Camper van concerns raised in Northumberland coastal village

[Val54]

Was it me I would think it better to have motorhomes parked overnight for a small fee then moved in the day. During the day you get a big (mainly) white eyesore parked blocking your view

I agree, but I think we sometimes forget that a lot of small community facilities (of whatever type) are run by volunteers, so managing these facilities is usually hard because of lack of volunteers, eg someone to make sure all the camper vans are gone by 0900 and maybe argue with some who won’t move, not easy to resource, speaking as someone who has been managing a voluntary resourced village hall for years.

 

[maingate]

I certainly agree with you Val (or Dave?). However, this beach car park is really large and must turn over a lot of money over 12 months. I think the Burbage people are missing a trick here. The extra outlay to accommodate Motorhomes will be minimal and the rewards great. All they would need to supply are large litter bins if they limit the stay to 48 hours max as I expect it would be difficult to supply fresh water and toilet disposal.

 

[Fisherman]

I certainly agree with you Val (or Dave?). However, this beach car park is really large and must turn over a lot of money over 12 months. I think the Burbage people are missing a trick here. The extra outlay to accommodate Motorhomes will be minimal and the rewards great. All they would need to supply are large litter bins if they limit the stay to 48 hours max as I expect it would be difficult to supply fresh water and toilet disposal.

I intend emailing them (nicely).
I will point out what's going on up here in Fife and with the car parking in certain forestry commission carparks.
I contacted the FC about this 8 months ago pointing out what was being done in Fife.
It looks like new management within the FC are now taking a different approach.
Fife anticipate they will make money from us in the medium term, and they feel our presence will enhance security in their carparks.
Fife don't regard us as a problem, they regard others who use their carparks as a problem.

I am busy today but I will compose an email this week and send it off.

 

[Fisherman]

I have spent three hours tonight trying to book a site through the CCC within Northumberland area, NADA for dates I require, guess I'll be staying home

For the record, prefer a bona-fide site than doing our usual WC'ing, as we certainly do not want to be rattling anyone's cage.

Sorry to hear about your booking problems Terry.
And I completely agree about WC right now.
We will only be WC in rural locations, well away from towns and villages.
I think we should all try to steer away from them right now.
Nerves are on edge right now, places that were fine pre covid, might not be so now.

 

[Nabsim]

Sorry to hear about your booking problems Terry.
And I completely agree about WC right now.
We will only be WC in rural locations, well away from towns and villages.
I think we should all try to steer away from them right now.
Nerves are on edge right now, places that were fine pre covid, might not be so now.

For the last week and a half I have been off grid in the outskirts of a city, no problems with anyone in fact everyone has been cheery. I do know that the situation has brought a lot of idiots to the surface though all over England so its fair to assume it will be the same everywhere in the UK. I dont seek conflict wherever I go but I dont take £$%^ from folks either. I try to be considerate but if they have a problem ...

 

[Fisherman]

For the last week and a half I have been off grid in the outskirts of a city, no problems with anyone in fact everyone has been cheery. I do know that the situation has brought a lot of idiots to the surface though all over England so its fair to assume it will be the same everywhere in the UK. I dont seek conflict wherever I go but I dont take £$%^ from folks either. I try to be considerate but if they have a problem ...

Spot on Nabism, me to.

We just feel WC near towns may may worry some.
Like you I don't take £$%^ either.
But I do what I can to avoid conflict, sometimes to much to be honest.

 

[mariesnowgoose]

So why is the problem motorhomes or vans that stay overnight if signs are illegal. I see the problem as no provision has been made. Things have changed and will keep changing as the number of people using vans is constantly rising. Thought this was a site for off grid camping?

It is more a matter of engaging/educating/persuading those active/influential locals. To think about a small provision of some description for motorhomes/campers rather than locking them out completely is more likely to be mutually beneficial than not.

 

[Fisherman]

It is more a matter of engaging/educating/persuading those active/influential locals. To think about a small provision of some description for motorhomes/campers rather than locking them out completely is more likely to be mutually beneficial than not.

We have to present ourselves as people who do what we do because we love visiting these places, and we will continue loving them in their current state. It’s also important that we identify ourselves mainly as being older than average with a mindset conducive to maintaining the places we visit. Sadly some folk think we are somehow different from them, when in actual fact we are them. They have or are working hard, contributed to their local communities, and our country just as we have. We also have to use what examples of what others have done to welcome us. That way they can peruse the details, and possibly contact them for clarification.

 

[antiquesam]

I'm currently spending a fortune staying on a C&MC site at Moreton in Marsh. The site is full and the pubs in the town say that the locals aren't going out so they're glad of the caravan trade.

 

[Val54]

I certainly agree with you Val (or Dave?). However, this beach car park is really large and must turn over a lot of money over 12 months. I think the Burbage people are missing a trick here. The extra outlay to accommodate Motorhomes will be minimal and the rewards great. All they would need to supply are large litter bins if they limit the stay to 48 hours max as I expect it would be difficult to supply fresh water and toilet disposal.

Its Dave
Unfortunately I don't know the site and I agree that to us the outlay versus future gains is a no brainer for the community. The problem with our "WC" position is that without an "official" organisation to front us, we have no credibility with a local community. Making them aware of what others like Fife are doing by email is fine (and that is not a criticism) but that at best will raise further questions. Speaking as a long term resident of a small village with lots of experience of the petty politics that such places inevitably have, face to face meetings are the only realistic way of achieving any momentum. In this case the burgage holders will probably need to be spoon fed, given a suggested layout, means of controlling numbers, some idea of extra costs such as refuse collection, any physical works and of course, a projection of how much income it could potentially generate, either through a small overnight fee and/or spending in the local area. I'm not involved with the new group as I don't do Facebook so I haven't seen how much progress they are making; incidentally a lot of the people they are trying to influence probably don't do social media either

PS Just back from 4 days in North Wales, no problems over there.

/

 

[mickymost]

I certainly agree with you Val (or Dave?). However, this beach car park is really large and must turn over a lot of money over 12 months. I think the Burbage people are missing a trick here. The extra outlay to accommodate Motorhomes will be minimal and the rewards great. All they would need to supply are large litter bins if they limit the stay to 48 hours max as I expect it would be difficult to supply fresh water and toilet disposal.

Good idea Maingate 48 hours maximum would work charge more than a car would
make sense they would rake £££££££ it in.

 

[Jetjem]

Hi,
Iv’e lived all my life In Northumberland and worked outdoors both in Northumberland and Durham, so have a fairly good knowledge of lots of parking places.
I also wild camp as well as reluctantly use some sites.
It is slowly becoming increasingly harder to wild camp or find an Aire. For that reason, last year I approached my local and county council, MP, the tourist board and the minister for tourism. I pointed out the revenue they were missing by not tapping into this market of 250k+ registered motorhome. Apart from finding the usual milk bottle shoulders I basically went round in circles.
I have now joined CAMPra (Campaign for real Aires) on Facebook, with the hope that a joint approach will have more clout.
I know wild camping is what it is, but a low cost or free Aire, can be a good alternative. It could be worth a look?

 

[Deleted member 12539]

We have stayed recently on that coast, albeit in a hotel or Airbnb.
We have truly come to love that area, and recently stayed a week (Hotel) a couple of weeks ago, spotted few motorhomes/campers and they all seem to be reasonably parked (up for the night).

 

[campervanannie]

I have been knackered for a long time. I am not some newcomer to wilding and nearly all of the spots we used are long gone. That is why I wild much less these days and it means I am now paying to overnight. That has cost me a lot of money over the years due to idiots buying motorhomes.

The only thing worse than these idiots are the whingeing motorhomers who complain all the time but don't get off their arse to do anything about it except complain. Like you.

Is that your only gripe because it’s costing you a bit of money so we are only idiots because you cannot freeload anymore.

 

[mariesnowgoose]

Places will become ghost towns unless visitors return.

Reckon self-catering businesses in the UK will see a boom for the next year or so, but figure the holiday experience will be much more low key and quiet with restricted or limited facilities due to C-19.

Actually, it will be like a return to childhood - my childhood anyway - where if you stayed in self-catering accommodation you always entertained and catered for yourself. All activities back them were based on the great (free!) outdoors - exploring by walking, swimming or paddling in the sea, learning about all the local wildlife, playing games indoors if the weather was bad etc. etc. My father & mother loved to get as far away from people as possible.

So my old holiday experiences are pretty much what younger generations have maybe experienced for the very first time during lockdown, except without knowledgeable adults around to teach them how to behave and respect the environment.

No shops, no pubs, no restaurants or cafes, no theme parks or 'visitor attractions', just uninterrupted nature at its best to look at or wander about in and some home made grub and a good bed to sleep in at the end of the day.

That's pretty much bliss in my book.

Guess that's why campervanning is so appealing to me

 

[antiquesam]

Places will become ghost towns unless visitors return.

Reckon self-catering businesses in the UK will see a boom for the next year or so, but figure the holiday experience will be much more low key and quiet with restricted or limited facilities due to C-19.

Actually, it will be like a return to childhood - my childhood anyway - where if you stayed in self-catering accommodation you always entertained and catered for yourself. All activities back them were based on the great (free!) outdoors - exploring by walking, swimming or paddling in the sea, learning about all the local wildlife, playing games indoors if the weather was bad etc. etc. My father & mother loved to get as far away from people as possible.

So my old holiday experiences are pretty much what younger generations have maybe experienced for the very first time during lockdown, except without knowledgeable adults around to teach them how to behave and respect the environment.

No shops, no pubs, no restaurants or cafes, no theme parks or 'visitor attractions', just uninterrupted nature at its best to look at or wander about in and some home made grub and a good bed to sleep in at the end of the day.

That's pretty much bliss in my book.

Guess that's why campervanning is so appealing to me

Steady on. I'm all for the great outdoors and home made grub but I don't like the idea of no pubs. I remember the happy hours I spent sitting outside with a bag of crisps and a bottle of pop, but I'm old enough to go into them now.

 

[mickymost]

Hi,
Iv’e lived all my life In Northumberland and worked outdoors both in Northumberland and Durham, so have a fairly good knowledge of lots of parking places.
I also wild camp as well as reluctantly use some sites.
It is slowly becoming increasingly harder to wild camp or find an Aire. For that reason, last year I approached my local and county council, MP, the tourist board and the minister for tourism. I pointed out the revenue they were missing by not tapping into this market of 250k+ registered motorhome. Apart from finding the usual milk bottle shoulders I basically went round in circles.
I have now joined CAMPra (Campaign for real Aires) on Facebook, with the hope that a joint approach will have more clout.
I know wild camping is what it is, but a low cost or free Aire, can be a good alternative. It could be worth a look?

Great well providing you can prise the Local Councillors heads out of the sand maybe just maybe (but dont hold your breath) you will convince some to change their attitude preventing the Motorhome stopovers

 

[maingate]

Is that your only gripe because it’s costing you a bit of money so we are only idiots because you cannot freeload anymore.

So, in your opinion, all the members of this forum are freeloaders?

How to win friends and influence people ... not.

 

[Fisherman]

So, in your opinion, all the members of this forum are freeloaders?

How to win friends and influence people ... not.

In your opinion anyone who does not agree with you is a moron, or an idiot, or both.

Now thats a surefire way to make fiends and win influence.

As for freeloaders, well you take the biscuit try reading your own post from only two weeks ago.

"You are correct Andrew, there are plenty of freeloaders about. They are a small minority of a very large group, which makes them a sizeable amount of people. They will never change their habits, if their favourite places come under some form of payment or control, they will just find somewhere else."

 

[campervanannie]

So, in your opinion, all the members of this forum are freeloaders?

How to win friends and influence people ... not.

no but that’s a great twist on my words you are moaning because you have to pay now I actually don’t mind paying a fair and reasonable amount for parking or staying overnight I just don’t like being ripped off by extortionate campsite fees, but happy to use the occasional one at a fair price. But please read your own post you are whining because what you got for free you now have to pay for thanks to idiots buying motorhomes.