While driving to exercise might be unwise it is not prohibited by emergency legislation--new guidance for police.

[BreathlessCommotion]

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/mar/30/uk-police-guidelines-coronavirus-lockdown-enforcement-powers-following-criticism-lord-sumption?

I hope those in these rural inundated places are sticking to online delivery/ using their corner shops and not doing reverse journeys to bigger shops. You do realise that key workers are putting up with all kinds of inconveniences. Having a few more walkers on your area is hardly a huge struggle in comparison.

I hate this pull the drawbridge up mentality.

Health advice has been reinforced over and over, but all people are concerned about is whether they can exercise the right to go for a drive in their car.
THIS VIRUS CANNOT MOVE UNLESS WE MOVE IT.
Unless you have healthcare level infection control training ( and even then not very effective) you risk either MOVING the virus or having it MOVED to you.
Every non-essential trip out of your house or contact with someone outside your house directly or indirectly.
ASSUME THAT EVERYONE HAS COVID-19.
This is how we train healthcare workers. Frighten them into not taking risks fortunately the diseases we protect ourselves from such as HIV or HepC are actually much more life changing than Coronavirus.

It would have been much easier if this virus caused distinct visible symptoms such as a pustulant rash on the face.

They fail to see that if lots of people start driving to nice rural places then they get busy. I'm sure some of our nice, accessible more rural walking areas will be busier because now people will take it as a green light to ignore the guidelines to exercise near your home.
People are walking to our nearby local ones and they are really busy by local standards - but still no worse than normal life in the country park in the nearby town. We live in a crowded country, and this was always going to be difficult. Going out for a walk is the only exercise available to a lot of people, with gyms closed, sports clubs in abeyance, swimming pools shut...

So what's better? People spread out a bit but rural footpaths still busier than normal, or everyone except us fortunate people who can walk to fields crammed into small areas trudging along pavements?

I hope those in these rural inundated places are sticking to online delivery/ using their corner shops and not doing reverse journeys to bigger shops. You do realise that key workers are putting up with all kinds of inconveniences. Having a few more walkers on your area is hardly a huge struggle in comparison.hmm Yeah, cos when you are miles from anywhere, don't have a corner shop within 10 miles, and quite happily rely on the support from your not so close neighbours, said support having been put in place due to the floods, meaning you are most certainly not a danger to anyone, being used to living so remotely, you are definitely to blame for the stupidity of others!

You have no idea!

“@CuriousaboutSamphire” that’s funny because I do live rurally as mentioned previously on this thread (so RTFT). And I am also a key worker. I take risks every day while doing my job.

So what was your point again?

Oh yes you don’t like “outsiders”. Very territorial and not helpful at all.

I fail to see why people would buy properties with public footpaths in them if they don’t like other people?

In times like these I love seeing other people (socially distancing of course) from a 2+ metres. A wave and a hello! It makes my day seeing people.

Really hope you don’t end up driving to the nearest town or city for your non essential food & drink

@CuriousaboutSamphire

So what's better? People spread out a bit but rural footpaths still busier than normal, or everyone except us fortunate people who can walk to fields crammed into small areas trudging along pavements? Getting out into quieter areas sounds best. BUT many people doing so aren't using their common sense! Others have no idea about livestock, farms etc.

It's the lack of thought that is the problem!

Would love to use online delivery unfortunately no slots available for next 3 weeks and they are not allowing you to book past 3 weeks.
When you live rurally you don’t tend to shop daily it’s not practical. Most people shop weekly or fortnightly. Popping out for a loaf of bread may take 30mins.

@CuriousaboutSamphire self righteous or what

As someone living in a tiny rural tourist area can you please all stay the fuck at home? Our health service locally was pretty much broken before this and that was before the second home owners swept in. Stay at home you selfish twats!

I expect most people walking rurally DO have common sense.

Why is it the new norm to accuse other people of being stupid? Since when was this normal??

I still wonder where these frantically busy areas everyone needs to escape from are. I live in London and it is not frantically busy at the moment. Most people are staying indoors, as asked, unless they are going to work, to shop for food, or exercise. My neighbours certainly aren't all leaving their houses at the same time for a walk.

The streets are quiet. Where are these frantically busy areas people need to drive away from? I'm genuinely curious.

OK @PollockBollocks You win the CORVID Top Trumps.

Yay!

Lem0n, see my comment above.
You don't seem to like rural people very much...
But I agree with you about spreading people out.

Nice

People visiting rural areas now will be using the same local services and have zero need to use them whilst on a half hour walk after a 10 min drive. I’m in my 50s never once have I ever needed to use our local hospital whilst on a walk( most accidents I know of are from cyclists a la JW). If I did it would be at the same hospital so stop using that as an excuse for your huge level of selfishness.

Lord Sumption is a gem. Also, I feel like the guardian have really upped their game throughout all this.

Grumpy I just don’t like selfish rural people. I live fairly rurally and I’m a key worker. You rarely see key workers morning about the huge level of inconvenience and danger to varying degrees they’re being subjected to. Most are just grateful to have a job.

The most selfish entitled posts I keep reading are from the rural hamlet dwellers and farmers who object to increased visitors due to NP, coast and woodland being shut. It’s a pandemic folks you’re going to have to suck it up and make the best of it just the same as everybody else.

I get the feeeling that some of us are talking at cross purposes here.

It's quite sensible to use your daily exercise somewhere quiet.

But it isn't sensible to do that in a place that causes real issues for other people. Setting aside the incomvenience of poor parking, using footpaths across peoples gardens, etc...

Some of us have seen the end results of people who don't know how to use farmland, avoid livestock, recognise crops for what they are. We see pictures of mauled, dead sheep every year, we are seeing MORE of them at the moment. A local farmer has had his sileage used as a play area, food for his cows he will struggle to replace, young crops being trampled, etc.

That's the problem! The unthinking acts of people who are walking in spaces that they have little or no previous experience of!

The most selfish entitled posts I keep reading are from the rural hamlet dwellers and farmers who object to increased visitors due to NP, coast and woodland being shut. In some cases that's your food for later in the year being trampled over... that's the point!

@CuriousaboutSamphire yay so exciting.

All I ask is that you keep washing your hands, spray your shoes after being shops / farming / hospital & be nice.

And @Lem0n is right. Here we only have one hospital for the whole county. So all the tractor drivers who seem to crash on the main road (it happens A LOT) would be using the same hospital as anyone with Coronavirus. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Ask away! You have no idea who I am, what I do etc.

Be nice? Seems to work in one direction sometimes.

Lem0n, like others has a point. But so do those uf us trying to explain why not trampling over farmland or flocking to quiet spaces is also important!

Also I want to add the point that

Farmers don’t want the public (tens of people per day) walking near their land

but

Farmers are begging for hundreds of volunteers to help pick their crop / veg / fruit

So what do they want? People or no people?

There’s a risk to both so why be so uptight?

It still isn’t worth verbally abusing walkers or calling for the shutting of footpaths which will make the few spaces left even more congested.

That is the inconveniences for farmers, other key workers are wresting with far bigger issues.

I expect most people walking rurally DO have common sense
But perhaps some have a limited sense of greater good.
The BMC have advised against hill walking and climbing during this time, not because their members are incompetent but because it's about the spirit of the guidance and it's not following the guidelines to make non-essential journeys to drive places for a walk.

www.thebmc.co.uk/climbing-and-hill-walking-its-time-to-put-it-on-hold

There's lots of people applying common sense by not putting their desire for a nice walk above following the guidelines, yet I've no doubt some people will continue to ignore them.

Are you on glue... to use a favourite MN saying!

The difference between walking without care over farmland and being hired to pick crops is pretty big!

Laugh? Only if you are utterly clueless!