Saving Australia's Largest Informal Shack Community - Saving Wedge Island, Documentary 

Airlie before the islands bloody croc city

I reckon few of these folks are rich, this isn’t their houses for most of them, it’s their holiday homes. However I do agree it should be protected.

@@jpw5029 most of the people I met at several of the places in the north were retirees who had the beach shacks for many years. They loved the area and their peace and were self appointed caretakers. When the rich claimed those areas the entire place suffered. The environment was first to suffer.

@@mickzammit6794 kinda proves my point, old folks holiday homes. I’m not hating, you work hard, made the best of cheap property prices, good on you. But let’s not act like its possible for environmental hippy warriors to build humble communities in aus.

@@jpw5029 they weren't holiday homes. They were permanent residences on untitled land. All of the people living there were old and past their working lives. I agree you have very little hope of that lifestyle these days. And if you did the wealthy would find a way of taking it for themselves.

Amazing story! Sad to hear you lost your shack.

As someone who lives on an island of 400 residents, you find communities like ours often attract people who are running away from something, or want to hide from something or don't fit in anywhere else and some of them are cranky at the world, so best to give them a wide berth. So I understand your situation with the take over of your cabin. Back 50 to 100 years ago, you could basically do what you wanted regarding putting up a holiday or fishing shack around many parts of Australia, but of course now the fun police are around and there are rules for this and rules for that. If there is a way that the authorities can make a buck, re approvals for this and that, it always comes down to money or newbies who want to come in to change or run the place. Sad......

Bloody beaurocrasy... Government causes the problems... like conditional purchase on farmland back last century Also The whole land stolen by Government

Yes very much not the West Aussie Way 😢. Thank you for still supporting wedge.

You’d be a different person if you tried harder to get your shack back. That would be a loss.

Its always about the tax/money. Always.

@@mwallace2922Correct… unless we are talking about the super rich.

Yeah they rely on nothing other than the 68 helicopter trips and Perth hospital. People need to pay their way in this world and not take advantage of everyday hardworking people in the cities.

@@MrFab297 a bit jealous and sad in life i see little fella i hope you get some help and get better

@@tracymckinnon1550 No champ, I live in the real world with real responsibilities

We had one we used to stay in one on Stockton beach too. It was the late 80’s and we used to go stay for days. We used to have to go in with the 4wd and then we’d ride trikes. It was great fun 🤩

Well buy a place there

Exactly right

@@lee.j I just read down through some of the comments. A lot of mixed opinions about these shack settlements, but I have to ask. If those who have shacks there in the first place hadn't of made the roads in by hand, made some convenience for people to get to the beach and enjoy it, would people actually have ever made the effort to walk through to the beach? I grew up on weekends and holidays in a small remote beach community like this in FNQLD and I have to emphasize community. We started with making a small track through the trees (some 4 kms), made a very usable wood log boat ramp near the mouth of a creak. Cleared a tidy area for weekend campers to enjoy and some space for boaters to park up, plus the various small tracks to our huts at a few locations along the beach. Everyone had access to the boat ramp, and the 3 beach hut locations. Most visitors were friendly and appreciative and were always welcomed for a cuper or a cold one. My father and others had spent most of there life close by on a farms back after the WWII and always had a few shared fishing shacks out near the mouths of the local creaks. Back then they were often shared around between different fishermen. Basic rule was try to leave more than you took from the hut for the next person. They were generally well stocked and if you got caught out in a boat in bad weather you knew you could run to one of those creaks and have somewhere warm to hide it out and plenty of food for the night. When they brought in the perpetual leases the community spent a month or so upgrading the tracks to be more suitable for small cars etc. It became a very popular weekend day visit area and often with weekend tenters. Was the best for kids and families. The community looked after it, and kept it for everyone to enjoy out of there own pockets and efforts. It is still popular to this day. P.S. Not once has council attempted to grade the road or put a bit of fill over the soft spots on the road in. The fisheries patrol have made regular use of the boat ramp for easy access to reef and islands since day one. Yes having a beach hut is a bit "Special", but it is made special for everyone to enjoy in the process :) > Oh the hut "sharing" still continues to this day. Often families and friends of friends, work colleagues etc will borrow a hut from someone they know for the weekend. I never want to see this lifestyle end.

Mate your story is very closely aligned to Wedge, the original shacks were built by crayfisherman as the island offered protected moorings. Originally the only way in was by boat or a long difficult 4wd track. It wasnt until the road was put in place by the government making the area more accessible that it became popular. And very similar to your story, shack owners have been paying licenses since 1995 and not one part of infrastructure or road grading, not even a public toilet exists. It has been completely left to the community to keep the up the roads, and clean rubbish, maintain the grassed areas, and beach boat launching site the list goes on. Also shack sharing is a very common part of wedge. @@axle.australian.patriot

@@lee.j Thanks for sharing. I noticed the similarities during the video. Lets hope the community continues into the future, Both here and in WA :) > We have 8 locations within about 90 kms of coast line. 3 are single to 2 shack. 2 are about about 5 and 10, and 3 at about 10 to 15. One site was forced into Freehold at full land cost, and one I am uncertain if they have been moved to freehold or not. Most are on perpetual lease agreements. One site with about 8-10 huts is a boat only trip.

@@lee.j P.S. I just had a look at where my parents were, bout 30 huts left on Google maps. There's a few other outliers on a couple of other nearby creeks. -18.92367369657636, 146.3176419395185 Barilgie Beach, part of Halifax Bay. > -18.509444291211366, 146.2692120866528 Lower Herbert River clan. Commonly referred to as Seaforth > -18.51612255355159, 146.2355995519666 A single in Neams Inlet/ This actually accessed via the back of a farm property, now a Prawn farm. > There are others, but it'll give you an idea :)

It's ridiculous. Just look what's going on in Tasmania, it's actually frightening.

Yep look at what is happening on the Qld gemfields.

It doesn't help the amount of rubbish dickheads leave on the beach and the bush.

It’s harder to sell the place off to mining, logging and overseas investors if we the people are busy using the place…..

Yes its true australia is thr most hostile to rural activity and public use of land i have ever seen! Its alarming. They dont allow camping hunting fishing ect to much of the country. The government holds most of the land and then monopolises its us end or foreign entities mostly. Tgere is whole swatges of empty land that people are completely prohibited from accessing.. The government right up until the 1960s removed actovely both aborigines and australians from land they occupied withplout legal documentation in ordered to monopolise the land. The whitsundays is a great example but there is 1000snds of examples. If you tell this ti europeans they are shocked how a state and a state with so much land could be so openly arrogant and hostile to its people and their basic interests its alarminh. Terrifying really if you look from a perspectic of a small european country l, if such control. Exsisted you could not move or walk freely anywhere .. Australians are passive or even supportive of this draconian situation as long as it doesn't effect them. It makes the country very unfun..

A very valid point mate, but i guess we can't let the past dictate our future. I'm sure a strong sense of localism would've been very prevelant with such a hidden gem that Wedge was, its seen almost everyhere in australia like it. Wether its fishermen or surfers protecting their spots, or oldies hiding away from the madness of suburbia. However, today the cats out of the bag. Wedge is a very well known and frequented spot by all kinds of west aussies. I think its a testimate to the wedge shack owners ability to change and accept this growth and to be actively seeking new ways to create a safer, more enjoyable place for everyone. I know from my perspective as being a complete outsider to wedge life, me and my crew were welcomed into the lives/homes of wedge shack owners with incredible warmth, they didnt know what side this film would take on their situation and could've easily shuntted us away. Sure, their will be the odd few who are stuck in their ways, but as a whole Wedge is one the most inviting, true blue aussie communitys left in this country that hasnt yet been dictated by the corruptions of our government.

Learn to spell, mate.

@@lee.j you were only welcomed cos they don’t want to loose there shacks I say they need to go let it open up to public and let people camp there the shack people try clam the area for themselves

Australia’s have been free on this land for 10’s of thousands of years

We have, and we need to fight to keep that freedom. It is very hard to get, and very easy to lose.@@aum82

Thanks mate! They are all legends!

@@lee.j 100% right there mate ! 30+ years of history for me

I believe captain cook stated something like that about the aborigines, so he hopped off his boat and poked a flag in the sand and started demanding taxes.

👍👍👍👍

yes mate that is correct, however, Wedge isn't considered a "formal" shack community, hence the use of "informal" in our title.

I'm in Lightning Ridge, in a camp ( shack) on a claim. Icannot buy my mother's claim, I can only inherit it. Ppl are being forced out in the same ways, rates are rising, restrictions continually getting tighter yet zero services being provided. It's BS. this vid makes me realise that the fight to keep our homes, our freedom & lifestyles are worth more than we know.

@@anikajain571 If you are on a claim and not a western lands lease you must be out at Grawin, Glengarry or Sheepyard. Why cant you transfer the claim into your name, I have never heard anything like that before, not saying you are wrong but I have not heard of it happening to any body else. As to your rates, yes they are getting higher, certainly higher than services received, but you see you had a general manager who did not like opal miners much and he slowly each year with the rate increase put up miners rates and decreased rates in other areas of the shire. I wonder Anika if I look on the electoral role if I will find your name, and you see that is the big problem nobody in the camps are on the role or very few, so why would politicians or Shire managers care what they think. The same General Manager sunk the water piping to Grawin and Sheep Yard and the large tanks for each of the three fields. Even the grading of the roads are done by the LR Area Opal Reserve and not council, council contributes nothing, though they are finally taking over the first section of road out to the grid near the social club.

Getting a pretty good audience on here so far, but yeah, would be nice if they did.

I agree. All goings on in council buildings should be live streamed. However they are the ones with cameras all over our towns watching us. Public servants think they are bosses of the people

Wedge is open to the public anyone is allowed, and yes there is a very strong aboriginal community at Wedge. One of the people we interviewed is…

Well said!

No you can’t, it will be demolished if any new buildings appear

Not anymore, if a new structure appears it will be demolished

Such a shame

The film isn’t necessarily to change peoples minds, but rather give an insight on the community and way of life of wedge island. I hope you enjoyed it regardless!

This place was never about being flash and entitled. No one making millions and trying to "be someone" builds a fishing shack out of rusty tin. If anything these shack communities have a sense of preserving and protecting their areas, especially when compared to the average teenage City kid that gets their licence and goes out to find the biggest dune to try and drive up. These are the people that are organising rubbish clean ups, not "dump leave and forget tomorrow". I don't understand what you see in this that makes you think there's a sense of entitlement about it?

@@dattoDJ the ones who had a shack were farmers and crayfishermen; one group used their shacks for work purposes, the other for holidays, nice exclusive holidays. This is no 'town camp' for down and outs. Farmers being farmers. All entitlement.

Govt is playing the long squeeze game. Happened to my family with our caravan on crown land in a nsw caravan park. Not even the MP would engage our situation of sudden death of our mother the lease holder. Rates were the same too, 1000% rise over the last 20 years. Not many permanent sites left. 50 years of wonderful family memories and we were out on our assess a month after mum died.

The wedge shack owners are paying a yearly license, which has been increasing dramatically every year. Very little of this money has been put back into any infrastructure what so ever at wedge. A simple public toilet, bbq area and campsites would be a nice start.

Bear in mind these licenses have been paid every year since 1995… these shacks have no mains water, gas or electricity and completely run off grid.

Pay your rates means you don’t own the land your just renting of the government.

@@patrickbaird7416 yes correct, they do not own the land

If Australia doesn’t go the Argentinian way it will all be gone forever.

The public already has access to wedge.

@@lee.j Not for camping as at Sandy Cape. Only for the special few.

@@rowdy5697 there is a bunch of camp sites just like that of sandy cape at wedge/grey as part of the wangareen reserve.

@@lee.j 15 campsites suitable for tents, rooftop & awning tents only. You have to be joking if you compare that to Sandy Cape. You obviously haven't been there to make that comparison. 88 sites at Sandy Cape for vans and tents with facilities and 36 sites at Milligan Island with facilities. Both packed out during long weekends and Easter while the chosen few hog Wedge. Don't know how the Wedge crowd have managed to keep it for so long but long overdue to be developed for the use of the public of WA not the chosen few. How many other shack communities along that stretch of coast have strung it out as long as the mob at Wedge.

@@rowdy5697 if you ever have the pleasure meeting the locals that call wedge home, you’ll be surprised to learn their openness to creating areas just like sandy cape for people to come camp and share the special place that is wedge. They certainly don’t try to hide this nor hog wedge for their own. Majority of wedge people have families and children they want to share the history of the area with, not keep it to themselves. Every year the community has multiple fundraisers bringing hundreds of locals and non locals to help maintain access tracks and signage to make it easier for the public to access and see the area. If you actually watch the film you will learn this. Most other shacks area like wedge have been destroyed because sadly they didn’t have a voice large enough, but unlike them wedge has a very strong campaign and is the largest informal community in Australia. Something that needs to protected and shared with the rest of west aussies to enjoy.

Why just WA people? Can people from interstate visit?

The Labor government of Australia are just another branch of the evil left sweeping western societies that are hell bent on self annihilation. They must be stopped!

What is wrong with your head ?