When pulling up at new campsite, most grey nomads will make a quick assessment of who else is staying there and are generally semi-prepared to move on if they don’t feel comfortable for one reason or another.
Thankfully, we are blessed in Australia in that most places are remarkably safe … and serious hassles are very few and far between.
But trouble does happen.
A couple of days ago, a fight broke out at about 8pm at a campsite on the Victoria-NSW border in which two men – one of them in his 60s – suffered serious injuries. Another man has been arrested.
The exact circumstances surrounding the incident, which took place at Forges Bend Track in Yarrawonga, are yet to be determined.
9News says police have spoken with a number of campers at the scene, as the investigation into the altercation ramps up.
A 63-year-old man, understood to be the occupant of a caravan at the campground, was flown to the Royal Melbourne Hospital with serious head and leg injuries.
A 23-year-old man was also taken to The Alfred hospital in a serious but stable condition, with substantial upper body injuries.
Police arrested a 53-year-old man at the scene.
It is understood some ‘edged weapons’ may have been involved in the altercation.
“What I can say at the moment is that we have a number of crime scenes ahead of us,” Detective Sergeant Marcus Boyd told 9News. “It’s a little bit early to understand exactly what’s happened … a couple of witnesses are in hospital and we haven’t been able to speak to them on a formal basis at this stage.”
It is not known whether the three men were known to each other.
RESPECT YOUR NEIGHBOURS
Yes we camped by a lake once lovely spot, couple of campers, but lots of room, but also a group of younger people, we kept to ourselves but their dog charged at ours, even though only a little dog, and ours bigger but timid, I picked up a stick to fend it off, next thing had 4 guys come over to our camp standing over me, carrying on about me taking a stick to his dog, I said if you dog had not been aggressive or not in control there would not be a problem, eventually they went, and we should have packed up, but I slept with a shovel in the van, at midnight they let one of those huge fireworks off right behind our van, very lucky I don’t carry a gun believe me
On my first trip I had an old Hiace campervan and it had a steel wall between driver and the rear. Only once I had to leave without getting out of the vehicle. I promised myself that any other van I bought I must be able to easily get to the front and drive away.
I moved to another area once when a man set up right next to me in an almost empty area of river bank. He set up his noisy generator next to my van so the exhaust was blowing into my van. I asked him if it was necessary and he said ‘I gotta keep me beers cold’ so I just moved.
I seem to suffer the opposite problem, after I set up ‘camp’ and ark up Gensets, the 6 speaker Tall Boys, party lights, mobile bar, chairs and kitchen, there’s a Rave till all hours of the night. Usually pull about $1000 a gig. Best retirement plan ever.