Lord above some people are just... unbelievable!

[DuIcieDomum]

There's an Apache MK1 final flypast today [yawn] which DP and DS (autistic, this comes under one of his special interests) have been banging on about for days. They made flasks of cocoa and set up deckchairs in one of our fields (we live on a farm) to sit and watch it. Anyway it was delayed by 45 mins so they came in to eat lunch and then went back out...to find two men sitting on the deckchairs eating sandwiches waiting for the flypast . There was a third man with a dog with them, who actually asked DP to put our dog on a lead because his dog is nervous of other dogs!!

Now, this was in our field which is private land. The field is visible from a footpath but the footpath just goes past the gate and doesn't enter the field. They just saw our deckchairs and though it looked like a nice place to go and sit.

DP said sorry but no, they'd have to take the dog out of the field if it wasn't ok with other dogs, and that he and DS wanted their deckchairs back. A bit of harrumphing and the men left but... WTF?!?

In my last job we always had a big all expenses paid for Christmas party by the top brass. Anyway, there was a cohort of senior managers who always brought empty rucksacks & bubble wrap to the venue. I spotted one of them discreetly wrapping wine bottles in bubble wrap and then putting it in his rucksack..........that was probably his Christmas dinner wine! 😮

They're farmers. Or do you not eat food?

People are pricks. I don't own any farm land but because of where I live, I've got a few friends who farm. The entitlement of people is off the scale. The vast majority of farmers I know absolutely believe everyone should have access to the countryside, and despite the fact they could stop the general public from accessing their farm land, they are actually very accommodating. It's never enough. Being asked to not drop litter - nope. being asked to stick to the tracks and not walk across the crop - nope. Being asked to not let dogs off lead and piss and shit wherever they feel like it - nope. All the way up to, being asked to, you know, not fly tip, bring your quad bike, lamp, and maybe not threaten the land owner when you're asked nicely to stick to some basic rules - all nope.
I particularly love, when we're out walking, and politely ask someone to do whatever reasonable thing it is, to be told confidently 'We have the farmers permission' - er, no, you don't because I am the farmer (says friend) apparently a 5 foot nothing teeny woman can't possibly be the farmer when confronted with entitled twat.

This!

Oh come on, that’s just a misunderstanding and quite funny. If it weren’t for the dog-on-lead thing (for which a solution could probably have been found) they could have all bonded over their interest in the fly-past and an enjoyable time had by all.

Yea, farmers have a lot of overly tight diamond shoes issues these days. Famously easy job, farming. Short hours, no labour, big profit margins and no risk, right?

Oh wait…

I'm a kind moronic twat though, and I think that a kind explanation perhaps might have resulted in less harumphing.

I'm not commenting on the state of the farming industry. I'm not a brash litter dropping townie either.

Gosh, diamond shoes

I presume you aren't aware of just how little most farmers actually earn then?

The average wage for a farmer is something like £23k!

During Covid the care home on our street had a carol concert with speakers in the street.. Lots of locals gathered to listen. One cf woman actually sat on the bonnet of my new car... Mn had a go at ME for being furious!!

Hey. I get the arguments and agree farming sounds almost impossibly hard, but nobody's a moronic twat. I might even welcome an appropriated deckchair problem rather than some of my own problems! Having said that, I'm not entirely sure, I feel I'd hate people on my property because I'm a notorious introvert and curmudgeon. It's horrible too when people won't follow countryside rules, they aren't complicated and I'd add, don't climb anyone's drystone wall except at a stile.

Speaking of Enid Blyton I've just found a whole bunch of her books online and am re-living my childhood most happily, herbal tea instead of cocoa though, would love cocoa but it doesn't agree with me.

I was referring to your view and the land, not your earnings.

This is AIBU. I think you were quick to get cross and offended when you could have been friendly, so YWBU.

YANBU but I am sadly not surprised.

We have a field. It is accessibility through our court yard and also from an adjacent field. However, there is no footpath and it is private land. The footpaths running parallel are clearly marked and obvious. Last summer though, we had so many people trek through our field (usually leaving the bottom gate open, which risks the horses in the adjoining field escaping!).

DH or myself would query politely, pointing out the foot path and calmly explaining that our land is private. No apologies, lots of 'but we're only walking through' etc. We have since put signs up so hoping that does the trick.

We have so had people sitting in the field to picnic! When I asked them to please move to a public spot they were outraged! I pointed out that if I set myself up for a picnic in their garden they would not be happy!

It astounds me how entitled some people are.

Excellent. How much access to farmland (or wildlife trust managed land) is it you're after, and, once you've had your picnic, how much land, wildlife and biodiversity management are you going to be doing?

Also, 'Diamond shoes are too tight' isn't 'kind' by any stretch.

Don’t think the OP said her Dh was rude or anything tho?

Tales like this is putting me right off my retirement plan of a couple of acres 😢 If someone whacked my horse, I genuinely think I’d go full berserker. 🤬

That's because you can't hear my lighthearted tone.

My friend has a small business in her garden. You go in buy what you want and leave. Except last year when she noticed a family and their dog hadn’t left but had moved her garden furniture to sit on and were sunbathing/relaxing in her garden 😂 people are so incredibly cheeky!

and I think that a kind explanation perhaps might have resulted in less harumphing
By whom, to whom? The OP to the entitled trespassers?
It wouldn't.

Stating
Only 8% of land in the UK is permitted for public use. I'm thinking that someone sat in your deckchair is a first world / diamond shoes are too tight problem
when replying to a farmer and linking to the appropriate Guardian Link isn't a lighthearted tone.

My dh inadvertently trespassed on private land; he thought he was on a footpath, but had got it wrong. The landowner came out to 'chase him off'. Anyway, they started chatting, and hit it off. My dh ended up working for him for years. Years later, we no longer live in the area, but we are all still great friends!

I blame some of it in the number of hedgerows which have been lost. Hedges used to run along footpaths and bridle ways and fields and then it was obvious that the lane was private, now a lot of fields look like open park land and it's no wonder people think that they have a right of access

A couple of years ago, I came home to find a big group installed on some of our private land, where my DC's trampoline, swing, and slide were set up. They were actually sitting on the swing (one of those big round ones), the edge of the trampoline, and a couple of deckchairs we'd set up, having a picnic.
When I asked them to leave, they started shouting at me about how I disrespectful and unwelcoming I was. Like I was running a bloody tourist resort!
I'm still fucking outraged at the cheek of them, tbh.
They weren't young kids either - the average age must have been sixty. Absolutely bonkers.

I wonder how many of those people trying to 'reclaim our countryside' are equally keen to make their own gardens free for all comers to enjoy.

There's absolutely nothing whatsoever stopping them from personally buying any land that's for sale and then throwing it open without restriction for public enjoyment.

It's the easiest thing in the world to want to give away somebody else's property/land/belongings.

I now want to know whats the difference between cocoa and hot chocolate?!

Urgh, people these days! Where I live is rife with people like that, usually tourists and particularly bad in summer 🙄 wandering about peering in people's windows, setting up campers and setting fires on the dunes on the beach, using the outdoor seating at my work place for their picnics and leaving their rubbish everywhere. Drives me insane

Wow! Some people are just off-the-scale CFs.

Am I imagining it, or does anybody else remember a thread from ages ago where some German tourists visiting the UK just let themselves into somebody's private garden in a beautiful part of the country and ordered afternoon tea?!