Lack of Hogsmeade Muggle Protection

[Melody]

No: HPFGUIDX 58315

Phyllis wrote:
>>It has recently struck me how odd it is that Hogsmeade appears to
>>have zero security against being spotted by Muggles, given the other
>>Muggle protection devices we see employed elsewhere
**snip, snip**
>>It just seems to me with all of the concern about wizards staying
>>hidden from Muggles, Hogsmeade is a big security breach.

Then Innermuck pointed out:
>...we've only seen HHR enter by two ways.
>1. The secret passageway - this must be accessed via Hogwarts. I
>doubt the muggles could get there or find it if they did.
>2. The road from Hogwarts - Again, muggles wouldn't be there to go
>down the road.
>
>I'm guessing it has a lot of the anti and muggle repellants around it
>since it's a totally wizarding village.


Gee.  I never wondered about Hogsmeade's protection.  I feel so
ashamed.  :)

Hmmm, since Hogsmeade is the *only* wizard village in England, I would
think that it is protected greatly just by proximity to Hogwarts.
Hogwarts is the most secure place in WW.  Kind of by association of
that radiating security, it makes sense that Hogsmeade, the forest,
and the lake would also be so "infested" with magic.

Now.  Do we only *know* of two entrances to Hogsmeade?  The gate
between it and Hogwarts and the whomping willow "secret" entrance have
been given.  Hmmm, did they dig the secret passage when Lupin came to
the school as well as put the tree over it?  Anyway...side wonder.
So, those two entrances are well guarded, but there must be more.
Wait.  In fact there is.  Remember is PoA with the dementors.  They
were at the gates to Hogsmeade.  I am not sure if that meant the gates
other than the gates between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts.  Let me get the
quote.  Just a sec.

Wait.  That one is kind of hard to find.  Let me quote GoF Ch 27, in
that, Sirius can enter the city through the mountains.  So the city is
not walled.  umm....hold that.  It could be.  It says (pg 510 Amer.
Hb) "Be at stile at the end of the road..."  A stile is a series of
steps over a fence or wall.  So there *is* something at the outskirts.
 Hmm, so they, Sirius and the trio, walked from the house on the
outskirts of the city, over the stile, then onto the wild countryside
and into the mountains without telling us they went through a gate,
opened a door, or did a special magic spell to open a wall.  They just
walked over the stile.  Now whether that was over a wall or fence, it
seems it is not very big.  I imagined a waist high fence.

So I think that is fair proof that one can enter Hogsmeade normally
without anything solid blocking them.  Maybe if a muggle went to crawl
over the stile, they always feel off or a big wind blew they off.  But
I am inventing spells and enchantments, so that is not fair play here.

So what is so protecting about it?  Maybe its location.  It is in the
mountains up in north England.  Hard to get to.  The Scottish have
always been busy fighting England, so maybe they did not notice.  Ok,
ok, maybe they did, but the Scottish liked folklore and mystical
things then.  But we are talking now of days, I know.

Hmm, only theory I can think of being plausible without creating new
spells is the reflected glow from the protection of Hogwarts.  We do
not know the radius of the charm on it, but I figure it extended
beyond the walls of Hogwarts and into the grounds.  If that is true,
the lake and forest would definitely be included.  Seems it would be
easy, again *seems*, just to extend the little enchantment to
encompass the forest and lake just to let it too be protected for the
magical beasts and creatures.  Nice to give the centaurs and merpeople
safe haven.

And given that Hogsmeade is *right* next door too, I will say that
what grace is protecting Hogwarts extends to it as well.  But of
course, I have no proof.  Just assumptions.  But we do know, it has a
stile there at that entrance.  A traditional muggle way to protect at
least the rabbits from getting at your vegetable garden.  And we all
know, muggles are next to rabbits in the WW viewpoint or their
superiority.  Maybe that is their (the WW) downfall in the end.  But I
am shifting subjects now, so I will stop.


Melody
who still wants to see Matrix Reloaded again even though she has seen
it three times already.  I think I am intrigued by it a bit too much.  :)