camping
 

I plan to travel throughout the UK this Spring and Summer. Anyone with information on cheap/inexpensive/free camping, please advise me. I will be travelling by 1974 BMW R75/6 and plan to avoid large metropolitan areas. Cordially, Vince

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continental drifter

dear traveller,

I live on a farm near Aylesbury- easy train to London and not far from Oxford, a nice area in the south east- you are welcome to camp in a quiet corner.
tim

Vince
Be advised that in remote Scotland (quite a lot of it in the North) it is acceptable to 'wild' camp. It can be a long way to find the owner and ask ! It's at your risk of course, but easy enough to find a spot out of sight. We've camped on the side of (admitedly very quite) roads in far NW and left tent each day with no worries.
Many pubs in out of way places on North York Moors and Dales and like will let you camp outside for free, very handy !
National Parks are the main places to stipulate 'no camping' but still possible.
Hope that helps.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Fritz:
Vince
Be advised that in remote Scotland (quite a lot of it in the North) it is acceptable to 'wild' camp. It can be a long way to find the owner and ask ! It's at your risk of course, but easy enough to find a spot out of sight. We've camped on the side of (admitedly very quite) roads in far NW and left tent each day with no worries.
Many pubs in out of way places on North York Moors and Dales and like will let you camp outside for free, very handy !
National Parks are the main places to stipulate 'no camping' but still possible.
Hope that helps.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


Fritz, Thanks so much for the response.


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continental drifter

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tim:
dear traveller,

I live on a farm near Aylesbury- easy train to London and not far from Oxford, a nice area in the south east- you are welcome to camp in a quiet corner.
tim <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Tim, Thanks so much for your response. I will indeed look you up. Please email more specific information to: vincejxg@yahoo.com


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continental drifter

>>>Be advised that in remote Scotland (quite a lot of it in the North) it is acceptable to 'wild' camp.

The word should be tolerated, as in some places they will move you on.
I live in the North of Scotland, and as long as you leave it as you found it, no one will mind, the problen is some people do not.
and some people think the fishing is free, and that really upsets them,

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I would be careful about leaving your gear unattend in remote areas, as there are always opportunists about.

Julio

You could perhaps join the camping and caravan club - their sites are really excellent (showers, peaceful, friendly, not too big) and prices range from around £2.00 to £4.50 (GBP) for a solo camper with a tent (depending on whether it's high or low season). I've been to many of their sites and they are generally excellent and out of the way. Let me know if you want more details? I appreciate that the price may be too high for your budget - but the quality is really good - membership is about £20. It's really safe to leave your bike/gear their if you plan to go walking. I left my bike at a site in Wales for 2 weeks whilst I did a 200 mile trek - they locked it away in a secure area and didn't ask for a penny. Nice people! If you prefer something cheap and simpler then you can get details of farm camps which open in the summer. These consist of a field and water tap (possibly a toilet) and can be as cheap as 60 pence (£0.60 GBP) you can get details from the tourist information centres in the location you're planning to travel in. I have to say that it's very easy on a bike - you can usually just find a tourist information centre, get a list of sites and turn-up! I have never been turned down yet!
Hope this helps - let me know if you need any more information about camping in the UK - I've been doing it for over 30 years now...

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Fuzzy Duck
(I'm quackers about bikes)

Fuzzy Duck, Excellent advise. Yes, I would like more information regarding joining the organization.

Cordially, Vince

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continental drifter

Here you go Vince (and anyone else who is interested):

Camping & Caravanning Club Greenfields House, Westwood Way, Coventry CV4 8JH. Tel: 024 7669 4995 Web: http://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk

Membership is £27.50 + £4 joining fee(GBP) - but I think you should be able to join on a temporary basis for just £10 + £5 (postage) - details on their website.


Charges per night range from £1.95 to £5.30 (for a solo camper on a bike) depending on the time of year and facilities. Most sites are open from March 1st to September 30th - but some sites are open all year round. These prices are for the 92 club sites based all over the UK (I pay on average about £4 per night when I go camping in the summer). Membership also gives access to the 1,200 certificated sites which are usually quite small and cheaper (often on farms) - but facilities limited to taps, toilets and grass - prices are on average around £2 per night (or maybe less). The club give you a BIG BOOK which lists all these and other sites - 4000 in total - very handy!

The expensive/busy times of year are the last week in May, late July and all of August.

The Youth Hostel Association also allow camping - at similar prices, but you get the flexibility of being able to choose a bunk indoors if the weather is nasty.

A lot of the National Parks/forestry schemes run simple camp sites which are generally very, very cheap and simple.

I have to say that the camping club sites are my preferred option (not the cheapest - but the best value for money) - the people are very friendly and helpful and I think nearly every site has hot showers. A lot have laundry facilities, good security and plenty of space (at least 6 metres between pitches) and you can get your freezer packs refrozen (if you carry them) for £0.30. As a solo traveller you will be offered plenty of cups of tea, cans of beer, breakfast, food and shelter if it is tipping down with rain - I always get talking to someone who is interested in motorcycles. Other private sites can be poorly equipped, overcrowded, less-friendly, on a slope or more expensive. Camping club sites are generally excellent.

Whatever you decide to do I wish you well - if you need any more help please e-mail me directly - I have a spare copy of the club's 2001 booklet which has details of all 92 club sites, photographs and charges. Let me know if you want a copy and I'll post it to you...

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Fuzzy Duck
(I'm quackers about bikes)

[This message has been edited by Fuzzy Duck (edited 30 December 2001).]