Hamperley Camping

Hamperley sits in the Shropshire Hills AONB at the very foot of Long Mynd, and you can reach the ridge directly from the gate via a forestry track without touching a road. The field is flat, the grass short at the edges, and the setting does everything a facilities list never could: owls at dusk, red kites overhead by morning, curlews if you're lucky, and on a clear night the Milky Way in its entirety from horizon to horizon.

The campsite featured as Ingles Farm in Malcolm Saville's Lone Pine children's book series, which tells you something about its character: rural, unhurried, the kind of place that's been quietly doing the same thing for a long time. Ken, the farmer, comes round each afternoon to collect the fee and is generous with local knowledge if you want it. The adjacent woodland has a short circular walk with a picnic bench, useful for an early-morning leg-stretch before the longer climbs.

Facilities are honest and clean: coin-operated showers (£1), two toilets, drinking water, a wash-up sink, and recycling. There's a communal fire. No electric hookups, which is a feature as much as a limitation here. Elsan disposal on site for campervans. Caravans and motorhomes are welcome alongside tents. Dogs are accepted, up to two per pitch, though lead policy should be confirmed when booking.