Mr Chapple (32), who bought the Waitaki Mouth Holiday Park, on Kaik Rd, on the south side of the river, earlier this year, renaming it Waitaki Waters Holiday Park, is enjoying a change in lifestyle.
Brought up in Australia, where he worked as an electronics engineer, he then spent eight years in France.
While he loved the French lifestyle and culture, he found he was missing family and friends. He also got involved in a property business and found he had no free time.
Mr Chapple decided to buy a "hippy van" and travel around New Zealand, not knowing what he was going to do for a business and with a "completely open mind".
He stayed in many camping grounds and at Department of Conservation sites and really loved the "Kiwi camping idea".
"It's the way to see this country," he said.
That last summer he spent travelling around was one of the best times of his life. He travelled extensively and the South Island "just felt like home straight away".
Mr Chapple took over at the end of June and has taken advantage of the quiet winter period to renovate and refurbish the camp.
His younger sister, Erika, and her fiance Kieran Elden, have been also living on site and helping out, while another sister, Melissa, moved to the Hakataramea Valley earlier this year.
The holiday park was a popular destination for anglers and Mr Chapple already had people "talking the talk" with him.
He had done quite a lot of fishing in Alaska, under the guidance of more experienced fishermen, and he was looking forward to spending some time on the river in quiet times.
He loved the Waitaki district and believed Oamaru had more character than many other towns in New Zealand that he had seen.
