MUMSNET Bank Holiday Camp - East Sussex

[NettleTea]

So......
The in laws have agreed that a camp out in the fields is fine for the August bank holiday weekend.
We are going to hire a couple of toilets, and Karl and Susie are going to make us some composting urinals.

The 'invite' is going out to CNA, CNT, Mumsnet Camping forum and a bunch of archaeologists from the British Museum, its not going to be open to the general public. There is plenty of room for each 'group' to have their own areas, as there are 2 fields of approx 8 acres each.

I will be knocking up a few communal fire pits, and people will be welcome to bring their own. We can provide a spade to remove turf if you want your own fire - top layer can be put back after the fire to avoid damage to the field/fields, as these fields are on our environmental stewardship land.

Camp will open 11 am Friday 26 August, and close 5pm Monday 29 August

Pre-orders for firewood, locally produced charcoal, farm reared sausages and burgers, and other local produce (MIL has offered to bake scones, this COULD be a good thing!!)

Price £35 for the weekend for the tent and up to 4 people
£10 per weekend per extra adult
£6 per weekend per extra child

Facebook page is here

will be adding some more bits and pieces to this over next few days, including prices for the 'glamping tents' If I can sell the 'Herring Gull (can sleep up to 4) and 'The Grebe' (the bell tent - could also probably sleep 4/5, though request for quiet at night as near a pheasant run with baby pheasants in) then the whole camp could move into woodland / wildflower meadow and could probably organise herb walk/foraging walks and other sorts of things. Could maybe do those anyway if there were any interest.

send me a message for more details/info

[NettleTea]

CNA is cloth nappy addicts, CNT is cloth nappy tree - both forums for, well, the clue is in the name!

[mel2005]

wow that looks lovely, i love the albatros tent

[SeaShellsMyDogSmells]

Yes please, seriously interested. 2 adults 2 children < 3 we would camp in own tent and salivate over the bell and albatros tents

Dh away ATM but he was keen last time I mentioned it

[MisSalLaneous]

Nettle, it sounds amazing! Thank you SO much.

We're definitely interested - 2 adults and one 3 year old. May I ask (shout if you prefer pm) how much the glamping tents are? We'll almost certainly be coming with our own bell tent.

[lovecat]

Serious interest here too - we would probably bring our own bell (unless the glamping tents were affordable). I'll pm you - 2 adults (although DH if he comes would leave on Sunday morning as he has to be in Paris Monday 8am) and a 6 year old.

[mell242]

What a wonderful idea, we would be interested..myself, husband and almost 3 year old son. We have our own tent. Just popped over to your FB page, very nice :-)

[NettleTea]

We have had feedback about the prices from Canopy and Stars - looking like £80 per night for the bell tent, £85 for the others.

[youarekidding]

Oh this sounds interesting. I'm a MN - obviously!- and have 1 DS aged 6. We would bring our own tent. We have never done back to basics camping before, more of George foreman and kettle electric camping

love if I go I'll be there alone with 6yo DS so we could always team up when your DH leaves?

Oh actually DS will be 7 by then.

[EggyAllenPoe]

sounds great -

dog can have a weekend off,
we can bring our 70's glamping unit! if that's ok...

we promise to be good. :)
2 adults 2 little girlies.

archaeologists? interesting....

have you booked cloudless skies? >hopeful

[EggyAllenPoe]

and although i do do cloth nappies, not whilst camping...

[Jaquelinehyde]

Oooh I'm so tempted to book the Bell tent but we only live 5 mins down the road from there.

Also we have never camped before in our lives so I expect we would need to buy a lot of stuff? Would we?

[jklikesrowing]

can i come? just me and ds?

[ReshapeWhileDamp]

Am intrigued by your invite list: cloth nappy users, MNers ... and archaeologists! I qualify for all three of those categories, but sadly, that's the weekend we're at our folk festival. Otherwise would be v tempted.

[SeaShellsMyDogSmells]

lol eggy that was my reaction to the archeologists! I have 101 boring pertinent questions to ask geek alert

[NettleTea]

The archaeologists are down to the fact that one of our WWOOFers is an archaeologist who is taking a sabatical, but has been taking surruptitious pieces of the castle up to his mates at the British Museum, and they have got very excited about the prospect of having a poke around (he says they dont get out much), so I thought they might like a historical corner to stay in!
It is an odd mix I agree!

[TuftyFinch]

Hi NettleTea, your site looks lovely. Really love the way you've furnished the tents. Only live 5 mins away but 4 year old DS just saw the photos and is begging me to take him. Is your friend taking bits of Bodiam castle? am intrigued how it's possible to pilfer bits of castle, is he stuffing bits down his trousers?

[OhYouBadBadCrookshanks]

Can't commit yet but I am very interested :) would be a tent and 3 of us.
If dh pulls horrid faces at it is there public transport to get to it?

[SeaShellsMyDogSmells]

If you get to a train station me (or someone with a bigger car) could pick you up(if you forecast sun that is
There are alot of dps going though so shouldn't be too bad for the menfolk!!

[MisSalLaneous]

Thanks for prices, Nettle. I'm very tempted by the idea of sleeping in your lovely tent and not having to pack, but, having discussed it with dh, we've decided to bring our own tent this time. Love your place though, so hopefully we'll come glamping with friends in future anyway.

[randommoment]

Would we be allowed to come? I'm not a member of the Camping Forum, as I've only just heard of its existence, but I will join straight away (or at least when I've worked out how to find it). Probably just me and 12 yr old twin girls. In the circumstances cloth vs. disposable nappies is a bit past my stage of mummying. (For the record I used both depending on how much sleep I'd had the night before). But I am a History and Archaeology graduate!

[EggyAllenPoe]

well, one of my mates has been on time team...

establishes own credentials as font of all things archaelogoical

[NettleTea]

Dont think you need to be a member of anything. Im not a member as far as I know. Will be working out a way of taking bookings when my brain is less frazzled, would be good to get it all prebooked, including any wood/food requirements.

We are near to Robertsbridge station - about a mile and a half away.

[SeaShellsMyDogSmells]

No membership-just this board frequented by friendly loons :)

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Just spotted your reply SeaShells (was on phone over weekend). That is really kind of you - thank you :) I shall do my best at sun charming!!! not talked things over with dh yet, going to pick the right moment....

[NettleTea]

A very exciting day today.

We have officially made it onto the Canopy and Stars website
here

Also I got my certification and am now qualified to be a farm educational leader

AND even more exciting (well, to sad sack me anyway) the place I picked to create the camping pitch in the wood is being constructed by the WOOFers. Not only are they making me something far more spectacular than the 'just make it flat' instructions - with built up wattled and log walls at the side and front, and a small enclosure outside the tent - but they have discovered that I was not the first person to choose that site for camping. At the back of the area they are digging out they have brought up some mesolithic flint tools - a perfect hide scraper, and flint flakes, some bits of pottery contemporary with the tools, evidence of a fire pit and pot stones which were heated and put into pots of water or stew to heat them. So around 12,000 years ago there were people camping at Glottenham. Its very handy having a British Museum archaeologist working with us. He is taking some bits up to the museum on Monday, and is going to clean, record and pack them for us, and photograph the site, so we dont get any hassle from officialdom.

Anyways, back to the Bank holiday weekend, I am ready to start taking bookings, and any pre-orders of wood, charcoal or local produce. PM me !!