Tony
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Oxford ▷
Cust Domain
3.5/5
Great spot overall.
There's a good old-school male / female toilet block with a self-closing door and automatic sensor light, an outside sink with a great tap (cold water only), 3 x picnic tables by the sink in a semi-enclosed communal setting, no showers, 2 x rubbish bins.
A bit of road noise, but really most of the noise is from the in and out of the cars for people bringing their dogs for a walk or, if you're unlucky, the local tractor mower. The inconsiderate bloke rolled in and started mowing the domain at 0750 while a few of us were still asleep (cheers mate...). Oh, and the fire station siren is fairly close too, which you definitely hear.
Talking with a regular stayer, there's no limit to how long you can stay. Just make sure you're vehicle(s) remains compliant with WOF, rego, RUCs, etc etc.
Oxford township is 15 minutes up the road with a small supermarket, cafes, service station and a takeaway, plus other services.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Timaru ▷
Gunn's Bush
4.0/5
This is a great spot if you're fully self-contained - there are no signs here though.
One of the earlier reviews must be for the Bush Camp which is a large facility back down the road from this freedom camping spot. There is really is nothing here really, other than peaceful seclusion, especially if it's only you (as it was for us). We stayed in the first carpark/ turning circle, leaving the one by the tracks entrance clear, partly because it wasn't as flat.
The walking track was nice, with a few seats early on. Nothing to see though, but still a nice loop track.
I imagine in wet weather it might get quite muddy here.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Ashburton ▷
Bowyers Stream Scenic Reserve
4.0/5
It's nice and quiet, apart from the traffic/ road noise.
It'd be great for these roadside spots to have a noise mound along the road. That said, they've certainly put some work in to make the place nice with a decent long drop and packed gravel roading. If you need anything else, there are options a little way away, both North and South.
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South Island ▷ Canterbury ▷ Geraldine ▷
Waitohi Scenic Reserve
5.0/5
This takes a bit of awareness to find as you travel the back roads, but the views are absolutely worth it.
There's a picnic table at one end and a large long drop (with toilet paper!) as well - bonus!
There's a couple of walking tracks too, of you're keen :)