WEEKENDS | Huskisson
that doesn’t compromise its COASTAL IDYLL, writes Kate Symons.
In response to tourist demand, the ONCE-SLEEPY town of
HUSKISSON in Jervis Bay has found a SWEET SPOT
FROM TOP: The term ‘glamping’ was quite possibly
coined to describe pioneering Paperbark Camp; You’ll
find fur seals and other wildlife at home in Jervis Bay.
OPPOSITE: The fine white sand of Greenfield Beach,
two kilometres north of Hyams, is typical of the region.
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THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY LOVES a portmanteau.
Think staycation, voluntourism, babymoon. Glamping
has done arguably the best job of infiltrating the lexicon; it
was even added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2016.
And, rumour has it, the ‘glamorous camping’ amalgam
originated on the outskirts of Huskisson.
“We think that word was coined here by a Sunday Times
[UK] travel writer,” says Irena Hutchings, referring to
Paperbark Camp, the luxury tented accommodation she
opened with her husband in 1998. “I am sure he was the
guy who first wrote the word ‘glamping’. We’d never seen
it before and we thought ‘what a great word!’”
There is a consensus the word was first used by a British
journalist in 2005 so the maths pans out. Regardless,
Paperbark Camp was a pioneer of the now ubiquitous trend.
When the bush camp opened just a few kilometres from the
town centre of Huskisson, it was one of the first of its kind in
Australia. Moreover, it was one of the first accommodation
options of any kind in surrounding Jervis Bay.
That scarcity, and the accompanying peace and quiet,
was part of the appeal for the Hutchingses. After an
expansive search, they bought 40 hectares of untouched
bushland on Currambene Creek with a vision to recreate
the tent-style lodgings they fell in love with while on safari
in Africa. And while safari stars such as elephants and lions
are, of course, notable absentees, you will still encounter a
landscape rich with flora and fauna, thanks to Huskisson’s
prime position on the doorstep of Jervis Bay.^1