[UK-CONTEST] Re - Farmers & Contests.

[brian coyne]

Ignoring the 'pie throwing' aspects of this thread I think that the message of permission and respect for landowners plus the need to leave a site as it was found comes across loud and clear. Be responsible, consider all the aspects of your visit otherwise you can ruin the chances of use of that site foreverafter for everyone.

The problem is more one of getting that message across to individuals rather than clubs, who in my experience were always responsible. Let me relate my experiences, albeit mineral collectors and not radio hams were the visitors.

The St Day area of Cornwall was, and still is, famous for copper related rare minerals.
When I took over the holding there it was on an old mining site known as Tingtang mine. I knew nothing about minerals, their rarity or value, but found holes by the score which not been filled in, litter and  people in ones or two's, digging around on an area of my land which used to be a dump for the excavated spoil. To get onto the property they had to scale two walls, yet all claimed innocence when i broached the issue of permission with response to the effect that they have done this for years!

I erected a 'Trespassers will be Prosecuted' notice which had little effect until I called in the Police and then the word got around. After that there were one or two problems but in the main diggers knocked at the door and asked permission, filled back the holes and left no litter.

One day I found that an area around an entire concrete post had been excavated and the post although still attached to the barbed wire was down and pulling ajoining posts with it. These posts and wire surrounded a 100'deep airshaft and was in place to prevent my cows and other animals falling into it.

One would have imagined mineral collectors, like radio hams, to be of a higher than average intellect. Anyway that was the end of any digging, a real disappointment for responsible collectors as the number of sites available in the area had  disappeared due to housing or other development.

After an interval of many years I was approached by an international mineral dealer, after my initial rejection he explained the rarity need plus the fact if I were to open it up to recognised clubs, they would not only be reponsible persons but it was also the custom for them to pay a daily digging fee I was persuaded to give it a try and it was very successful, not only did I make many longtime friends but enjoyed some income too, always welcome when there are farm gates/walls/fences etc always needing to be refurbished.

Actually one of the first groups to visit was the Cambridge Univrsity Mineral Society who subsequently produced a six page article plus a dozen photographs of outstanding beauty I had never appreciated from seeing those minerals in their raw state.


http://www.ukjmm.co.uk/no19.htm#tingtang

73  Brian  5B4AIZ.