Former World War II fuel depot becoming hotspot for street art

A Campsite at Cremyll is turning heads as a hotspot for street art – despite not having any streets. Camp Bedrock, close to Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park, is a former World War II fuel depot but has been used as a campsite for a little over two years.

But it is also a place where street artists have long been coming to adorn the empty buildings with their own spray-painted creations. Cremyll locals Dean Woodrow and Shaun Hobbs took on the lease for the site almost three years ago, having realised it was a place where people enjoyed staying for some time away from the urban environment.

Having cleared acres of bramble and derelict buildings which were full of rubbish, Dean and Shaun have welcomed plenty of campers despite minimal facilities – just a compost toilet and a single cold tap.

But where there’s a wall there’s also a way of showcasing art, and pair have also welcomed the efforts of polished graffiti artists to practice their craft, with the result that the campsite is widely known on the region’s street art circuit.

Last month, Camp Bedrock hosted a Graffiti Jam which lured some of the biggest names in street art along to add their signature styles. The result is a collection of stunning artwork which Dean said has also been enjoyed by campers of all ages.

He told The Herald: “We took the lease on about two-and-a-half to three years ago – this is our second season really, as we only initially opened for a few days in the August.

“It was always a place where people congregated; there would always be graffiti and people would camp there, and there would be parties there.

“Both me and my colleague who took on the lease we live really close, it was always on our doorstep so we kept a close eye on the place.

“Then the Mount Edgcumbe estate started tidying the place up with an aim to do something with it, and we thought why not take it on and run with it?

“At that point we didn’t really know what we were going to do with it, but we knew that people enjoyed camping here, so we thought why not open it as a campsite and see what happens.

“To be fair it’s been pretty successful, as it’s a lovely little location – you’re on the water, at the edge of the park – and people really like it. There’s still a lot to do there, but it’s still pretty early doors for us.”

He continued: “In terms of the street art, we both have a love of street are, but we didn’t think the campsite was going to be this place for street art.

“What we found was that it was very difficult to stop people from painting there; it was kind of on the map of places where people would just rock up and paint.

“So even when we had tidied the place up, you’d go down and there would be some art there. With the culture of street art and graffiti, if you are an up-and-coming artist, you won’t paint over something by a better artist.

“The guys we’ve got there at the moment they’ve got a reputation and years of experience, so the younger guys coming up through they won’t paint over their work.

“So what we figured is to get all the work done there of a standard that is really good – and we are almost there.

“But we’ve had some incredible artists just recently and the connections at the moment, it should be a place where you see some incredible art.”

A five-minute walk from the Cremyll Ferry, the facilities are more of a work in progress, though it is not far from public toilets and of course the Edgcumbe Arms pub.

Dean said: “It’s very basic – a compost toilet and a tap, with the public toilets about two minutes away. Most of the people we get, that’s all they want – most people turn up to camp and be off-grid. But it is coming, and we have ambitions to change some of the buildings into stuff as facilities for the campsite.”

The site’s WWII history is scant, but Dean explained: “It’s very hard to find any actual information on the place, but I am a local boy, and what we have always been told is that the fuel depot was built during the Second World War by Americans who were based at Mount Edgcumbe, but the war finished before they actually got any oil onsite.

“So all the infrastructure is there – all the buildings, the pumps – but they never put any oil into the tanks. There are two on the campsite and more up in the hills.”

Between the war history and some cutting-edge street art, it is a place where cultures could clash – but instead has become a vibrant mix, according to Dean.

He said: “I think that really is what people are enjoying; we had a woman on site recently, and they had rocked up in a big posh camper, and they said that they had been in conversation with their daughter who told them about an almost-derelict campsite with World War II history and street art, and they really loved it, and ended up staying a whole week.

“They were in their 70s, so it attracts people from across the whole community. We thought that street art might be to everyone’s taste, but I’ve not found anyone who doesn’t like it, and instead had plenty of people who really like it.”

Book places, and find out more, on the Camp Bedrock Facebook page.

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