Walking Forum
Regions - Trip reports, destination advice, recommended routes, etc. => Lake District => Topic started by: rural roamer on 17:42:14, 21/07/20
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Saw this on another site and I know a few of you on here wild camp responsibly. Hope this doesn't stop you!
https://www.cumbria.police.uk/News/News-Articles/2020/July/Police-and-partners-tackle-wild-camping-in-West-Cumbria.aspx (https://www.cumbria.police.uk/News/News-Articles/2020/July/Police-and-partners-tackle-wild-camping-in-West-Cumbria.aspx)
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Thanks for the link RR :) It mentions camping in the valleys or near the reservoirs and people using campervans. I doubt we would get caught up on the fells so this wouldn't stop us but it is food for thought! We will have to make sure we pitch as late as possible and leave early too.
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Just reflecting on this article and I am thinking the Lake District National Park (named as partners here with the police) need to be careful they don't frighten away people who still spend money in the Lake District although they might do a bit of wild camping up on the fells. We can always go to Scotland and spend our money there instead.
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Just read that, to get the landowners permission, how do we do that it's unrealistic
Maybe they should have information about who owns what land, then I would gladly pay to camp if given permission after contacting the landowners, we need a wild camping directory :)
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Just read that, to get the landowners permission, how do we do that it's unrealistic
Maybe they should have information about who owns what land, then I would gladly pay to camp if given permission after contacting the landowners, we need a wild camping directory :)
What we need is a protest to make the law the same as in Scotland. O0
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Just read that, to get the landowners permission, how do we do that it's unrealistic
Maybe they should have information about who owns what land,
"They" do. It is the same "they" that knows who owns the property you are living in. Mind you "they" are not infallible - thers is a 5ft br 2 ft patch in my drive that "they" are not sure about.
That said, "they" are a bit slow in coming up with an answer when it is 8 at night and all you have is a grd ref. I suspect "they" might want paying for revealing the contents of their carefully managed database too.
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Fine to build a gondola up the side of a mountain, but they persecute responsible wild campers who do no harm and leave no trace. >:(
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Fine to build a gondola up the side of a mountain, but they persecute responsible wild campers who do no harm and leave no trace. >:(
There's money in gondolas - tickets, B&Bs, meals etc. How much did the landowner make out of your last wildcamp? The wild camps that make the press are an expense to the landowner in terms of daamage etc. The problem is framing legislation that lets bona fide campers camp but stops the rabble as it is only after the event you can be sure which is which.
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What we need is a protest to make the law the same as in Scotland. O0
Wouldn't that be something :)
Fine to build a gondola up the side of a mountain, but they persecute responsible wild campers who do no harm and leave no trace. >:(
O0
That said, "they" are a bit slow in coming up with an answer when it is 8 at night and all you have is a grd ref.
So you agree its unrealistic then :D
There's money in gondolas - tickets, B&Bs, meals etc. How much did the landowner make out of your last wildcamp? The wild camps that make the press are an expense to the landowner in terms of daamage etc. The problem is framing legislation that lets bona fide campers camp but stops the rabble as it is only after the event you can be sure which is which.
The local businesses benefit from us wild camping, when we spend money in cafes, outdoor shops, etc.
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The local businesses benefit from us wild camping, when we spend money in cafes, outdoor shops, etc.
I am sure they do. However, they cannot be differentiated from other customers and I suspect that, by the very nature of the activity, wild campers will arrive better organised and better equipped with all they need in the way of consunables. Playing Devil's Advocate, if you compare yourself objectively with Joe Tourist - who is likely to spend more per visit and who is the most profitable? Wild campers are seen as low income source and a potential nuisance.
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if you compare yourself objectively with Joe Tourist - who is likely to spend more per visit and who is the most profitable?
Do you think the National Parks should only be accessible for those that have a lot of money to spend?
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Do you think the National Parks should only be accessible for those that have a lot of money to spend?
No, not all. Read what I write objectively - I am on your side. I am pointing out the thinking of the "powers that be". True wild camping is not a seen as a major income source whereas the nuisance caused by people camping unofficially and leaving a mess is an expense and is making headlines. Thus it is easy to act against one at the expense of the other
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I am pointing out the thinking of the "powers that be". True wild camping is not a seen as a major income source whereas the nuisance caused by people camping unofficially and leaving a mess is an expense and is making headlines.
The people who leave a mess in valleys or next to lakes are not "true wild campers" they are leaving litter just the same as the like-minded ignorant day trippers do. The day trippers leave just as much or even more mess behind because they are in greater numbers.
I am pleased you are on our side btw :)
We do spend a lot of money in the Lake District, we try to buy all of our gear in the shops there but they don't always have what we want and we have to buy online.
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The people who leave a mess in valleys or next to lakes are not "true wild campers" they are leaving litter just the same as the like-minded ignorant day trippers do. The day trippers leave just as much or even more mess behind because they are in greater numbers.
I am pleased you are on our side btw :)
We do spend a lot of money in the Lake District, we try to buy all of our gear in the shops there but they don't always have what we want and we have to buy online.
Yeah we spent £500 one day on 2 rucksacks :o
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The people who leave a mess in valleys or next to lakes are not "true wild campers" they are leaving litter just the same as the like-minded ignorant day trippers do. The day trippers leave just as much or even more mess behind because they are in greater numbers.
I am pleased you are on our side btw :)
We do spend a lot of money in the Lake District, we try to buy all of our gear in the shops there but they don't always have what we want and we have to buy online.
I hear what you say and about day trippers and it is all true. Like you, the authorities want to eliminate the nuisance. The easiest way is to move "campers" on and the easiest way to do that is to use the existing law. "Do you have permission? No? Move on or you're nicked" The problem is that bona fide wild campers may get caught in the crossfire. That said, I suspect if you observe the normal practice of pitching above the intake wall, arriving late, leaving early, leaving no trace, not drawing attention (might be a good idea to leave the drone behind for a while), then you will not be bothered by any action to get rid of nuisance campers. At the end of the day, the law has nor changed, just the enforcement thereof, and real wild campers are not the ones they are after.
As for spending money in the area. That is very laudable but there is nothing in the balance sheet that will differentiate your purchases from any other visitor sale. I suspect sales to wild campers and seasoned walkers are a spit in the bucket in this regard. I know I spent relatively little on new gear inside the Park as I usually had all I needed and arrived with it. I also tended to buy my consumables beforehand and never used accommodation in the Park. I think in my case the major beneficiaries was the NT whose car parks I used to justify my annual membership and the pubs I finished walks at.
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As for spending money in the area. That is very laudable but there is nothing in the balance sheet that will differentiate your purchases from any other visitor sale. I suspect sales to wild campers and seasoned walkers are a spit in the bucket in this regard.
We may not spend as much money on accommodation ourselves but we do still spend a lot of money in the NP. That was my point in reply 3, the park may end up losing this revenue if people go elsewhere to wild camp. A lot of people book a week in a cottage in the NP but like to spend a couple of nights wild camping during that week. They also might be put off coming.
Yeah we spent £500 one day on 2 rucksacks :o
:o How much? I don't think it was quite as much as that. If I have time I may tot up how much money we have spent in the NP say in the last year. It would probably be more than a couple's annual one week holiday in the NP.
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What we need is a protest to make the law the same as in Scotland. O0
Given the problems that we are experiencing here in the Lake District, I think a free for all on camping is the last thing that we want.
Responsible wild camping is, and will continue, to tolerated by the LDNP, as well as other bodies like the National Trust.
It's the people who turn up, erect a tent (sometimes even right next to 'No Camping' signs), make fires, then get up the next day and walk away leaving behind a right old mess for someone else to clean up. The only way to deal with those sort of people, is to fine them. If our camping laws were the same as the Scottish ones, then the Police would be stripped off their powers to do so.
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Responsible wild camping is, and will continue, to tolerated by the LDNP, as well as other bodies like the National Trust.
Do you speak from a position of authority on this, Lakeland Lorry?
It's the people who turn up, erect a tent (sometimes even right next to 'No Camping' signs), make fires, then get up the next day and walk away leaving behind a right old mess for someone else to clean up. The only way to deal with those sort of people, is to fine them. If our camping laws were the same as the Scottish ones, then the Police would be stripped off their powers to do so.
True, but a blanket ban is a sledgehammer to crack a nut. In Scotland there are sometimes problems, but where these have been particularly severe, as around Loch Lomond, a localised ban is in force. But responsible campers are still free to camp on the hill - in general the litter lout campers can't be bothered to walk more than a few hundred yards from the road.
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The National Trust seem to have a more enlightened attitude towards wild camping:
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/wild-camping-in-the-lake-district (https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/wild-camping-in-the-lake-district)
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The National Trust seem to have a more enlightened attitude towards wild camping:
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/wild-camping-in-the-lake-district (https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/wild-camping-in-the-lake-district)
The guidelines from the LDNPA regarding Wild Camping is: https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/visiting/where-to-stay/wild-camping (https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/visiting/where-to-stay/wild-camping)
"Wild camping is not permitted anywhere in the Lake District without prior permission from the landowner. As the National Park Authority we do not have the power to allow camping on private land and we do not permit camping on the small amount of land that we own."
This is because the LDNPA own less than 4% of the land in the Lake District. The rest of the land is owned by the National Trust (approx 25%), United Utilities, Forestry Commission and private landowners. I lot of people are surprised by this.
https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/caringfor/land-ownership-in-the-lake-district (https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/caringfor/land-ownership-in-the-lake-district)
So this explains why the National Trust have a different stance regarding allowing wild camping, because they are a landowner.
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Just spotted this, which was posted by Cumbria Police on their FB page:
Our officers are working alongside partner agencies including the Lake District National Park Authority, United Utilities and the National Trust in a joint operation to tackle anti-social behaviour that has been associated with camping during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Camping on the Lake District fells (and England generally) is not expressly permitted in law without landowners’ permission, but responsible hill walkers who leave no trace after staying overnight on the high fells (known as wild camping) have long been tolerated as part of outdoor adventure in upland areas of the country. A number of bye-laws are in place to deal with any problematic camping.
For more details on wild camping, please visit:
https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/…/where-to-stay/wild-camping (https://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/visiting/where-to-stay/wild-camping?fbclid=IwAR1bAib9Mqtic7XfHcSPj4QUu-FdzQduq1rT0a1DLK_TcGJEgrRzDwiWiJU)
In recent weeks, there has been a large increase in the numbers of campers and campervans on private land in the Lake District National Park and unfortunately this has often been associated with the dumping of equipment, littering, fires and criminal damage to trees and fences. This unacceptable and anti-social behaviour has typically taken place on roadsides and lakeshores but has occasionally been experienced higher on the fells.
Partners will be carrying out joint patrols throughout the national park over the summer holiday period, aimed at preventing the setting of fires and damage to the environment.
Assistant Chief Constable Andrew Slattery said: “All public agencies in Cumbria welcome the return of visitors to the Lake District and encourage all those who seek to explore the area responsibly. Camp sites are now open across the national park and we encourage visitors to book pitches ahead of their visits.
“The Lake District has a history of tolerance and is a welcoming place for visitors but we must maintain a balance between the wishes of individuals to enjoy the outdoors, the needs of local communities and the fragility of our landscapes. The impact of individual actions may seem relatively inconsequential but visitors are asked to consider the cumulative effect of their activities, whether it is fires, barbecues, littering, camping, parking, off-road driving or any other activity that could be detrimental the place and those who live and visit here.
“The anti-social camping that we have seen in recent months across the Lake District does not adhere to the long established Wild Camping ethos of responsible hill walkers in the UK and we will work with landowners and other agencies to prevent and deter this type of unreasonable behaviour.
“Having worked closely together throughout the pandemic, the Constabulary and its partners will continue to maintain efforts to protect and preserve the unique Lake District environment. We will not tolerate the damage or destruction of Lakeland habitats or heritage and will take robust action where necessary.”
Caroline Holden, Land Agent at United Utilities, added: “The reservoir catchment land at Thirlmere and Haweswater acts as the first stage of the treatment process for the clean drinking water we all rely on. If trees are destroyed and human waste and litter are left discarded it all has the potential to pollute our precious water resources, as well as being unsightly and dangerous for those enjoying the countryside.
“We welcome courteous day visitors but camping is not permitted. All we ask is that people follow the countryside code – cause no damage and leave nothing behind.”
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So this explains why the National Trust have a different stance regarding allowing wild camping, because they are a landowner.
Shame, if only they could find a way to charge for it. Maybe they could tack it onto the car park fees.
Or even price a coffee at over 2 quid, that should do it.
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Responsible wild camping is, and will continue, to tolerated by the LDNP, as well as other bodies like the National Trust.
I would still like to know in what capacity you state this, Lakeland Lorry.
Just for clarity. :)
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I would still like to know in what capacity you state this, Lakeland Lorry.
Just for clarity. :)
Is this some sort of interrogation?
I can confirm that I don't speak in any official capacity on behalf of the LDNP, nor the National Trust, but only as someone who is involved with both organisations in my role as a Voluntary Ranger.
Whether the current problems we've been having with 'fly camping' will change things in the long term, who knows. But, for now, I certainly haven't heard of any changes being announced.
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Is this some sort of interrogation?
I can confirm that I don't speak in any official capacity on behalf of the LDNP, nor the National Trust, but only as someone who is involved with both organisations in my role as a Voluntary Ranger.
Whether the current problems we've been having with 'fly camping' will change things in the long term, who knows. But, for now, I certainly haven't heard of any changes being announced.
Thank you for your reply. No interrogation - I was just wondering under what capacity you were answering. :)
PS - I like the term 'Fly Camping'.
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On grough
https://www.grough.co.uk/magazine/2020/07/22/lakeland-police-step-up-patrols-to-tackle-anti-social-camping-in-national-park
The last few paragraphs (below) are of some comfort and confirm what LL posted earlier, thanks LL :)
"The Lake District National Park Authority guidance on wild camping in the area says: “Camping away from an organised campsite is called wild camping. Legally wherever you camp you must have the prior permission of a landowner to camp on their land.
“If you do have express permission for the landowner and choose to wild camp, you should always:
•Camp above the highest fell wall, well away from towns and villages
•Leave no litter – this includes not burying any litter and removing other people
•Don’t light any fires, even if there is evidence that fires might have been lit
•Stay for only one night
•Keep groups very small – only one or two tents
•Camp as unobtrusively as possible with inconspicuous tents that blend in
•Leave the campsite as you would want to find it
•Carry out everything you carried in
•Carry out tampons and sanitary towels. Burying them doesn’t work as animals dig them up again
•Choose a dry pitch rather than digging drainage ditches around a tent or moving boulders
•Perform toilet duties at least 30m (100 ft) from water and bury the results with a trowel at all times; help protect the environment.
“Wherever you pitch, please remember that the landowners or their representatives have the legal right to order you to break camp and move on.”
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For completeness, here is the guidance from the National Trust website:
"If you plan to wild camp or backpack camp, please head onto the higher fells, and follow these simple guidelines. You’ll still have a great experience, but this will minimise your impact on the environment. Planning and preparation is essential for this type of activity. This includes having the right equipment and navigational skills to survive safely for a night away from civilisation. We'd also ask you to follow this guidance when visiting us in a campervan.
Travel light - A well prepared backpack contains enough equipment for a basic overnight stay. If this isn’t enough and you need more stuff, that’s an indication an official campsite will be better.
Stay out of sight - Away from any residences or other wild campers. Use a small and lightweight tent that blends into the landscape – part of the enjoyment really is experiencing unspoilt and vast landscapes.
Maintain a safe distance from all water courses to prevent any contamination.
Stay for only one night, and tread lightly. Use a stove box instead of ground fires. Arrive late in the day (dusk) and move on early the next day (dawn). Need to keep warm? Please take in any wood you plan to burn, and take away any un-burnt wood.
Help us in looking after the Lakes – take all litter home with you.This includes all human waste. If you need a bin or a toilet, this kind of camping isn’t for you."
This website will tell you which areas are owned by the NT.
https://map.whoownsengland.org/ (https://map.whoownsengland.org/)
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Found this excellent article on the BMC website:
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/wild-camping-worries (https://www.thebmc.co.uk/wild-camping-worries)
..and this leaflet in pdf form:
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/green-guide-to-the-uplands?s=3 (https://www.thebmc.co.uk/green-guide-to-the-uplands?s=3)
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Given the problems that we are experiencing here in the Lake District, I think a free for all on camping is the last thing that we want.
Responsible wild camping is, and will continue, to tolerated by the LDNP, as well as other bodies like the National Trust.
It's the people who turn up, erect a tent (sometimes even right next to 'No Camping' signs), make fires, then get up the next day and walk away leaving behind a right old mess for someone else to clean up. The only way to deal with those sort of people, is to fine them. If our camping laws were the same as the Scottish ones, then the Police would be stripped off their powers to do so.
I think it should be pretty obvious that I don't expect people to go protesting about the legalities of wild camping in the middle of a pandemic. I'm of the attitude though, that our laws should be brought in line with Scotland, who don't seem to be suffering too badly since they came in (pre-pandemic). Perhaps if the laws on wild camping did change over the entire country, The Lakes wouldn't see such a massive increase on fly camping as it would be more spread out.
And in all seriousness, how easy is it to find and contact the owners of the land in all the areas in the Lake district? It says you are expected to ask them for permission afterall. That alone puts off the more responsible people, I feel, who are type of people who would probably help clear up the rubbish left behind by those who didn't give a hoot.
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I totally agree Littlefoot - high time that England adopted a more enlightened approach to access in general.
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And in all seriousness, how easy is it to find and contact the owners of the land in all the areas in the Lake district? It says you are expected to ask them for permission afterall. That alone puts off the more responsible people, I feel, who are type of people who would probably help clear up the rubbish left behind by those who didn't give a hoot.
Here's a link to an article about land ownership in the Lake District, which was published in Cumbria Life in 2014. Whilst it won't give you contact details of the landowners, it does provide an idea of who owns some of it:
https://calflyn.com/2014/09/03/this-land-is-our-land-this-land-is-your-land/ (https://calflyn.com/2014/09/03/this-land-is-our-land-this-land-is-your-land/)
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I have a read of a similar site at times, certainly interesting if nothing else.
https://whoownsengland.org
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From the Telegraph today. An extract from an article on wild camping and action to control it.
Trevor Beattie, chief executive of the South Downs National Park Authority, said he would encourage camping, but only at official campsites.
Rangers have noticed a “sharp increase” in illegal wild camping during the pandemic at historic sites, including Bronze Age barrows, he said.
“There is nothing better than camping out under the stars and, of course, we would encourage people to do that,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
“But we have a problem with influencers on Instagram posting pictures of their wild camps, and telling people to follow.
“I would like these people to make clear that they have either asked for permission – or are camping illegally.”
Mr Beattie said that many wild campers resented being “tarred with the same brush” as those who light fires and leave a mess.
“Some people complain that they arrive late, leave early, and leave no trace,” he said. “That may well be, but to those people I would say, ‘You are still committing an offence’. It’s pretty much impossible to draw a line between those who camp responsibly and those who don’t.”
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From the Telegraph today. An extract from an article on wild camping and action to control it.
.................... It’s pretty much impossible to draw a line between those who camp responsibly and those who don’t.”
Really?
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I've just read through this thread and I couldn't help noticing what looks like conflicting guidance from the Lake District National Park Authority and the National Trust regarding human waste.
LDNPA: "Perform toilet duties at least 30m (100 ft) from water and bury the results with a trowel at all times...". (#25)
NT: "...take all litter home with you. This includes all human waste." (#26)
This isn't something I think about much, but this morning I passed the site of a recent wild camp while walking through my local woods. It was along a footpath only 10m from a main track. There was a scorched area about 1m across and quite a lot of toilet paper was strewn around. Not exactly the 'leave no trace' variety of wild camping!
I first came across the requirement to bag and take your poo away with you a few weeks ago during a treadmill walk in Zion National Park, Utah, USA. It had never occurred to me before that such a thing might be a requirement of wild camping and, at the time, I wondered if it might just be something that Americans do.
So... is there a right way of doing this? Or does it simply depend on who has jurisdiction over the camping spot?
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I'm still trying to work out why 'wild camping' has become such an issue in the newspapers? I know part of it is about rubbish being left behind but does 'rubbish' explain it all?
Is part of it the worry, resentment, doing something for free, or otherwise of the possibility that people wandering around the countryside without having to pay out and are enjoying themselves? I feel that the subject has got more depth to it but I can only speculate?
It's also noticeable to me that the Daily Express has jumped on part of the bandwagon because they are now into a campaign to clear it up or stop it happening in the first place. It doesn't surprise me though, they have been moaning about the 'selfish idiots' in the wider community who have left rubbish in parks and beaches for some time and they do love to find people for their readers to deamonise and to have a go at.
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I'm still trying to work out why 'wild camping' has become such an issue in the newspapers? I know part of it is about rubbish being left behind but does 'rubbish' explain it all?
Is part of it the worry, resentment, doing something for free, or otherwise of the possibility that people wandering around the countryside without having to pay out and are enjoying themselves? I feel that the subject has got more depth to it but I can only speculate?
It's also noticeable to me that the Daily Express has jumped on part of the bandwagon because they are now into a campaign to clear it up or stop it happening in the first place. It doesn't surprise me though, they have been moaning about the 'selfish idiots' in the wider community who have left rubbish in parks and beaches for some time and they do love to find people for their readers to deamonise and to have a go at.
This is a subject I hadn't thought about until recently.
I don't care if people choose to pitch a tent on a treeless hill in some national park. I can easily go around 'their area' so it makes no difference to me.
However, about 10 days ago, my wife and I were walking through our local woods and we could smell smoke and hear voices well before we turned a corner and were almost on top of a wild camp. I'd never seen a wild camp in these woods before.
This morning, I investigated the spot on my way through the woods...
Branches were broken, there were the remains of what had been a sizeable fire, there was only one small piece of rubbish but a great deal of toilet paper was scattered around. My photo isn't very good, but hopefully it will give an indication:
(http://www.cruisingmates.co.uk/coppermine/albums/userpics/10054/Wild_camp.jpg)
I'd call the people who did this something much worse than "selfish idiots".
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They've hardly left no trace, have they? And the risk of that fire getting out of hand must have been considerable.
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Just reading their guidelines again (not rules), and I'm surprised by the National Trust's tolerance of any kind of fire in the Lake District.
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Re: photo and other peoples sightings. I wonder if the people who are into this sort of thing fall into any sort of category, age group ect?
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I'm still trying to work out why 'wild camping' has become such an issue in the newspapers? I know part of it is about rubbish being left behind but does 'rubbish' explain it all?
Is part of it the worry, resentment, doing something for free, or otherwise of the possibility that people wandering around the countryside without having to pay out and are enjoying themselves? I feel that the subject has got more depth to it but I can only speculate?
It's also noticeable to me that the Daily Express has jumped on part of the bandwagon because they are now into a campaign to clear it up or stop it happening in the first place. It doesn't surprise me though, they have been moaning about the 'selfish idiots' in the wider community who have left rubbish in parks and beaches for some time and they do love to find people for their readers to deamonise and to have a go at.
Nothing to do with resentment or not paying. [/size]As one of the Lake District Volunteers involved in monitoring and clearing up after these 'fly campers', I see at first hand the mess and destruction which is left behind. Since the lockdown was lifted, the Lakes has been inundated with people pitching tents anywhere. From what I've heard, it seems to be groups of people who are coming to the Lakes for the first time, who've seen others' Instagram posts of their 'wild camping' and think that they'll come and do the same thing.
These people though aren't here for the walking, or the beauty, they are here to be with their mates having a massive p**s up and will pitch their tents anywhere they like. Then walk away the next day, often leaving their tents, food, used BBQs, and human waste for others to clear up. It's not just one or two people doing this, it's lots and lots of them. Last week I heard reports of up to 60 tents pitched up at Styhead Tarn.
The Lake District National Park, along with the National Trust, and other organisations are working together carrying out daily patrols in areas such as lakeshores, quarries, etc., and are moving people on, in an attempt to prevent further damage and destruction. It really saddens me to here reports, on a daily basis, of more mess and destruction left behind.
This article on Grough sums up what's been happening here in the Lakes (read the comments too):
https://www.grough.co.uk/magazine/2020/07/22/lakeland-police-step-up-patrols-to-tackle-anti-social-camping-in-national-park (https://www.grough.co.uk/magazine/2020/07/22/lakeland-police-step-up-patrols-to-tackle-anti-social-camping-in-national-park)
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Last week I heard reports of up to 60 tents pitched up at Styhead Tarn.
Good grief! I have heard that Styhead is a bit of a hot spot for camping, but that is ridiculous.
..and here's me being surprised to see 5 tents in the vicinity of Lingcove Bridge yesterday.
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ast week I heard reports of up to 60 tents pitched up at Styhead Tarn.
:o :o :o
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I'm still trying to work out why 'wild camping' has become such an issue in the newspapers? ..............
..............It's also noticeable to me that the Daily Express has jumped on part of the bandwagon because they are now into a campaign to
Just a thought, but perhaps the media coverage has brought the idea of 'wild' camping to the notice of people who might otherwise never even have considered it.
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Heres a video I found
Absolute disgrace these people
https://youtu.be/TnGBH8xkRSY (https://youtu.be/TnGBH8xkRSY)
If you don't want to watch the full video ff to 11mins
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Festival mentality. When festivals end the fields are littered with abandoned tents, chairs, beer cans etc. There are no festivals so the same folk are just doing there own thing and spoiling the real countryside for everyone else.
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Just a thought, but perhaps the media coverage has brought the idea of 'wild' camping to the notice of people who might otherwise never even have considered it.
Plus Covid19 has provided ample supply of people paid to sit at home bored and encouraged, quite rightly, to exercise. Who would otherwise never have given it a second thought.
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Although litter really irritates me I can also see that so many people are also (as I see it anyway) exaggerating the size of the problem as well and the impact that it has had, or is having, on our general countryside. There may be people wild camping and leaving litter around but these places are just small areas and they are not all concentrated in the same place. when compared to industrial landscapes, etc litter in the countryside is small fry.
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To be fair, gwm, I don't think that you would think that the problem was being exaggerated if you had to clear up the mess afterwards.
Having said that, in general terms I believe that you are correct - it is as usual a small minority spoiling it for the majority. And in my experience, some of the worst offenders for litter and the general despoilation of wild areas are farmers, our so called 'Guardians of the Countryside". The proliferation of quad bike tracks over sensitive areas springs to mind, as does the inevitable tatters of silage wrap plastic adorning barbed wire fences.