Infringements on decline
On summer afternoons they come to the Coromandel in droves.
Vans of various sizes and holding various numbers of people pull over to rest in Pauanui and Tairua, at designated Freedom Camping spots.
For some, it’s become an annual tradition, for others, it’s their first taste of New Zealand.
But no matter the reason for arriving in the area, John Freer, a Responsible Camping Ambassador, wants campers to depart having had a good time.
Freer is one of five camping ambassadors who have been hired by Thames-Coromandel District Council to help the district’s freedom camping visitors find the right places to stay, as well as provide them with information on where to find public toilets and rubbish disposal facilities.
They also monitor freedom camping sites and collect data on how many visitors are using them. They began patrolling Coromandel’s hot spots, armed with a helping hand and a rubbish bag, on December 16 and will continue on until February
23.
Since their arrival, infringement numbers have dropped. There were 301 infringements and 432 warnings given between December 15 and January 31 last summer, and only
214 infringements and 356 warnings given between the same period this season.
‘‘I’ve been surprised by the sheer numbers of people,’’ Freer said. ‘‘I know we’ve been through our peak period but I’m seeing alone, a minimum of 30 vehicles a day, and that’s pretty much been replicated right around the
Peninsula.’’
He’s chatted to visitors from Germany, France, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Canada, to name a few.
Freer has also been surprised by how positive the experience has been.
‘‘Before I took on the role, my impression of freedom camping was fairly limited. I had most of my opinions developed secondhand, and now, having been out and doing the job, I have a much better appreciation for what it’s about,’’ he said.
‘‘I haven’t found the people that are leaving rubbish and all that sort of stuff; it’s been quite the opposite.
‘‘The freedom campers are very mindful. When they come here, they leave the place how they found it.’’
Stationed in Pauanui for the afternoon on one hot Thursday was a Kiwi couple, a German pair and a traveller, Sarah Castinel, from Tahiti.
Castinel admired Coromandel’s beaches, and said they were bigger than what could be found in Tahiti. She plans to hike throughout the North Island before travelling down south.
She said she appreciated
Freer’s guidance as a camping ambassador.
‘‘Everybody is happy to talk. You can tell that there’s nothing quite like a one-on-one discussion with a local,’’ Freer said.
The ambassadors have been using the ‘‘Ambassador App’’ to record numbers of users at designated freedom camping sites. They are able to identify how long campers have been in the same spot, as well as the route of their journey.
Council’s regulatory manager Brian Taylor said the intention of the ambassador programme was to provide better education and advice to freedom campers to allow them to make more informed choices of where to stay and ultimately see compliance rates increase.
‘‘As the programme is still going we haven’t had a chance to evaluate it completely; however, anecdotally we are hearing and seeing positive things.
‘‘We have received really good feedback from campers and the ambassadors themselves about the positive interactions that are happening.
‘‘We have also heard from residents around our more popular sites saying that those sites do appear tidier than previous years,’’ he said.