Hidden gems for campers
Home » Magazine » Good, issue 9 » Hidden gems for campersNew Zealand campers are spoiled for choice, with more than 800 easily accessible campgrounds countrywide. How do you choose where to pitch your tent? Here are four special spots recommended by camping aficionados Sarah Bennett and Lee Slater
Above: Kinloch
Pakiri Beach Holiday Park
Address: Pakiri River Road, 17 km northwest of Leigh
Contact: (09) 422-6199, www.pakiriholidaypark.co.nz
Capacity: 100 unpowered, 30 powered. Open all year. Bookings recommended peak season
Price: $20 adult / $8 child
Things to see and do:
- Saddle up: www.horseride-nz.co.nz
- Swim with googly-eyed snapper at Goat Island Marine Reserve: www.seafriends.org.nz
- Try to avoid getting half-cut at the Leigh sawmill café: www.sawmillcafe.co.nz
Being so handy to New Zealand’s largest city, it’s hardly surprising that the near-end of Northland is popular with Aucklanders popping off for holidays or weekends away. The closer you keep to the highway, the less likely you are to find happy-camper heaven, however. Stray off the beaten path and your chances will increase.
The tiny settlement of Leigh has remained inexplicably low-key and sleepy considering its proximity to the uber-village of Warkworth and the boutique vinopolis of Matakana. Perhaps this says something about the appeal of eating and drinking versus the popularity of donning a wetsuit and snorkel—for Leigh-on-Sea is next to the amazing Goat Island Marine Reserve. And just on from there, down an unbeaten path, is our pick of the near-north: Pakiri Beach.
It’s a big old beach, Pakiri, made of fine, white sand that squeaks when you walk on it. Behind handsome dunes, the land remains largely houseless. The campsite, in fact, is the major man-made feature of the bay, spread over a large area and surrounded by farmland, with the Pakiri River running along one side.
Once you get beyond the high security gates, you will find this a welcoming camp—an ‘oldie but a goodie’—catering to all sorts of people, from schools and big family groups through campervan tourists to solo travellers in pup tents.
The best spots are reserved for casual campers—particularly the handful of prime sites sitting perched above the river mouth. That said, the unpowered paddock has some good riverside spots, too. The paddock has lush grass and plenty of water spigots, although it’s a little bit further to the amenities block. Pine and pohutukawa provide shade.
In the middle of the park, the main facilities block is old but in good nick. The kitchen is a stainless-steel workhorse, complete with gas hobs and all other vital equipment. There’s a covered alfresco dining area out front, complete with coin-op barbecues. A separate block next door has a games room with ping-pong and a television lounge with a very small screen. There’s a fish-cleaning sink for the anglers, and cabins and flats for non-campers. The office shop has basic groceries, chippies and sweets, and kayaks are available for hire.
Kinloch
Address: Kinloch Road, 26 km from Glenorchy, 71 km from Queenstown
Contact: DOC Visitor Centre Queenstown, 03 442 7935,
www.doc.govt.nz
Capacity: 20 unpowered. Open all year. Bookings not required
Price: $7 adult / $3.50 child
Things to see and do:
- Experience the magic of middle earth: www.dartstables.com
- Dart up the valley: www.dartriver.co.nz
- Kinloch Lodge: www.kinlochlodge.co.nz
- Walk in splendour: the Routeburn, Caples and Greenstone tracks are three deservedly popular routes. Day walks include the Routeburn Falls Hut (six to seven hours return) and the Mid Caples Hut (five to six hours return).
If you keep driving through Queenstown and out the other side, you’ll find yourself on the road to Glenorchy—the so-called ‘Gateway to Paradise’. The drive there ain’t bad either, sidling along the edge of Lake Wakatipu, with gob-smacking views all the way.
Glenorchy is the larger of two small settlements at the north end of the lake, nestled into a rugged high-country landscape of mountain ranges, ancient beech forest and two glacier-fed rivers: the Rees and the Dart. Paradise itself is 20 kilometres away.
Glenorchy and Kinloch are undoubtedly the gateway to paradise in the literal sense of the word. Located less than 20 kilometres from the boundaries of both the Fiordland and Mount Aspiring national parks, they serve many of the travellers venturing into this great wilderness. Indeed, three of New Zealand’s most famous tramps can be accessed from here.
There is a pleasant commercial camp at Glenorchy, which has powered-up amenities and family-friendly activities close by. However, if you’re after that ‘end of the line’ feel, keep going to Kinloch—only a few kilometres away as the crow flies, but 26 kilometres by road, across both rivers.
There is little at the settlement save for the welcoming Kinloch Lodge, which has a range of comfortable rooms, homely communal areas and a restaurant cum-bar. The simple DOC campground is right across the road on the lakeshore.
The defining feature of this small campground is its humbling mountain views. Peaks tower above you in every direction, and laid out in front is an expanse of lake, in which swimming and fishing can be enjoyed (although strong currents from the river can be dangerous).
Camping ranges along the lakeside strip, on fairly uneven but grassy terrain. There are plenty of picnic tables, fire pits, long-drop toilets and a water spigot. And that’s where the facilities stop … at least if it weren’t for the camp’s proximity to Kinloch Lodge. Not only is their restaurant open to non-residents, for $5 you can partake of a hot shower. And for $10 you can have a hot-tub, if they’re not too busy.
A hot-tub, a beer and a home-cooked meal, followed by a warming fire under the stars: the best of both worlds.
Maraehako Bay. Photo by Lee Slater/Sarah Bennet
Maraehako Bay
Address: State Highway 35, 90 km northeast of Opotiki, 245 km from Gisborne
Contact: 07 325 2685
Capacity: ample unpowered. Open all year. Bookings not required
Price: $12 adult / $8 child
Things to see and do:
- Ring the Maraehako Bay Retreat and see what fun they’re getting up to. Why not hire a kayak? Dolphin-watch, diving and all sorts of fishing trips are also on offer: www.maraehako.co.nz
If you were setting out on a journey to find the best camping spot in New Zealand, your imagination might conjure up a golden cove, its waters a pool of sparkling blue, flanked by craggy points and backed by bird-filled native bush. Big, old pohutukawa would stand along the foreshore, their gnarled trunks and twisting branches entwining into a canopy of scarlet explosions. At Maraehako Bay you have reached this destination.
The Hei whanau owns and works the farm here, located along arguably the most beautiful stretch of the East Cape road. They have set aside this beachside field for their visitors. There’s not much to it, at least in the way of facilities: just a bunker-like building housing a kitchen, hot water showers, toilets, and some rubbish bins. But this little camping spot is simply magic, complete with a backdrop of verdant, fern-covered hills from where a stream runs down to meet the sea. The stony beach is steeply pitched but largely safe for swimming, the family says, in favourable conditions.
Bea Hei looks after the camp and runs the shop, which sells bread, milk and ice cream in peak season. There’s a real ‘freedom camping’ feel here that the presence of the facilities and tiny office-cum-shop thankfully do little to dispel. There are no powered sites, no permanents and nothing to book. Just come on in and pick your spot. You can bring your dogs if they’re good.
Bold souls will probably want to peg out under the pohutukawa, in some of the most scenic and unspoilt waterfront sites in the country. It can get a bit blowy up the front, however, so bring long tent pegs or be prepared to rock your bits and pieces down. It’s also a bit stony, so bring a thick sleeping mat too. For greater comfort and shelter from the breeze, camp in the open on the grassy field, or tuck yourself away in the shade at the foot of the hill. If the weather treats you mean, there’s accommodation at the Maraehako Bay Retreat at the western edge of the bay, run by Bea’s brother, Hamai. Between them they can hook you up all sorts of fun activities, including kayaking and fishing.
Okarito. Photos by Elton McAleer
Okarito Community Campground
Address: Russell Street, Okarito, 14 km from the turn-off on State Highway 6 (18 km north of Franz Josef Glacier)
Contact: Okarito Community Association, via Paula and Swade at Okarito Boat Tours, 03 753 4223
Capacity: 30 unpowered. Open all year. Bookings not required
Price: $10 adult (children free)
Things to see and do:
- Kayak the lagoon: Okarito Nature Tours, www.okarito.co.nz
- Check out the birds: www.okaritoboattours.co.nz, www.okaritokiwitours.co.nz, www.whiteherontours.co.nz
- Pop into Westland National Park: The Okarito trig track (one and a half hours return) includes a short, sharp shock of gutbusting steps, but its stupendous views of the lagoon and alps make the climb well worthwhile.
This is one of the West Coast’s best-kept secrets and one we are reluctant to share. However, campgrounds like this one are the cornerstones of the New Zealand camping experience, and to omit it would be selfish—especially as we reckon there’s a good weather thing going on here, too. There seems to be a hole in the clouds over Okarito, for every time we visit, the clag sits grey over the alps, but by the time we get out to the coast the sky is clear. Maybe we’ve just been lucky, or maybe this really is a special spot.
The turn-off to Okarito on State Highway 6 is at The Forks, between the small inland town of Whataroa and Franz Josef Glacier. From there a 13 kilometre long sealed road leads through the lowland forest of the Okarito Forks Ecological Area.
With a population of around 30, sleepy Okarito has a couple of goldrush buildings including Donovan’s Store (circa 1865, said to be the oldest surviving building on the West Coast) and the School House (1867, now the sweetest youth hostel you’ve ever seen), along with a clutch of modest houses and board-and-batten baches. It’s a tight-knit community offering homespun hospitality, the sort of place where you can buy whitebait from the back door.
It is, however, the lagoon that defines Okarito. As New Zealand’s largest unmodified coastal wetland, covering more than 3200 hectares, its shallow waters are a feeding ground for white heron (kotuku) and royal spoonbill, along with many other birds.
Okarito’s laid-back, self-registration campground—on a DOC reserve, run by the local community association—is well-tended and monitored. It lies close to the beach, separated only by a seldom-used grass airstrip. The beach is too treacherous for swimming, but you can light a fire when there isn’t a ban. Gather some driftwood and coax your fire into life in the face of the onshore breeze, then rug up in your blanket and watch the sun disappear … this simple act is one of life’s great pleasures and a wondrous way to commune with this untamed environment.
The grounds are well hedged, and dotted with fire pits and picnic tables. The kitchen shelter is basic but comfortable (with fridge-freezer), as are the showers ($1 coin) and flush toilets. A laundry sink outside features an old-school wringer—that’ll buy you a carbon credit, as will the full recycling facilities.
