Solo camping

Why camp alone?

People camp alone because they can go when they like, walk at their own pace and choose their own pitch. There is nobody to wait for, and nobody to talk you out of the walk in when it's raining. Solo camping also teaches you more in one night than several nights with someone who does it all for you, because every job, from pitching to working the stove, is yours.

It suits people whose friends don't camp, people who want a night away from everyone, and anyone who has camped with someone experienced and wants to find out whether they can do it themselves. They can. The skills are the same ones you have already watched someone else use.

Is solo camping safe?

Solo camping in the UK is low risk when you plan for the things that actually go wrong: bad weather, getting cold, losing the path, and a twisted ankle a long way from the road. Each has a plain precaution, and none of them is made worse by being alone except the last, which is why you tell someone your plan.

What goes wrong	What to do about it
Weather turns	Check the mountain forecast the night before and the morning you set off. Choose a sheltered pitch and know your way out.
Getting cold	Take a sleeping mat and bag rated for the month, a warm hat and a dry layer you only wear in the tent.
Losing the path	Carry a paper map and know how to use it. Phone batteries die fastest in the cold.
Injury	Leave your route and return time with someone at home. Carry a small first aid kit and a head torch.

The fear most first-timers mention is people. On a hillside after dark you will rarely see anyone, and the people you do meet are usually other walkers and campers. If a pitch doesn't feel right, move. You never need a reason.

How do you plan your first solo night?

Plan your first solo night as one night, close to a road, somewhere you have walked before in daylight, with a forecast of light wind and no heavy rain. Keep it simple enough that the only new thing is being on your own.

1. Pick the place. A campsite or nearly wild site for a first night; a wild camp on the Dartmoor Commons or in Scotland once you're ready. Within about two hours' walk of a road is plenty.
2. Walk it in daylight first. Knowing the path in and out takes most of the worry out of the dark.
3. Pack and pitch at home. Put the tent up in the garden or the park once, so the first time isn't on a hill in the wind.
4. Tell someone. Your route, your pitch, the time you'll call in the morning, and when they should raise the alarm.
5. Arrive with light left. An hour of daylight gives you time to find a pitch, get the tent up and cook before dark.

Your first solo wild camp: a step-by-step plan takes you through the day hour by hour. If you want the quiet of a wild camp with permission, nearly wild camping is the halfway step.

Where should you go for your first solo camp?

Go somewhere camping is clearly allowed and that you already know. For most people in England and Wales that means a campsite or a nearly wild site, because wild camping needs the landowner's permission everywhere except the Dartmoor Commons. In Scotland, most unenclosed land is open to wild camping under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.

Our guide to wild camping in the UK sets out the law in each nation, and the place guides cover Dartmoor, Scotland, the Lake District and the Peak District.

What about camping as a pair?

Camping as a pair is solo camping with the weight split in two. You share one 2 man tent, one stove and one pan, and each carry your own sleeping bag, mat and food. For a first night out, a pair is also a sensible halfway step: two people who have never camped alone can learn it together, then try it apart.

A 2 man tent for two people is a close fit. There is room for two mats and very little else, so rucksacks usually live in the porch. One man vs 2 man tent compares the two for one person and for a pair.

What should you pack for a solo camp?

Pack the same kit as any camp, with one difference: nothing is shared, so every gram of tent, stove and pan is on your back. A solo camper needs a tent or bivvy bag, a sleeping bag, a sleeping mat, a stove with fuel and a pan, water, food, a head torch, waterproofs, a warm layer, a map and a small first aid kit.

• Shelter. A one man tent is usually the lightest tent that still keeps your kit dry beside you. A bivvy bag is lighter again, with no room for anything but you. What is a bivvy bag explains the trade.
• Sleep. Your sleeping mat keeps the ground's cold off you. Sleeping mat R-value explained tells you what warmth rating you need.
• Light. A head torch, and spare batteries or a charged power bank. The dark arrives sooner than you expect, especially from October to March.

The wild camping kit list covers every item for a night out, and our starter kits put a matched shelter and sleep system together so you don't have to.

How do you stay in touch on a solo camp?

Stay in touch by telling one person your plan before you leave and calling them when you're out. Leave them your route, where you plan to pitch, what your tent looks like, and the time you'll call. Agree a time after which they should call for help if they haven't heard from you, and stick to it.

• Phone signal. Coverage on hills and moors is patchy. Note where you last had signal on the way in, and keep your phone warm and on low power overnight.
• Emergencies. In the UK, call 999, ask for the police, then ask for mountain rescue. Mountain rescue in Britain is called through the police.
• Text 999. If you register your phone with the emergencySMS service before you go, by texting "register" to 999 and following the reply, you can text 999 where a call won't connect. Registration takes a few minutes and needs doing before you need it.
• Your location. Know how to find a grid reference on your map, or on an app that shows one. That is what rescue teams will ask for.

What will the night feel like?

Your first solo night will probably feel long and noisy, and you will probably sleep less than usual. That is normal, and it improves on the second night. Outdoors, sounds carry: a sheep chewing sounds like footsteps, a stream sounds like voices, and a flysheet in wind sounds like someone at the door. Almost every noise on a hillside is wind, water, sheep or birds.

Things that help: earplugs, a warm hat, going to bed later than you would at home, and a book or a downloaded podcast for the hour before sleep. If you wake cold, eat something and put on your dry layer. If you want to go home at 3am, you can. Walking out in the dark on a path you know is a skill too.

Questions people ask

Is it weird to camp alone?

No. A single tent on a campsite or a hillside is an ordinary sight, and plenty of people camp alone.

What is the best tent for solo camping?

The best tent for solo camping is usually a one man tent that weighs under about 2kg and that you can pitch in wind. If you want room for your rucksack inside, or you'll sometimes camp with someone else, a light 2 man tent is the alternative.

Can you go solo camping at 16 or 17?

Campsites set their own age rules for people under 18, so check with the site before you book. The law on wild camping is the same for every age.

How do you get over being scared of camping alone?

Most people get over nerves about camping alone by doing it somewhere small and familiar first: a campsite, a garden or a nearly wild site. Each night makes the next one easier.