You do have to feel sorry for the young people on a road trip who just want to park up somewhere quiet for a sleep in their car. Many of us took it for granted in the past that we could save money for good times by doing this. We didn’t have much and saving on accommodation made the trip possible. And there really was a great sense of freedom on the road with few restrictions. Not so much now though. So where did the free in freedom camping New Zealand go? Modern times demand that our lives are subject to more and more regulations. We can’t, it seems, be trusted to live our lives responsibly and decently without being regulated and corralled to limit our opportunities. Fun? Forget that. One person’s fun in this day and age is another person’s opportunity to feel disrespected, offended, insulted, outraged even. How dare these people…? Which brings us to Freedom Camping. Is it the word freedom that’s so challenging to today’s politicos and bureaucrats? Is it the very idea of the unfettered citizen that challenges and frightens them? Freedom used to be something that people fought for. Many of us had relatives who fought and died for freedoms that we take for granted now. Freedoms it seems we are happy to sacrifice for order and control. Freedom Camping seems to be very much a New Zealand thing. Not that it’s totally unique to this country. There is a UK organisation called the Freedom Camping Club (‘a club for people, run by people’. So not Planet Of The Apes then – phew!). Membership is free of course. The aim of this organisation seems to be to identify the cheapest places to pitch your tent and enjoy a ‘people’s’ holiday. Sounds like huge fun … Continue reading Freedom Camping New Zealand