So what does that really mean?
It means responsible camping on a site with no power and minimal or no facilities such as taps, toilets or showers. It also can mean no dump station where you camp.
In New Zealand, this type of camping is often associated with freedom camping - free as in "no pay" camping where you can camp for the night in areas that are not always meant for camping like parking lots, roadside pull-offs, reserves or picnic areas. (Note: you can't just park and camp anywhere in New Zealand as there are rules around such camping.)
Off the grid camping is also found in many campgrounds such as those under the control of the Department of Conservation and also the many campgrounds run by regional or local councils, associations, volunteers, etc. For use of these grounds, there is a nominal or very low fee which makes them very affordable.
So camping in New Zealand can be really, really cheap.
So now back to our off the grid camping experience in Napier in November 19:
Solar power: Overall we had no problems. Our 2 solar panels worked like a bomb and provided us with plenty of power. But as I was still working on the road, our only challenge was getting maximum use of my laptop to get my work done with minimal disruption. Charging up my laptop each day meant that I had a 2 hour forced midday break which was actually the best thing for me.
Gas: Together with our solar system we were more reliant on gas. We usually run our fridge on power, but now we needed the fridge being able to work on gas. And oops we found we now had a problem with our gas igniter. Oh dear, this was a concern at the time. But we found a dealer in Napier that was able to solve our problem within a couple of days. Crisis averted.
Fresh Water: We have good water tanks onboard that could easily manage our fresh and wastewater usage. We obviously have to conserve water to make it last, so we had to be clever with washing dishes and taking hardcore showers known as "navy" showers.
Going off the grid also means you use up your water quickly. And with the tap being some distance away from us we needed to have a plan to bring water to the caravan without having to move it every time. So we used 4 collapsible water containers to get the water from the tap and a little pump to get the water into the caravan.
Wastewater: As there are no toilets or showers at the campground, this meant that you had to be fully self-contained. In other words, you must have toilet and shower facilities in your campervan, motorhome or caravan. This also meant having to remove this waste by loading it up in a removable container and taking it away to a dump station.
Our caravan does have onboard tanks to collect the wastewater from our loo and sinks. But it does get full if you are camping off the grid for a time, so we used one of these cassettes to take this waste away to the nearest dump station.
Good tip: Oh, and we did a learn a trick from the experience of full-timers on the road. There is usually a pool or gym facility in the area that will allow you a nice long hot shower for a small fee. We found one in Napier and those long showers were a real treat. 😄😄
The best advantages of living like this:
The savings in camp fees is so worth it. We paid $36 for a whole week of camping off the grid which is equal to only one-night camp fee in a managed holiday park.
Oh, and I guess I should mention that we had no TV as we did not bother to put in a television system that would work off the battery. But hey, who needs TV when we find ourselves in these great locations. And this forced break is a way of bringing you back to basics and connecting with the wonder of books, games, crafts, etc. And what better way of spending an evening watching a beautiful sunset and hearing the night sounds of nature.
In Hindsight:
We do need to put in a more powerful inverter system into the caravan in the near future. So this will happen as soon as we can get to a suitable installer of these systems.
Our Verdict:
We are definitely going off the grid again soon. We did not feel we had to compromise any aspect of our lives to live this. With a few extra tasks and habits, we found we can do everything in our caravan that we could do in a sticks and bricks house.
It is also great to know that we can live a very independent and free lifestyle. New Zealand has so many opportunities for freedom camping and really cheap off the grid campgrounds. In today's world of social media, devices and television distractions, it is good to be able to disconnect from it all and plug into the simple pleasures of the outdoors.
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