Privacy in the Woods?


Is one entitled to some level of privacy when out and about in the woods?

  • Yes, One is entitled to privacy

    Votes: 160 70.8%

  • No, One is not entitled to privacy

    Votes: 47 20.8%

  • Undecided

    Votes: 19 8.4%
  • Total voters
    226
Grey Ranger

Grey Ranger

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Do you believe that, when out and about in the woods, one is entitled to his or her right to privacy? (taking into consideration that you are on public land)

This question was brought up in another thread, when the question of the appropriateness of using a trail camera to observe the activities of an unknown individual arose.
I ask this in general terms. (not specific to the use of a trail camera, that was just an example)
 
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I will begin.
I beleve one is entitled to some level of privacy. Not the same kind of blanket rights that we enjoy when in our own homes or on our own property, but, I believe we are entitled to discretion and respect, and that includes being observed without our knowledge by an individual with no specific legal authority.

If there were good reason to be observing an area or an individual, for example, you are a law enforcement officer, than i would find that appropriate.
If you capture an image of an individual using a trail camera you placed for the normal reasons one would place a trail camera (hunting, tracking wildlife, etc.) unintentionally, I dont believe you are in the wrong.

But being a peeping tom, and watching people without just cause, or to satisfy curiosity, could definitely be inappropriate.

Would you be comfortable with somebody following you and watching you in a mall?
Would you be comfortable with someone setting up a camera to watch you go for a run in the park, or to watch you on your usual route from home to work?
Are our activities in the woods different in some way than things of that nature?
What if your family, or your children, were camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, etc. with you?

I share my opinion with respect for any others that members may choose to post, and I ask that everyone who posts in this thread do so as well. Respectfully.
 
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I answered yes to the privacy question. However here in Pa. you have a limited expectation of privacy. If you are in your tent/ shelter ect. then no one has a right to enter your living quarters. However if you are in a public area, for instance the Appalachain trail, and you wind up on the camera of another hiker you cant really do any thing about it. Because the area is open to the public. However a person can not hide a tape recorder and record you without your consent. This does not apply to recording Police for instance. In Pa. the Police can be recorded even if they dont want you to.
The main thing to remember is that any place you go there could be a camera. It could be it a trail camera or a bunch of toursits walking a trail.
big brother is every where you go!
 
I voted no, but only because it was the closest answer to my opinion.

I think people are entitled to some discretion while in a public place. This goes for anywhere in public, including the outdoors. At the same time, I think individual's are required to be discreet while in public. If an individual is acting in a manner that is inappropriate, other people are going to look, mostly out of curiosity, sometimes out of concern.

Let me explain. I go outdoors to have a good time, but within the confines of the law, and while having respect for others and their space. To me, that means I have nothing to hide, and I'm not acting in any way where it would bother me if someone saw me.

At the same time, I don't expect others to be spying on my activities, because they aren't suspicious. Nor would I spy on someone elses' out of general courtesy or with some devious motive. However, if I encounter some evidence of suspicious activity, I feel I'm within my rights to take a look around so that I can make an accurate report to the correct authorities. Additionally, I consider it my duty to report suspicious activity, specifically if it's against the law.
 
that was a tough one to answer. of course people have a right to privacy. but I guess my opinion is, if your gonna be on public land, expect your actions to be considered "public"
if your want your actions in the woods to be private, better stick to private land.
 
On public land, or on public places you are legally entitled to very little in the way of privacy. Notice all those traffic light cameras on the roads, and security cameras in malls and businesses.

In the woods, where hunting is legal, trail cams are a fact of life. If you want real privacy, you either hike back into areas not frquented by others, or you buy your own land.

Not saying that it is right, just how it is.
 
I look at it like this. It's ok to walk over and say hello, but you should prolly move along in short order. Unless of course is an emergency type situation. I leave trail cams alone, and always signal and move on if i see another hunter/fisherman has taken "my spot". Of course, trespassing isnt all that cool either
 
I vote yes , as long as the invasion of privacy is being legally applied.If you are under illegal survalence or being spied on then you got a right to complain . I wouldn't just drop my trousers any where.
 
could you imangine going number two in the woods or bathing and someone catches you on a trail cam!!!! I can see the guy checking his camara now.... coon... coon...coon again... coyote... owl... WHAAAAT?.... dang.... now that is a farmers tan.:26::18:
 
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Nope. Ya walk out there take what the woods sends ya. Leave your entitlements at home. You ain't got none out there.
 
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From a legal standpoint no one has an expectation of privacy in a public place. Outside your home you can be followed, photographed, and video taped freely.
I go to the woods to avoid people, but fully expect to run across them at any time. If your not on your own land you'll just have to deal with it.
 
What 'right to privacy'? Assuming you are talking about the United States, such a concept isn't specifically mentioned in the Constitution regardless of the fact that the SCOTUS created such a right out of whole cloth in order to rig a rather famous ruling I shall not mention here.

You could argue that the 10th Amendment reserves such a right, if any, to the states or to the people but you could make the same argument about the 'right to yodel'.

Sorry - don't mean to perch on my soapbox but popular phrases like that (and 'separation of church and state', etc.) come from a willful mangling of our Constitution and they get me all worked up.

On public land - I wouldn't expect much privacy. Guess that's my short answer. :p
 
SlayerOfBunnies said:
What 'right to privacy'? Assuming you are talking about the United States, such a concept isn't specifically mentioned in the Constitution regardless of the fact that the SCOTUS created such a right out of whole cloth in order to rig a rather famous ruling I shall not mention here.

You could argue that the 10th Amendment reserves such a right, if any, to the states or to the people but you could make the same argument about the 'right to yodel'.

Sorry - don't mean to perch on my soapbox but popular phrases like that (and separation of church and state, etc.) come from a willful mangling of our Constitution and they get me all worked up.

On public land - I wouldn't expect much privacy. Guess that's my short answer. :p
Click to expand...

Well said!
 
I would like to say one "should be given" a certain amount of privacy, even on public land. I don't know about being "entitled" to it though. I was taught to not crowd people who were fishing before me and not to set up camp within sight of someone elses camp.

It's pretty clear to me at this point that not everyone was taught that.

It's also pretty clear to me that public land isn't really public. Gov's at the county, state and federal levels make the rules there and a single man has no authority to govern anything but his own behavior in those places.

Privacy can be obtained but at a cost. Setting up camp in the more inhospitable parts of an area is one way to get more privacy. The closer to trails and campgrounds you are, the less privacy you can expect and walking up river 2 miles further than the next guy, may get you a fishing spot free of those who would cause you trouble... or it may not.

Everything is a gamble on land you don't own.
 
Entitled to? No. Should enjoy some? Yes.

If I'm feeling cramped, or creeped, I let my feet be my guide. I tend toward the periphery within camp settings, and I prefer to come and go as I please without being observed by others, except in passing along the trail.
 
No, what difference would mounting a camera in a US National Forest be from mounting a web cam on a public street? Such cameras are all over the place most you don't even know are there.

By definition you have no such right in public. In a private residence you do have such a right - provided you keep your windows closed. :^)

I do expect courtesy and respect - which is becoming less common.
 
brionic said:
Entitled to? No. Should enjoy some? Yes.

If I'm feeling cramped, or creeped, I let my feet be my guide. I tend toward the periphery within camp settings, and I prefer to come and go as I please without being observed by others, except in passing along the trail.
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I voted yes, but this is really closer to what I think
 
Public land is open and available to the public at large. It is not for the "private" utilization of any one person, but rather for utilization of all. So in short my answer would be, NO.

Public property if for public use, private property is for "private" use!;)
 
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Privacy? Only within the confines of my home or my tent. But people can still hear you (if your noisy). But as CampCrafter states; respect and that all too uncommon courtesy is in order.

The Japanese excel at this. They have perfected the art of ignoring others and putting up invisible walls of privacy. It's what lets them live in such small tight quarters and not kill each other.

As far as cameras go, I have actually seen security type cameras installed in trees at the more "comfortable" camp grounds (with full facilities). You know, the kind most of us avoid unless we are with our significant others who don't enjoy the same level of "roughing it" we here do. But, if I am the one taking the pictures i always try to avoid, if possible, the inclusion of strangers in them. I would hope, though have learned not expect, that others would give the same level of uncommon courtesy, fool that I am.

I voted yes, but with with low expectations,
 
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My short answer is No... you're not entitled to privacy in a public place.

That being said...if you decide to intentionally invade my privacy be prepared for an uncomfortable conversation about it. I go out to the woods to get away from it all. If you roll in one night and decide to camp right next to me (even thought there are literally hundreds of other locations nearby) and then turn on your radio, we will have a discussion about it. (been there, done that)

On the topic of camera's...
If you set a game camera up in a public place for the purposes of photographing or taping people you should also have no expectation of protection from damage to your camera. To me, It's no different than setting a video camera on a tripod in a busy mall or street corner and then walking away. If somebody objects and decides to trash your camera it's a risk you take.

The memory card and batteries will be quickly liberated form your game camera if I see it pointed in the direction of a well established public camping spot. I see no justifiable reason for pointing a game camera at a public camping area or well established hiking trail.

Now then; If the camera is on a legitimate game trail and the intention is clearly hunting related, I'll respect that and leave it alone.
 
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No one's "entitled" to much at all.

I do think other people should respect your wishes regarding privacy. If they happen to come across you while you're stealth camping, they should leave before a gorgeous row ensues. Which is likely to happen these days with so many people dropping out of everyday society and/or becoming homeless.

PMZ
 
wow...much more serious discussion than I thought when I voted in the poll...I gotta read the threads first! ~LOL~

In all honesty, to me the woods is like around town: people take pics all the time. I'm sure I've photobombed many pics without knowing it. It happens. I just strive to live so that I have nothing to hide. Though as PLGirl commented about, if I got caught doing what a bear does in the woods (#2) I think I'd have to more laugh over the poor sucker who got to see that!

When I'm out I only ask the same consideration I afford others: I leave you alone, you leave me alone. Thats why I shy away from public lands...that and I don't want to pay 20 bucks to park, 15 bucks for an overnight pass, 25 bucks for outhouse useage, etc..etc..

I don't mind talking with folks I meet up with...usually...but I still employ some basic you-no-see-me-if-I-see-you tactics when I'm out...and I will generally see them before they see me.
 
A sense of sadness comes to me as I read thru this thread...
trail cameras....spying on people...perhaps worse... :confused::26:

It only re-inforces the best part of the woods and waters to me - to shove off and hopefully not see another soul until after I get back....
and to have as much time as possible in-between. :51:
 
Readin the posts, think some of us are confusing "entitled" and "find desirable". IMHO no one is entitled to it. However, I'm sure we all find it extremely desirable. While clearly it's a very despicable thing to record someone without both their knowledge and consent, not a lot that can be done about it. Especially when you're not even aware of it.
 
Just like anything in the wilderness you are not entitled to anything. You are not entitled to a warm fire or a solid shelter. You are not entitled to food or water. In like manner you are not entitled to privacy, in the wild things must be earned by sweat of brow and action. If someone comes on your camp which you are not entitled to and they are not moving then you must earn your privacy either by moving to a new camp or by asking them to respectfully leave. I have asked people to move their camps before and have never had an issue.

Like fishing its really irritating when some bone head creeps up on your spot and fishes like 10 feet away, so either you move or he moves, but neither is entitled to that spot. It would be extremely rude for him not to move and there could be a scuffle but still it shows you have to earn everything you get, including privacy.

As I think G1 said, take the extra time to hike in where no one goes, that is an example of earning your privacy.
 
Not sure how I will vote. I do not think that one is entitled to privacy on public land. As for the example given, I do think putting up a trail camera to see what a human is doing on public land is wrong, but at the same time I think traffic camera's are different and ok, because the institution that put them there has jurisdiction over public roads. As simply a citizen I have the right to use public land, but no jurisdiction over it. Not sure that makes sense, because like I said, I don't know how I'm going to vote in the poll...
 
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SlayerOfBunnies said:
What 'right to privacy'? Assuming you are talking about the United States, such a concept isn't specifically mentioned in the Constitution regardless of the fact that the SCOTUS created such a right out of whole cloth in order to rig a rather famous ruling I shall not mention here.

You could argue that the 10th Amendment reserves such a right, if any, to the states or to the people but you could make the same argument about the 'right to yodel'.

Sorry - don't mean to perch on my soapbox but popular phrases like that (and 'separation of church and state', etc.) come from a willful mangling of our Constitution and they get me all worked up.

On public land - I wouldn't expect much privacy. Guess that's my short answer. :p
Click to expand...

That's pretty much how it is. You have very little rights when it comes to privacy no matter where you are. We as american people have come to expect it as the norm. I got to tell ya, that norm is falling by the wayside as we speak. If you're out and about, expect to be watched, plain and simple. I wish it were different though.
 
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