'Why should locals have to put up with that?'

The Lake Hawea community was the first in the country to kick up a stink about irresponsible freedom campers. That was many summers ago and while it has made progress towards a more pleasant and hygienic lakefront, the problem lingers.  Mark Price reports.

The Craig Burn reserve on the shores of Lake Hawea is a place where kite surfers launch on a windy day and families  like to picnic.

• Hawea wardens: 'We wish we didn't have to do it'
• Bid to contain campers at lake spot

It is also popular with non-paying freedom campers.

Some who visit, however, prefer not to use the toilets in their vans or the toilet provided by the Queenstown Lakes District Council.

They go in the bushes.

And where they have been, Lake Hawea resident John Taylor treads — carefully — with his camera.

Mr Taylor has a collection of between 200 and 300 close-up photos of the problems left behind by tourists, and he is happy to share it with anyone who asks.

"Authorities took a long time to accept looking at that stuff," Mr Taylor remarked while discussing the problem with the Otago Daily Times amid hectares of waste-high lupins.

And while the media, both local and national, have been willing to talk about the problem, they have not been so willing to show  examples of Mr Taylor’s photographic evidence.

"If they published them, they phased out the s..."

"They wouldn’t show the mess, the excrement, clearly."

It is an unusual photographic collection, but it has been gathered with serious intent.

"We welcome [tourists] but we don’t welcome them p...... and s....... over our environment, possibly affecting our waterways," he said.

"Why should locals have to put up with that?"

Prompted by Mr Taylor’s evidence and an outcry from the Lake Hawea community, the council and Land Information New Zealand have taken action, such as installing toilets and blocking some vehicle access to the lakeshore, and that has brought about an improvement.

In 2013, Mr Taylor described the Craig Burn area as a "cesspit".

Now, he uses a scale he has devised.

On a scale of nought to 10, with 10 being as bad as it gets, Cairn Burn is a five.

Deep Bay nearby is a 0.5.

So, better than it was, but tourist "deposits" keep on arriving, and Mr Taylor’s photo collection keeps on growing.

Wanaka Community Board member Rachel Brown,  in a joking aside, said Mr Taylor’s collection deserved to be in Te Papa.

When informed of this, an ever-cheerful Mr Taylor laughs.

Te Papa need only ask.