Viewpoint – Carry on camping

As the smell of summer fades and the boats and caravans head south for the winter, I read with interest a story in this publication about a “glamping” experiment at Martin’s Bay Holiday Camp (MM April 17). They have erected a luxury tent and if it is popular they will put up more. Glamping seems to be a holiday park trend, as it is also offered at Orewa.

I can’t recall hearing before about a positive rethink of the traditional campground.  What we usually hear is that yet another lovely campground has been sold to property developers.  Another strand of Kiwi egalitarianism being unwound. For years, these campgrounds have provided Kiwis with a wonderful, cheap family holiday. It was very much a 20th century New Zealand thing. If councils once tried to get out of the camping ground business, they do not have a lot of choice as the issue has been thrust back at them. We have legions of campervans on our roads and the tolerance for free camping has declined considerably.

Camping, though, is part of our Kiwi DNA. Maori used to set up seasonal camps to gather shellfish or hunt. The outdoor tradition was also set by hunters, bushmen, shepherds and surveyors. Their bushcraft stressed the enjoyment of the outdoors and physical self-reliance became a New Zealand way of life.

My ancestors arrived at Port Albert in 1863 after a near disastrous journey from England. Their romantic dream of living in a nonconformist society faded into the reality of cutting out an existence in a harsh environment. Equipped with little more than a humble tent, these hardy pioneers lived for months as far removed from glamping as can be imagined, with their very survival only due to the generosity of local Maori. The earliest European camping trip on record is Edward Wakefield’s journey up the Whanganui River in the 1840s. They took sheets of calico and cut new poles and pegs each night.

Nineteen-year-old Katherine Mansfield undertook a six-week camping trip through the central North Island in 1907. The party rode in horse-drawn wagons and slept under a heavy canvas tent – men on one side, women on the other. However, for those who prefer more than a sheet of canvas overhead, heading to the family bach is another sacred Kiwi summer tradition.

During the capital gains tax debate, a topic of robust discussion was dubbed “Bach-Tax”. New Zealand First listened very carefully to the public who told us they did not want their beach houses included in any regime. New Zealand First listened, we heard and we took action. In our view, there was neither a compelling rationale nor mandate to institute a comprehensive capital gains tax regime. As the season turns and our beautiful beaches empty out across the Rodney region, we are blessed with some of the most gorgeous spots this side of paradise to go camping, glamping or baching.

Jenny Marcroft, Matakana-based MP
jennifer.marcroft@parliament.govt.nz