# How safe is rural layby?



## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

Hi
We're hopefully picking our first camper up later this week. So we're new to all this.

We'll be camping as a family, adults kids n dogs, in campervan.
How safe is it to just stay for a sleepover in an out of the way rural lay-by?
(Not sure if I'm spelling lay-by right) do people get any problems from the general public?
Anyway, anybody got any advise, or comments?


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## The Camper (Jul 29, 2013)

We have never had any problems with laybys – but choose ones that are well back from the main road. 
Plus arrive late and leave early.
Oh and welcome to the world of wild camping


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## landyrubbertramp (Jul 29, 2013)

hi and welcome

alot of parking and finding sutable places comes down to cnfidence, the more you wild camp the confident you get but also with hving experiance good and bad it will be confindance with enough cuation soyou will be fine

regards lee


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## runnach (Jul 29, 2013)

Sigh , expect doggers and the gay brigade

Channa


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## Firefox (Jul 29, 2013)

On a high speed road (> 30 mph, basically), make sure the layby is well set back and preferably a barrier such as trees or a hedge or a safety fence. Otherwise there are no real problems. I have used them for 30 years. Never an issue


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## mariesnowgoose (Jul 29, 2013)

Hi Flowerpower, welcome to the site :wave:

(Behave yourself, Channa! c:     :lol-053: )


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## runnach (Jul 29, 2013)

mariesnowgoose said:


> Hi Flowerpower, welcome to the site :wave:
> 
> (Behave yourself, Channa! c:     :lol-053: )



Ok I will behave, to answer the OPs question, you shouldnt have any problems at all with those in authority, my dig re anti social behaviour can on occasion be a problem, but worth perservering with.

Waking up in a morning, watching the local birlife squirrels etc nothing beats it .....so enjoy and dont worry 

Channa


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

channa said:


> Sigh , expect doggers and the gay brigade
> 
> Channa



Was more worried about the occasional mad axe man happening by :0 .. Hoping I just watched too many scary 80's movies lol


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

mariesnowgoose said:


> Hi Flowerpower, welcome to the site :wave:
> 
> (Behave yourself, Channa! c:     :lol-053: )



Thanks for the welcome everyone, seems a lively forum


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

channa said:


> Waking up in a morning, watching the local birlife squirrels etc nothing beats it .....so enjoy and dont worry
> 
> Channa



Sounds good


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## runnach (Jul 29, 2013)

Flowerpower said:


> Thanks for the welcome everyone, seems a lively forum



Take no notice you have joined with impeccable timing that my rep is about to disapear right down the pan ....Marie and I love each other really all a tete a tete as the French say.

nope on a serious note, lots of folk here who will help if and when camper plays up, Only yesterday someone has an electrical problem ...some other dude happens to be catching the same ferry and ere bingo multimeters will be in abundance and the former has a good holiday.

Good bunch, good forum ...welcome and have fun 

My forte is laybys, just dodge out the way of the trucker types with refrigeration units.....what a racket better still, visit a gunshop and sleep with ear plugs.

See everyone I can be useful helpful who said I  had no chivalry 

Channa


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

channa said:


> Take no notice you have joined with impeccable timing that my rep is about to disapear right down the pan ....Marie and I love each other really all a tete a tete as the French say.
> 
> nope on a serious note, lots of folk here who will help if and when camper plays up, Only yesterday someone has an electrical problem ...some other dude happens to be catching the same ferry and ere bingo multimeters will be in abundance and the former has a good holiday.
> 
> ...



Thanks Channa
Good to know the help and advise is available, look forward to joining in and learning as I go.


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## n brown (Jul 29, 2013)

if the mad axeman shows,i usually offer him a nice cuppa tea and a biccie.they find it very distracting when somebody's nice to them


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## didds (Jul 29, 2013)

Nah...  no mad axemen loose in the countryside.


they were all eaten by the escaped/feral big cats 


didds


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

didds said:


> Nah...  no mad axemen loose in the countryside.
> 
> 
> they were all eaten by the escaped/feral big cats
> ...



Och Big Cats are ok, I can cope with the animal wildlife... And as long as their keeping the mad axe men at bay that's fine ... Lol


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

n brown said:


> if the mad axeman shows,i usually offer him a nice cuppa tea and a biccie.they find it very distracting when somebody's nice to them



Tea n biccies on the packing list, ready to deploy when needed


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## champstar (Jul 29, 2013)

I tend not to use laybys but prefer picnic areas and forestry commission carparks. There are lots in Scotland. But I echo the advice well back from the road and if it is litter strewn and and lots of broken glass...move on. If you don't like the look of a place move there will be another better place down the road.


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## Tony Lee (Jul 29, 2013)

Worst aspect of rural laybys is having the local dairy farmer drive his huge tractor towing a stinking manure spreader slowly past your van as he ducks into the layby to let traffic get past.


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## Smaug (Jul 29, 2013)

n brown said:


> if the mad axeman shows,i usually offer him a nice cuppa tea and a biccie.they find it very distracting when somebody's nice to them



Oooh, yes, a cuppa would be nice, thank you, chopping people up is such thirsty work. 3 sugars please to give me a big energy boost before I tackle you! http://www.wildcamping.co.uk/forums/images/smilies/mad1.gif


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

Smaug said:


> Oooh, yes, a cuppa would be nice, thank you, chopping people up is such thirsty work. 3 sugars please to give me a big energy boost before I tackle you! http://www.wildcamping.co.uk/forums/images/smilies/mad1.gif



Scary! Lol
Seriously though we were concerned about the safety aspect, no getting away from the fact that there are some nutters out and about nowerdays, so thanks for the good advice.


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## Smaug (Jul 29, 2013)

Flowerpower said:


> Scary! Lol
> Seriously though we were concerned about the safety aspect, no getting away from the fact that there are some nutters out and about nowerdays, so thanks for the good advice.



The fear is in your own minds & does not reflect reality. :dog: Just have a nice a drink & relax.


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## runnach (Jul 29, 2013)

apply a bit of commonsense go with the hunch if you dont feel right it isnt you cant go far wrong..

to put things in perspective fulltiming and using laybys never really a problem

Channa


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## alj23 (Jul 29, 2013)

*layby camping !!*

I stayed in a layby just outside Hereford on Thurs night - parked inbetween two lorries and woke up to find lorries gone and a food van in their place - cooked breakfast went down very well I have to say !!!

We were initially a little nervous but slept like logs and were not worried at all

Have spotted some great little laybys on the Hereford - Abergavenny round and down a little lower towards Cwmbran

AJ


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## n brown (Jul 29, 2013)

stuff can happen of course,but you will find your caveman instincts will alert you in case of danger. get into the habit of following those instincts.  [I did try writing ''caveperson '' but it just looked wrong ! ]


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## DUGGIESMURF (Jul 29, 2013)

*safe parking*

get laybuys that were old roads thay are the safest


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## Tbear (Jul 29, 2013)

When the mad axeman turns up tell him you know Mariesnowgoose and Channa. He will need to sit down for a cup of tea then. Apart from that, good advise above about being set well back behind some sort of barrier on busy roads. better to find a quiet one with a nice view. Google Street view first. May be out of date but will give you an idea.

There you are admin, we can play nice together.

Richard


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## Flowerpower (Jul 29, 2013)

Tbear said:


> Google Street view first. May be out of date but will give you an idea.
> 
> Richard



hadn't thought of that...thanks


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## tiderus (Jul 30, 2013)

Hi Flowerpower.

For what its worth here's my two penneth.

I always park in a layby that has a barrier between you and the road,

This is for a couple of reasons. The first is that you can be moved on should they so wish.

And the second is for safety.

Try to pick one that turns away from you. as most seem to be on a bend that turns back into the road.

The reason is should a large trucks driver, (especially from East Europe).

Fall asleep at the wheel, he could and has several times demolished others vans etc.

I prefer to park at the far end of the lay-by, for the same reason.

Simple rules which if you follow, should let you get a good nights sleep. 

After all I wonder how many of us have thought of this and do it???

As for a mad axe man, My wife says she has never seen a man brandishing his chopper in a lay-by, lol.

Apart from some youth's bouncing on my tow bar late at night at an all night cafe, (Dinkeys diner Shrewsbury).

Never had a minuets trouble, so go forth and enjoy, lifes shorter that you think.

Rgd's Graham.


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## didds (Jul 30, 2013)

the nutters have always been out there. nowadays is irrelevant.

didds


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## jenks (Jul 30, 2013)

Been full timming for a few weeks and no trouble yet, get the odd car with an amerous couple, or a loud stereo. So far my biggest annoyancies have been caused by other motorhomes! The bigger the motorhome generally the noisier they are... more people, generators, big loud TV up and early happy campers that seem to slam every side door / storage locker.... shout at the people inside from the other end of the layby, then they start up their engine and dont go anywhere until it's up to full temp.

My biggest problem so far is catching the attention of a middle aged rotund guy who stripped to his underpants in full view got in his motorhome parked across mine and glared at me in the window / my mirror then he drove off.... I am sure it's harmless, but a little offputting, by all means have an issue with me and glare at me... but please keep your clothes on


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## DeRu (Jul 30, 2013)

*Rural LayBy*

Hi, just back from a week break had booked caravan site for 2 nights and was going wild camping for the rest of the week.  We spent the first night in layby got virtually no sleep for traffic noise, however continued to our next place of call.  This was Southport and we saw the wild camping spot for the night so continued to see about the place and returned later to settle down for the night.  It just happened that something had went wrong think it was a stolen motorcycle that police and coastguard were out looking for therefore no sleep again due to noise of police and coastguard. Next night was pre booked in camper site all went well and had a great night sleep, following day had look around about and spent a second night there.  We were now due to wild camp again for 2 nights but could not find anywhere suitable as most places had "no overnight parking" signs up so we phoned caravan club and got booked into a site again for 2 nights.  Not looking forward to the next night sleeping in layby again so booked site once again and only had our last night to wild camp, but anywhere we would find once again had the "no overnight" signs so we just took to the motorway and headed home early.

I will admit that I don't have much confidence in wild camping as I have a fear of a bang on the door and being told to move on and I like peace and quite for my sleeping.  Coming from Scotland I would say that it is not much trouble wild camping here as most places do allow you to stay the night so I think I will stick to proper sites anywhere other than in Scotland.:sleep-040:


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## Flowerpower (Jul 30, 2013)

Sorry to hear you had a bad experience of layby camping on your hols DeRu.
We'll be mainly staying in scotland and sticking to the remote layby s I think.


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## justdoitviv (Jul 30, 2013)

I used to travel with children as a single mum. I used to make sure I could be as public and in the open as possible. Stayed just long enough for a short sleep. I also had my keys ready in case I had to take off in a hurry. I remember it was hot in the summer because I wouldn't leave the windows open.


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## Deleted member 967 (Jul 30, 2013)

DeRu said:


> Hi, just back from a week break had booked caravan site for 2 nights and was going wild camping for the rest of the week.  We spent the first night in layby got virtually no sleep for traffic noise, however continued to our next place of call.  This was Southport and we saw the wild camping spot for the night so continued to see about the place and returned later to settle down for the night.  It just happened that something had went wrong think it was a stolen motorcycle that police and coastguard were out looking for therefore no sleep again due to noise of police and coastguard. Next night was pre booked in camper site all went well and had a great night sleep, following day had look around about and spent a second night there.  We were now due to wild camp again for 2 nights but could not find anywhere suitable as most places had "no overnight parking" signs up so we phoned caravan club and got booked into a site again for 2 nights.  Not looking forward to the next night sleeping in layby again so booked site once again and only had our last night to wild camp, but anywhere we would find once again had the "no overnight" signs so we just took to the motorway and headed home early.
> 
> I will admit that I don't have much confidence in wild camping as I have a fear of a bang on the door and being told to move on and I like peace and quite for my sleeping.  Coming from Scotland I would say that it is not much trouble wild camping here as most places do allow you to stay the night so I think I will stick to proper sites anywhere other than in Scotland.:sleep-040:



You will only get a bang on the door if you are causing an obstruction.  The Police are not interested in moving you on as Parking is no longer in their remit.  Parking is now in the hand of the local authority and their officers don't do much out of hours work to keep costs down.

It sounds like you picked the wrong area to park.  We have been wild parking since 2006 and full timing from 2009.  We do not have any problems getting to sleep.  Supermarket car parks after hours and industrial estates are usually quiet locations at night.


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## Flowerpower (Jul 30, 2013)

John Thompson said:


> We have been wild parking since 2006 and full timing from 2009.  We do not have any problems getting to sleep.  Supermarket car parks after hours and industrial estates are usually quiet locations at night.



"Full timing" does that mean you live in the MH and don't have a fixed address?
Again forgive the Newbie question.. I'm not trying to be nosey, it's something myself and hubby have talked about as a possibility for the future after we retire. So I'm genuinely interested how it works for you if that is what you are doing.


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## schubert (Jul 30, 2013)

*lay-by camping*

Hi   We have done a lot of wild camping.
    Advice--
 Trust your instincts.
 Chat to the locals if you meet any.(they have told us of even better spots) we have even been told to park out side their house or in the garden as it will be safer .
 Park  ready to dive off if need be. 
 Don't use spots with glass/ beer cans etc on the ground.
 Avoid city/ town centres at weekends.
 Don't worry about the Police they won't bother you. 
 We wont stop on sea fronts /car parks in the summer.(ok mid winter).
 A quiet country lane is best, (if your van looks like a camper, not a stealth van, the famers won't think you   are out to nick something).
 If it don't feel right it  don't Stop.
 Remember there are a lot more good people  in the wold than bad.

 Schubert


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## RoaminRog (Jul 30, 2013)

Hi Flowerpower and a big welcome to the site.
I have been sleeping in laybys since 1976 and have never had anything untoward happen that I couldn't handle. It's true you may witness lifes weirdo's, but the chances are that unless you particularly want to get involved with them they will leave you alone, and quite frankly they don't come out to play until late into the evening, by which time my curtains are drawn and I don't give a damn what they get up to!
 If you have to park in a layby make sure it separated from the carriagway by a kerb at the very least or a hedge because if you are immediately adjacent to the road it may be a requirement to display lights or at worst you may be moved on, in the interest of safety Old Bill won't think twice about waking you up!
 We take 'Scruffbag' with us on tour and he stays on guard all night, which means that we can totally relax and get a good nights sleep, safe in the knowledge that he will let us know if anyone approaches our van, but I can't remember the last time anything like that happened.
 So basically, stop worrying, and just get out there and have fun!


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## didds (Jul 30, 2013)

John Thompson said:


> Parking is now in the hand of the local authority and their officers don't do much out of hours work to keep costs down.




and they are very very very very unlikely to turn up between 22:00 and 06:00 because of that - councils just won;t have the budget to pay the unsocial hours rates.  So "no overnight parking" is potentially worth what its written on ...  they in all likelihood won;t ever be anybody around to enforce it.

And - define "overnight".  Is 23:00-05:00 "over night"?  If the door gets banged at 06:30 - how are they to know you didn't turn up at 05:00 ?  05:00-06:30 isn't "overnight" - surely?

don't sweat it.

didds


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## Deleted member 967 (Jul 31, 2013)

didds said:


> and they are very very very very unlikely to turn up between 22:00 and 06:00 because of that - councils just won;t have the budget to pay the unsocial hours rates.  So "no overnight parking" is potentially worth what its written on ...  they in all likelihood won;t ever be anybody around to enforce it.
> 
> And - define "overnight".  Is 23:00-05:00 "over night"?  If the door gets banged at 06:30 - how are they to know you didn't turn up at 05:00 ?  05:00-06:30 isn't "overnight" - surely?
> 
> ...



It is this lack of proof that has made Cornwall County Council ban Motorhomes from Parking overnight 22:30 to 08:00.  The ban is because they can not ascertain if someone is breaking their "NO Overnight Sleeping" rule in a motorhome with curtains closed.   This ban affects 17 of Cornwall's car parks.  The list is on the website Cornwall Council - Motorhome parking  Because they have one unenforceable regulation they try another way to implement the ban.  The car parks are covered by CCTV so the recordings can be viewed later and PCNs issued.

They allow HGVs, Cars, Coaches, Caravans to park overnight but have banned Motorhomes.   They define motorhome as *A motorhome is defined as any vehicle constructed or adapted for use as a mobile place of sleeping – ranging from a custom-built motorhome to an estate car with a mattress in the back.  This definition could also be applied to HGVs with a sleeper cab or Coaches with crew accommodation or a caravan with its curtains closed.  This in no way is a definition of a motor caravan as specified by the EU or DVLA in the UK.

The ban on Cooking, eating and sleeping applies to all 240 of Cornwall County Council owned car parks.   As has been pointed out there are other places to stay that are not affected by this ban such as rural laybys.  It would appear that the council are trying to boost trade for the camping and caravan sites, not understanding that those who wish to use caravan sites already do and those that don't would not use them.

When queried they say that the majority of complains received are about litter and fouling caused by Campervans that are not equipped with toilets (as favoured by surfers).

We in the Motorhome Tourism Organisation http://www.tmcto.org have put a Freedom of Information request in asking for specific information about these complaints. 

We have done the same with Scarborough Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council  and it would appear that there was only one recorded complaint made to Scarborough Borough Council and none recorded for North Yorkshire County Council.


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## GerrySimpson (Jul 31, 2013)

We parked up in a quite riverside location in Rothbury Northumberland, had a couple of police vehicles come round overnight so felt really safe.

Nice spot, great nights sleep.

It was a very pretty rural spot and I got up early, noticed a few beer cans laying around, from kids I suppose from earlier in the week,  so I tidied them up.

The about 8:30 AM  a council van turned up and knocked on the door and was informed that there was a sign "No Overnight Camping".

I told him , I just arrived, but the leveling chocks were still down  . I was told I would be reported. 

I smiled and had great day.

Never heard anything.......................Unenforceable.


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## Deleted member 967 (Jul 31, 2013)

Flowerpower said:


> "Full timing" does that mean you live in the MH and don't have a fixed address?
> Again forgive the Newbie question.. I'm not trying to be nosey, it's something myself and hubby have talked about as a possibility for the future after we retire. So I'm genuinely interested how it works for you if that is what you are doing.



We have been full timing since I retired in 2009.  There are others on here that have been full timing longer.

You need a contact address to register vehicles, licences and for insurance.  This does not have to be a residence just somewhere for you mail to be sent and dealt with.  We use our daughters address.  There are agencies that boaters have been using that will open your mail and email it to you anywhere in the world. They will convert your email reply to hardcopy and post it.

Insurance companies do checks so they will specify that you are on the electoral roll and produce utility bills.  Comfort Insurance (AVIVA) are the only one that will do genuine Full timing Insurance and they charge a higher premium for dispensing with these checks.  The C&CC told me this week they did full timing insurance but there breakdown cover is only for 60 days outside of the UK, with the same company that Comfort use and offer 365 days cover.

You have to return to the UK for MOTs these cannot be done abroad or Gibraltar.

Pensions are paid into your bank.

Technically you have to deregister with your doctor if you are not residing in the catchment area for more than 3 months.  Some doctors will enforce this other take a more liberal attitude.  If a vehicle is taken out of the UK for more than 12 months you have to deregister it as exported with DVLA.

We unlike some have not fudged our full timing and have declared it to the bank, credit cards, doctors.

Full timing is not a necessarily a cheap option and it can cost as much as the perceived saving.  No council tax but higher insurance premiums are just an example.  We have found we can save wild parking in Spain.  We live in our van because we want to not because we have to.


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## Deleted member 967 (Jul 31, 2013)

GerrySimpson said:


> We parked up in a quite riverside location in Rothbury Northumberland, had a couple of police vehicles come round overnight so felt really safe.
> 
> Nice spot, great nights sleep.
> 
> ...



In these cases have a look at the councils website and their Gypsy and Traveller Policy.   Information is knowledge.  Northumberland County Council try to frighten motorhome users to use caravan sites, even out of season when the sites are  closed.  The councils TROs are specific to their car parks.  The do not cover all rural stopping possibilities.  If there is a sign don't stop or check that it is covered by a TRO it should have the reference somewhere on the sign.  A lot of these signs are just put up as frighteners but they do show we are not welcome.  Don't cause agro, just be polite if asked to move.

Putting chocks out is an invitation for problems.  That is classed as Camping.

Parking is where the vehicle takes up no more space than it would while being driven on the road.  I find I can get level with a bit of manoeuvring without chocks if not I find another place to park.


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## Smaug (Jul 31, 2013)

DeRu said:


> Hi, just back from a week break had booked caravan site for 2 nights and was going wild camping for the rest of the week.  We spent the first night in layby got virtually no sleep for traffic noise, however continued to our next place of call.  This was Southport and we saw the wild camping spot for the night so continued to see about the place and returned later to settle down for the night.  It just happened that something had went wrong think it was a stolen motorcycle that police and coastguard were out looking for therefore no sleep again due to noise of police and coastguard. Next night was pre booked in camper site all went well and had a great night sleep, following day had look around about and spent a second night there.  We were now due to wild camp again for 2 nights but could not find anywhere suitable as most places had "no overnight parking" signs up so we phoned caravan club and got booked into a site again for 2 nights.  Not looking forward to the next night sleeping in layby again so booked site once again and only had our last night to wild camp, but anywhere we would find once again had the "no overnight" signs so we just took to the motorway and headed home early.
> 
> I will admit that I don't have much confidence in wild camping as I have a fear of a bang on the door and being told to move on and I like peace and quite for my sleeping.  Coming from Scotland I would say that it is not much trouble wild camping here as most places do allow you to stay the night so I think I will stick to proper sites anywhere other than in Scotland.:sleep-040:



With respect, Southport is not the best place to wild camp, you are close to large conurbations so risk of yoofs being daft, plus a strong risk of Nimby rich commuter belt types "reporting" your vehicle as suspicious, not that you will have committed a "crime". The wilder & more rural the better in my view, altho if you need to be in a town for any reason, then as advised earlier, small Industrial estates can be really quiet overnight.


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## reberto (Jul 31, 2013)

*laybe*

hi, my wife often commented; nothing bother's you do it, as she sits in the corner with the quilt over her nose.
   now she first to sleep nothing bother's her.  sleep tight, you will like it or not.  but all way try it first..


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## Smaug (Jul 31, 2013)

reberto said:


> hi, my wife often commented; nothing bother's you do it, as she sits in the corner with the quilt over her nose.
> now she first to sleep nothing bother's her.  sleep tight, you will like it or not.  but all way try it first..



As I commented elsewhere, our fears can do more harm than the "enemy" does.


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## vwalan (Jul 31, 2013)

Portal CampingCar Portugal – O Portal Português de Autocaravanismo
have a read here it explains things ,even in spain /or portugal there can be m,homers breaking the parking code .


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## landyrubbertramp (Jul 31, 2013)

thanks fr that alan a lot of good info on that site, perhaps smaug might notice the site as it could give sum more ideas for the leaflet we talked about


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## Flowerpower (Jul 31, 2013)

vwalan said:


> Portal CampingCar Portugal – O Portal Português de Autocaravanismo
> have a read here it explains things ,even in spain /or portugal there can be m,homers breaking the parking code .



Gonna pop that link on the thread that's after info on Portugal. Hope that's ok.


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## martyncc (Jul 31, 2013)

*layby*

just got back from 2wk wild camping and pub stopovers . not had any problems . but I will say I like the pub stopovers best and they are so friendly .but the pub owners have all said we don't make the most of them . they need the trade as we need the stopover .just give them a bell before you arrive . Happy Wild camping


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## Flowerpower (Jul 31, 2013)

martyncc said:


> just got back from 2wk wild camping and pub stopovers . not had any problems . but I will say I like the pub stopovers best and they are so friendly .but the pub owners have all said we don't make the most of them . they need the trade as we need the stopover .just give them a bell before you arrive . Happy Wild camping



Thanks I think we may well be doing a few pub stop overs


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## vwalan (Jul 31, 2013)

Flowerpower said:


> Gonna pop that link on the thread that's after info on Portugal. Hope that's ok.



yes keep it . same sort of rules are in spain ,in fact it was an eu court case that set them . m,homers actually do demonstrate there . i joined a spanish demo from cadiz to gib one year . blocked the main roads for hours . had a good impact though . 
soon after the eu court case the interiour minister issued a statement .instructions 08/v-74 to the general direction of traffic on the motor homes .


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## Captain Dingbat (Aug 1, 2013)

Another newbie here who is going to join this site as full member!

RE- Pubs - when you stay at these then, am I right in thinking you can park up for free, but go in for a few pints and a meal, or can you just have a few pints?

Cheers X


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## Smaug (Aug 1, 2013)

Captain Dingbat said:


> Another newbie here who is going to join this site as full member!
> 
> RE- Pubs - when you stay at these then, am I right in thinking you can park up for free, but go in for a few pints and a meal, or can you just have a few pints?
> 
> Cheers X



There is an explanation elsewhere, but basically, ASK FIRST, ideally phone ahead to book a slot & yes, you would be expected to spend some money in the pub for a meal or a few drinks. It can be awkward if you have a meal & drinks & then find they don't want you to stay or someone else has booked (law says only 1 van at a time - altho not all pubs worry too much about that). 

Not all pubs are aware of this provision in the law & not all have the room on their car park or want to encourage people in campers, so asking the licensee first is important (as a staff member's "permission" may be overridden by licensee).


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## Sharon the Cat (Sep 9, 2013)

alj23 said:


> I stayed in a layby just outside Hereford on Thurs night - parked inbetween two lorries and woke up to find lorries gone and a food van in their place - cooked breakfast went down very well I have to say !!!
> 
> We were initially a little nervous but slept like logs and were not worried at all
> 
> ...



I know the lay-by very well. It is less than half a mile from where I live. There are quite a few more on the A465. A lot of the Hereford ones have a no more than 4 hours restriction on them but quite a few also have just the posts where the signs have been "mislaid". More than one of them is well back from the road behind trees. My boyfriend, Hereford born and bred, tells me that these are the old road, where they straightened the kinks out.
Once you cross the border into Wales there are no restrictions, just signs about not littering. The only person I have seen littering on this road was a young female car driver grrrrrrr.


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## Evron (Sep 9, 2013)

*lay bye`s*

Hi All,we went to Silverstone last week for the Moto GP,saved ourselves £20 a night by camping in a lay bye.
Woopee extra beer money`s good job to it was £4 a pint :wacko: Hope all goes well for you


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## barryd (Sep 9, 2013)

Flowerpower said:


> Och Big Cats are ok, I can cope with the animal wildlife... And as long as their keeping the mad axe men at bay that's fine ... Lol



I dunno!  Wildlife can be scary.  Two years ago while wilding in the woods in the Dordogne our scooter and rack on the back was attacked at 6am by a Sanglier! (Wild boar).  Frightend the living daylights out of me as I was sleeping right next to it.  Didnt know what the hell it was and the whole van shook. 

Wilding high up on the French Italian Border in the Alps last year I heard Wolves howling at midnight while out for a stroll and a last fag! :tongue:

Someone on another forum wilding in Romania had a visit by three bears.   He had parked near some bins which the bears spent an hour emptying!  Would have loved to have seen that one!


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