SA Parks Online booking coming in June

[03GV]

Yeah there are quite a few that have been online booking only for probably over a year now! Innes national park on yorke peninsula was the first from memory. That one is super busy.

[Pete79]

Also at the cape we used a park's office phone to book a site and after trying to get the girl to understand what we wanted and her telling me the booking system is brilliant I asked her if she has been camping. She replied that she does not even have a car!   

Yup, stupid system not designed by a camper and they will never go back to the old system, which worked a treat.  Oh and the ranger said they know that in Qld because the fees are low people will book and pay for a week when they know they will only stay a few days but it gives them a few days to be flexible with their plans.  That is why the booking will show no vacancies but when you drive past there are heaps of vacant spots!    Kevin

That explains a lot.

Unless it's school holidays / public holidays I can't see too many people not being able to book while on the go. Sure it disadvantages those with no mobile internet on the move but you can't keep the minority happy at the expense of the majority or those that don't plan in advance.

I'm all for the system if the money goes back into the park, time will tell I guess.

We've had dramas with the stupid QLD booking system twice already this year.
The old system was so much better.

The whole point of going bush is to get away from phone reception and have the freedom to pull up where you like for the night.
After a day of exploring random 4wd tracks we just wanted to roll the swags out at the nearest camp site. With no phone reception and the pay phone on site not working we had no choice but to do the wrong thing.

I have no issues with paying fees, but the regimented online booking system in QLD is terrible.

If you're lucky enough to get a casual ranger that doesn't mind the fact that you've dropped in unannounced that's ok. But if you get one of those short guys on a power trip they can wreck a great trip.

5 years and 100s of nights in Nation Parks in NSW and we never had any dramas.
5 months and 5 trips in QLD National Parks with dramas on 2 out of the 5.

[The punter]

Turning national parks into caravan parks seems to be the way of the future. We are all going to be having to go further to find "casual" camping.

[Bird]

Turning national parks into caravan parks seems to be the way of the future. We are all going to be having to go further to find "casual" camping.

I've certainly noticed in high country that you need to go a LLLLlllong way now to find a secluded spot

[Pete79]

In this case I don't think the secluded spot is the issue.
It's being able to look at a map and say; "there's 2 or 3 campsites in the general direction that I want to go, I'll just drive and see how far I get, then pull up and camp at the nearest site."

With the QLD system (and I'm guessing the SA system will be similar) that is impossible.
As krisandkev noted, the logic seams to be that we're expected to book a spot at all 3 sites and only camp at the one we can make it to.

The example I used earlier is in the area around Kenilworth, Jima and Imbil.
This area is absolutely packed full of 4wd tracks, you could literally spend weeks exploring around in there.
We throw our swags and an esky in the cars and hit the tracks, we just want to follow our nose and see where we end up.
Pretty much every track crosses a main trail at some stage, you might pop out at Imbil, or right over the other side at Kilkoy.
There is about 6 camping areas dotted around the area, but according to National Parks we have to plan exactly where we will end up and book before we leave home, because once you're on the tracks there is little or no phone coverage.

So apparently you're not allowed to say "lets just go down that track and see where we end up" any more......

[Bird]

In this case I don't think the secluded spot is the issue.

yea I was getting at that its getting very very "busy" in the bush these days, and the fact that so many tracks are like ironing boards, more deadShits seem to be going to the regular places.

So apparently you're not allowed to say "lets just go down that track and see where we end up" any more......

I think that's the killer - as someone else said, your locked in to being at Camp X on Thursday when you might want to stay where you were for a week as it was heaven, or a breakdown, or other emergency - the list goes on... you cant do that anymore.

[The punter]

yea I was getting at that its getting very very "busy" in the bush these days, and the fact that so many tracks are like ironing boards, more deadShits seem to be going to the regular places.
I think that's the killer - as someone else said, your locked in to being at Camp X on Thursday when you might want to stay where you were for a week as it was heaven, or a breakdown, or other emergency - the list goes on... you cant do that anymore.

It's a side effect of cost of entry. Cheap campers means more people in the market, more people equals more likelihood of morons, governments manage morons by restrictive process aimed at the lowest common denominator. It will only get worse because we seem to be breeding and importing more morons every year.

[Bird]

It's a side effect of cost of entry. Cheap campers means more people in the market, more people equals more likelihood of morons, governments manage morons by restrictive process aimed at the lowest common denominator. It will only get worse because we seem to be breeding and importing more morons every year.

its probably quieter and more relaxing to get a motel in the CBD than many areas of the HC these days

[03GV]

So we experienced this lovely idea on Saturday.  We ended up taking the camper out to Chowilla game reserve and booked 2 nights camping at a designated site. We actually did it whilst in the Renmark information centre, the lovely girl there did it online there and we picked our campsite.
It was around 12:30pm, and we grabbed some lunch before heading out.
Upon arrival to camp 19 we noticed people set up, a woman was sitting down with her kids there and I got out and asked if this was camp 19 she said yes and I said well we're booked in for here,  she said oh well we booked in for here!
The look on her face to me said no she wasn't, she looked guilty to me. And at that moment the 2 males rock up towing a boat trailer full of wood and they get out and see whats up.
I tell them we're  booked in, they say we booked in. I told them as of 12:30pm today this site was not booked as I saw it on the screen in the information centre, this is when the goaty wearing bogan in the passenger seat moves in closer and tells me other camps up stream are empty so whats your problem? I said and what if people rock up there?
I wanted to tell them to prove its booked and show me the receipt but didn't want ol mate to fire up. I did have a mobile number given to me by the information centre for a direct contact to parks but guess what there is no reception out there!
We ended up staying 3 camps up river and had a great time but it shows that its a flawed system, and my guess is they just checked online before going and saw noone was in it and just went.

I couldn't get their numberplates without going and looking as they were facing the wrong way and that wouldve made it interesting,  the boat trailer facing me had timber hanging over its plate to so couldn't  get that.
Im riging them tomorrow and letting them know all about it!

[The punter]

The stupidity is that they don't have the resources to oversee it, so it's never going to work well. Make sure you point this out when you call!

[Nifty1]

Had a great time at Green Cape lighthouse  (NSW south coast), a bit unexpected and longer than I would have thought, then decided to camp at Bittangabee Bay. Signs indicated pay on arrival, but conflicting pre-booking system actually in use. Every site vacant, no phone signal, didn't want to risk midnight eviction or a fine so went to Vic instead. I wrote to Parks NSW with the details and suggested they could always leave say 10% of sites available for casuals and blowins,  they have referred  this to local area office and thats where it stopped. They probably missed two sites for two nights. It's a stupid system except for busy areas in holiday periods.

[austastar]

Hi,
    Once, caught with out cash, we stayed in a Flinders Ranges pay by envelope camping area,
Instead of cash, we left a note for them to email us with a bill that we could pay on line when back in mobile range.

No reply ever came through though.

The whole National Park thing needs reviewing on a national level and brought under one jurisdiction with local appropriate  variations.

Cheers

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

[Bird]

Im riging them tomorrow and letting them know all about it!

you may as well piss into the wind..

[trinityalyce]

Around Innamincka they are pretty lax, still let you camp with just the Desert Parks Pass and no additional camping permit (we were there at the start of the week and asked about buying a camping pass, was told we didn't need one). But from others I've heard that Witjira NP is stricter and camping permits in addition to the Desert Parks Pass were pushed for those wanting to camp at Dalhousie... we didn't camp there partly for that reason, partly because it was super crowded...

[gronk]

Hi,
    Once, caught with out cash, we stayed in a Flinders Ranges pay by envelope camping area,


Cheers

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

We have stayed in the Flinders and a few other places......never paid yet. Don't believe in paying for a nat park campground that is normally no better than the free camps. Especially when the fees don't go back to the nat parks who administer them. I won't mention my avoidance system as some get offended by "freeloaders" like me !! 
But this prebooked idea would stop us going to these nat parks as one; I wouldn't liked to be parked in someones prebooked site and two; I never have a trip planned that well that I know where I'd be camping in 2 days time !!

This system means less people camping in these parks.......but that suits nat parks fine !! They don't care if nobody turns up !!

[Bird]

but that suits nat parks fine !! They don't care if nobody turns up !!

I reckon you've hit it on the head... nobody goes, no need for maintanance and cleaning up. I was shocked to hear how much ti was to get the Shitters pumped out at Sheepyard Flats recently

[gronk]

I reckon you've hit it on the head... nobody goes, no need for maintanance and cleaning up. I was shocked to hear how much ti was to get the Shitters pumped out at Sheepyard Flats recently

Must have the wrong Shitters.....or not enough of them as most modern ( like the last 10+ yrs ) Shitters are compost ones that don't need emptying !!

[Bird]

Must have the wrong Shitters.....or not enough of them as most modern ( like the last 10+ yrs ) Shitters are compost ones that don't need emptying !!

By Monday night on a long weekend they are usually overflowing... Easter the Shit was at seat level. And there are 4 thrones...