Want to go wild camping solo

[DestinationTravel]

After waiting years (decades?) to find a partner to go camping with, I have decided to start camping by myself! Never done it, but feeling excited about getting started!

I would like to try wild camping as large campsites are not for me - can you recommend some good locations in England or Scotland? I dream of waking up with sea views!

Should I do a camper van or a simple pop-up tent? Is a campervan more safe/unsafe than a tent?

My DH likes a spot of wild camping by himself. Reccies a map to look for suitable spots and puts his tent up for one night, packs it all away in the morning. Goes for a walk and sometimes back to the same spot.

@user16395699

The op was the one saying she wanted an option she would feel safe with. And it was the op who described her safety plan as being based on driving off if something happened.

Asking what safety means to her and pointing out there might be flaws in her safety plan is helpful. Encouraging someone to put themselves in an avoidably unsafe position is not helpful.

Yes and the OP said she would feel safer in a locked van. So why piss in her chips with an incredibly unlikely scenario?

Shall I wait here whilst you provide data on the attacks on women in camper vans in England and Scotland that have occurred as you describe, so I can be assured you're coming from a perspective of genuine concern and not overly-dramatic scaremongering based on zero evidence?

Wild camping is very different from van camping. Mostly with wild camping your hiking into a spot, taking own supplies with you (including a trowel for the loo) and pitching your tent. It isn't park car and pitch next to it like many people who do the NC 500 or visiting certain Glen's seem to think it is!

Van camping is again not a layby next to the road generally it's finding a very quiet spot. Unfortunately the last few years in Scotland many people have taken the biscuit with both (especially in Trussochs and the NC 500) so many areas it's now a issue. Any info you will find on a spot on the Internet is very unlikely to be quiet (especially in the van).
Your best trying some of the small tent only campsites in the Peak District or Yorkshire Dale's for instance which are miles away from anyone and have basic facilities they are usually very quiet.

You need some outdoor equipment and understanding of map reading and navigation before going proper wild camping as well as the ability to carry everything you need including water.

My mum's friend bought a small campervan when she retired and has gone on solo trips all over the UK.

A highlight was a few nights on Harris where she parked up in spots beside the beaches maintained by the North Harris Trust - space for one tent or van and you pay via a honestly box (or PayPal!).

She's never had any hassle and feels perfectly safe in her van.

There are some very very rural and very very small campsites which are basically wild camping but you have to pay

You can wild camp in Scotland, we did the NC500 (google it) and it was amazing and we've been up several times since. I've done it in my own a few times, hired a VW camper as I'm not great without a bed and some luxuries.

@Laquila I was thinking of hiring one, I am used to driving vans so that should be okay. Some of them don’t offer bedding though so that’s another thing to worry about!

@sleepyhead Harris is one location that keeps coming up - relatively easy to get to, probably very safe and not too crowded. And the beaches are gorgeous!

@capercaillie

If you’re wild camping, you’ll need a good environmentally friendly plan for dealing with toilet stuff. At the moment, burying human waste is still tolerated in some places but current advice in Scotland is to carry out and dispose of properly. If you can’t deal with that, then wild camping not for you. Wild camping is also in very remote spots - not close to houses. Needs a good walk in away from roads etc. Plenty of quiet campsites if this also not possible. Pop up tents not suitable for wild camping - usually single layer and useless in rain.

Okay, I think I may have to stick to campervans then!

Just take your own bedding in the camper.

I also took a small porta potty and emptied it when I was close to a public loo, or some campsites will let you fill up with water and dispose of human waste for a few quid

Thank you all, after sleeping on it, I think I will start with a small camp site and a campervan . Any recommendations for a sea side, small, cosy one please let me know!

Be aware that feeling run high in some parts of Scotland against campervans not using designated campsites. It is a thorny issue. 'Wild camping' is permitted under the Land Reform Act, but traditonally this meant people who walked into the hills - I don't think anyone anticipated how this would be interpreted to encompass road side camping.

Please take all your rubbish and waste out with you - you brought it in, you can carry it out. And that includes your faeces unless you can find a designated place to empty your chemical toilet or use public toilets. Do not pile your rubbish up beside a layby litter bin - it is your rubbish. Please try and spend some money in the local economy - huge campervans can be parasites, filling up with a massive shop at a supermarket, parking on the fragile machair by the beach and leaving their rubbish.

If you want to be wild, safe and free, put on your boots and walk for a few miles into our wonderful wilderness, there will not be a soul to be seen. Then you can gaze at the stars in silence without cars going by - that is wild camping.

There's a great campsite at Rhosson, near St David's. Pembrokeshire. Fabulous views.
If you want a Scottish location - look at Gairloch and Ullapool and along that coast. Really beautiful.

You should be able to find suitable sites on here: nearlywildcamping.org/

We sometimes go camping by canoe. Stay in basic Riverside campsites where the facilities are a toilet block and running water. We have lightweight tents (not popup, they don't pack small enough- it all needs to go in waterproof bags). Take food, sleeping bags, clothes etc.

Its lovely waking up on the Riverside in the morning. We might do a lake next...apparently some campsites are only accessible by boat.

If you want to be wild, safe and free, put on your boots and walk for a few miles into our wonderful wilderness, there will not be a soul to be seen. Then you can gaze at the stars in silence without cars going by - that is wild camping.

This

I've wildcamped a little in Scotland and I've definitely been conscious that I'm on my own in the middle of nowhere - the further away from a road I was, the happier I felt.

I love picking up and going wherever I feel like but, having camped through some not very nice weather, I've realised I'm more of a fair weather camper so I worked out a way to turn the boot of my tiny car into a (very!) mini campervan so I could kip in there if the weather is truly awful. If you have access to a car, you could try this so you have the choice should you want it.

Depending on the car, it can be as easy as simply putting the back seats down flat and sliding the front seats forward as far as they go and then sticking your camping mat down.

In my car, because there's a bit of a dip over the actual boot and to account for gaps where the headrests are when the seats are down, I made some boards to lay over it to even it out. I measured the whole back area and had four rectangles of MDF cut in a size that means I can stack them flat in my boot when not in use. I lay three rectangles side by side across the back right up to the boot door then lay the fourth over the flat headrests along behind the front seats, then lay my camping mat over for cushioning. Hope that makes sense! It's snug but I just fit diagonally and the MDF only cost me about £20. I've yet to figure out blacking out the windows for privacy/darkness when I'm asleep but I don't think it'd be hard. I keep any camping/cooking gear in a couple of strong supermarket bags for life which I store in the boot during the day and pop on the front seat at night, to keep it all together and easily accessible.

Have a great trip if you decide to go, you’ve inspired me to go somewhere this autumn so thank you!

[quote DestinationTravel]@sleepyhead Harris is one location that keeps coming up - relatively easy to get to, probably very safe and not too crowded. And the beaches are gorgeous![/quote]
Harris is great, the campsite at Horgabost is very basic (fresh water only) and feels like wild camping if you find the right spot and it's slightly past peak season.

this might be what you're looking for to get started nearlywildcamping.org/

or one thing we have done is go to a place we often go in the daytime, so we know it well.

Lots of lovely quiet sites that allow campfires and have a ‘wild’ feel whilst also being on campsites.

Search PitchUp with the ‘wild style’ ‘quiet’ and ‘campfire allowed’ filters on.

I have been camping on my own many times.

As well as PitchUp try CoolCamping with appropriate filters.

And look at Blackberry Wood adults-only section, The Secret Campsite , and Beech Wood Estate.

Just to be absolutely clear OP, what do you mean by ‘wild camping’?

Technically it means going off grid, camping somewhere which is not a campsite.

But people have started to use it for ‘back to basics’ type camping. For e.g on a small quiet site, maybe in woodland, with toilet, clean water, maybe showers etc, but a more ‘wild and natural’ feel.

I would start with these sorts of sites, as advised above.