Plans to build for a big, new campground near Queensland’s Carnarvon Gorge have been lodged with the Central Highlands Regional Council.
Rockhampton’s Morning Bulletin newspaper reports that the development application envisages a 156-site campground on a 93.9-hectare block which would potentially serve as a base for people wanting to visit Carnarvon National Park.
According to the proposal, the purpose of the development is to help ‘address the growing demand for short-term accommodation’ near the iconic national park.
The Bulletin reports that the campsites would all be unpowered and would be for the use of self-contained recreation vehicles, caravans and camper trailers that generally don’t require external facilities.
The stunning beauty of Carnarvonn National Park draws huge numbers of visitors to the area. PIC: Tourism and Events Queensland
The park would be aimed at guests who are self-sufficient with respect to amenities, as there will be no cabins, however two amenities blocks would be provided to those who don’t have their own.
The planning document says that, while each site will vary in size, they will be ‘typically large’ by industry standards being about 15m to 20m wide by 20m to 30m long.
The proposal is for two solar-powered amenities blocks with five separate unisex toilets, a laundry, three showers and a service room. There would also be a manager’s residence.
The Morning Bulletin says, if approved, the new campground would be another option for campers looking to stay amongst the beauty of the national park, with the Carnarvon Gorge camping area and Big Bend camping area close by.
There is also the Big 4 Breeze Holiday Park Carnarvon Gorge and Carnarvon Gorge Wilderness Lodge nearby.
According to data from the Department of Environment and Science, the Carnarvon Gorge National Park camping grounds have had a total of 1489 visitors, with 678 camping permits issued so far for 2024. In 2023, there were a total of 7021 visitors across all the camping areas, with 2968 camping permits issued.
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Any new camping area would be welcomed.
However the biggest problem for camping at the gorge is the fact that the National Park camping area is only opened during school holidays, just the time that us grey nomads don’t want to be there.
How pathetic is that.
Agree
We need a low cost camping area at times there is no availability and at a price grey nomads can’t afford.
No. I guess we were lucky, it was a wonderfull spot, we had a choice where to go.
Also, the camp station put on a roast meal at a reasonable price.
We always stay at Sandstone Park as it is pet friendly and has the best views. It sounds to me like this is an application for Sandstone Park to add some infrastructure.