Getting on with my life and thinking about things.
The new edition of "Trail" magazine came through the door. There's a photo of Claire Maxted wild camping on the front cover. Inside there is an article on lightweight hiking (PTC*'s first full length article, I think), and the promotion of gear reviewer, Graham Thompson to a lightweight guru.
But, with one day left before the ePetition calling upon the government to legalise wild camping in England and Wales, I scoured the pages to find any reference to it.
There it was on page 50.
Amazing.
Really amazing.
4 1/2 column inches of "Eco-Savvy wild camping". Did it cover recycling gas canisters? Nope. Did it talk abut using public transport instead of cars, or trekking at home rather than flying away for a weekend? Nope. It states the following:
...
Well, you know what. I really can't be bothered writing what they say before they write about the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.
For me, their inability to state clearly where you can legally wild camp in England and Wales is just poor hake. Even if they do not agree with the campaign, they could have mentioned it in their roll as outdoor journalists. But it is the nail in the coffin for my readership. As I'm not their target readership, it is no great loss all round.
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Today's the last chance to add your name to the ePetition. The more names, the more right we have to move to Stage Two of the campaign. With your support, we can make it work. Despite the ignorance of the "UK's best-selling hill-walking magazine"
Add your name to the petition here: http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/wildcamp/
Read the background at the official website: http://www.legalisewildcamping.com/ - you'll also find out what Trail aren't telling you about where you can legally wild camp already in England and Wales.
2 comments:
Too little, too late.
Even if the big guns like Trial didn't want to support the campaign themselves in an official capacity, they could have given their readership the facts about wildcamping and the e-petition so that punters could make up their own minds.
This isn't so much "dumbing-down", it's more "censorship".
I'll never buy another edition. If it was the last paper on Earth, I might be tempted to use it to wipe my ar5e, but that's the most involvement I'll have with it.
(I'll understand if you want to moderate this comment, Duncan.)
As I am aware of what's being said on forums, blogs, Grough, The Goat, etc, I become aware of what these journalists are missing out telling me. But, what the heck, I amn't their target readership.
If I was, it is a good outdoor fitness magazine. It has good articles to read. It has an online following. It has a good subscribers deal on just now.
But I feel it just isn't for me.
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