Is it OK to Wild Camp over 1500ft

Q. Whilst browsing through your pages I came across the 'Wild Camping' issue.

Please correct me if I am wrong but I thought it was generally accepted that anywhere over 1500 feet was considered fair game as a camping ground, working on the 'take only photos and leave only footprints' principle.

The National Trust do state that they tolerate Wild camping as long as the campsite is out of sight of buildings and roads and that no fires be lit, though they do not state whether or not the 1500 feet 'rule' applies.

It seems to be a very grey area as far as the law is concerned and perhaps is best left that way in the hope that any individuals that wish to 'wild camp' be sensible in their choice of site and courteous to the land owner at all times.

Yours

Phil Norfolk-Middleton

A. Well according to the National Trust website https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/wild-camping-in-the-lake-district they tolerate wild camping in the lake district as long as your above the 400m/1200ft fell wall, and you follow the leave no trace rule, no more than 2 tents at one spot, no fires, small tents that blend into the landscape, residents and other wild campers should not be able to see you. Anything below this level unless indicated is illegal fly camping and is not tolerated, you cannot camp in valleys, lakeshores or any lowland area unless its a designated camp site. Not sure if this applies to all the national trust site or just the lake district but wild camping is fine above the fell wall.

Dean Marshall, Ashington

A. Wild Camping and The Law in England, Scotland and Wales.

Tents cannot be pitched just anywhere because every piece of Britain is owned by some individual or some organisation and according to the strict letter of the law permission must be obtained prior to pitching tent and camping.

In practice however, this is often impractical and wild camping is usually tolerated in the more remote areas - typically, more than half a day's walk from an official campsite or other accommodation providing you:

Keep groups small
Camp as unobtrusively as possible
Leave camp as you found it
Remove all litter (even other people's)
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
Toilet duties should be performed 30m (100ft) from water and the results buried using a trowel
At all time, help preserve the environment
And if you are in any doubt about what you're doing, find out more

In Scotland, the current access legislation (which came into effect in early 2005) is explicit about your right to wild camp on hill land. However, there are exceptions. Since March 2011 you are not permitted to wild camp between Dryman and Rowardennan on the shore of Loch Lomond. See Loch Lomond Wild Camping Ban for more information.

There appears to be an exception to this with respect to camping in Dartmoor National Park where the right to wild camping is actually enshrined in the National Parks & Access to the Countryside Act, 1949 amendment Dartmoor Commons Act, 1985 - see Wild Camping in the UK for more details.

For the definitive answer with respect to wild camping in Scotland see the answer supplied by the Scottish Natural Heritage

For a few (tongue in cheek) tips on wild camping see Some Wild Camping Tips.

NB. go4awalk.com cannot offer any advice on suitable locations for wild camping - but click here for walks from exisiting campsites.

Hope this helps

Mike (Editor)

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