'Wild camping' in a motorhome or van
This morning bright and early we drove 6 miles from home to the top of the Kirkstone Pass in the Lake District.
At the entrance to the car park there is a nice big sign stating that overnighting is not allowed. There were 6 vans which had clearly been there all night.
On Sunday bright and early we parked at the small car park by the river in Troutbeck. There is a sign forbidding over night stays here too. One van had clearly been there all night.
This behaviour really makes me cross. It's only day 2 of being allowed to stay away from home and already people are treating our area with blatant disrespect - either they can't read (unlikely) or they just do as they like anyway. No wonder motorhomers and campervanners get a bad press.
Please - if you are visiting the Lakes this year either use a campsite or chose a carpark where overnighting is allowed.
Comments
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Gibbs, I think the people who abuse the parking areas are unlikely to read this forum.
You're preaching to the converted here.
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Same problem everywhere, Gibbs, not just in the Lakes.
As TW has posted, I really can’t imagine any CT people “wild camping “ in the manner you’ve described. Maybe you could complain strongly to your local authorities and insist that they enforce their own regulations. 🙂
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I’m afraid it’s the old story. You can put up a sign saying don’t do this, don’t do that, but folks will simply ignore it. It requires either expensive camera monitoring, or a human presence. Neither will happen. It’s rife all over at the moment, not just in National Parks, other beauty hotspots.
Most won’t be Members of any kind of Club like this.4 -
Evening
This morning I was having a brew and having a chat outside reception when a year old motorhome pulled in and turned into the site against the one way and straight onto the motorhome service point. Obviously curious as I knew it wasn't already on site I strolled over for a chat. The chap said he only wanted to fill up with water and didn't want to drop any waste as he'd already done that in the layby he'd stayed in last night, then he blatantly said he wouldn't need the CEP as he'd buried that in the bank by the layby.
Only takes a few attitudes like this to turn the heads of local councils etc from providing overnight spaces.
JK
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Wow.... a member that speaks his mind 🤔 & obviously doesn't mind wearing a target on his back, perhaps best get yourself a steel helmet & bullet proof vest.. fella.. you will certainly need them. 😬
Comments on Wild camping on the CMC forum is almost as taboo as the anti canine posters.
I prefer to call *Wild camping* by it's proper name *Free camping* it's something the CMC & C&CC don't support & like, because it corrupts their wholesome image of planned clean touring sites.
Nevertheless it happens all over the Uk's countryside & coastal areas and it'll never be stopped ,something for nothing is always going to be popular for those individuals that don't want to pay SFA for their sleepover venues , regardless of the consequences to everyone else & local authorities.
It blights our beauty spots with the filth & detritus that *Free Campers* leave for others to clean up, fortunately not everyone of them are tarred with the same brush.
If the covid 19 virus as shown us one thing this past 18 months is the lack of humanitary & complete selfishness that exists in our beautiful United Kingdom.
I can imagine Free Camping will bloom this summer, apparently there as never been a greater number of new first timer Caravanners & Motorhomers waiting to tour this season.
Top man for pointing it out in your area, but unfortunately you're just wasting your time & breath.
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Compass why not give it it's proper name... Dirty Camping"? As said above it's happing more and more all over this country. As for not being undertaken by members of the CC and C&CC, that I very much doubt. There have been posters on here who admit to wild camping as the OP called it, and even a few that advocate the practice as a norm.
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I know CAMC members who wild camp, Nellie, but they do it in a responsible way and use recognised/permitted places.
The OP and Compass are referring to folk who park where they shouldn't and behave irresponsibly, as in the case described by JK.
I have no issue with the former but detest the latter whose behaviour is reprehensible. They are the ones who give us all a bad name and I’m sure none of that group will be reading this.
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During Covid some councils have been providing temporary services for motorhomes etc, not all on sites, there have been roadside areas in use with access to basic facilities. This will be coming to an end so I'm afraid there will be more free camping in towns as well as more rural and coastal spots.
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"windows steamed up is a good giveaway"
But back to OP, good post i remember getting slated on this forum some years back for raising similar issues, fortunately our two main LA's, Gosport and Fareham who control all of our coastal areas where "dirty camping" was taking place, have taken the initiative, e.g. introduced height barriers where possible, mobile patrols to check mainly our coastal areas, new signage in big bold letters "NO CAMPING OR HUMAN HABITATION", this does appear to have reduced our MH population but not camper vans, unfortunately this also has its downsides, places were people could park FOC are now becoming Pay and Display which does affect some local old people who have difficulty walking to the coastal car parks as they now have to pay to sit/walk a little and may be have a bacon buttie from the Shack.
P.S. we have a perfectly good campsite 5 mins from beach open 24x7x365 but of course you have to pay
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When i posted that what you have noted was when , as you on site without barriers ,it was Knocked by those who seem have not been and seen what happens "at the coal face" with Freeloaders ,it will not be the only one that will know where they can normally dump and fill
As i posted with what we noted at the P&R at Whitby
The lay by near Ham lane at Peterborough is anothe "favorite"spot and another reason why the facilities at FM have key pad locks as they were being used by those that use the layby and boaters staying at the moorings in the park,
The road into Cromer from Seacroft site is/was also quite "popular"
The freeloaders are very aware of when and where they can have free access to facilities on not just cc sites/cls in the UK
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Rufs, I remember your post. You attracted criticism because you unfortunately classed all MH-ers as the same. Although you probably didn't intend offence, that was what annoyed folk.
You can see in the foregoing posts that distinctions have been drawn and, please, don't imagine your seafront is the only one affected.
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Great idea, but who is going to police this, my bet is you will still get those who think they are "living the dream" who will outstay their welcome, i think also there are going to be a lot of newbies out there who do not know the first thing about using a MH/campervan, and dont forget many will be hired LV.s, who will think it is perfectly ok to let their waste run out onto the tarmac, leave all their litter in already overflowing bins, just ripe for Mr Fox to come along and spread it around a bit for good measure
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That is where it makes a big difference with Freeloaders ,you have staff employed to enforce it
,As noted by the OP if that is not the case ,restriction signs mean nothing to some and those who ignore signs will know full well they will not get "moved on"
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As one who occasionally 'free camps', it is disappointing that the LA has prohibited overnight stays at the mentioned car park. Bit exposed and windswept for my taste though. Better a few delineated bays with detailed guidance (e.g No dumping grey, black or rubbish, a 24 hour limit) which might encourage a less cavalier attitude. Being able to go three days without the need for any services whatsoever, I do not "wild dump" but find it frustrating that so often I'm treated as a pariah who is expected to enrol for "limbo dancing" classes. As I have posted before, camper vans and motorhomes do not always require all services and it is irritating to have to buy a "four course meal when one only wants a snack".
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Like I suspect many others who have toured down the decades, we have pulled in for a few hours sleep somewhere safe and off the main road when on a long journey, both in our original camper van, our Land Rover when tenting, and our caravan when heading down to SW. I recall us sleeping in back and cab of LR heading to South Wales, and a gentle knock on door by Welsh police making sure we were ok. They told us to go back to sleep and we wouldn’t be woken again. Same with caravan in Cotswolds, we used to have a few hours shut eye, usually midnight to 5am in a huge layby just outside Moreton. Breakfast at the lovely butty hut that had set up as we slept, then back on the road for 6am
But what is happening now, in much changed times is different. It isn’t a few hours shut eye, leaving no traces of ever being there, it’s more a deliberate policy of not using any form of paid for Site, it’s deliberate littering and fouling of open spaces, safe in the knowledge that no one will actually be checking what is going on. People new to touring, and, from some of the conversations we had last year with MH owners, those who normally tour overseas, primarily using Aire type stops, but not finding similar here in UK.
I fully agree that the UK isn’t set up for MHs like the Continent, hopefully this is being addressed, even if at a snails pace. But it still doesn’t excuse illegal parking up, or the immoral littering and effluent discharge that so taints the whole of the MH community. It is a small minority that take the free parking up and disgusting habits to extremes, but it has a knock on effect for everyone else that tours in a camper van or MH. We even saw caravans overnighting for free in Northumberland last year, under a ruddy sign that said no sleeping overnight🤷♀️
We paid for a Brit Stop booklet to help us find somewhere to stay this year, knowing how bad it is likely to be. Most stays are free, some a car park fee. It didn’t cost much, and we hope will help us tour easier and without paying the big fees on such as Club Sites.On that, the Club doesn’t really cater for campervan and MH owners who really tour, couple of nights at most. It looks well after those who use their MHs as caravans with a wheel at each corner, who pitch up awnings, connect to all the fancy services, and happy to pay the fees that go with it. But the CLs help with this, true touring paradise (at least those who don’t impose a minimum nights stay) If we truly tour an area, we hop from Site to Site, max of a couple of nights at the one Site. Blowed if I am going to pay £30 plus to sleep for eight hours on a Club Site, happy to leave this for others. So the Club is actually part of the issue, rather than a solution. It needs to recognise the need for basic, short stay stops, including caravans as well. The no facility Sites, many now long gone met this perfectly. But the Club is throwing its Site developments around caravans and MHs used like caravans. Long stays with prices to match.
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But surly if you wanted a snack you wouldn't go into a restaurant that only sells four course meals? That would be very foolish. You would go into a small café?
There are other smaller cafes - campsites available.
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This is a general comment, not aimed at anyone or anything. Years ago no-one took much notice of a spot of roadside camping. Sadly laybys and other stop off points are now frequently awash with litter, not just on the ground, it's stuck in the surrounding hedges, trees and verges. Not pleasant places to be in.
And it certainly isn't anything like as safe as it used to be. From our home we can see overnight arrivals at a local beauty spot, their headlights shine like beacons from a local hill. I feel some discomfort that our quiet tranquil spots are invaded and I look at headlights not stars, our wild life is disturbed, they don't get much peace when the day trippers have gone home.
I've recently seen yellow notices going up "take pride in Britain and don't drop litter" or some such phrase. I suppose everyone who stops comes under suspicion, are they the litterers and dumpers? So called "wild campers" are making it harder for the rest of us and to my mind they are spoiling some very tranquil spots, treating them as 24 hour car parks not special places to let nature have time to recover.
So yes, I think it's important that no overnight camping rules are obeyed.
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So the Club is actually part of the issue, rather than a solution. It needs to recognise the need for basic, short stay stops, including caravans as well. The no facility Sites, many now long gone met this perfectly. But the Club is throwing its Site developments around caravans and MHs used like caravans. Long stays with prices to match.
I can’t agree with the above. Surely the club is there to provide what the majority of members want and that isn’t basic sites in my opinion. You have only got to look at how difficult it is to get a service pitch, even at the extra premium. At least the CAMC allows one night stops, on our planned tour in May we have several. Some do indeed stay for weeks, most of our stays are between 1 and 3 days. Although we still occasionally stop for a week at sites like Hawes.
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You are right in what you say about minimal facility sites ,and both major Pitch suppliers are doing the same , as with when reading how CLs/CS are advertising , they are all going down the route of what it seems the majority of users are asking for.,more facilities
It is the few as with any type of pursuit ,who spoil it for the majority by their no thought of what they are doing, then complain about thelack of what they want as long as it costs nothing for them ,without thought that it costs others to implement it
And it is still very easy to stay an odd night or two on this clubs sites,,just these days it needs a bit of planning at busy periods ,not so at low season
It is a sign of how busy it is these days ,and how because of the "few?"have made it more difficult to do as in years gone by
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My experience is all based in mainland Europe - and that is that many motorhomers don't want any sort of campsite at all. There are a few exceptions of campsites which motorhomers see as ideal for them, but by and large motorhomers there don't go to campsites, and French campsite owners know this only too well. I once met a British lady at a party who even said "We hate campsites". She wanted the freedom to go or stop wherever she chose.
Many motorhomers over there even shun the plentiful official Aires across France and choose to stay as and where they wish - in the sand dunes at the Pointe de Trevignon, in the parking area at Monet's garden at Giverny, on most headlands across Brittany, in the long lay by beyond the zoo at La Palmyre - the list is endless.
I personally never saw it as a problem and was never irritated by it, and in some places their local authorities tolerate it too - but in others they put up height barriers to close things down. Local authorities in the UK must make those same decisions if they see it as a problem for them. It's up to them.
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Reading some of the posts on here and other websites height barriers and closing off of areas in the UK is what many are already complaining about and is it seems is now getting more "attention?" from continental LAs because of the increase in the amount of Motor Caravans and the attitude it seems to match from some owners
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