There were 3 of us wild camping in Shetland for a week. We had picked a spot near the waters edge that involved getting a bus from Lerwick along one of Shetlands many single track roads, then walking 5 miles down another even quieter road/track then finally a mile over fields.

It was a lovely location, with plenty walking, and rock climbing to be had and as I was with 2 geologists plenty of that too. And if you walked over the hills you could reach a village in about 4 miles.

Scottish camping weather…

The weather by Shetlands standards had been pretty decent for the first part of the week but gradually deteriorated to the extent that we spent 24hours in the tent, escaping only for calls of nature and to collect water (although we ended up just putting a pot outside and collecting rain water).

The winds got stronger and stronger until we were faced with a force 9 gale that the tent just couldn’t cope with along with the really soft soggy ground that the pegs struggled to get to grips with. We abandoned camp and began the walk out but a local family saw us and took pity on us, gave us a cuppa and drove us to the nearest village we could find accommodation for the last night, and even suggested where to get a decent meal and where to go for a walk if the weather let up!

Staying in a bod

A Shetland Bod

This accomodation was something called a bod which is a bit of a combination between a bothy and a youth hostel, its very basic with bunk beds, but has electricity and running water, and you pay a small amount to use it, you can find them all over Shetland and are a great chance to meet other people staying in them too.

A fantastic week that I will never forget, made more memorable for the unpredictability of Scottish weather and the generosity of rural communities!

Wild camping in Shetland is from Campr - Everything Camping

After a bit of post-camp research it seems Studland bay is a “a haven for rare birds” and  more interestingly a haven for some other rare birds as “the Trust’s only designated naturist beach at Knoll Beach” (see The National Trust).

Well hidden...

Wild Camping

Feathered or not it wasn’t rare birds we were seeking when we headed For Studland Bay (even the name is a little risque) but somewhere to spend a night wild camping.

Nestled a few miles along the coast from Poole, Studland Bay is a beautiful stretch of National Trust managed coastline with blue sea and three beaches to explore. You can get here by car ferry from Sandbanks, Poole adding nicely to the sense of adventure. As soon as you alight you’ll see signs warning no overnight parking that are almost obscured by the number of motor homes parked along the Ferry Road.

Being canvas lovers we could afford to be a little more discreet, so after driving up and down the road a few times we found a nicely secluded spot overlooking some kind of  bay (or so we thought). After a peaceful night we woke to find we’d camped opposite some kind of ‘inlet’ that smelled a little ‘fresh’ in the morning sun. But it was still nice enough to start a little fire and cook some breakfast.

After packing up we headed over to the other side of the peninsula to enjoy the real beach before heading down the Ferry Road and found a pub for some plaque stripping local cider.

Studland Bay is thoroughly recommended for wild camping or a day out,  just be mindful of the no parking signs, reading Wild Camping seems the authorities like to issue the occasional parking ticket.

Further information:

Heres the approximate spot on Google Maps.

View Larger Map

Wild Camping at Studland Bay is from Campr - Everything Camping