Walking Forum
Main Boards => General Walking Discussion => Topic started by: myxpyr on 15:31:44, 21/10/19
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I know I've talked before on here about solo walking but I'm just wondering what others think about the visual(or any other) impact of large groups of walkers on the countryside.On Sunday I was out on the hills when, in the distance, I saw a group of 15 to 20 walkers. They all appeared to be equally spaced out along the path and I would not have been surprised to have found they were all in step ;) Just wondering what others think of such practices. Don't get me wrong; I'm all for people getting out and enjoying the countryside...
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They should all stop in if its my day to be out n about ;D
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They should all stop in if its my day to be out n about ;D
Quite right O0
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Doesn't bother me in the least - so long as they're going in the opposite direction to me :) .
Being a solo walker like the OP, I hate getting 'tangled up' with groups walking the same way as me.
I also dislike walking at weekends when there are lots of families out with dogs and little herberts on bikes shouting their heads off in the woods, along with all the beached whales who can only manage a few hundred yards before turning back, and not forgetting the number of numpties who aren't equipped to find their way from A to B or dressed for the conditions >:( .
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Doesn't bother me in the least - so long as they're going in the opposite direction to me :) .
Being a solo walker like the OP, I hate getting 'tangled up' with groups walking the same way as me.
I also dislike walking at weekends when there are lots of families out with dogs and little herberts on bikes shouting their heads off in the woods, along with all the beached whales who can only manage a few hundred yards before turning back, and not forgetting the number of numpties who aren't equipped to find their way from A to B or dressed for the conditions >:( .
Wel said
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Doesn't bother me in the least either, particularly if they're in the distance. I just choose another bit of scenery to look at or sit and have a snack/rest until they're gone.
I know I won't catch them up, that's for sure ;D
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Used to annoy me, but everyone is able to use the outdoors equally or we can't use it at all. Personally I bomb past them rapidly or use the chance to take a break. Must admit I'm not one of those who likes to tag on the back of the group and 'join them', I've had it happen with random people joining me and they won't p*ss off no matter how nice you're being. Comes off as a bit creepy.
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As a lover of solitude when I'm out walking, I usually feel a little bit dismayed if a walking group comes along. But, hey, I can't have the countryside to myself!
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I encountered the saunders mountain marathon coming at me when I was on the Cumbria Way (stake pass). I think I gave up saying hello after the first 50 or so!
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But, hey, I can't have the countryside to myself!
We very often can, it's a matter of experience and choice of routes :)
Is it me or do groups of walkers usually look at you in a funny way?.
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We very often can, it's a matter of experience and choice of routes :)
Well yes, that's true :)
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I seem to attract them. We (Mrs P and I ) will stop for a breather or something to eat and suddenly we are joined by a load of people who collectively decide to stop in the same place. We call it Bob's Law.
We try to avoid obvious view points and now move away from the track if the terrain permits.
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I am sometimes part of that large group. Sometimes i am leading that large group. If people feel they need company to be out in the countryside that’s fine with me.
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, I've had it happen with random people joining me and they won't p*ss off no matter how nice you're being. Comes off as a bit creepy.
Just start a conversation on Brexit.Its guarranteed to get rid of them within ten seconds. ;)
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Can't say as it is an issue for me. I like to play "Spot the Rambler" as I go by. (Rules available on application)
If they are in the distance they are scenery. If they are coming towards me I greet them with a cheery "Good Morning or Good Afternoon" (I switch at precisely 12:00 just to annoy folk). I doff my Tilley to any ladies in the group as well.
If I am overtaking, I speed up a bit to get past quickly, again with the cheery greeting ritual so they know I am behind them and not part of the group catching up. Once they are behind me I can't see them anyway. Occasionally, I will take my time to eavesdrop, there are sometimes some weird conversations going on.
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I find it’s more about clothing/rucksack colour (particularly rain covers) than absolute numbers of people.
The method I’ve adopted to minimise other walkers’ visual impact is to be short-sighted. It works a treat.
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If I am overtaking, I speed up a bit to get past quickly,
But if they're r*mblers, you can guarantee to encounter them on a slender path and they make sure they occupy the whole width :)
I doff my Tilley to any ladies in the group as well
Good man! O0 I'd do that too if I ever wore one, but the only headwear I have is a buff, not the same at all!.
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I like to play "Spot the Rambler" as I go by. (Rules available on application)
Could you please send me the rules. I want a laugh.
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buff, not the same at all!.
Yep walking in the buff can attract crowds usually of the wrong type 😅😁
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For Pitboot: Spot the Rambler - Rules.
Ramblers wear their socks outside their trousers, a bit like Superman wears his pants over his tights. Score as follows:
No socks over trousers, not a Rambler, 0 points.
Socks of any description, Basic Rambler, 1 point.
Multicoloured socks, 3 points for diversity.
Red socks, Senior Rambler, 5 points.
Breeches Variant
Plain socks with breeches, 10 points.
Multicoloured sock and breeches, 15 points.
Red socks and breeches, Master Rambler, 20 points.
Second Pair Rule
Second pair of socks rolled down over boots, 2 points.
If second pair matches first pair, bonus point.
Extras (can only be scored in conjunction with socks):
Bobble hat, 1 point.
Wooden thumb stick, 5 points.
Flappy map case, 3 points.
Genuine canvas rucksack with leather straps, 25 points.
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The more the merrier BUT so long as they are clean, I remember seeing what looked like a youth club coming down Snowdon and the group leaders didn't seem fussed when the kids were dropping sweet wrappers on the floor. I didn't have the fight in me so just picked them up to bin at the bottom.
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It's the constant chatter which grates with me. The members of large groups usually seem so involved with their conversations that they no longer see anything going on around them. My wife and I once watched a large "Ramblers" party walk directly beneath a Red Squirrel and not one of them even noticed it until we actually pointed it out to the last walker who seemed astonished.
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Just start a conversation on Brexit.Its guarranteed to get rid of them within ten seconds. ;)
:D unless you're gunwharfman (sorry gunwharfman) :D
... but the only headwear I have is a buff, not the same at all!.
Yep walking in the buff can attract crowds usually of the wrong type 😅😁
;D
The method I’ve adopted to minimise other walkers’ visual impact is to be short-sighted. It works a treat.
Brilliant ;D O0
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Red socks and breeches, Master Rambler
I am not, nor have I ever been, a member of the Ramblers. However, when I started mountaineering as a child in the 80s , this describes my attire perfectly!
I treasure my copies of Poucher. They are superb walking guides to the mountains around Britain. At the beginning are chapters on useful info. One include a pictures and instructions on how to get your cobbler to add the correct cleats to your boots. Another, on clothing, explains that drab greens and browns like tweed are best so as not to spoil the view for others. However, a pair of red socks can be exposed in an emergency by pulling the trouser legs up.
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I also prefer to walk on my own. I know nobody who walks at my speed😕
On a very serious level and hinted at in one of the early posts it is vital that as many people as possible use the countryside.
Without the mass tresspass walks of previous generations we wouldn't be allowed anywhere near the places we want to be.
So the more the merrier if that is what it takes to get a Scottish style access to our countryside. The more who do it the more votes there will be to force change.
In the meantime when the groups gallop past me, I can smile and silently thank them for using the ways.
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Ramblers wear their socks outside their trousers
I don't, nor do 98% of the Ramblers I know.
The members of large groups usually seem so involved with their conversations that they no longer see anything going on around them
This, however, I can identify with :/ Scenery, wildlife, vehicles approaching from behind.....
To answer the original comment, if you're that stressed at the thought of seeing another human being whilst outdoors it may be better to stay in with the curtains drawn ;)
OR... go somewhere less 'touristy'. Try the southern uplands of Scotland, where it's more remarkable if you DO see anyone else on your walk. Except for the Merrick which is the Scafell Pike of southern Scotland - if you're really unlucky you may see as many as 6 people the whole day :)
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Thanks ninthace.
I would score very highly around here as you can spot most, if not all, of those types on a weekly basis around Windermere and Ambleside.
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Doesn't bother me in the least - so long as they're going in the opposite direction to me :) .
Being a solo walker like the OP, I hate getting 'tangled up' with groups walking the same way as me.
I also dislike walking at weekends when there are lots of families out with dogs and little herberts on bikes shouting their heads off in the woods, along with all the beached whales who can only manage a few hundred yards before turning back, and not forgetting the number of numpties who aren't equipped to find their way from A to B or dressed for the conditions >:( .
^^^ Same here! Although it's usually me & my other half. Depending on where we are, we don't always walk side by side either. I'll stop & set up to take a few photos, she'll be looking at toadstools, fungi, etc so we're often overtaking each other & pointing out things the other might have missed :)
I went out early Sunday to a woodland. First one there at about 7:30. Until I was heading back to very near to the car park at about 11:00 (it was busy by then!) I only saw one couple with their dog to actually speak to whilst enjoying my time out.
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Some most amusing musings in this thread..
Nithace, your rules have led me to believe that there are in fact no Ramblers in our Ramblers group. ??? Though I too did have a pair of thick red socks back in the 70s when I was rock climbing. O0
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I don't, nor do 98% of the Ramblers I know.
OR... go somewhere less 'touristy'. Try the southern uplands of Scotland, where it's more remarkable if you DO see anyone else on your walk. Except for the Merrick which is the Scafell Pike of southern Scotland - if you're really unlucky you may see as many as 6 people the whole day :)
You often don’t need to go very far from the touristy bits to avoid the crowds. When I used to visit the New Forest, the roads, car parks and hot spots would be full of grockles. However, walk hundred metres from the car park and all you would see would be trees, heath, birds and deer.
Our local hill, Bennachie has a number of summits, one of which is very busy, the others much less so. Last year I met one dog and its owner on the way to Hermits Seat, nobody at the summit, no one on Watch Craig, 2 walkers on Oxen Craig (highest point), 50+ on Mither Tap ( the most obvious summit from ground level and the closest to the main car park) and finally Craigshannoch was empty. I then passed perhaps a dozen people on the way back to the car. All this on a 9 mile hike, with less than 4 miles between the western and eastern extremities of the walk.
Bad weather and early starts also deter the crowds. I have been one of 2 people on the summit of Hellvellyn on an Easter weekend in a howling blizzard and one of 5 for sunrise on Snowdon summit and descent of Crib Goch.
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The score list for lampooning ramblers is definitely off target as none of my companions meet the criteria. The list unfortunately just reinforces the media perception of ramblers snd does very little to encourage more people to get out and about.
Sense of humour failure or not...i don’t think it helps anyone. Many of the ramblers i know can individually
Outwalk most “ seroius “ walkers either by distance or ascent.
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The score list for lampooning ramblers is definitely off target as none of my companions meet the criteria. The list unfortunately just reinforces the media perception of ramblers snd does very little to encourage more people to get out and about.
Sense of humour failure or not...i don’t think it helps anyone. Many of the ramblers i know can individually
Outwalk most “ seroius “ walkers either by distance or ascent.
Although this thread is of course all about how some people do not enjoy seeing large amounts of people being outdoors!
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It can be annoying and sometimes daunting to see a big group when you're out on your own or in a much smaller group.
I tend to sit and chill for 5 minutes, let them pass or, if they're going the same way, let them move on out of view.
Last summer I parked up at Strumble Lighthouse in North Pembrokeshire and was pretty chuffed to find the car park empty.
While I was getting my stuff together, a bus turned up and dropped off a large group of older ladies.
One of them walked over to me and said "Oh, I'm sorry, I think we've just ruined your plan for a quiet walk."
Had to laugh, but luckily we were going in opposite directions.
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You often don’t need to go very far from the touristy bits to avoid the crowds. When I used to visit the New Forest, the roads, car parks and hot spots would be full of grockles. However, walk hundred metres from the car park and all you would see would be trees, heath, birds and deer.
I completely agree.
Without doubt one of the busiest car parks on Dartmoor, is Pork Hill above Tavistock. Yet on a calm sunny summers day, you can arrive back there after a good walk. Qué for a short time with the hords to buy an ice cream and then by the time you have eaten it, be sat Aloft and alone on feather tor, listening to the natrual sounds moor, just sitting there, until you really do need to head back to towny land.
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Some most amusing musings in this thread..
Nithace, your rules have led me to believe that there are in fact no Ramblers in our Ramblers group. ??? Though I too did have a pair of thick red socks back in the 70s when I was rock climbing. O0
Back in the 70's? How old are you, you look about 12 :o :o
ninthace, you should be ashamed of yourself with your silly comments! Say 50 Hail Marys and listen to a brexit debate..... :D
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I don't, nor do 98% of the Ramblers I know.
There are ramblers and there are Ramblers. The French have a 4 tier system: Balladeur, Marcheur, Randonneur, Montagnard, which is more complicated.
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Now I'm worried. Yesterday I received a 10% "Ramblers discount" at Rohan, and I was not buying red socks. :D
Sorry, this has diverged from the OP, and has little to do with the visual impact of large groups of walkers.
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Generally the visual impact does not last long....... there are far worse blights on the landscape
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I see 'large groups' as falling into two categories: those that ramble and those that are at the tops of popular hills and mountains.
Passing groups of ramblers is rare for me and I always like seeing them. I enjoy a moment's camaraderie - seeing people doing what I like doing - and then I'm off on my way again. What's not to like?
I'm less sure about groups at summits, although again it's quite rare to encounter this - Snowdon, Cadair Idris and Pen y Fan are the only examples I have (I don't include Kinder Scout because there's plenty of room for everyone!). I love the solitude of a summit and having views across a vast area devoid of human existance - and, of course, I don't want people other than my wife in my photos. Also (and I'm sure this makes me a bad person), the popular summits usually have much easier ways up than the tough one I just conquered, and I don't want the people in jeans and trainers to think I'm just out for a stroll too... ;)