Some of the most beautiful camping spots in Queensland’s Far North could be shut off to campers this year, with poor visitor behaviour being blamed for the possible decision.
The Cairns Post reports that indigenous leaders in Cape York are moving to close the sites or, in some cases, charge fees for access to freehold land.
Despite being within state-managed national parks, camping spots such as Bathurst Heads, Janie Creek and Vrilya Point are not expected to open when the dry season arrives.
A Department of Environment and Science spokesperson told the newspaper that the lockout was due to ‘local authority road closures’.
However, it is being reported that traditional owner frustration with ‘people doing the wrong thing’ has been behind the lockouts. Although the state can control access to Cape national parks, native title claims on freehold land reportedly trumps state authority.
Pajinka traditional owner Michael Solomon told the Cairns Post he was concerned about volumes of visitors using the Tip walking track car park without toilet facilities and a general ‘lack of respect’ on land owned the Gudang/Yadhaykenu Aboriginal Corporation.
“We want control, it’s respect,” he told the newspaper. “They make new tracks and go fishing in the nude, there is a lot of issues up here, they cross the Jardine ferry and go anywhere …. my concern is the toilet and when tourists come, they go into the bush, and littering.”
A proposal to charge access to camping spots on land north of the Jardine River was to be discussed at a meeting of traditional owners on Monday.
A DES spokesman said visitors doing the wrong thing could close parks ‘if their actions have degraded the environment or made park infrastructure unsafe’, however he wouldn’t comment on management of land by traditional owners.
There is apparently a lot of pent-up demand for a trip to the Tip following Covid-19 biosecurity lockouts last year, with thousands of travellers said to be counting down to Easter school holidays and the Peninsula Development Road being declared open.
Good on them, scumbags are few but stuff it for everyone.
What absolute hypocrisy. We have been to a number of camp spots in the Cape. In the National Parks we witnessed dogs being bought in by local indigenous, all nighters with them drink driving up and down the beaches. We are self contained. They weren’t. Visited local communites at Lochardt River, Weipa and around Bamaga area and anyone else who has visited these areas will have to agree at the disgusting state of these communities and surrounds with all of the litter and car bodies in the yards, streets and parks. Witnessed drinking sessions on river banks then just driving away leaving cartons of empties and dirty nappies strewn all around. These area are all on coastlines and rivers with the rubbishh being washed into the waterways. Please! They need to take a good long and honest look at themselves before pointing fingers at the tourists that spend so much money in the Top End. The Jardine River Ferry is the most expensive in Australia for the distance travelled. I could go on. Reading this article has really touched a nerve with me because it is so biased.
Yes agree with you Monica, we could all go on. We too have witnessed similar to what you have described. It is always easier to blame someone else than to have a good hard look at themselves. It is not always the traveller/tourist who litter.
The same can be said for many camp locations Australia wide it is often the local communities young that arrive & party leaving all their rubbish, often grey nomads clean up camps.
Spot on, have to say it’s the first thing I thought of when I read this
We went to Kalumburu W.A.paid $50 for a permit to pass through the filthy settlement on the way to Honeymoon Bay. Won ,t go back .
this does not fill me with great excitment as we are heading to the cape this year, we will be free camping in a tent until we get to the tip where we’ll stay at he camp ground in a tent.
If they are going to close campsites to the Tip then there is no point going in the first place so they might as well close the York Peninsula Development road too. A simple solution would be to monitor and fine those few individuals rather than punish those responsible members of the RV Community…
Agree fully with Monique and Val The amount of rubbish empty beer cans cartons cigarette packets car bodies etc You could go on. Numerous times you see the 4WD driven by the local ripping up and down the beach on all night “parties” If I visit A location I take my rubbish (and extra) back and dispose of it correctly. I have seen more locals than visitors carelessly dispose of rubbish
Me too Disgraceful
I was there last year at Siesia and other parks and the biggest litterers were the indigenous people. I know they won’t like me saying that but that was my observation. Them plus the horses knocking over the bins and dogs spreading the rubbish. I actually filled a wheelie bin one day near the jetty
I believe there is some truth in what has been said by viewers however the article was not referring to to townships and not to grey nomads but more remote country that is often only visited by people fishing. We have seen some horrid and disrespectful attitudes toward the environment. In particular are now very well used tracks by the ever growing 4wd enthusiast. The incredibly beautiful and fragile land of the Jardine tributaries is being ruined and treated like a theme park by what I suspect is a young population that have no eduction in camping etiquette and caring for nature. People toileting within meters from camp spots and water courses, not even digging holes or digging too shallow. Girls leaving toilet paper and sanitary items in the bush. And then there is the rubbish. The OTT is a good indication of what tourists do the land and it’s disgusting. Heavily fished spots are just as bad. I say something needs to be done. More fees, more education.