Scotland and Dartmoor are the only places to legally wild camp in Britain. But there are a few sites that offer a more rugged camping experience. Dixe Wills picks the best.
Find more unusual campsites in tomorrow’s Guardian Travel
Ah, the call of the wild. Unzipping your tent in the morning to discover you weren’t dreaming – you really are camped beside some tranquil mountainside tarn, or in a clearing in a mighty forest, or on a cliff top high above a sparkling sea. With a proper hot summer still on the cards, what could gladden the heart more than getting out into the British countryside with a tent and soaking it all up?
Except, of course, it’s not as simple as that. The enlightened Scots, who have long enjoyed a relaxed attitude to land access, have made wild camping legal more or less anywhere (with a few sensible caveats) since 2003. In the rest of Britain, however, the practice is only officially sanctioned in one area – a section of Dartmoor.
The good news is that there’s now a growing number of campsites south of the border that have begun to offer campers the chance to savour the joys of off-piste camping. Where these sites differ from the norm is that rather than providing beautifully tended croquet-flat lawns, electric hook-ups and hardstanding, they offer chunks of topography just as nature crafted it, open fires on which to incinerate your marshmallows and, typically, a compost loo for those campers who feel no compunction to imitate what bears do in the woods. It may not be wild camping in its purest form but it’s a darn good imitation.
Wales leads the way in wilder campsites, with southern England hot on their heels. The phenomenon, it seems, is yet to catch on in the north of England.
Here’s a selection of the best sites where you can go wild in the country.
Gwalia Farm, Cemaes, Machynlleth, Powys
A large area around a lake is given over to camping at Gwalia, an organic farm that enjoys some quite breathtaking views of Snowdonia. Closer at hand, there are wild orchids, buzzards, kites, nightjars, glow worms, and all manner of aquatic life to look out for, including an otter. Drinking and washing water comes from a natural spring, there are earth loos in the woods and, should you wish to wander, the farm is on the Cambrian Way, Glyndwr’s Way and the Dyfi Valley Way.
• Gwalia Farm. Adult £4, child £2; +44 (0)1650 511377.
Graig Wen Arthog, nr Dolgellau, Gwynedd
Graig Wen admits to playing host to a conventional campsite but, for four weeks a year, visitors are also given the choice of going further afield and pitching in secret meadows, sheltered glades or a high bluff with views out over the Mawddach estuary. Streams and dry stone walls forge their way over the fields and through the woods, while the facilities are suitably wild – extending only to something described as “a tree bog compost toilet”. Best not to ask, I think.
• Graig Wen. From 25 July to 21 August; adult £7 (£10 on Fri/Sat); child £3 (£5); discount offered for backpackers/cyclists; +44 (0)1341 250482.
Gwern Gof Uchaf, Capel Curig, Gwynedd
One for high altitude campers, Gwern Gof Uchaf is an exposed site directly beneath Snowdonia’s famous Tryfan peak and is part of a working hill farm stretching for 750 acres above the Ogwen valley. The Carneddau and Glyders summits can also be tackled from this base camp which is open all year, so you can even introduce your tent to some snow (it’s wonderfully insulating, you know). Comfort comes in the form of hot showers, close by.
• Gwern Gof Uchaf. Adult £4, child £3; +44 (0)1690 720294.
Glyn Y Mul Farm, Aberdulais, West Glamorgan
The river Dulais runs through Glyn Y Mul’s 18-acre wood, making it a memorable location for a bit of communing with nature. The owners particularly welcome grub-eating survivalists to their Lone Wolf Campsite but are also happy to accommodate visitors who merely want to get away from it all. Best of all, should everything go pear-shaped with your attempt to create a shelter from mud filtered through the shells of beech nuts, you can crawl out of the woods for a hot power shower.
• Glyn Y Mul Farm. Adult £5, child £2.50; +44 (0)1639 643204
Camping Wild Wales, Trefin, Pembrokeshire
This is a site whose owners’ mission statement importunes visitors to slough off their urban selves, “strip away those outer layers and feel the breeze of freedom”, so chilling out and relaxing are pretty much compulsory. Lodged halfway between St David’s and Fishguard, just off the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, there’s plenty of room to spread out your shelter of choice or you can take refuge in one of their tipis.
• Camping Wild Wales. Adult £7, child (4-14) £3; +44 (0)1348 837892.
Hole Station Campsite, Highampton, Devon
There are 45 acres of meadow and woodlands at Hole Station but only twelve pitches, making it a little piece of heaven for those who agree with Sartre’s maxim that hell is other people. Approached down a long private lane in a sumptuous, yet quiet, corner of Devon, it’s little wonder that Hole railway station, from which the site takes its name, has long since given up the ghost. You can also rent a tent – very useful if you’re travelling light on the Devon coast-to-coast route, for which Hole marks the halfway point.
• Hole Station Campsite. £12 per pitch (inc. 2 people), extra adults £4, U16s £3, dogs £1. Camp fire kit £5; +44 (0)1409 231266
Yellow Wood Bush Camp, nr Hay-on-Wye, Herefordshire
The folk at Yellow Wood are very much in touch with their inner Ray Mears and offer all manner of courses on bushcraft and wilderness survival on their clutch of forested sites in the shadow of the Black Mountains. However, if you just want to bring along your tent, or string up a tarp or a hammock and do your own thing, that’s cool too. For that added wild touch, the precise location of their sites is not revealed until you’ve booked yourself in.
• Yellow Wood Bush Camp. Adult £5, child £3; +44 (0)7800 767519.
Ashwood Farm, East Grinstead, West Sussex
Proving that being within commuting distance of the capital is still no barrier to camping in the wilds, this farm near the Sussex/Surrey border provides a haven of sylvan tranquillity. It’s also a paradise for children who are free to race up and down the hill, build their own woodland wigwams, dens, shelters or fairy houses according to taste, or just idle away the hours on a tree swing. There’s also a big discount if you can arrive by public transport or under your own steam.
• Ashwood Farm. With car: adult £12; child £6. Without car: £8/£4. Fire kit £5. +44 (0)1342 316129
Dernwood Farm, Waldron, East Sussex
A small family-run farm, Dernwood has an 8-acre field in the woods in which you can pick your spot and another 60-odd acres of ancient forest to explore once you’ve set up camp. The only concessions to home comforts are a water tap and a recently installed loo in a nearby shed. For those who insist on being kept in touch with the outside world, newspapers can be delivered to the farmhouse, a ten-minute walk away. A fleet of wheelbarrows is also on hand for ferrying your gear through the woods.
• Dernwood Farm. Adult £6.50, child (5-15) £4.50, family (2 adults 2 children) £17.50; +44 (0)1435 812726.
And a final one for anyone who wants to try out a wild campsite in Scotland before heading off into the countryside beyond:
Duloch Hamlet, Inverkeithing, Fife
Offering what they euphemistically describe as “limited rustic facilities” (a sawdust toilet and a stand pipe), Duloch Hamlet is a mixture of clearings in woodland and meadows. There are fifteen acres of woods to get happily lost in and hides for watching badgers and deer. There’s also a herb garden if you fancy adding that final flourish to your al fresco feast, and a few pre-erected tents available if you prefer to travel ultra-lite.
• Duloch Hamlet. £6 per person; log kits £3; +44 (0)1383 417681.
