Where do I leave may car when wild camping in the Lake District?

Q. Me and a few friends are going wild/campsite camping in the Lake District and i'm a bit stuck about where to leave the car for nearly a week. Thought maybe asking a pub, don't really just want to dump it on a street and annoy the local residents!

Any ideas.

Thank you very much.

Matthew Dodd, Keighley

A. See Where do I leave may car when wild camping?

Mike (Editor)

A. Obviously it depends on the locality. A hotel is a good idea. A few years ago I left mine at the Mill Inn, Mungrisdale, with the then landlord's permission. It's worth paying a few pounds if required to ensure some peace of mind. Have a meal at the place before and/or after the trip. Also some Guest Houses with a large parking area may help. I did this some years ago in Ambleside of all places. Also are any of the group YHA members as it may be worth talking to a hostel warden if it is a quieter time of year.

Peter Birbeck, Bournemouth

A. Hi, there is a great campsite in the langdales - near the old dungeon gill [sic] pub. You can pay to leave your car (only a few quid) and it is safe place. Quick access on to the fells and some great wild camping in the langdales near the various tarns. Returning to your cars you can also use the showers in the campsite and of course the pub before going on.

Martin Hilton, Chester

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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