Topic: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search (Read 15596 times)

draven · « **on:** April 26, 2012 »

hi there, nice forum, been lurking for a while and thought it was about time to register

im new to the forum but not new to wild camping. I ve been wild camping for many years in my van ( i know the purists maybe will laugh at the mere suggestion of camping in a vehicle lol), i have lived in a van for two periods in my life in the past, both for 3 months. for the past few years life got kinda busy and the camping became less and less frequent, but my want to get out there has been renewed by the enthuisasm of my brother in law who is a bushcraft guy. he spends most of his year out in the desert and flew home the other day for a few days, he mentioned to me that he fancied going camping while he was home, so i said i would look into it.

i spent yesterday going round all the old spots that i used to use along the North Coast and was saddened to see most of them sealed off and now innaccessible

i spoke to some people in the forestry who we used to get keys off years ago and they told me that camping in the forests is now not allowed anymore...

i know ive been out of the loop for a few years, but is finding a wooded area one can pull a van into for the night and pitch a tent etc that impossible to find on the North Coast these days?

he is arriving with us tomorrow and i genuinely cant think of anywhere we can get access to for the night.

im guessing this is an ongoing problem across the country and not just up here on the north coast, there are car parks we could use, but tbh they arent really what we are looking after, im hoping im wrong and that there are places we can still use.

any help at all greatly appreciated :-)

andymcinroy · « **Reply #1 on:** April 26, 2012 »

I totally understand the frustration you feel about camping in northern ireland.

The national trust recently issued a list of things every child should do. One of the top items was 'do a wild camp'. What they failed to mention is that wild camping is forbidden on National Trust land by their own byelaws. Many other organisations are the same (Forestry Commission etc). There is no legal basis for wild camping in Ireland. Compare this to Scotland where there is a legal right to practice responsible wild camping.

Unfortunately, the freedom to camp that was once accepted here has been eroded due to the irresponsible behaviour of a few. Dare I say it, but car boot campers have a lot to answer for here. Camping with a vehicle in tow generally means camping near habitation, lighting fires/barbeques and drinking large quantities of alcohol. This isn't exactly wild camping.

Wild camping to me is putting a pack on and walking to more remote corners (these can still be found in northern ireland). I pitch at dusk and leave at dawn. I don't light fires and I pack everything out. When camping with friends it's 1 or 2 max. Following this approach, I have rarely been noticed, never mind challenged.

If this sort of wild camping is of interest then try some of the coves below the Causeway headlands. Also try around Fair Head or Rathlin Island. If the car camping is still what you are after then I'd say you will struggle to find a place in the north. For that I would recommend the dunes at Magheragallon in Donegal where pitching in the dunes seems to be OK.

draven · « **Reply #2 on:** April 26, 2012 »

thanks for the reply

unfortunately due to health reasons im currently restricted to having to use my van at the moment, (broken collar bone, so cant lug gear into the trees etc) i have done lots of tent camping in the past as well, and some without either, but currently i cant.

i get what you are saying about wild camping and i understand that, some of the places i have camped in the van over the years would definitely be considered as wild thats for sure, but as i said, most of those places now have a locked gate over them. most of the ones up here have been closed due to boy racers and the like raking around lanes, tracks and car parks in the wee small hours.

i remember reading a few years ago that the NT tolerated wild camping somewhere in their mission statement as long as it wasn't for more than one night, but i guess that has probably changed over the past few years as well .... i stayed on the Clandeboy estate last weekend and as i walked through the woods i saw so many perfect spots, but again access is the key.

ill keep searching for that elusive spot, we have one we use down south and its awesome, i was just hoping to find something a bit closer to home *shrugs*
ill check out the place in Donegal you mention, but its woodland camping im really looking for lol

many thanks

andymcinroy · « **Reply #3 on:** April 26, 2012 »

The National Trust have an unoffical policy of turning a blind eye to mountain camping at sites over 450m high. The policy has annoyed many wild campers in the Lake District and Snowdonia who enjoy pitching in quiter valley locations. Here in Northern Ireland, this policy would effectively rule out any kind of wild camping on National Trust sites. In practice though an out-of sight approach to camping rarely causes a problem here.

Pulled from the NT website.
'The Trust does not generally allow camping on non-recognised sites without permission. 'Wild camping', where permitted (for example in the Lake District, in upland areas above 450m), should be out of sight of the public highway, entail only one-night stopovers with a maximum of two campers, and leave no trace of their presence.'

The main problem with forest camping is the Forestry Commission's concern with forest fire. For that reason, there was a proposal to ban access to our forests after dark. Thankfully this has not gone ahead. However, camping is still very much forbidden and you would undoubtedly be moved on if discovered.

Here's little idea for you. Take a drive down into Murlough Bay near Fair Head. Close to the bottom of the hill there is a sharp bend where you can park a car. If you walk downwards from there towards Fairhead cliffs you will find several nice sites which are out of sight.

draven · « **Reply #4 on:** April 26, 2012 »

last time we camped murlough a local fella turned up as did the police, the police were great about it ( they were bored more than anything and had taken a drive down in the middle of the night), the local guy not so much, we had camped it many times before without incident, but he decided after a few drinks to take a drive down and make sure no-one was about, he was beered up and fairly abusive from the get go, which is always a no win situation

since my last post, i had a brain wave, i have shooting rights on some forested land and i just contacted the owners and asked if they would mind if i spent a night down there to monitor the ducks, so thats one place with permission granted

i can get the van in and get it parked up out of site, and then take the tent down into the forest as it is only a few 100m away from where i can park up.

possibly a result, we will see how it pans out!

draven · « **Reply #5 on:** April 30, 2012 »

well we ended up ^^ last friday night, had a great afternoon / night, stashed the van in the end up and headed out on foot, not a sinner about the whole time we were there

the startings of a shelter

then the battery on my phone died so no more pics, but it was a great time, the weather held out and the craic was mighty

Kayakgirl · « **Reply #6 on:** April 30, 2012 »

I was up at Doagh Island - Donegal at the weekend and it has plenty of cracking spots for wild camping, oh and fab views!

Rayzerm · « **Reply #7 on:** May 01, 2012 »

Quote from: Thanks to the hills.. Kayakgirl's knees are in pieces! on April 30, 2012

I was up at Doagh Island - Donegal at the weekend and it has plenty of cracking spots for wild camping, oh and fab views!

Cracking spot up there in Doagh Island. Mind you, no shortage of wind either!!!

I've seen lots of people camping by the beach overlooking the five finger strand.

kiltedrunner · « **Reply #8 on:** May 13, 2012 »

Agreed, the official stance is starting to really p**s me off. Its a pretty modest request to want to camp out on some land set aside for public use! If i want an overnighter somewhere i have to drive to newcastle from belfast, thats a 1/4 tank of petrol for a night

.

i have however found a permit form for an 'outdoor activity' for foresty service forests/ woodland. My nearest wood is Cairnwood near craigantlet but there are 'no camping, no fire' signs everywhere, so even trying to get away with a cheeky stealth camp seems a bit unlikely. If i do go I dont want to be on edge the entire time, i want to relax and enjoy the place, not scramble at first light to get everything packed up before the rangers do their rounds.

was going to do this as an individual thing but if the mods want to pick up on this i reckon getting an ni-wild wide permission form for various forests wouldnt be a bad idea. more likely to say yes if its an organised group applying and it would FINALLY give me some peace of mind that the country isnt a complete mess (if they say yes of course!) .

The form is from here at the bottom
http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/index/do-it-online/leisure-home-and-community-online/download-application-form-for-permits-for-vehicles-and-activities-in-forests.htm

if anyone wants to apply for a similar thing in the mean time, but it would be really great to get a proper movement on this started, the law is a bit ridiculous.
Cheers

Pete

draven · « **Reply #9 on:** October 04, 2012 »

apologies for the late reply on this pete,

i have in the past (several years ago) used an activity permit for the purposes of a group camp, whenever i was looking into organising something for when my brother in law was home i enquired again, but was told no overnight stays at all so it didnt suit to go down that route any more.

hope that helps

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Author Topic: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search (Read 15596 times)

draven

wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

andymcinroy

Re: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

draven

Re: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

andymcinroy

Re: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

draven

Re: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

draven

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Kayakgirl

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Rayzerm

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kiltedrunner

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draven

Re: wild camping, woodland camping with vehicle access, the eternal search

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