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Camp security.... How do you fellas deal with this....

It will Dodat

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Morning all...
Well, this forum is titled Information and opinions on camping equipment and all related accessories as well as good camping spots and best practices while camping, so I recon posting this here won't get me a baseball bat against me left ear <as it were> from the forum admin....:whistle::whistle:

So as the heading what / how do you chaps take care of this?

I'd like to get your ideas, I'm sure I can get lots of good ideas to suppliment my measures....
 
We just get Matt to patrol the forest perimeter every night wearing a large saucepan on his head whilst carrying a candle in one hand & a large rolling pin in the other (This is the reason why he looks so tired & worn out all the time ;)).

It's a win, win situation as we get to sleep safely at night & Matt actually gets some exercise. :thumbsup:

Now I wonder who will be getting a baseball bat against their left ear from the forum admin ? :whistle:;):D
 
On a more serious note though I have heard that some of the UK You-tube community who are into both prepping & wild-camping use security set-ups that involve fishing line & small personal type alarms.

If I get the chance I will try to update this post to show you the kind of thing they use but you probably get the general idea anyway ! :thumbsup:
 
I never bother no real need for it in this country, imho, unless you're paranoid lol
 
Morning all...
Well, this forum is titled Information and opinions on camping equipment and all related accessories as well as good camping spots and best practices while camping, so I recon posting this here won't get me a baseball bat against me left ear <as it were> from the forum admin....:whistle::whistle:

So as the heading what / how do you chaps take care of this?

I'd like to get your ideas, I'm sure I can get lots of good ideas to suppliment my measures....
If ever I go for a solo over nighter until recently my Mollie dog has always come with me and nobody is going to get within 50 yards of my camp without her knowing it
 
We usually discuss long knives and axes in our different bush craft forums in the internet. So people from outside get the impression, we would be something like wikings or the last lower or anglo saxon savages.
Of course nobody wants to visit us during the night, especially not in a dark forest!
 
What do you mean by "camp safety"?
Safety from being spotted? Safety from wildlife? From weather?

If this should address the first (i.e. being spotted by humans, getting in trouble with land owners, etc.): I simply do not need that safety as I talk to the folks around here. I have quite some private properties that I can use for my own cause, some with restrictions. And that's ok. The amount of "No, we don't want guys like you in our bush!" is, in reality, almost zero. The ones that refuse access get a "Thanks for your time" from me and I move on. Why? You already have the "No" - but you can earn the "Yes". Furthermore, we are all ambassadors of the hobby.

With all due respect to the prepper community: Especially the stereotype of the paramilitaristic, paranoid prepper has very much harmed the community, especially here in NL and GER. Guys in full camouflage illegally trespassing private property, stoking fires (often without safety measures), sometimes even playing John Wayne with guns or improvised weaponry? Well, they give a certain image, and understandably land owners have troubles differentiating that type from your very modest, silent and almost invisible forest walker. I know that these countries have very strict rules, but I think we should show a little respect and act accordingly. Again, for me it works just fine - 8/10 landowners usually give me permission, they learn from my conduct, maybe drop their prejudices and we all are off better.

That said: Picture a forest ranger "catches" you in flagranti. Then usually because there is a reason for him provided. I had such situations in Germany myself when there is improper communication between family members who own land for example. A talk can help. Same for being spotted by regular citizens taking a walk. I got the coppers called on me once, the only situation in which a talk could not fix anything because, well, coppers being coppers.

I tell those going on the road with me one of my credos (a German saying): "As you shout into the woods, it will echoe from the woods"
So yeah, the best "defence" against other human beings is calmness and proper communication. "But what if I am asked to leave?" Well, then pack up and go. Maybe even wish a pleasant day. There are enough other spots on this huge planet.
 
My kids are my security :D wild little burgers ;)

Security hasn’t really been an issue with me....I have had a few arguments over fishing spots and when we retreat to our tents for the night we do run a line to our rods with an alarm at the tent so this could be a form of security I suppose :) but I draw the line at making foot holds and pits with spikes even if they did deserve it :rofl:

Fully understand why there needed at your end dodat. And how serious one would have to take security. My mates wife is Africans and some of the stories about animal Attacks she’s told me are jaw dropping. One story my mate told me was a baboon dropped in for a visit and to pick from the fruit tree in the back garden. My mate was that pissed drunk he was talking to it ..asking why he was in the garden :rofl: wasn’t till his father in law ran out and chased it away he realised it wasn’t a person.. Very sobering experience he said :D bet it was:rofl:
 
I use large bear size traps and portable electric fencing :rofl: and leave Kelly on watch at the fire till dawn!
 
I want to give you a serious answer too:

Living in Germany and hiking most times in Scandinavia, Germany and France, the theoretically most dangerous animal I have to count with is a wolf, which lives in forests that are totally crowded with wild animals and which is surrounded by farmers animals he easily could get.

So he never would attack me.

Wolves aren't totally stupid, they know very well, that we are incredible intelligent and the masters of the country.

Pigs can become dangerous too. But they do not attack you in your sleeping bag. They attack you if you run behind them.
If you suddenly stand in front of one, sing him a silent song and slowly go back, where you came from. If you can't sing, speak silent and friendly with the pig and move back. You aren't the first walker the pig has seen in its life. They see us every day and every where. Hunters they don't like, tourists do not interest them.
Pigs are intelligent like dogs, they know very well, what is going on. And the other animals too. Sometimes foxes come to camps just to visit us. They know, that we have dogs and sometimes they follow this example. Just speak with them, that's all.

Some of them steal food or shoes. Hang the food in a tree and keep the shoes next to your head.

Mice are destroying bags if there is food inside. Simply avoid to give them a chance. They would work even 20 cm next to your face when you sleep.

The most dangerous animal in Europe is the cow.
They are living in fences. If you know, that they can become dangerous you are able to avoid any confrontation.

And men?

If I put my camp somewhere, I am absolutely invisible. If possible, I see, that trees protect me against hunters bullets. Usually you can see, where hunters could shoot in the morning.

And who could come along in the forest? A hunter, a dog walker, a hiker, a farmer, a forrester. That are people who usually aren't dangerous.
But they usually have no chance to see me, when I am sleeping, because my bivvy bag is oliv green and only 40 cm high, well hidden somewhere in the bush.
The rest of my clothing and equipment is oliv green or brown too. The small poncho tarp I use if it rains has a woodland camouflage pattern. Because I am green and do not move when I am sleeping I am totally invisible in the bush.

Even if you would pass me only 5 Meters away, you wouldn't see me in the morning. And during the night it is absolutely impossible.

We are behaving in the forrest like the animals. We are quiet and invisible.
That's all!
 
Thanks guys....

Without getting into the extriemes of "prepping" per se' Let me put it this way... It's more than just a little prudent to take precautions against intrusion by creatures of the human kind.

Not so much if one is pitched in an established resort, but more so when camping solo...

I'm sure you have seen the pics of my pitch, being a 5x5m army tent... Thast's pretty hard to be called "stealth camping", and therefore the primary security aspect is remaining undetected.

I rely primarily on 2 security multipliers, one being one very wide awake mutt <Scruffy> and the other is to span a trip wire connected to a hooter, and rely on the premise that invasions of campers are opportunistic rather than targeted, and with opportunistic invasions, the intruder will rather avoid confrontation if they are aware that you are aware of their presence.

The trip wire I span +- 50m (if posssable) all around my pitch, and have a powerful Cree tactical torch which gives me the ability to locate the intruder at night. I span the trip about 700mm off the ground to allow for smaller game to pass under, and remove it completely at first light, so thas if a "visior"comes along it is not obvious.

But there are other measures I take... call it camp behaviour.... I never sleep in a sleeping bag, always under the bag, so when I buy a bag it must zip all the way open. I also never sleep with my head at the dorr of my tent / camper, alway's the other way round. I never leave mess kit available, such as a knives... Little things like that, I think count for a lot.

Also, I'm fully aware of self-defence multipliers and where they are... My spade next to my cat-hole toilet.... My baton on the rigt side of the entrance to my tent, and so on....

I'm not paranoid, it's just OUR environment <as regards other people> is not the same as where you lot live, and it's just being prudent. (I think Bopdude would agree and perhaps expound?)

In the days <back in the late 70 - 80's> when I used to hike / backpack, I also used to rely on not being detected as my primary security tactic, but these days my öutdoorsing" has changed quite a lot, and I'm more inclined to set a bigger base camp for longer periods.

One of my other interests is dog training, and used to train Dobermans. <love the breed> So following from that, I've been training my little mutt in protection / agility & obedience....

Nothing like having a little dog hanging from your christmas tree decorations to create a tactical advantage.... :eek::crying::crying:....

Hell I could probibly brew up a cuppa, have a sip or two of tea before I get involved...

Anyway, here are a few photo's of my mutt & my trip wire...
 

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All good points from everyone, different locations and environments need different measures, from South Africa to Northern Sweden, to North Britain, protection is needed for a multitude of things from mozzie nets to guns, from creepy crawlies to humans, each trip has to be evaluated, and we all do it in the form of, where am I going and what do I need kit wise, that in itself is a hazard assessment, I never had the time or inclination at the time to wild camp in SA, looking back I probably never had the time either, visited and worked in what would have made great locations though, as It Will Dodat knows, a lot of great land to be seen, I wouldn't have camped without my side arm though, too many opportunistic creatures wanting either you or your stuff ;)
 
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