Teewah Beach hoons, parties accused of ruining holiday hotspot

A regular camper at a Sunshine Coast holiday hotspot has vowed not to return after he was forced out by hoons and a wild party as a coastal paradise teeters on being trashed.

Keiren Dick has holidayed along the Noosa North Shore and Cooloola Coast since he was a child, but has vowed never to return after an increase in illegal activity cut his family holiday short – and he isn’t alone.

Concerned and frustrated campers have raised concerns about the fate of Teewah Beach and the Noosa North Shore after police swooped on more than 100 people in a recent operation on October 14 and 15, with claims the once idyllic holiday location was becoming a hooning paradise.

Hooning and out of control parties have plagued the area some time, but now there are fears the issue has tarnished the camping hotspot’s reputation.

Mr Dick said the Noosa North Shore, which spans from Teewah Beach to Double Island Point, was “dead to (him)” after his partner, father and young daughter Charlotte were forced out by inconsiderate campers on October 15.

Kieren Dick and his young daughter Charlotte, pictured at their campsite in Double Island Point. Mr Dick said he would never return to the popular camping spot after he was surrounded by inconsiderate campers in October. Photo: Contributed

The family had booked a campsite near Teewah Beach from October 14 until October 18, but were surrounded by young campers playing loud “full on doof music (sic)” early on the first night, accompanied by loud hooning nearby.

The music carried on until early in the morning, despite Mr Dick’s attempts to reason with them and explain how Charlotte could not sleep.

“She was basically rocking back and forth in the back of the camp trailer because she doesn’t (sic) know what’s going on and she was trying to sleep,” he said.

“It deadset sounded like I had massive speakers under my gazebo right outside our camp trailer. I had to raise my voice to talk to my partner.

“It’s completely gone to sh-t … I’ll never go back there again.”

Sunshine Coast Highway Patrol officer in charge Senior Sergeant Shane Panaho said campsites along the far northern stretch of Teewah Beach, near where Mr Dick had been camping, was a hooning hotspot.

He said he felt the lack of overseas travel during Covid had led to a surge in popularity with young drivers following increased popularity for four-wheel drives and SUV’s.

Teewah beach hoons wild ‘doof party’ that triggered police crackdown

These young drivers then took to the beaches to test their new wheels, despite being unfamiliar with the terrain.

“We recommend you travel … a few times in company with someone else who is experienced in driving on the beach. There are a number of unique challenges with beach driving,” he said.

But, above all, Sergeant Panaho said following the rules and wearing a seatbelt were crucial in preventing a fatal disaster.

Hooning and dangerous driving has long been an issue on Teewah Beach, with a destroyed ute pictured here in 2021. Picture: DES

There have been two fatalities on Teewah Beach since 2013, he said, the most recent being an 18-year-old Bray Park man in 2020.

But Sergeant Panaho said the Queensland Government was solely responsible for igniting permanent change.

“Our role up there is to try and educate drivers and make sure they are compliant,” he said.

A Department of Environment and Science spokesperson said rangers, who frequently patrol the campsites, can issue on-the-spot penalties and notices for hooning and driving without a seatbelt as well as lighting fires and littering.

Campers are encouraged to report dangerous driving and hooning to police and park rangers.

The stretch of beach has been gaining notoriety in recent years.

Complaints of hooning in July, 2021, had triggered eight infringement notices or notices to appear being issued to drivers while in October, 2022, a wild weekend led to police sending 80 campers packing and arresting 30 others.