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RH yes I've seen a few of those. I think also that the LDNP have inadvertantly made a lot of people aware that camping up high is ok with them (despite being technically against the law) when pointing out to people that camping on farm land etc is not ok.
WW it's always a bit damp between SF and CC but for the time of year the whole section across upto Rossett was much wetter than usual. I was warned by a local on Saturday that the recent rain had had that effect and across Martcrag Moor I came very close to a full immersion at the very wettest point. It was also pretty damp for the time of year on Carrock Fell on Saturday. They've clearly had considerably more rain up there than we have.
Interesting post and link to a Radio4 piece pinched from Wasdale MRT FB page
The numbers of callouts across the Lake District caught the eye of BBC Radio 4 World at One so one of their interviewers headed north from London at the weekend to witness the problems first hand. Traffic congestion in the valleys and the unsustainable numbers of callouts. Listen to Penny, one of Wasdale MRTs leaders express her concerns.
There was yet another callout for the team just as the presenter completed her last interview and due to vehicles irresponsibly parked in passing places along the side of Wastwater the rescue vehicles became gridlocked and significant delays were experienced. Wasdale Head car parks were overflowing.
Having been to the Lakes and the Highlands recently, I've seen similar to FlyingFinn. The fells are really, really busy - even those which you'd normally expect to be quieter, and at previously quiet times of day.
The level of 'fly camping' / 'free camping' going on (I refuse to call pitching by the roadside 'wild') seems to be through the roof in all the national parks. Driving through Glen Shee not long ago, there were multiple family tents pitched right by the road, with campfires going, and I saw similar in the Lakes and Dales. The more people see others doing it, the more it will be seen as acceptable behaviour.
We have a van but we're avoiding using anywhere except official sites right now, as don't want to add to the problem.
I also think that those FB groups advertising 'wild camping' spots (whether for vans or tents) are a really bad idea. Quiet spots do not remain so if they are advertised, and a fair proportion of the spots advertised in those groups are illegal / irresponsible regardless.
Those who enjoy camping hours from the road will continue to find out of the way places, pitch late and strike early; those who need to be directed to a patch of grass a few hundred metres from the road shouldn't be going there in the first place. (I appreciate that may seems elitist, but if you've already taken the time to travel to the hills, walking up them costs nothing but effort!)
Completely with you with regard to "dirty camping" MC.
During lockdown I joined a FB group on Scottish Wild camping. There were plenty of stunning photos of the true inspiration variety, and lots of angry posts with photos of horrific mess left behind. But there were also plenty of others simply posting "I've got a tent, where is good to camp?" and a few "is there wood for me to cut down and burn?" - don't take this the wrong way, but I have found that years of scouts have pushed the idea that if you camp, you MUST have a fire... I've spent decades of expedition training explaining to youngsters that they can't light a fire and why not (including failing their DofE expedition if they do so).
(We visited a recognised campsite in North Devon a couple of weekends ago to get to a stretch of the SWCP. We checked in and were given three sheets of paper. One had a map of the site. One had COVID-19 measures. Fine. The third was a very detailed and involved set of instructions on collecting rocks from the edge of your field, buying a bag of logs from the site shop and ... making fire!
That evening, I would say that 90% of the tents and vans there had a little fire going. Turns out that the site is in a book called Cool Camping. I suspect the only reason for this is that they allow these fires on the site. Campfires are very cool.)
There is something very primal about a fire, and if it's contained at an official campsite, I don't mind them. It's mainly the lighting of fires on moorland, farm land or on roadside verges that worries me - the impact is spread across a big area (not contained in a campsite) and often on sensitive vegetation or peat.
If everyone who wildcamped high up in the Lakes started a fire, the fells would be a charred mess. It isn't really possible to leave no trace with a fire, because even if you protect the ground from the heat, you will leave ashes etc. and over time they will change the acidity of the soil. Upland ecosystems are pretty delicate.
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Bob Graham Leg 3
Jun 2013