Security when using a Hammock and Tarp?

[Brendan]

This is what you need http://www.defensereview.com/stories/msensor/Millenium%20Sensor%20P3%20MRSS%20%28Mobile%20Remote%20Sensing%20System%29%20Fact%20Sheet-Brochure.pdf
Or do what I do and get a dog.

I only wild camp these days and a couple of weeks ago I was in my local woods hammock camping with my dog and at 2.30am I was woken by a couple of people walking about 20m away, the dog started growling and because of my covert position between a group of trees well off the beaten track I reached down to grab him to try and stay covert. 2 seconds later I was lying on the floor on top of my four legged friend, tied to the hammock by a poncho I had wrapped around my DD hammock!
Well these guys were obviously deaf, drunk or just wasted as I could still hear them walking on by chatting.

Funny thing is it's easy to get paranoid when alone in the woods at night and I had trouble getting back to sleep after this incident wondering if these guys would reappear later on.
They never did but the local deer were all over the place adding to mine and K9's pointless paranoia!

 

[British Red]

"Cegga security systems". Accept no substitutes

Red

 

[pibbleb]

I tend to do official campsites when I'm with the kids so we tend to aim for kid friendly sites that are well thought of i.e. good reviews. There seems to be a sort of solidarity between camping families with little kids!

That said we ended up in a site last year, over the moot believe or not, where some party going camper had decided that he didn't need to do number two's in the toilet so curled one down on the floor of the toilet block instead!

Imagine where I wanted to be right at that moment!

When wilderness camping it tends to be as a result of an invite from a friendly sole and safety is in numbers!

I've seen a couple of set ups with hammocks and kit. The most popular I've seen is a second cheap hammock slung under your own for kit. The other which looked pretty good involved two tarps. One slung over the hammock in the usual way and the second used as a sort of extention on one side meaning you'd have to get past the hammock to get to the kit!

Just a word of caution on the trip wire! Obviously depending on how bad you want the trip to be but be careful that you don't leave yourself open for litigation. It doesn't matter whether he intended to rape your kit and pinch your wife, you so know that you will end up in court for the slightest scratch on his knee! Before you shoot the messenger I don't agree with the law, but with increasing numbers of litigation claims, you can be pretty sure there will be some sort of claim.

One question for all the others though. Do you insure your kit?

Pib

Pib

 

[william#]

ive found insurance over the years to be a real con and a false sense of security - when you come to claim you find the insurance company gets very wriggly and at best they make you jump through so many hoops you give up
but if anyone knows of a good one let me know
ive heard the bmc is quite good but i remain very sceptical with insurance companys

 

[dwardo]

I agree with brendon it is easy to get paranoid about wild camping but i think if we are all honest its kind of part of the experience.

The trick is to weight up the possible dangers and i personally feel a lot safer out side in the middle of no where with little really to pinch rather than in the house will all of the usual chav delicasies such as TV, Stereo, computer, car keys etc etc. Also when i wild camp as said here im usually miles away from anywhere so if there is someone passing they are usually like minded or would struggle to see/hear you anyways...

Plus the harse end of a gransfors or a large log would be there to greet them as anyone aproaching in the dead of the night would have to be grasshoper like not to make loads of noise ! :twak:

I think your worrying a little too much matey. To finish in regards to camping on camp sites just choose a good one with good reputation and if you leave your tent for excursions etc then take anything you dont wish to loose.

hope this sets you at rest a little more.

PS afore mentioned methods are not tried and tested against the following,

Ghosts,
Ghoolies,
monsters,
bogeymen,
warewolves and other supernatural beings as for this you require a magic stone and i have the only one so my mum says happy camping !

 

[Ditch Monkey]

The other thing to remember is that if someone is thinking of stealing from you the chances are they can't see you if you are asleep inside tent / bivi / hammock. It should thus be reasonably easy to frighten them off by making large angry neanderthal type noises. Be sure to make the right kind of noises though as if the thief is a large agry neaderthal type he may just think you are being frisky....

 

[ol smokey]

We were IN THE TENT when it was slashed just after midnight. MAKE NOISES??
In thirty odd years my wife had never heard me say more than DAMN That night she heard my whole NATIONAL SERVICE-- SWEARING VOCABULARY at the top of my voice and so did everyone else on the site. It dId prevent any theft but by that time the tent had been damaged It was in fact drunken teenagers who were responsible and they were caught as they tried to hide in their tent, But as we were inside our inner and could not see them. we were told by the Police that they could take no action though they were found to have a knife and a hammer which they had used to vandalise a caravan on the site as well.BECAUSE THERE WERE NO WITNESSES.

 

[ferrol]

Were they atleast thrown off the site later?

I tend to wild camp in remote area's but also local woods too. If I hammock out or Bivvy out I make sure my gear is neat and secured enough so no one can pick it up and run off with it. (Staked to the ground or tied to tree) Generally enough time to get out of my hammock and deal with them.

But as many have said, you need to weigh your options up. Its crap I know, you shouldn't need to, another reason why i am drawn to wilderness and solitude.

The world has gone all PC (Pretty Crappy)

ferrol

 

[Eric_Methven]

But as we were inside our inner and could not see them. we were told by the Police that they could take no action though they were found to have a knife and a hammer which they had used to vandalise a caravan on the site as well.BECAUSE THERE WERE NO WITNESSES.

Sometimes it just tempts me to use the 3 S's
S.S.S - Shoot, Shovel and Shut-up.

Eric

 

[william#]

left my entire climbing gear at a crag once (alot of kit very exspencive) realised an hour after leaving so friend and i went back to the crag car park , now at this crag yu have quite a mixture of people from all kinds of backgrounds when i arrived back and i saw my pack with gear in placed neatly in a predominent place with some rough looking guys sitting near it safe and sound
i also got a comment off them that they expected me to be back sooner and apparently this kind of thing happens a lot and what they do is just post an notice saying what has been found pretty trustworthy really quite heartening.
i think your right about feeling safe in the wood as tbh if they are stealthy enough to sneek up on you in there they are pretty skillfull.
and how they know you wre there in the first place.
sadly a lot of petty crime is caused by teanagers and though not defending the actions it comes from inexperiance and just not realising the full consequences of there actions.yes it can be very frustrating when dealing with the police when they tell you there hands are tied because of lack of direct evidence though be aware that the details of suspects will be recorded and certainly if they are local to the area the police will be aware of them for the future.

 

[BOD]

Oh dear, what an indictment of society! Its no different back home in Oz maybe only in degree.

Out here the only people I am likely to see are armed to the teeth with knives machetes and occasionally shotguns . There may be occasional poachers around but no threats to security. You can leave your kit about too.

Its all about respect for others something that seems to be dissappearing.

The only thing that keeps you awake is the risk of deadfall

 

[Mr_Yarrow]

I havent got much to add to this conversation, but I i will ask one thing:

William - have you apologised to ol' smokey by PM, as there doesnt seem to have been an open forum apology (unless ive missed it of course). Just that its been highlighted that smokey went out of his way to state he wasnt making a sweeping generaisation at the unemployed, but you seem to have carried on posting as if nothing had happened.

I dont know smokey by the way and am not a regular BCUK poster, just youve annoyed the heck out of me by getting on a high horse that seems to have been so high you got vertigo and are still clinging on up there, yet to come down.

Rgds

P.S
Eric - yep I have bad spelling as well probably

 

[dommyracer]

This is what I love about BCUK, a post asking serious questions about security whilst out can also be accompanied by social commentary worthy of a column in the Daily Express.

Excellent!!

 

[gunnix]

Come on william's already got enough comments

It sucks what happened there ol' smokey! I never experienced such a thing on a campsite. Vandalism I once experienced...when we were living near the center of the city we woke up at 4AM, I opened the window and all 3 of our bikes had been put on fire (tires, bags) in front of the wooden door! Great, because we lived quite close to the street where everyone goes getting drunk it must have been some young drunk guys having fun .. Employed or unemployed.. But I think most trouble comes from students

When camping I always try to camp somewhere where no one else will come. I think this is easiest with the hammock, as there are always small forests where to hide. I even camp in the park at the border of the city on a spot where I know no one comes (no tracks etc). I like to tie my rucksack up the tree, trusting myself to awaken when somebody comes. I almost never camp on campings though, I mostly don't trust leaving my stuff behind on such places.
It's a good idea to put the backpack in the hammock making it look like someone's in it! I'll try that out

 

[Solitude]

Having not yet tried out my new Hammock and Tarp and also having had my Tent Slashed during the night or late evening when I was in it along with my wife. I thought I would pose this question.
I know that it is only sensible to pick a very secluded place to sling your hook-- Hammock if camping on your own, but I would like to ask if anyone has had any problems with security. In a group you have a measure of protection but not on your own. Having had the above unfortunate incident on a commercial site, I was toying with the idea of rigging up a trip line round my immediate area attached to one of those Pocket Assault Alarms which incidentically you can get in Tesco's for £1.99 at the moment.
Can anyone also tell me what you do with your surplus gear when in your Kip I suppose some of it can be inside your hammock beside you . I do not want to get neurotic over this incident but with so many wierdoes going about at night because they are unemployed and can sleep all day ,things seem to be a lot less secure than previously.
I have camped for over fifty years with only this one incident, and I am keen to believe that it was an isolated incident. I am not for one moment getting at those unfortunate enough to be out of work for genuine reasons but those who have no intention of working and use any means they can at others expence to feed a drugs habit or other things.
I have had a spell of unemployment so I know how unpleasant it can be for those who want to work. Any thoughts on this? Security, not unemployment.

Try getting some of these http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/blank-fire-tripwire.html bound to shock and awe the little critters.

Theres nothing like a 12 bore blank to make em run!!!

They also do 12 bore cartridges filled with pepper spray or lead if you want to be really imaginative!!!
(dont try this at home!)

or these http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/battle-pyrotechnics.html and why not keep some of these under your Therma rest just in case http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/grenadesandtripwires.html

 

[Eric_Methven]

Try getting some of these http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/blank-fire-tripwire.html bound to shock and awe the little critters.

Theres nothing like a 12 bore blank to make em run!!!

They also do 12 bore cartridges filled with pepper spray or lead if you want to be really imaginative!!!
(dont try this at home!)

or these http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/battle-pyrotechnics.html and why not keep some of these under your Therma rest just in case http://www.hfmgroup.com/professionalsupplies/grenadesandtripwires.html

I take it this is a joke! If not, it should be.

Eric

 

[Squidders]

As far as I’m aware, the measures you take should be equal (give or take) to the threat you face... you can't beat someone senseless for slashing damaging your kit unless you try to stop them and it escalates.

While I sleep, I hang valuables above me under the tarp... things I could miss (or allow to get flooded / gnawed by wild critters etc) I leave in a bag on the floor that's tied to the hammock.

If it gets moved, I get swung about a bit.

I try not to be naturally paranoid when in the woods... I hope not to be eaten by a polar bear when in the British countryside.

The bottom line though is that humans can be plonkers and very mean to one another for no good reason. I'm sorry to hear about anyone who had their kit damaged for nothing... some people though, I could happily spend all day damaging

Joe

 

[Solitude]

Come on chaps a sense of humor is important! especially in a survival situation.

I must point out that my post was ofcourse a joke.

Dont take life too seriously, youll never get out alive!!

On a serious note, my camping nearly always encompasses the need to be invisible, i select depressions in the ground, or roots systems of an over turned tree, i try to eliminate Shine, Shadow, Silouette and use natural vegitation etc in the building of shelters etc to camoflage them... I think that if i cant be seen then i wont be bothered by people with nothing better to do than cause trouble.

Of course when im in an area that takes some effort to get to thats away from built up areas i can be a bit more blatant as regards shelters.

So next time you seek an illussive space to perform natures bodily functions please double check the ground for poor old "Solitude"!! before you go!

 

[woodstock]

As a last resort I pitch in a commercial site the norm would be to camp off the beaten track and make myself as inconspicuous as possible in all the years I have slept outdoors I have never had a problem apart from midges

 

[scoops_uk]

A few suggestions...

If it's taken you two hours to walk to your campsite from the nearest road, it's going to take your tent thief 4 hours to rob you and get away. People steal generally because they are too lazy to work for what they want.

Camp out of sight of the main path. Don't go making big trails/leaving clear tracks to your campsite. Discretion protects you and helps everyone enjoy a sense of wilderness in our overcrowded island.

Don't go attracting attention to yourself, waving lights around, lighting big fires, shouting etc.

All blokes like to think they're hard and when push comes to shove they can handle themselves. That's pride not bushcraft. There is always someone harder and someone with a bigger gun. Instead of going for a confrontation, keep yourself safe. You'll not enjoy the irony of being stabbed with the knife you foolishly started waving around just before you lost the fight.

People are afraid of the unkown, learn to be comfortable in the outdoors. Being calm in the woods at night will stop you getting spooked, stop you acting irrationally. Being calm is unlikely to be a state shared by the passing drunken chavs jumping at every crack of a twig. I've had them walk within a couple of feet of me whilst I stood aside still and let them pass by.

Scoops