2025-01-20 56 -4
Mon 20 Jan 2025 in 56,-4: 56.0942160, -4.2970067 geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox |
Contents
[hide]Location
In a field near Buchlyvie.
Participants
Plans
KerrMcF
I finish volunteering around 3:45pm, so I'll start the expedition then. I've invited my supervisor to come along, and if she's wanting to by the time I set off for the geohash, she'll be joining me. The drive to the nearby village shouldn't take too long, and parking is available on a nearby street. The walk to the geohash should take about 30-40 minutes and 20-30 on the way back. The walk is primarily along a road/path, but will involve crossing a field to reach the geohash itself. Afterwards, I'll drive back home.
Expedition
KerrMcF
My supervisor ended up having other plans, so it was going to be a solo expedition this time around. I left volunteering around 3:45pm as planned and began the drive to the geohash. I parked on a nearby public street, and started my walk. The walk was relatively simple. The initial portion, although at a steady uphill incline, was along a tarmac road and ran past some lovely looking houses. The fields and woods to the side of the road looked great in the fog. It had been slowly settling in on the drive there, which worried me mildly for the conditions when I returned home. The sun was due to set during my walk, so I'd be driving home in the dark, through fog. That was a problem for later, I'd encounter a different one earlier.
I passed by some farmers on the walk. They seemed quite friendly, with one of them saying "Hiya!" as I walked past. It gave me a little more hope that the expedition would run smoothly with no issues, as it seemed as though at least one of them worked at or owned the farm that the geohash was located in. I could maybe even ask them some questions about the history of the area for my "History of the Location" section. The feeling crumbled away pretty quickly; I began my walk through the farm itself to begin heading towards the field, and was pretty quickly met with the aggressive barking of two dogs.
They seemed to be locked away in a shed-like building, which seemed a little cruel to me, but I assumed they were just sheepdogs and were behaving roughly as you would expect. As I continued walking through the field, I heard a shout of "Oi!". Ah, nice, the farmer is trying to get his dogs to quieten down, that's good. Nope. "Oi!". I turned around, checking to see what was going on, and saw a farmer in one of the nearby buildings walking in my direction. As he approached me, he asked, "are you lost?". Okay, that's fine, he's just making sure I know where I'm going and haven't taken a wrong turn.
- "No, no. I'm just passing through. Trying to go along that path, if that's alright?"
- "Naw, it's no. You can't be here."
- "Oh, I'm sor-"
- "This is a private farm, you're invading our private lives!"
- "Oh, alright, I didn't intend to disturb anyone, I'm just trying to follow this path."
- "Well, you are disturbing us."
- "Right. Fair enough."
But by this point, he had already started walking back to the building, so I turned and left. I had every legal right to walk through that farm and onto the field, and he had no legal right to tell me I could not do so, but I didn't want to start anything dangerous, so I respected his wishes.
The walk back down to the car, although mildly depressing, was even nicer than the walk up. The light level had reached a great midpoint between sunset and darkness, and the area was really pretty as a result. I knew that the farmer was in the wrong in the situation, there was no doubt in my mind about that. I had legal access to the farm (and field!) and he definitely was going against the law by telling me I didn't. As such, I wasn't sure how I would mark the expedition. Not reached - No public access? But, there was public access, I would have had absolute legal right to be at and walk to the geohash, and it would actually be illegal to prevent me from doing so. Not reached - Did not attempt? But, I did attempt the geohash. Sure, I had nothing stopping me from going further, and the letter of the law was on my side should I have chosen to continue, but there still was an attempt. Not reached - Other? Sure, but it's a little boring to just mark it as "other". I guess that would have to be the choice though. Maybe I should make sure that the land actually was publicly accessible. I do understand the law, right? Was I wrong?
By this point, I had reached the car and began preparing for my drive home. The nature of the drive was exactly as I'd expected. Unlit country roads with banks of heavy fog throughout. It didn't help that the car in front didn't seem to know how to use its fog lights, resulting in very cautious driving, often to the detriment of me and the cars behind me. Despite this, the foggy section went okay, and we were soon at a much clearer section. Then, as is often my luck in these cases, a car began driving behind me with either faulty or over-sensitive automatic headlights. Every 5 seconds or so, their headlights would alternate between regular and full-beam lighting. If it had just been a constant full-beam, it wouldn't have impacted me as much, but the constant alteration between the two meant driving in front of the car was a nightmare. Regardless of this, I made it home safely, and with plenty of time for tennis in the evening.
The next day, 2025-01-21, I decided to email Stirling council's access officer. As it turns out, each local council has at least one person whose job is to ensure that public access rights are upheld and that people are able to find answers to any questions regarding this. I explained the encounter to the officer and explained the route I was taking, asking if this route was definitely publicly accessible. Later that evening, I received a response stating that the route was open to the public and, I quote, "I suggest that if you experience any difficulty taking access to this right of way in the future that you inform the Land Manager/Land owner that you have consulted Stirling Council Access Officer who have confirmed that you have access rights to this route and I would be happy to confirm this to them". So, not only do I have the literal letter of the law support my right to walk through that area, but I now also have a government officer backing me up. I do understand the law!
Regardless of this finding, it was now too late to return to the geohash without it being a retro-expedition. Besides, whilst the law might support and actually encourage my activity, I don't feel like the potential threat of having a shotgun pulled on me is worth it. Maybe if another future geohash lands in that farm, I'll revisit. I also do not know the previous experiences the farm may have had with people of my age causing issues. Maybe the young adults of Buchlyvie take enjoyment in tormenting that specific farmer and his family, although I doubt it. I did (accidentally) find out a little bit about the family of the farm whilst trying to find information on the history of the area, and while the information is public, I won't disclose it here, due to their privacy concerns. However, I will note that the farmer's son shares the same first name as me, which was a surprising coincidence. Additionally, due to their privacy concerns, I won't include a "History of the Location" section on this report. A significant portion of what I could find was linked to recent history regarding businesses and personal life, and it would be wrong to create a profile of this information after the events that occurred.
All in all, although actually reaching the geohash was not a success, the expedition did help me to further solidify my knowledge and understanding of my rights, so it still had its merits. I do wonder if I will grow to regret my decision not to argue with the farmer, but that cannot be changed now, and I will simply learn from the experience, rather than regret it.
Photos
Achievements
KerrMcF earned the No trespassing consolation prize
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KerrMcF earned the Mean-Spirited consolation prize
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