You know your OUT IN THE COUNTRY when!

[Nagual]

Many do take their rubbish with them, it's the few who don't that give everyone else a bad name and make the place look like a tip. It doesn't take much crap lying about to ruin a place. Nor does it take much to tidy up after yourself. We always do every time we go out camping, and we tend to take other peoples crap away with us too. Its a shame more people don't but we've created it ourselves with the 'it's someone else's job ' attitude we seem to have in the UK. We've been out to many places and always picked careful places to enter land, never broken any fences climbing over, or knocked a stone out of place - and I think if we did, we'd try damned hard to replace it. Although rubbish and vandalism is a problem everywhere, with the recent arrest powers of the Loch Lomond Rangers proving that some form of control is required.

I don't demand access all areas, as some of the above posters seem to think we all do, or have the opinions that everything must be given on hand to help my access. No, I want to explore the land, experience it and live with it.

I wonder, this is not directed at anyone at all, but I;ve wondered about this for a while ever since the Land Reform Act came out, and there was a lot of various arguments from England about their rights. I wonder if it's a culture thing, is it because in England this has been the way for so long and in Scotland we have a different view because of ours has been more open? I really don't know - Perhaps that's completely wrong, and most Scots would prefer it more closed off?

 

[Oblio13]

When your wife phones you as you're driving home and says "Be careful when you get out of the car, there are four bears in the yard."

 

[redandshane]

Some really interesting points
I have to say all landowners in England are not always the custodians of the land portrayed ,some of the biggest acts of "vandalism" are carried out by them
Slurry running down roads into streams,abandoned machinery,empty chemical containers, the state of some woodland after being used to "cultivate" game birds for sport shooting etc
I think the concept of personal responsibility extends to us all and education and knowledge of consequences are the key i.e prevention rather than enforcement/restriction of access
Personally I hate the plastic bag dog poo hangers though
Two sides to every story
I was brought up in the country on a farm but now choose to live in a semi rural location btw

 

[CBJ]

when your neighbour allows you to take all the deadwood of the land for in exchange for keeping an eye open for the field gates and any stray cattle or sheep.

 

[John Fenna]

When you see both sides of the "right to roam" access debate acted out in front of you daily - the bad landowners trashing the land in the search of a cheap profit and to the detriment of recreational users, the ignorant visitors trashing the land in search of their "rightful" pleasures to the detriment of the hard working rural resident, the pleasant landowner taking time to make life easier for the conciderate visitor, and the conciderate visitor taking the time to take care of the countryside they apreciate visitting!
As Labour would have it - "Edjercashun, Edjurcayshun, Eddjerkayshun!" the only answer to the problem of ignorant landowners and visitors alike!


Plus the reintrodution of the Birch for offenders!

 

[jay1]

LOL! i like to see solutions rather than moaning (nothing wrong with an auld moan mind you! you should see me monday mornings!)
Its encouraging to hear Toddy describe the empowering and training of rangers. theres nothing like the threat of a fine to curtail bad behaviour.
Strict rules and more "nannying" is maybe the answer to the problem well put by John in the above post. It works in the usa state parks (where, lets face it, there is endless room for visitors. We really are under huge pressure of space in many areas of the uk).
check out the regulations imposed..heres a link to one national parks website re these (the lower part of the page):

http://www.appalachiantrail.org/site/c.mqLTIYOwGlF/b.4805493/k.749B/Regulations_and_Permits.htm

(dont bring your llama with you on a walk in the usa!!)


Yeah yeah, i know, its for protection of wildlife. Its finding a precedent that is successful which may find a solution to inconsiderate behaviour and its resultant and totally understandable stereotyping.

 

[Theo01]

You pray when driving at 60mph down a single lane road, that nobody is driving the oppisite direction.....until, finally, you arrive at your destination.

 

[drewdunnrespect]

you know your in the country when you can smell real fires

 

[hog]

...........when even crap food tastes good.

 

[British Red]

You pray when driving at 60mph down a single lane road, that nobody is driving the oppisite direction.....until, finally, you arrive at your destination.

When you pray you don't meet a dumb townie doing exactly that

The day when your driving risk management involves invoking a deity. SLOW DOWN

 

[charadeur]

I agree with the quiet thing. There are places, especially in Michigan's UP, that the lack of sound is almost too much to take after a couple of days. If you do hear something it is either a deer or a bear. One is beautiful to see. The other will run unless they have cubs then you have to run faster than your camping buddies.