Barryd999 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 747 - 2011-02-11 3:34 PM BTW is your Avatar an old passport photo? :D Hmm you sound familier. The force is strong in this one. Perhaps its a link to the Dark Side! 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ekka Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 The UK does present very real problems to Motor homes and where to stay over. CLs that can be akin to a bog garden most of the year, and the hassle of trying to think ahead where one might end up that night, then phoning to check have they got a space, is there any hard standing, is there a water tap within reasonable reach, is it going to £5 as in the book ( remember the fee shown is the minimum you are reminded in the entry) or as in one case told it was £15, explanation given was the price quoted was out of date. The need to pay with the C.C for an electric hook-up when I don’t need one. So yes we do “wild camp” on occasion. BUT on the other hand be discreet, we are fortunate to live in a lovely part of the world, but also directly opposite a car park regularly used by motor-home “wild campers” and I can tell you there is nothing more galling than waking up, drawing our curtains to find one of my fellow travellers staring directly into ours and our neighbours windows as we do on many occasions, whilst they are having breakfast. Last summer one even resorted to awning out, tables and chairs, copious amounts of smoke from the barbie ( ashes later discovered thrown in the hedge) and the kids racing round the car park on their bikes. And a waste bin provided for the odd bit of litter is regularly rammed full of crap from these selfish people. The bottom line is there WILL be a height barrier erected eventually because of this behaviour that then spoils it for the more discreet for the occasional stopover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 sshortcircuit - 2011-02-11 1:48 PM ................. and you get parked next to the same boy racers and you have paid for it. ............... Really? Where does that happen? Do say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverback Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 oops Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 747 - 2011-02-11 3:34 PM ..............5 van sites can be excellent but not when there are sheep in the next field and so I have to be selective. ...........:D Er, could you elaborate on that, just a bit? An old joke comes to mind! :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 747 - 2011-02-11 12:45 PM Rupert's antagonism towards wildcampers is well documented on here and is the view of only one man. We have always been made welcome by local people and it is very rare that some grumpy old git has a bee in his bonnet towards the likes of us. If we turned up in a rusty old Transit van with a horde of screaming kids then I would expect a frosty reception. Local people are not stupid you know. Always smile and say hello and try to get into a conversation with people and the ice will be broken. Many times they suggest an even better spot locally. Your appreciation is well known but fail to see the point. I have never been against anyone who wishes to camp in laybys or carparks, up to them, but it does cause problems, this is being seen in France now. You cannot deny the security side though, it exists, and almost every post on the thread has mentioned it. All I am saying is, stop giving daft reasons for doing it, their is only one, that is to save money. As for being the view of one man, well you really ought to look around you more. During my touring in Europe I see very few people staying the night outside of aires or campsites these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 747 - 2011-02-11 12:45 PM Always smile and say hello and try to get into a conversation with people and the ice will be broken. Many times they suggest an even better spot locally. Presumably just a bit further away from their house. :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Barryd999 - 2011-02-11 3:46 PM 747 - 2011-02-11 3:34 PM BTW is your Avatar an old passport photo? :D Hmm you sound familier. The force is strong in this one. Perhaps its a link to the Dark Side! 8-) Welcome to the forum Barry, assume you are Barryd from MHF, read your Pyrenees posts last year with some interest as we did a similar route two months later. I got booted of MHF a few months ago for remarks I made about one of the moderators when he had a go at Andy Stothert but still have a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryd999 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 rupert123 - 2011-02-11 5:51 PM Barryd999 - 2011-02-11 3:46 PM 747 - 2011-02-11 3:34 PM BTW is your Avatar an old passport photo? :D Hmm you sound familier. The force is strong in this one. Perhaps its a link to the Dark Side! 8-) Welcome to the forum Barry, assume you are Barryd from MHF, read your Pyrenees posts last year with some interest as we did a similar route two months later. I got booted of MHF a few months ago for remarks I made about one of the moderators when he had a go at Andy Stodard but still have a look. Guilty as charged. Came across this thanks to that pole thingy thats going on at the moment. Looks good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 "I see very few people staying the night outside of aires" What! There is one thing about the French, if the aire is full and there is space about, car park or whatever, they will park up, no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 For the attn. of Brian Kirby. No, I am not some kind of pervert that can be easily tempted by a good looking Ewe. :D My 4 legged companions were bred to chase Rabbits and the instinct is strong in them. Sheep panic and run too easily for my liking. They think it is a game (the dogs) but that is no good to the sheep. For the attn. of ekka. If I am less than one mile from any view of a house, then I have failed miserably. I have been closer but never in line of sight. As Barry said earlier, wildcamping involves a lot of planning. Google Earth is an invaluable tool. We tend to have our longer trips outside of high season. Last year, the West coast of Scotland in mid-March. The south and south west of England in May and early June. East and northeast Scotland in September. This way, there are fewer campers about and the kids are in school. My idea of heaven is to be alone in a beautiful part of Britain. My nightmare is wall to wall vans crammed together. This year will probably be similar, the southern trip will be almost identical as we are again entering the same 3 Championship Dog Shows and hoping to meet up with forum friends from the south. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryd999 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Re wilding in France. We have done loads of wild camping in France. Yes they have the Aires and they are great but they can get busy and on a long trip you start to crave a bit of time on your own. There are more motorhomes in France than there are people (I think thats a fact) so finding a perfect spot on your own is a challange! Now to me thats also part of the fun. I have a secret quest which is to find the perfect Nivarna 10 out of 10 wild spot. I have had quite a few 9's so far and a few of them were in France but never a perfect 10. I suspect I will never award a 10 as you have nowhere to go from there and I would probably have to give up and build a house on it or something. I also find it fun to research the sites before I go using the various forums, google earth etc. We are fortunate that we have a scooter on board so what I often do is park up somewhere and spend maybe an afternoon touring round sightseeing but also getting down the little lanes looking for that exclusive wild spot. When we find one we GPS it and drive the van back to it later. You are probably all starting by now to think Im a bit mad but for those of you who havent tried it, give it a go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ekka Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 I think whilst it is true that it's about saving money in part, for others it's more about that very rare experience, peace and solitude and being more in touch with nature, not always easy when you are parked up within touching distance of another van, and of course the French in particular love their doggies who sometimes want a chat with each other. :-( There I've said it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 sshortcircuit - 2011-02-11 6:12 PM "I see very few people staying the night outside of aires" What! There is one thing about the French, if the aire is full and there is space about, car park or whatever, they will park up, no problem. I agree they do but not the point. The numbers that park outside sites and aires is very small compared with those that use them them. Anyway this is a little off track from the original poster questions about problems and security just parking in laybys and carparks. I gave my opinion on this and just because it may not be the same as yours or others then fine but feel I am entitled to have it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 To the OPs question "had any problems whilst wildcamping in a rural uk area," I would think the answer is no. Come into an urban environment and then, only if you park in the wrong place, you might??? have trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Duplicate posting Sorry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Usinmyknaus Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Brian Kirby - 2011-02-11 12:23 PMUsinmyknaus - 2011-02-11 9:40 AM ................. We happily use aires in France. .............. Bob Sorry to be picky, Bob, but if you were intending your reference to aires etc to be included within the definition of wild camping, I would say this may be misleading for some. Aires are dedicated motorhome facilities. Whereas they fall somewhere between car parks and campsites (and at the extremes, are sometimes difficult to distinguish from either) they almost invariably have facilities (grey and black water dumps, plus fresh water) specifically for motorhomes. Wild camping would be camping elsewhere, away from facilities, be it on open land, a beach, a layby, or even a car park, where motorhome parking is not authorised or encouraged. Otherwise, it wouldn't be "wild".Hello Brian, I've been away getting rained on and living far from an internet signal.....I really must stop this posting without thinking around every possible interpretation, misinterpretation, misreading, nuance, shade, tone, implication, gradation, connotation, translation, mistranslation etc of whatever concept I am trying to convey......Bob :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magbrin Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Wow ........................ not sure how I missed this one :-S Probably because I am on too many forums, particularly since the vote issue led me to another one and don't have all day to spend on them! Firstly to answer the OP. We have never had any problems wildcamping in UK. It has all been said before - choose your spot carefully, we allow up to an hour to find the perfect spot, and do not do anything to attract attention. Be polite and if necessary be prepared to move on - but this is VERY rare in Scotland. To add own my opinion to the thread (some already expressed by others) - - everyone is entitled to their own opinion of wild camping, and campsites - thank goodness most people still prefer to be on a site, and have the luxury of facilities, it leaves more wild open spaces for us - Our preference is for no facilities - a waterfall, pool or the sea provide enough of a shower for our short outings. More often than not we don't even do that - Its too cold! - like others our reason for wildcamping is NOT because it is free, in terms of cash, but because it is free in terms of where we are, the space, the privacy, the solitude and of course the amazing views - and in the north of Scotland there are masses of oportunities. :D - to some it is not only the white motorhomes that attract attention. Our son has a dark red transit PVC. In his short ownership (since September) he has twice been approached by the police - once near Braemar and once in Galloway. It is an old van and appears, I suppose, a bit dodgy - but both times, on providing his driving licence he has had no problem. - I love Tony's indication that camping in church car parks is acceptable - I have read about this in France - also a good source of fresh water there, I understand - but I do not think EVERY minister would be as accommodating even if peak times were avoided :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.