, particularly my wife,” one said in February. A report to the council’s cycling and walking subcommittee reported feedback ranged from the section of the trail at Cowboy Paradise being among the most beautiful places they had been to, to others being offended by xenophobic signs.
Cycle Journeys director Geoff Gabites said it had stopped using Cowboy Paradise three years ago and offered cyclists a shuttle service to avoid staying there. He believed only one of the three operators on the trail offered services to Milne. “We find most of the clients we talk with know about the issues with Cowboy Paradise,” he said.
He said he advised riders not to stop at Cowboy Paradise unless they were staying there, as requested by Milne.
West Coast Wilderness Trail Trust manager Jackie Gurden said Cowboy Paradise was a private business.
“While on the trail I think people will understand that the cannabis conviction has nothing to do with the trail itself,” she said.
The trust had been advising cyclists not to stop at Cowboy Paradise but it was nothing to do with Milne’s conviction. “Mike has been having issues with cyclists stopping and using his facilities, sometimes leaving their rubbish, when they are not actually his paying guests.” As a result the trust had agreed to advise riders to carry on without stopping.