Bongo Fury

Hi all - Trying to inspire Mrs Rebiam to embrace wild camping but she is still a bit squeamish! Any advice on selecting a suitable '1st spot' so I can break her in gently? We wild camped all the time in NZ a few years ago but safety and privacy seems to be her issue in the UK. Any advice you can share would be gratefully recieved.

Cheers

I am a member of this site http://www.wildcamping.co.uk/forums/forum.php - I'm sure you'll get help on there

You could ask if you can stay at a nice country pub for the first outing, just to test the principal.

Other than that we usually find a length of straightened road so we can stop well off the carriageway. Later you stop and earlier you're up the better, but we've never been bothered.

To check out possible spots in advance have a look on your road map for picninc sites then check Google Earth/Street View, this has done us well, too.

Come to Wales plenty of places and you will not be bothered, especially nice area is the A 470 road between Cefn Coed in Merthyr Tydfil and The Brecon Beacons some really nice lay byes overlooking the reservoir and one at the Llwyn Onn reservoir is very near the Garw Nant forestry site, which has gorgeous walks and a cafe/ restaurant for meals. Also Storey Arms, half way between Merthyr and Brecon is nice, loads of places really and no one will bother you, certainly not the law. Also another great place is the old Torpantau railway staiin picnic area, not supposed to stop over but people do no probs, just remember wherever ypu are make sure all valuables are locked up and alarms on if vehicle left.

My first wild camp was on an ungated beach car park near Lowestoft. Nice and quiet until the pubs turned out and the handbrake turns brigade arrived. In the morning we found that we had been joined by some canoeists who were within two or three days of completing a circumnavigation of Britain along with their Winnebago support van.

Since then, if it's coastal, I look for places where people go night fishing as parked camper vans there are usually tolerated.

If you are somewhere fairly populated it probably counts as 'stealth camping' rather than 'wild camping'.

David's post has reminded me of many pleasant tours in that area and just about everywhere else in South, West and Mid Wales. I only had a car then and used B and Bs but might well go back soon with the Bongo if I can afford the huge increase in fuel cost since those days.

Frank

On our Grand tour of Scotland a couple of years ago we offset the high fuel cost by Wild Camping 2 out of 3 nights.

Campsites every couple of days to shower, maybe stay a day extra, and do some walking.

I don't leave Bongy unattended in remote spots and go off, asking for trouble in my book, although others will have had no probs.

Lee on solent in fareham or portsmouth x