The Best Wild Camping Communities and Forums in the UK
Finding your tribe as a wild camper in the UK is one of the most rewarding things you can do for your outdoor life. Whether you are a seasoned Munro-bagger who sleeps under the stars in the Cairngorms every other weekend, or a first-timer nervously planning your debut bivvy in Dartmoor, the right community can transform how you experience the outdoors. These forums, Facebook groups, Reddit threads, and organised clubs offer genuine local knowledge, gear advice rooted in British conditions, and a sense of camaraderie that no YouTube channel can replicate.
This guide covers the best places to connect with fellow wild campers across Scotland, England, and Wales — with honest notes on what each community does well, what kind of members you will find there, and how to get the most out of joining.
Why Community Matters for Wild Camping in the UK
Wild camping in the UK is not straightforward. Unlike much of Scandinavia, where the right to roam is enshrined in law and camping freely is largely uncomplicated, the legal situation in Britain is patchwork and sometimes confusing. In Scotland, the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 grants a statutory right to wild camp responsibly almost anywhere, provided you follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. In England and Wales, however, no such right exists — with the notable exception of Dartmoor National Park, which has its own byelaws permitting wild camping in designated areas.
This legal complexity is precisely why community knowledge is so valuable. Experienced members of forums and groups know which land managers are sympathetic, which areas have informal permissions, where you are likely to be moved on, and how to interact respectfully with landowners. That kind of accumulated, place-specific wisdom cannot be found in a generic camping guide.
Online Forums and Discussion Boards
UKHillwalking Forum
The UKHillwalking.com forum is one of the most active and knowledgeable walking and camping communities in Britain. It has dedicated sections for wild camping, bivvying, gear reviews, and route planning across all three nations. The membership leans toward serious hillwalkers, so discussions tend to be detailed and technically grounded.
The wild camping section includes threads covering everything from lightweight tarp setups for Scottish winter conditions to advice on crossing land managed by grouse moors in the Pennines. Members are generally welcoming to newcomers, though they expect questions to be reasonably well-formed — a quick search before posting goes a long way.
Particularly useful are the trip reports, which members post after completing routes. These often include candid notes about camping spots, water sources, midges (always midges), and any encounters with gamekeepers or farmers. Reading several trip reports for an area you are planning to visit is an excellent way to calibrate expectations.
Outdoors Magic Forum
Outdoors Magic has been one of the UK’s go-to outdoor discussion boards for well over a decade. Its camping and backpacking sections are particularly strong, with long-running threads on lightweight gear, campsite etiquette, and national park regulations. The forum has a healthy mix of ultralight enthusiasts, traditional campers, and everything in between.
One standout feature is the gear marketplace, where members buy and sell used kit at reasonable prices — a genuinely useful resource if you want to try a mid-weight shelter or a down sleeping bag before committing to the full retail price. The community also maintains a fairly strict culture of Leave No Trace, which keeps discussions grounded in responsible practice.
Reddit: r/WildCampingUK
The r/WildCampingUK subreddit has grown substantially over the past few years and now represents one of the most active UK-specific wild camping communities online. Unlike some broader subreddits, it is focused specifically on Britain and Ireland, which keeps discussions relevant and locally informed.
The community is noticeably younger and more visually oriented than the older forums — photo posts of spectacular wild camp spots in Snowdonia, the Lake District, and Torridon regularly attract hundreds of upvotes. However, the written advice threads are also valuable, covering topics such as crossing private land in England ethically, the practicalities of wild camping with a dog, and how to handle bad weather in exposed locations.
One important note: the moderators take a thoughtful approach to location sharing. Particularly sensitive or fragile spots are sometimes discussed in vague terms to protect them from overuse — a policy that many regular members actively support and enforce through community norms.
Backpacking Light UK Community
For those interested in ultralight and lightweight backpacking, the Backpacking Light community — while originally American — has a strong UK contingent who adapt ultralight principles to the notoriously wet and unpredictable British climate. Members frequently discuss the trade-offs between a sub-1kg shelter and the reality of horizontal rain in the Brecon Beacons, or the right balance between packweight and warmth for a November camp on the Knoydart peninsula.
The UK-specific threads are searchable and often incredibly detailed. If you are trying to decide between a Zpacks Duplex and a Hilleberg Akto for Scottish conditions, you will find several thousand words of considered opinion from people who have actually used both in that context.
Facebook Groups Worth Joining
Wild Camping UK
The Wild Camping UK Facebook group is one of the largest with tens of thousands of members. Activity is high and the content spans the full spectrum of wild camping experience — from nervous first-timers posting photos of their first overnight in the Peak District to seasoned campers sharing multi-week Highland traverses.
The group is particularly useful for quick, practical questions. Post a photo of your tent footprint on a hillside and ask whether it looks like suitable terrain, and you will have half a dozen informed responses within the hour. Members also regularly share updates on access issues, changes to landowner policies, and seasonal considerations like breeding bird restrictions in spring.
As with any large Facebook group, quality is variable and it pays to cross-reference advice with other sources. However, the sheer volume of local knowledge represented in the membership makes it an indispensable starting point.
Scottish Wild Camping
This more focused group is specifically for camping in Scotland, where the legal right to wild camp makes the conversations somewhat different in character. Members discuss remote locations, bothies, river crossings, and Highland weather with a matter-of-fact confidence that reflects the more permissive access regime north of the border.
You will find detailed discussions of specific glens, lochs, and mountain plateaux — the kind of place-specific knowledge that is genuinely hard to find elsewhere. Members also frequently discuss the Mountain Bothies Association and its network of unmaintained shelters, which intersects naturally with wild camping culture in Scotland.
Dartmoor Wild Camping
Given Dartmoor’s unique status in England — it is the only area where a statutory right to wild camp exists south of the Scottish border, following the restoration of that right after the 2023 legal case — it has developed its own dedicated camping community. This Facebook group is invaluable for understanding the current access situation, which areas permit camping, fire rules (no open fires on Dartmoor), and how the national park authority interprets the relevant byelaws.
The group is smaller and more specialised, but for anyone planning a Dartmoor wild camp, it is essential reading before you go.
Walking and Mountaineering Clubs with Active Wild Camping Culture
The Ramblers
The Ramblers is Britain’s largest walking charity with over 100,000 members and local groups across England, Scotland, and Wales. While it is primarily a day-walking organisation, many local groups organise overnight backpacking trips with wild camping components, particularly in the national parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Joining a local Ramblers group is an excellent way to meet experienced walkers in your area who can introduce you to safe, responsible overnight routes. The organisation also campaigns actively for access rights and right-of-way preservation, so membership supports the broader cause of outdoor access in the UK.
The Mountaineering Scotland Association
Mountaineering Scotland is the national body for hillwalking and climbing in Scotland. It provides training courses, access advice, and a network of clubs across the country. For wild campers in Scotland, their guidance on the Scottish Outdoor Access Code is authoritative and regularly updated.
They also publish detailed information on sensitive habitats, seasonal restrictions for nesting birds, and how to camp responsibly near riparian areas and peatland — knowledge that is increasingly important as the environmental impact of outdoor recreation comes under greater scrutiny.
The British Mountaineering Council
The BMC represents climbers, hill walkers, and mountaineers in England and Wales. Their website includes extensive access information for specific areas, including notes on where wild camping is tolerated informally and where it is likely to cause conflict. They also maintain a live access database, which is worth checking before visiting a new area.
The BMC’s local area clubs — of which there are hundreds — often have a strong bivvying and wild camping culture, particularly in the Peak District, the Lake District, and Snowdonia. Finding your nearest BMC-affiliated club is a good way to meet like-minded people and tap into local knowledge networks.
Specialist Resources and Websites
Mountain Bothies Association
The Mountain Bothies Association does not run a general camping forum, but its community of volunteers and regular bothy users overlaps heavily with the wild camping world. Their website lists bothies across Scotland, northern England, and Wales, and the association maintains a mailing list and Facebook group through which members share updates on bothy conditions, repairs, and access.
For wild campers, bothies represent a useful backup option in genuinely bad weather, and understanding the bothy network is part of being a well-prepared backcountry traveller in the UK. The MBA community culture — quiet, courteous, leave-nothing-behind — also reflects the values that run through the best wild camping communities.
Moving Forward
Once you have the fundamentals in place, the possibilities open up considerably. The UK offers fantastic opportunities for anyone interested in this hobby, and with the right foundation you will be well placed to make the most of them.