Just how low can you go? ‘Turd tree’ shame at camp

Published: June 22, 2018

Sometimes bush campers can be their own worst enemies.

With the spotlight being shone on free camping like never before, it is the behaviour of the campers themselves which will ultimately decide where and how they are allowed to camp in the years ahead.

Of course, litter is an ongoing issue in many what should be pristine spots. While many grey nomads travel with plastic bags and gloves and live by the mantra of always leaving a campsite as tidy or tidier than when they found it, few would be game to tackle the human waste ‘epidemic’ at some campsites.

At Gunn Point Beach, north east of Darwin, the NT News reports that dirty campers are leaving uncovered turds everywhere.

One camper, Sally Daw, told the newspaper she was left retching from the strong smell of faeces at the camping grounds.

“It was absolutely putrid … there were uncovered poos from humans and dogs just all over the place,” she said.  “It’s obvious that people have just been taking a dump and wiping themselves and leaving all the used toilet paper covered in skid marks out in the open.”

The beach’s western camping ground is under the control of the NT Land Corporation and executive officer, Helen Gordon, said human waste had become an ongoing problem at the beach.

“People have also been tying their poos up in plastic bags and hanging them up in trees — it’s pretty bizarre,” she said. “It’s not difficult to take a shovel and dig a hole to bury your number twos when you’re out camping and that’s what most people would do.”

She urged campers to do the right thing. There are rubbish bins at the site, and the NT Land Corporation is not currently planning to install any toilet facilities.

  • Have you been disgusted by the way in which some campers ‘do their business’? Comment below.
16 Comments
Oldest
Newest
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Our last trip to NT via SA, the roadside stops had no toilets and there was poo and paper everywhere at each stop in SA. Other states being NSW, Victoria, NT and Queensland were good in comparison to South Australia.

Yes must agree with you the Stuart Highway is very bad in South Australia, The NT govt have done a great job of the facilities on their side but need more. The truck stops also need some toilets/water.
Cheers

Been on the road 7 years we have seen it back packers every time
We were at collinsville last year the lovely free park opposite club 2 guys dump in the cattle yards one nomad went over told them to pick it up or he would rub there nose in it they picked it up

Unfortunately we have all too often come upon the remains of an emptied toilet cassette at many road side rest camps. Not likely to be backpackers.

The back packers are as guilty as anyone else. Don’t defend them.

Good Work Noted! As long as you are not putting yourself at risk let these grubs know we don’t do that here!

Oz Trail have a twin flush toilet at $120. Get yourself one and you won’t have to crouch over a dug hole. Dump points appear to be everywhere.

This, I believe is done by locals. They do this to try and keep other campers out of “their area”. Those that believe that they OWN the land are prone to this sort of thing. No know no better and have been doing it this way for hundreds of years.

We have travelled Oz for past 30 years and toileting habits of thoughtless idiots has always been an issue… how hard is it to dig agile and bury your waste????? Unimaginable that people would tie faeces in bags on trees!!!perhaps one should look at locals too, not always tourist

When nature calls ,just dig a hole and bury it all !

Maybe its time to name and shame these twits

Afraid we were camped once at an area with no toilets or bins a few years ago, late afternoon in came two large rigs, self contained for sure, they left next morning leaving all the skid marked paper on the ground apparently not wanting to put same in their tank or cassette we promptly set about burning same which they could of easily done & they weren’t back packers

A couple of years ago we pulled into parking bay and almost stepped out of the car into a pile of human waste! Not very pleasant at all, this person couldn’t even go behind a bush. It was out on the Nullarbor but there were many trees about.

Would be great to be able to name and shame these dudes.
Makes you wonder what their own house would be like.

Used to free camp at Cobram, Victoria, on the Murray River, where they used to have pit toilet’s, and Park’s Victoria did away with them, and now it is like a sewage dump, and we never went back.

How much would it cost to put longdrops at regular intervals for all travellers to use a small price to pay considering the millions spent in country towns and communities

ADVERTISEMENT

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

0
    0
    Your Cart
    Your cart is emptyReturn to Shop