Campsite Security Revisited
Some of you may remember a thread I started a few months ago, wherein I sought to make my campsite a little more secure against theft. This was at Mojave Narrows in Victorville, CA. Here is a link in ...
Forum Discussion
It’s fascinating to see the evolution of this thread. So many layers to what seemed to be a simple situation at first glance.
First, I am not (and I don’t think anyone else here is) “promoting worry”. There is a real world out there, whether you choose to be aware of it or not. In my case, I was in blissful camping ignorance for 5 years before my bubble was burst. Sure, I’d heard of generators and bikes etc. being stolen, but I didn’t really think too much about it other than (usually) locking my bikes at night. Then, I had a battery powered lantern and a 1 lb. propane canister pilfered, and I know by what type of person: A low-level homeless bum with no worries about the consequences of petty theft. That made me reconsider my mindset a little bit.
Since I would not abandon forever camping at a favorite campground if my bikes were stolen there, I also refuse to fold to homeless bums taking cheap stuff from me. There are countermeasures available and if taken they can keep your camping worry free. I employed all available countermeasures in more of an experiment than anything. The result of the experiment was that the cheapest and easiest countermeasure, which is not having attractive items available to steal, turned out to be the most effective. It was also helpful that the campground made an effort to keep the bums out with improved fencing.
Going forward, I will put stuff away and thus have little to worry about. This is the opposite of “promoting worry”. It is simply being aware. Just like the law enforcement officers in this thread, they are trained to be aware (because the consequences in that job are dire if you are not aware) and this is not a “feature” that can be turned off or on. Once you are aware, you are aware, and you take reasonable protocols in your activities to minimize getting in trouble.
So now I am more aware while camping. That is a comfort because I know what I am dealing with and what works to thwart the risk. Ignorance of risk is a comfort too--you can’t worry about what you don’t know about--but it is a false comfort that leads to a greater likelihood of being a victim at some point, whether out camping or at home or shopping. Curious if most of you calling me a worrywart lock your doors? If so, why?
Andre
PS I find other campers to be entirely friendly as well, and kids making new friends for a couple of days is a great learning experience. I can’t get over how much I enjoy the whole camping thing, it is hard to explain to non-campers.
First, I am not (and I don’t think anyone else here is) “promoting worry”. There is a real world out there, whether you choose to be aware of it or not. In my case, I was in blissful camping ignorance for 5 years before my bubble was burst. Sure, I’d heard of generators and bikes etc. being stolen, but I didn’t really think too much about it other than (usually) locking my bikes at night. Then, I had a battery powered lantern and a 1 lb. propane canister pilfered, and I know by what type of person: A low-level homeless bum with no worries about the consequences of petty theft. That made me reconsider my mindset a little bit.
Since I would not abandon forever camping at a favorite campground if my bikes were stolen there, I also refuse to fold to homeless bums taking cheap stuff from me. There are countermeasures available and if taken they can keep your camping worry free. I employed all available countermeasures in more of an experiment than anything. The result of the experiment was that the cheapest and easiest countermeasure, which is not having attractive items available to steal, turned out to be the most effective. It was also helpful that the campground made an effort to keep the bums out with improved fencing.
Going forward, I will put stuff away and thus have little to worry about. This is the opposite of “promoting worry”. It is simply being aware. Just like the law enforcement officers in this thread, they are trained to be aware (because the consequences in that job are dire if you are not aware) and this is not a “feature” that can be turned off or on. Once you are aware, you are aware, and you take reasonable protocols in your activities to minimize getting in trouble.
So now I am more aware while camping. That is a comfort because I know what I am dealing with and what works to thwart the risk. Ignorance of risk is a comfort too--you can’t worry about what you don’t know about--but it is a false comfort that leads to a greater likelihood of being a victim at some point, whether out camping or at home or shopping. Curious if most of you calling me a worrywart lock your doors? If so, why?
Andre
PS I find other campers to be entirely friendly as well, and kids making new friends for a couple of days is a great learning experience. I can’t get over how much I enjoy the whole camping thing, it is hard to explain to non-campers.
