Covid-19 Travel for exercise - Reasonable distance

[Spunyarn]

Hi guys,

I’ve not posted for a while but I believe the people of this forum are best placed to answer a burning question I have. I’m interested in the general consensus (if there is one) on how far people think is reasonable to travel for exercise.

The current government guidelines say clearly that we should stay in our local area when exercising. They also say we can travel to open spaces (parks, forests etc) but should not travel far to do so. This has not been specified and has been left open to interpretation. Due to the confusion this causes a story has been published today by BBC news about 2 individuals who travelled 5 miles in their car to go for a walk in a public open space, only to receive a £200 fine from the police who were waiting there. The news report includes input from a lawyer who confirms that they have broken no law, however the police force in question have defended their actions saying that travelling that distance is not in the spirit of the current government guidelines, and that each police officer will user their discretion and judgement on whether to issue fines.

Now the purpose of this poll is not to find a right or wrong answer. There isn’t one because it’s purely your own personal view and they will all understandably differ. I’m aware that some people will think we should not travel at all for exercise, while others will think anything within an hour is a reasonable distance. What I’m curious to know is where exactly on that spectrum do MOST people sit?

So, please vote based on what you think is reasonable. By all means share your opinions but let’s not let this descend into the kind of cringeworthy arguments that so many other forums are littered with. I am confident that you, my bushcraft friends, are so much better than that.

 

[henchy3rd]

Two friends drove to our local reservoir in separate cars & kept two meters apart( they lived two villages away)& bought a cup of coffee each, the police said it’s classed as a picnic & fined them £200 each.. just been on the news?
I drove back from my parents & stopped in a lay-by to check out the river as it looked beautiful..an elderly gent walked by & asked what I was doing out as I’m breaking the law.
Honestly, some people?

 

[Spunyarn]

Thanks for your vote and sharing your views Henchy!

I won’t say whether I agree or disagree as I want to try (atleast for now) to be impartial for the sake of the thread. It’s a really interesting topic though and looking forward to hearing more views.

 

[punkrockcaveman]

Sorry I'm struggling to pick one to be honest, I know that will come across as annoying but yet again it depends doesn't it. How far away is your nearest reasonably open space? And surely if your nearest local space is busy you will travel further to stay away from the crowds, that's just common sense though right? I'll pick the one that allows meet to get to most of my local open spaces

 

[John Fenna]

In Wales it is specified that you do not drive for exercise - not that it stops some people!

 

[punkrockcaveman]

Two friends drove to our local reservoir in separate cars & kept two meters apart( they lived two villages away)& bought a cup of coffee each, the police said it’s classed as a picnic & fined them £200 each.. just been on the news?
I drove back from my parents & stopped in a lay-by to check out the river as it looked beautiful..an elderly gent walked by & asked what I was doing out as I’m breaking the law.
Honestly, some people?

Surely they will have to retract those fines, I don't understand how they have been able to fine in the first place? The article I read on it on bbc news sounded like the police were harassing them. The police need to be careful otherwise they will lose all respect and rules will get flouted more often. If they show respect we will show respect back.

 

[Toddy]

Two friends drove to our local reservoir in separate cars & kept two meters apart( they lived two villages away)& bought a cup of coffee each, the police said it’s classed as a picnic & fined them £200 each.. just been on the news?
I drove back from my parents & stopped in a lay-by to check out the river as it looked beautiful..an elderly gent walked by & asked what I was doing out as I’m breaking the law.
Honestly, some people?

So, you were close enough to a local, in an area where you are not resident, to have a conversation.....how far is too far ?

 

[henchy3rd]

Sorry I'm struggling to pick one to be honest, I know that will come across as annoying but yet again it depends doesn't it. How far away is your nearest reasonably open space? And surely if your nearest local space is busy you will travel further to stay away from the crowds, that's just common sense though right? I'll pick the one that allows meet to get to most of my local open spaces

The local(ish)girls went to the reservoir because their local open spaces was busy?
I think we are going to see a lot more of this happening.

 

[henchy3rd]

So, you were close enough to a local, in an area where you are not resident, to have a conversation.....how far is too far ?

It was in the middle of nowhere, 4 miles away from home,he walked down the hill to chat with me?

 

[Toddy]

In Wales it is specified that you do not drive for exercise - not that it stops some people!

In Scotland we're allowed to travel, but the intent is that you keep very local, within your local authority area but if 'necessary' one may go five miles around so long as it stops and starts at the same place....and by that they mean home.

 

[Toddy]

It was in the middle of nowhere, 4 miles away from home,he walked down the hill to chat with me?

Apparantly people live in the middle of nowhere...and they're getting vexed at strangers just stopping off for exercise, and hoping hard that they're not bringing the virus with them,

 

[Fadcode]

I read that and I was too scared to pop into McDonalds for a coffee in case the Police stopped me and thought I was having a picnic.

 

[oldtimer]

Surely if my wife and I get into our car at home, drive somewhere, get out and walk without interacting with anyone else then get back in the car and drive home, the distance is immaterial.

We are fortunate enough to be able to walk in open country without needing to drive anywhere. I really feel for city dwellers for whom a country walk necessitates a drive of any length.

 

[Toddy]

Am I vexed about this ? yes. I am.
Scots couldn't safely visit their local hills this Summer because so many folks decided to drive north and visit them.

We had No infections, No deaths, until visitors, holiday makers and tourists brought the damned disease back in again.

What does it take to get through to some folks that only staying entirely away from others will stop the spread ? The vaccines are coming, but they're not available for everyone just now, and this week alone 3,270 people have died, because folks didn't stay at home and away from others.

Sad indictment isn't it ? selfish few and thousands of families are grieving.

 

[Toddy]

Surely if my wife and I get into our car at home, drive somewhere, get out and walk without interacting with anyone else then get back in the car and drive home, the distance is immaterial.

We are fortunate enough to be able to walk in open country without needing to drive anywhere. I really feel for city dwellers for whom a country walk necessitates a drive of any length.

Last time I postulated that I was roundly told (and you were part of the conversation) that it was selfish because if the car broke down then I was reliant on someone else risking themselves to come and assist.

 

[Toddy]

I read that and I was too scared to pop into McDonalds for a coffee in case the Police stopped me and thought I was having a picnic.

Is McDonald's open for such business ?
Cafes and restaurants are closed, afaik, takeaway ??

 

[Fadcode]

drive thru=take away

 

[Spunyarn]

All very interesting and even though there are differing views already in this thread, they are all sensible and make sense in their own right. Good to hear the variety of thoughts so thanks for sharing.

 

[MrEd]

I can’t answer, I just drive to work and back every day and do enough while I am at work that you can forget any exercise on my days off

 

[Toddy]

Covid-19: UK sees highest daily toll of 1,325 deaths

A record 68,053 cases are also reported as a third vaccine is approved for use in the UK.

www.bbc.co.uk

1,325 deaths. Today. In the UK.....from a disease spread solely by droplet infection.