‘On the rocks’: New Zealand's coastal bach landscape and the case of Rangitoto Island

Abstract

A distinctive feature of many of New Zealand's coastal landscapes has been the rudimentarily constructed holiday home known as a ‘bach’. In recent years, however, rapidly escalating beachfront property prices, and the associated development of elite residential landscapes, have threatened the status of the bach. This commentary examines the diminishing number of ‘classic’ kiwi baches, and specifically considers the case of Rangitoto, a volcanic island close to central Auckland. Here, the location of baches on publicly owned land has been controversial and the small number that remains symbolize curiosities from another time and place.

At home away from home: visitor accommodation and place attachment

“…In Canada, ownership of a 'cottage' or 'cabin' provides privileged access to emblematic natural/wilderness landscapes (typically centred on mountains and/or lakes) and associated recreational activities (such as skiing and fishing) (McNicol and Glorioso 2014). Similarly, in New Zealand, second homes at the coast -often referred to as 'baches' -(re)affirm the central role of the beach in national identity (Kearns and Collins 2006;Peart 2009). The positioning and value of second-home landscapes in such settings reflects and reinforces these cultural affinities, associated identities and attachment to valorized natural features.…”

“…It is typically concentrated in high-amenity rural and wilderness areas (McNicol and Glorioso 2014), which often feature access to water, whether at the seacoast or lakeshore (Kearns and Collins 2006;Pitkänen 2008). Second-home owners become part-time residents in these locations, and 'may possess tourist-like characteristics because of their motivation for leisure pursuits as well as providing accommodation to facilitate visitors' (McLeod and Busser 2014, 89).…”

‘Pulling up the Tent Pegs?’ The Significance and Changing Status of Coastal Campgrounds in New Zealand

“…In both cases, styles and standards progressed from humble origins in correspondence with increasing prosperity and regulatory control. Curiously, just as the appearance of increasingly lavish, residential coastal housing has piqued some nostalgia for the traditional bach (Foster and Perkins 2005;Kearns and Collins 2006) so, too, the reconstruction of holiday camps as commodified tourist hubs has arguably sharpened interest in more frugal expressions of camping (witnessed, for instance, by the popularity of basic government-owned campgrounds, and the success of outdoor supply retailers).…”

“…The campground is deeply embedded in the New Zealand psyche -as the large number of children's books offering fictionalized accounts of camping attests (de Freitas 2007) -alongside the basic beach cottage or 'bach' (Kearns and Collins 2006). DOC (2006) has noted the broad appeal of camping to New Zealanders of various ages, backgrounds, household size and income levels.…”

“…Many New Zealand families grow up alongside each other at camping areas spending their summer holidays camping at the same site next to the same family. What develops is a real sense of community and shared 'ownership' of these camping areas (DOC 2006: 34 At the same time, the coastal campground itself -typically located on an expansive, grassed flat area adjacent to the beach -is arguably a cultural icon; a physical manifestation of New Zealand's relatively 'democratic' traditions of beach access and ownership (Kearns and Collins 2006). By the 1970s, concern was emerging for loss of access to the coast, and opportunities for coastal camping, as private residential development intensified.…”