Wild camping is only really “permitted” in the lakes but if you follow a few guidelines you’re unlikely to get into much trouble. In the rest of England you just need to have your wits about you.
People don’t tend to share their spots unfortunately so you’ll have to make your own judgement on the best place to stop but that’s part of the fun. Few things to look out for/think about are;
- water, being close to it is always a good option as carrying it in is tiring. I got an MSR trailshot water filter which is great for making water drinkable and only £40
- equipment, don’t take everything you own as you wont tend to need it all, try to scale it back. The 4 season sleeping bag isn’t going to be needed in this weather
- food, you need calories if you are hiking in to a spot, snacking through the day is good with a boil in the bag meal for dinner
- alcohol, spirits are lighter than beer!!!
A little inspiration from our trip this weekend gone in the Dales...
This is what the Lake District gov website says which is all pretty logical;
- camp above the highest fell wall, well away from towns and villages
- leave no litter - this includes not burying any litter and removing other people's
- don't light any fires, even if there is evidence that fires might have been lit
stay for only one night
- keep groups very small - only one or two tents
- camp as unobtrusively as possible with inconspicuous tents which blend in
- leave the campsite as you would want to find it
- carry out everything you carried in
- carry out tampons and sanitary towels. Burying them doesn't work as animals dig them up again
- choose a dry pitch rather than digging drainage ditches around a tent or moving boulders
- perform toilet duties at least 30 metres - 100 feet - from water and bury the results with a trowel