Would you let 2 15yr old friends wild camp alone in the Peaks?

[TriangulationStation]

Neither have camping experience other than on-site family holidays.

Neither has decent kit (and they’re not borrowing mine!) that means boots, waterproofs, insulating layers, sleep mat, the whole caboodle.

They’re both moderately sensible, but one is quite sensitive and lacks stamina.

They plan on cooking with a twig stove not a gas one or open fire.

And apparently I’ve to drop them off and pick them up again a few days later. Never mind my work schedule or the 130 mile round trip each time.

Ive already outright refused Snowdonia (in autumn to bear in mind) so they’re now trying the Peaks.

there must be a solution.

Only if you agree to pay the bill when these two daft lads need rescuing.
No proper kit and they don’t even know the basics like how to create a rocket stove or fire hole?

They’d be better off going on a survival training weekend.

No.

I don't think so and I'm quite laid back usually. It's not legal to wild camp either - a good enough reason to say they need to find a campsite!

If they start a fire it can spread. Wildfires up on the peaks can cause terrible damage. I'd suggest a campsite or a camping barn but no one will take a booking for under 18. I'm not sure whether youth hostels in the peaks would accept them so young. It's cold and risky to camp with no equipment. Basically they are too young to be deemed responsible by any of the organisations who would allow them to camp. Find them another adventure. As others have said, they need to sign up for Duke of Edinburgh.

Thanks for replies. They’re to show my son.
I just wanted him to see that his parent isn’t the only one that thinks his idea is daft.

I love that he’s been upfront with me about wanting to do this as it shows he’s confident communicating with me honestly but here’s the next instalment :

I texted his friend’s parent and they told me they were ‘under the impression I was taking them camping and sleeping in my campervan’. So their child had fed them a big fib.

Teenagers, eh 🙄

Too right! Never been and it’s not rained !

North Lees def still going was there on a work event this August. I did suggest that to him.

@TriangulationStation His idea might be far fetched and overly ambitious for his experience, but at least he was honest with you.

Let him build his resilience by sleeping in a tent in the garden for a few days. Easier to learn to cope with issues while safe.

100% no

They sadly passed away when their car went into water on a bend on the road.

I am an experienced wild camper and I wouldn’t have allowed mine to do this. Especially not now as the nights are getting longer and colder:

If you feel you can compromise, rather than saying no, offer to drop them at a basic campsite, with proper kit. Give them a modest budget and let them choose their provisions.

They need a decent camping stove to cook on - you need to make sure they understand how to use it safely. I.e. on a flat surface so it doesn’t rock, away from anything flammable, never ever lit inside the tent, etc.

Thankyou for your excellent advice

I’m an experienced camper and work in the industry. The post was to garner replies from other parents to show my son how daft his and his friend’s idea was, which I will let him read tomorrow.

Definitely not at 15

Well aside from the fact there is no place truly wild in England, two 15yr olds with no experience and no proper kit should not even attempt to camp unsupervised anywhere. A cold and rainy night could be lethal for them.
I suggest they pitch a tent in a garden. They can’t start at boss level. 🤨

There's no way I would let two 15 year olds wild camp out in the wild.

First of all, even with portable phone chargers, their mobile phones won't stay charged all weekend.

Then they'll have no way of contacting anyone. If they take one wrong turn, they could get lost . With no phone.

Why would you even entertain the idea?

Let them camp overnight in the garden

Oh I just saw this post.

OK so you had no intention of letting them go, thankfully.

No. Need to either have scouring experience or maybe suggest they do Duke of Edinburgh awards-great life skills are learned. .

I think you already know from the way your post is phrased. It sounds insane tbh, so many dangers!

It's illegal, why would you let your 15 yo do anything illegal?

Uh. Hell no! And I say that as a kid who camped a ton on my own as soon as I could drive (16, not UK), did multi day sea kayaking trips without adults at similar age etc. BUT I’d camped a ton, could reliably get a fire going, knew how camping stoves work (and that a twig stove is an idiotic idea), had done extended “wild” camping trips etc.

The compromise is that they choose somewhere closer to home, that is an actual camp site with adults around and they have to try that themselves first.

The solution is they wait until they are 16 and then go to a youth hostel.

No kit and no experience is a disaster waiting to happen.

I like the idea of them camping in the garden, no access to the kitchen or the bathroom and make them walk for a couple of miles carrying what kit they do have.

It's not illegal if you get the permission from the private land owner.

It's not illegal if you get the permission from the private land owner.

I think it's safe to assume no landowner is going to have given permission to a couple of random non-local 15yos.