Fast get away

[silverweed]

Ok let’s discuss this one. I read when newbies ask about where to overnight about the importance of being able to make a quick get away and yes I’m absolutely not saying don’t think about it but really how many of us have in reality had to get away fast. After a quick addition I think the total of my nights are some where in the region of 2000 nights over the last 9 years, 7 of them spent on sits only. Now that leaves 1993 wild nights and in that time we have been asked to move on once in the night which was no problem as we move 20 yards away and every one was happy. We were knocked up once in the night to help work a fuel pump and once (which was the worst) we got out of bed at about 2am as I was going to scream due to a generator going and we moved. So 2 issues in 2000 nights is no issue at all.
It’s ok to say it’s easy to pick a spot when you know the area but when traveling through we usually choose the first available spot we find to go to sleep or that has come off of POI and yet we still have not had any issues.
The reason I am bringing this up is due to how frightening it sounds, all this about being ready to flee. I understand about keeping yourself safe but are we also the ones creating the scare. If I had heard all this before my first nights I am not sure there would have been second and third nights

Let’s hear of some of these needs for a quick get away and see if they are actually true and I don’t just mean a dogging site because if you pull up your blinds and lock the door what does it matter what others are doing although having said that I haven’t yet come across any. One place I stop regularly other cars come in and out in the night not that they ever disturb me, what they do at 3am I don’t know but they are very quiet about it so live and let live

 

[kelpie]

Totally agree with everything said . One minor point though , would prefer if the cars coming and going would bring me a Chinese ,,,,,,,,, MEAL not lady:lol-053:.
John

 

[Nabsim]

While I have only been doing it in a van this year I have wielded for most of my life to some degree as well as using sites. In all that time the only ones I remember where we have had to move quickly (as in NOW) have been due to weather and that was in France.

We have had occasions where we have stopped and Caz hasn’t felt safe, one particular dogging spot comes to mind, and we have moved, we have slept alongside fridge units, generators, boy racers okay lol

If this is in reference to using external screens though I think that needs to be based on the person(s) and how confident they are. When someone first starts they may be very jumpy particularly if a woman on her own so it makes sense to be able to move at a moments notice as they would feel more confident stopping I assume.

For me the worry is am I likely to get a fine or nor and am I interfering with anyone else (blocking field gate swing in) rather than any external threat

 

[Wooie1958]

We have never ever in all our years had to make a quick get away.

Why on earth would you want to park up somewhere that is that dodgy / dangerous and you might have to do one quick.

However .......................... a couple of times we`ve moved on quite late because the wife hasn`t felt completely comfortable where we were.

Nothing untoward happened but she didn`t feel right so we moved and i`d always said if one of us felt that way we would.

 

[silverweed]

Your correct it is in response to that and I am not criticising but I often hear the term ‘ quick get away’ and sometimes I think that the term itself frightens people needlessly. And again yes you are right in that every one has a different level for feeling safe and it is a personal thing and should never never be ignored. I think it is more about choosing the right spot in the first place rather then leaving it until you need to get away. I just wondered about how many people had actually been in that situation to be able to put it into perspective

 

[Obanboy666]

In 4 years of motorhoming with an average of 70 nights wilding a year I have been asked to move from a poi once by a farmer who stated the land in question was his and he didn’t want motorhomes parking up. As it happened I had just arrived and hadn’t put my external screens up.
I never park up for the night in towns, city’s, built up areas or parking areas next to main roads, perhaps that’s why I never encounter any problems.

 

[skippy]

Stopped on aire in small town in France with wife scooter on trailer later in afternoon several french travellers arrived with wheel bearing trouble removed kennel from van for dog uncoupled caravans . They were struggling to remove wheel from van offered to lend my power bar for wheel nuts but declined offer . Awoke in morning and they were gone,(no not my wheels).
Not every situation turns out bad.

 

[guerdeval]

Despite having a few motorhomes over the past 12 years I have never 'wild camped' . This is only due to having a wife who likes her little "necessities" , I was a LGV driver for many years and slept in lay-by's, behind stores, factories etc, and I've had lads in the trailer many times but I think you should remember truckers have been sleeping alone since truck B&B's went extinct 30 years ago, if you're nervous choose a truck stop, there's safety in numbers, sadly not many in scenic spots though.

 

[izwozral]

Only time we have moved on was when a large group of travellers arrived, unloaded quad bikes, motorbikes, feral kids, then all hell let loose, bikes screaming up and down the field, feral kids throwing bottles into the river close by us. I am certain they meant us no harm but it did make us feel very uncomfortable. We moved along as did 4-5 vans and returned a few hours later, travellers gone and had a peaceful night.
Been a couple of times when I have got the dog to bark just to let some yoofs know it may not be a good idea to start anything.

 

[silverweed]

So so far no horror stories. I’m sure there probably will be one but it’s a good reassurance to see that these assumed problems are few and far between

 

[linkshouse]

I agree about the 'be prepared to leave' being a bit alarming. When we first starte wild camping I would always make a point of parking facing the exit ready for a quick exit if required.

We've been wilding for some four years or so now and have never had to leave in a hurry. In fact we've never had to leave at all.

Yes, we've had spots that have turned out less than ideal with occasional boy racers passing by and other visitors, but as has been said they don't directly disturb us, so we ignore them.

A classic example was in a remote layby on Orkney Mainland a week back, it was blowing quite hard and tipping it down with rain, and about midnight a car drove into the layby with typical boom boom boom music playing. But that said, they just drove to the end of the layby, turned round and left. No real bother to us, just left us wondering what sort of idiots go cruising round in their cars at midnight in the pouring rain!

 

[REC]

I suppose the only time we felt we had to move urgently was when we were parked in a Spanish wildspot and woke when there was a horn sounded right behind us. The car pulled up and had its headlights shining fullbeam reflecting off our wingmirrors. Nobody got out and it eventaully moved off. We started to settle again, when a police car crawled by and slowed down by us. At that time we thought....go elsewhere! We , as op's, never park or stay if we feel uncomfortable...trust that instinct. Mainly our fault not realising, but there was the time we parked on a beach in Portugal, near a little wooden cafe. Settled down to sleep about 11pm when the "cafe" turned into a club and started playing booming music. We moved to a nearby village and could hear the music until about 3am. It was so loud it shook the van when we were next to it. Next morning, it was a quiet peaceful beach again

I had never thought about facing out for a quick getaway till I read it on here, but it does make you feel prepared and subsequently, safer. Our van had no access from the back to the front so we would have to get out anyway!

 

[Deleted member 71750]

I had never thought about facing out for a quick getaway till I read it on here, but it does make you feel prepared and subsequently, safer.

I find a metre length of thick wall aluminium pipe (with a handle on) stashed in the cupboard has the same effect for me . Comes in handy as an extension for the wheel brace too !

 

[malagaoth]

A classic example was in a remote layby on Orkney Mainland a week back, it was blowing quite hard and tipping it down with rain, and about midnight a car drove into the layby with typical boom boom boom music playing. But that said, they just drove to the end of the layby, turned round and left.

I dont suppose that that was on the main Kirkwall-Stromness road just outside Finstown?

I have had the same thing happen to me there

on another occasion at Scail bay 'yoof' drove into the carpark in the early hours and spun their wheels the entire length of the carpark peppering the assembled motorhomes with gravel

 

[linkshouse]

I dont suppose that that was on the main Kirkwall-Stromness road just outside Finstown?

I have had the same thing happen to me there

on another occasion at Scail bay 'yoof' drove into the carpark in the early hours and spun their wheels the entire length of the carpark peppering the assembled motorhomes with gravel

Yep, that was the one.

We live in Orkney (Westray) so stop over on Mainland quite often. There are places to avoid, we have stayed at the Orkney Ferries terminal a few times as it is convenient for the morning ferry, and we have stayed at the Hatston round about carpark once but both suffer from the same problem: what we disparagingly call bairns, driving their noisy cars round the Hatston round about, down the main strip to the Orkney Ferries terminal, around the terminal buildings and then back to the Hatston rounad about and then back and forth interminably. But I'd have to say that irritating as that is, it is just them doing what they're doing. They're not doing it to annoy us, they would be doing it whether we were there or not.

Similalry with the car I mentioned in my earlier post.

We've never felt as though any action was every aimed at us. We just happened to be there.

Perhaps surprisingly the quietest spot we've stayed has been in the car park opposite tesco with the marked motorhome bays. We said last week that perhaps that is where we will stop in future.

P.S. we've also stayed over at Skaill bay a couple of times and never had any bother, it is just a bit out of the way for our purposes.

 

[malagaoth]

as a very frequent visitor to Orkney (a couple of months every year) the one and only time I have ever had any negativity was one sunday morning on Sanday when a woman rolled up to what was presumably her regular sunday morning dog walking spot to find us parked up - she was extremely unhappy and was not reluctant to show it the air was blue!

 

[SimonM]

I've not encountered any problems, but in common with others I always park carefully to allow me to scarper pdq if the situation arises. I don't use external screens and seldom drink alcohol so another couple of bonuses there.

 

[guerdeval]

Dave, the only problem with carrying a length of metal pipe is that it would be deemed an offensive weapon if you were ever to use it, may I suggest a 4 cell maglite instead.

 

[mistericeman]

Dave, the only problem with carrying a length of metal pipe is that it would be deemed an offensive weapon if you were ever to use it, may I suggest a 4 cell maglite instead.

Or a extending wheel brace.... AND a "Trunk Monkey"

[video=youtube_share;Rx6WB5YJia8]https://youtu.be/Rx6WB5YJia8[/video]

 

[Fazerloz]

Dave, the only problem with carrying a length of metal pipe is that it would be deemed an offensive weapon if you were ever to use it, may I suggest a 4 cell maglite instead.

Is that so it’s easier to see them in the dark when you twat them with the length of pipe.?

It doesn’t matter what you hit them with it’s still an offensive weapon.