How many folks on this forum actually wildcamp most nights out?

[Paul60]

No Overnight Parking

I have spent a few nights in spots that say No Overnight Parking. I have yet to be challenged. Have any of you been asked to move on or reported in similar spots? Does anyone know the definition of "Overnight" and how the law stands?

 

[John H]

I have spent a few nights in spots that say No Overnight Parking. I have yet to be challenged. Have any of you been asked to move on or reported in similar spots? Does anyone know the definition of "Overnight" and how the law stands?

See the thread "No Overnight Parking - is it legally enforceable on the public highway" started recently by plugus maximus - but ignore the random insults at various stages.

 

[Tigatigatiger]

In reply to the original poster, I have to agree with the Dogfather here. Wildcamping is carrying everything on your back, not in a van with all mod cons. Try waking up at the top of a mountain in a bivvy bag with the sound of the wind howling, and not Good Morning Britain on telly or whatever. Very few people wild camp, even myself its very rare now.

We are planning to do jsut this, leave the van and wild camp up a mountain, love the van with all it's mod cons, but something about sleeping out wild. Funny we were away last week in lake district (yes on a site-but with no faclities/loos, shop etc, just a water/waste point and plug in-a group of us, super site, lush location, didn't drive for a week) and we all said the same-how much we miss true wild camping.
We've already got the tiny mountain tent, thermarests, sleeping bag, swiss army stove and of course rusksacks out of the loft-can't wait to go!

 

[John H]

I have to disagree. In many parts of crowded England, what you say is correct but there are other parts of the country - as well as most of Scotland outside the central belt - where it is still possible to find such a beautiful spot.

And to the wildcamping purists that have posted above, I agree that there is nothing finer than going to sleep under the stars and waking up to pure silence. I have done it many times (one of my favourite places is the desert, although the dust doesn't agree with my sinuses!) and never tire of it. When the Middle East settles down again I will hopefully do it again. In my student days I slept out in colder and more mountainous environments but my blood is thinner now!

 

[vwalan]

uk is full of nice quiet places to stay .i live in cornwall and there are loads of places available .i never use sites virtually ever.rest of uk is easy as well. i do like brittany as well . but lets remember wild camping isnt just about climbing mountains . we could say there is no real wildcamping in uk at all. not incomparision to wild in africa or india etc.you do have tpo have a feel for the places. i possibly miss alot of them .i have never had the need to look at the poi.wild camping bits as they are out there and the fun is finding your own special place . dont use sat nav so cant find them if i wanted . but have fun, always keep your eyes open for that nook or cranny . then in the morning go round the twisty road to find that round the cornerr is a much better place . thats life . cheers alan.

 

[Guernsey Donkey]

You cant beat wilding - we are of on Wednesday for 8 weeks and really looking forward to it - going down as far as Weymouth and across to North Wales coming back through the Lakes.

 

[Stuart Tracy and Bob]

I've been on sites in our campervan and hated it, so in the last few years we never go on sites ... the police have moved us on and directed us to sites, but we move on and find a suitable spot ...

my reason for joining this forum was to be with like minded folks, but I'm feeling like I'm in the wrong place of late ... campers wanting hookups, level pitches, water to hand ... I enjoy my wild camping be it in the city or country and I don't require any of the trappings that go with campsites, as a matter of fact campsites make me mad ... I live in the country and have no immediate neighbours, why would I go to park beside another van so they can hear me breath (polite) ...

Come on wild campers, lets hear from you, thats what the forum was about ... sorry about that, but it was bugging me big time ....

wanna be wildcampers are taking over, they are welcome to their world, but don't let them take over in a wildcamping forum!

again sorry ... I don't wish to offend anyone, but please keep it mostly about wild camping ...

Cheers

:wacko:

Hi,

When the Police have moved you on in the past, have they said exactly why, and did they quote any specific By-law or or some other National Law that you may have unwittingly transgressed ? It would be interesting to know what they actually said to you !

Regards, Stuart.

 

[Firefox]

I'd say maybe 3/4 of my nights away are spent Wildcamping or Stealth camping. I do use sites, mostly Caravan Club £6-8 a night CLs.

Police can't officially move you on unless you are causing an obstruction to the highway or it's actually Police land or breaking a local bye-law.

Generally the landowner can ask you to move, but if you don't, they have to apply for a court order and you may be liable for civil damages (trespass) if you were obstructing the use of the land for other purposes. So, if it's clearly the landowner asking, I would move but usually you can negotiate to stay the night under the grounds that you are tired and to drive now would be dangerous.

 

[dolmen]

Hi,

When the Police have moved you on in the past, have they said exactly why, and did they quote any specific By-law or or some other National Law that you may have unwittingly transgressed ? It would be interesting to know what they actually said to you !

Regards, Stuart.

My french is very limited, but in the Sth of France under a 'no campers' type of sign and not 100m from a campsite, on the second day the police tapped the window, I knew what they were pointing at, and knew it was time to move on without any backchat ...

Cheers

 

[Baybabe75]

My fiancé and I take off every opportunity we have in our vintage veedub. The only time we use campsites is when we go to the Isle of Man TT. The rest of the time we just find a lay-by.

We did stop, once, in a UK motorway services for a nap during a very long trip. Put up my blue badges and set the alarm for two and a half hours later. We got a flaming parking ticket! Needless to say we avoid them like the plague now.

We used to be able to use supermarket car parks as long as we used the bit furthest away from the store but now they're clamping down on that too

It's getting harder and harder to find somewhere to park up.

 

[Canalsman]

My fiancé and I take off every opportunity we have in our vintage veedub. The only time we use campsites is when we go to the Isle of Man TT. The rest of the time we just find a lay-by.

We did stop, once, in a UK motorway services for a nap during a very long trip. Put up my blue badges and set the alarm for two and a half hours later. We got a flaming parking ticket! Needless to say we avoid them like the plague now.

We used to be able to use supermarket car parks as long as we used the bit furthest away from the store but now they're clamping down on that too

It's getting harder and harder to find somewhere to park up.

Not if you become a full member and download the POI files

There are just under 2,500 spots listed throughout England, Wales and Scotland.

And the next release in June will have at least 300 more!

Regards

Chris

 

[bigbrunny]

Wilding

We're up to 32 nights spent in the van since we bought it (£1,000 per night!) and never used a campsite. Longest out in one go was five days. What really annoys us is the way campervans are not really welcome anywhere in this country.

We have been wilding for 3 years now and like many we use sites to fresh up, fill up and empty. This must be the worst country in Europe for Motorhomes. Being rather cynical and well travelled, we believe it is all down to local 'rip off' businesses cajoling local councils and the poliss to put parking restrictions (physical & legislately) on parking areas. This of course means that we 'should' use local sites etc. Well we wont..ever, if forced to do so. HERE FOR A GOOD TIME NOT A LONG TIME..MAKE EVERY SECOND COUNT!!

 

[herbenny]

Where did you all start ??????

Our first weekend away was to a horrid little campsite I shall not name....It was so regimented and I was puzzled as to why the hell someone would want to sit in a field where all the caravans and motorhomes were lined up next to each other and squashed in like sardines. To top it all I would say the majority of them were sitting there watching the television on a sunday afternoon by this time I am even more puzzled. Then as we pulled into the campsite in our little clapped out renault trafic (who can barely breathe after a long journey), we could see the look of horror in some peoples faces as if to say 'oh dear lord dont park next to us'.... which I did find quite amusing.:lol-049: Anyway to be frank we felt completely uncomfortable and out of place, and now we only book very basic, rustic campsites. We have experienced the true snobbery of the camping world at first hand, and theres me thinking it was just a myth. Dont get me wrong each to thier own and all that, but its not for us. So this brings me onto the question of the really wildcamping side of things....hmmmmmm where do we start ???? I am a little worried about being out in the open and feel a little vulnerable even though Hubby us 6ft 1" and built like a brick **** house (excuse the liverpudlian saying lol).........be intersting to see how you all got started in your wildcamping ways and what saftey precautions you take.:wave:

 

[jennyp19]

We wild camp quite a lot, occasionally going on a site if we want to do some washing, or empty the loo.
We came back yesterday after spending a week helping a relative tidy up her house, parked up on blocks, and sleeping in the van on the street outside her house, and then another week wilding on the Northumbrian coast - There are some fabulous spots (all downloaded from here) right next to the sea. Particularly like a little fishing village called Boulmer. Also parked overnight near The Causeway to Lindesfarne - waiting for the tide to turn and then spent a very enjoyable few hours biking around the island, and a walk up to the Castle. We did venture north of the border up to North Berwick - parked up right next to the sea. It was a shame that after the beautiful weather, it decided to start raining. We were going to stop another night, but as the weather was getting bad, and forecast was for more of the same, plus we would have had to find somewhere to empty the loo we decided to trek back home.

 

[yorkslass]

Our first weekend away was to a horrid little campsite I shall not name....It was so regimented and I was puzzled as to why the hell someone would want to sit in a field where all the caravans and motorhomes were lined up next to each other and squashed in like sardines. To top it all I would say the majority of them were sitting there watching the television on a sunday afternoon by this time I am even more puzzled. Then as we pulled into the campsite in our little clapped out renault trafic (who can barely breathe after a long journey), we could see the look of horror in some peoples faces as if to say 'oh dear lord dont park next to us'.... which I did find quite amusing.:lol-049: Anyway to be frank we felt completely uncomfortable and out of place, and now we only book very basic, rustic campsites. We have experienced the true snobbery of the camping world at first hand, and theres me thinking it was just a myth. Dont get me wrong each to thier own and all that, but its not for us. So this brings me onto the question of the really wildcamping side of things....hmmmmmm where do we start ???? I am a little worried about being out in the open and feel a little vulnerable even though Hubby us 6ft 1" and built like a brick **** house (excuse the liverpudlian saying lol).........be intersting to see how you all got started in your wildcamping ways and what saftey precautions you take.:wave:

we"ve only started wildcamping in the last eighteen months, and at first i was very jumpy but the more often we"ve done it the easier it"s become. i have also found that with inreased confidence we can spot places to stop more easily. from the precautions angle because i am the driver i do"nt drink, just in case, and then i find out where we are using the sat nav. i keep a can of hairspray handy in case it gets windy!!! and make sure everything is put away before bed. hope this helps.

 

[Deleted member 775]

Actually a cursory glance over the whole forum would show that a good deal of the advice requested on this forum has nothing at all to do with wild camping in particular, so does the OP suggest that 90% of the forum sections be closed down.

ok the site name is wild camping for motor homes ,and that is one of the reasons that i joind .as i have said over and over again we have wilded since the 70s in different cars vans and tents in fact one of our fave places was up on top of the cliffs at scalby mills with an old scout tent in the seventies , we also used to get our old viva car we had at the time up on top of the cliffs cannot see how we used to do it now but anyway . we also lived for 18 months in our van and never used a site .but there are some on here that never wild (they dont know what there missing) and some that wild but have the need to use a site now and again for there own needs even moreso with kids . it does not mean they have any less rights to be on this site .as they have an intrest in camping with either an all singing and dancing motor home or a couple of hundred quid van converted at home i dont think us totaly wild campers have a monopoly on this site, its open to all in my oppinion .

 

[vindiboy]

We went away in our van last September till April this year 164 nights in total, we wild camped , used Aires and Stelplatzs no campsites, we then went away again in April this year back in July 100nights away, again wild, Aires , Stelplatzs and two nights on a Campsite as there was no alternative [ Geiranger Norway, ] we :fun:love to wild where we can as long as we feel safe and are causing others no problems, I fail to see how people who choose to use campsites can affect your enjoyment of this Forum, what am I missing ?:have fun:

 

[Mothman]

Hi Guys just to add my 2pence worth,, we thats me & the missis,,, we have been wild campers for years in tents back of cars then camper vans now motorhome,, i personally dislike many campsites & alot of the sheep led people that go with them,, NOT ALL i must state i have met alot of nice friendley people, made some good mates actually,,,,,,, but most of them are not my cup of tea at all,,Bad Experiances i guess!!! well the times i have had to be on a campsite i seem to always be parked up next to some badly playing Banjo fool that insists on playing there musical instrument all day & night,,,,,, or the noisy kind that have there tv on loud as hell,,,,,,,,,,,,,, or the ones that seem to meet up with there mates on the site drinking booze and laughing at mindless jokes playing there car stereos loud and stinking us out with the smell of fags all night long, as i sleep with the windows open i dont want to be breathing other peoplels fag smoke in,, so thats simply why i wild camp & to be in the peace & quiet, during our wild camping times we have met lots of Like minded wild campers & most share the same views as us that we have spoken too, these people that we meet on our wild camping travels seem to be down to earth good hearted guys, of course there is always the odd one or two you meet along the way,,,,, i mean i live in the urban concrete jungle with Fumes noise ect ect so i just want to get away from people & pollution on the weekends,, when wilding we make no mess we are quiet we arrive late leave early simple as that,,,,, as for protection when in the wild i rely on my size mostly oh & a Huge a fire extingisher to spray in whoevers face:lol-053::lol-053:, but there is always someone Bigger & stronger & uglier than me but dont let anything put you off the wild thing, to me its what living is for just chill out and enjoy your life switch off as much as you can from the stresses & strains of your home life,, thats always there when you get back home,,,,,,,, being brought up in the ghetto in the wild west midlands from the skool of hard knocks kinda prepares you for most events,, but its still a worry that the local young kids or evan the odd nutters out there will try it on with a lone motorhome thinking it may be an older couple in there!!!!!! i have had to open the door at night before now to show face to local p155 taking kids to show who not to mess with,, my missis worries a little about the wild side of camping especially as we have two young children she worries in case i end up harmed so i tend to just say yes dear i will give it another 10 minutes and hope they go away:lol-053::lol-053::lol-053:in all honesty we have been fine over the years just keep a low profile be clean & tidy and polite, & with age ive learnt to calm down:rolleyes2::rolleyes2::rolleyes2::rolleyes2:

Barrington B,

 

[Firefox]

I try to stay away from campsites.

I don't mind a small site with a field and a hook up for £8 a night, but I do object to the £28 a night ones complete with "facilites" I don't need... eg Gravel roads and little privet hedges, officious notices telling me not to do this or that, on site bar (there's the local pub or the van for that), vegetable preparation areas and washing up areas (!!!!), nasty little wardens hovering all over the place or telling me what pitch to use.

 

[Mothman]

Hi firefox just watched your Self build Video, One word Mate WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You really know your stuff hey,,, well done Buddy well done indeed,:king:

Barrington B,