I wrote about wild etiquette — the travel code of conduct — inspired by several stories shared with me by landowners and property owners whose places have become popular with people traveling “off-grid.”
The topic became so relevant that Polish Radio Czwórka decided to dedicate an episode of Sobotologia to it. You can listen to my conversation with journalist Szymon Jaworski in this article.
Behave like a guest
This topic concerns all of us — enthusiasts of wild travel, sleeping in tents, cars, campers or under the open sky. Unfortunately, not everyone knows how to behave. What is not allowed, and what we should do — this is exactly what we need to understand when we think about wild etiquette and using what belongs to all of us.
Listen to the broadcast before you set off on your journey. I’m sure you’ll find everything you already know there… or at least most of it. But I’m equally sure that this kind of obvious knowledge tends to slip away in certain situations, and that it’s worth organizing it, committing it to memory and applying it instinctively.
If you spend the night anywhere outside your home, you are someone’s guest — even when it feels like you haven’t crossed anyone’s threshold.
The link to the broadcast can be found in the article on Polish Radio Czwórka:
https://www.polskieradio.pl/10/4888/Artykul/3026688,Dzika-etykieta-czyli-podrozniczy-savoirvivre
No man’s land
Not sure who owns the land where you plan to spend the night? There are no buildings nearby, no signs?
Don’t assume it’s no man’s land. When using what it offers, always show gratitude and leave the place in even better condition than you found it.
Wild etiquette
I deeply believe that following these simple rules of wild etiquette can help increase — not, as is currently happening, reduce — the number of places where we are allowed to drive a car, camper or motorcycle, or pitch a tent after a long hike.
If we take care of this together, many more years of beautiful, wild journeys await us.
That is what I sincerely wish for you — and for myself.
As a reminder, you can read more about wild etiquette in this article.
See you somewhere on the road — or beyond it.