Flattering that you are thinking about the UK. Still proud to be a European (unlike some). Wildcamping in England is mostly limited to treeless areas, but I have a Google map of campsites that are hammock friendly, I'll post a link. There is a nice woodland site here in Devon, another couple in Wales, some in the Southeast. But if you want a proper wildcamp you had better go to Scotland, where it is (more or less) permitted.
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Gadget
In Sweden we have trees mostly everywhere and everyone has the right to wild camp for at least one night pretty much anywhere except in someone's yard. Can supply a couple of sites in the south if interesting.
Also I'm in for a group hang in Europe. :-)
Oh thanks, I'm very curious and would love seeing some of it.Originally Posted by GadgetUK437
CaptainHaddock.. Sweden?! Yes compared to all the places I know I imagine Sweden would be the planet Endor. If on top of that you tell me that wild camping is tolerated then I'm also curious.
Here I can look for a trekking trip in Provence, but it will take me more recon. We have some inclined terrain with lotsa of pine trees with thorny vines and shrubs in between and water is rare. But I can look for stuff to do at a higher altitude and maybe on the Italian side of the Alps.
Here is the link to that map, still a work in progress,
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?m...LWN4cl7CQzhh3U
If you have any useful info or additional sites, get in touch.
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Gadget
It depends what you want or can do, but if you want an easy to reach and interesting place to visit, that could be Paris.
There is a campsite with trees at the edge of the city (cost : about 20 Euros per night for two people), or we could actually set camp in one of the two woods bordering Paris : the Bois de Vincennes or the Bois de Boulogne. That could be one or two nights, and we would spend the day visiting Paris.
I would invite you at my place to have a shower.
And we could also go for a hang in a nice birch wood about 1 hour drive from the city : the Fontainebleau forest, where the Barbizon school painters painted in the early XIXth century (Millet, Corot, Daubigny, Th. Rousseau...), the first outdoor landscape artists, forerunning the impressionist movement.
(If you are interested, I could do a guided tour for you in the Louvre where one can see several of their paintings.)
This Fontainebleau wood, although it is close to Paris, still looks pretty wild, there are many rocks and cliffs where climbers go and uneven ground, with hills and nice panoramas, it would be a great hanging spot. There is also a Renaissance castle there one can visit.
If, on the other hand, you would prefer seeing the countryside, and doing a cycle trip or a road trip in Normandy, for example, I could plan that as well, depending on the number of participants. We would depart from Paris and, if we have 2 or 3 days, visit Rouen, Etretat, Deauville, several Normandy manors and castles, Bayeux, and possibly Le Mont St Michel, if we have time (by car). That would include all kind of seafood and oysters, camembert and other Normandy cheeses, tarte Tatin, crepes, apple cider... We would stop by in local woods for the night.
Maybe should we try to set up a date first, because there are various possible scenarios, depending on how many days are available. Would it be one week-end or more days ? I can take one week, personally, as I am self employed. Winter, spring ?
Last edited by Rouskof; 10-20-2016 at 11:28.
Any other propositions ? What do you think of a hike in the Vosges ?
My personal preference - and I'm not even sure I could join - would be something like the Vosges. Plenty of forest to hang a group hang.
Personally though I have little interest in doing long distances, especially in a location with the height differences of the Vosges, I'd think around 10km/day is plenty and I'd be fine at 5km/day, leaving plenty of time to hang around.
I perfectly agree with that. Which season ?
I think for a proper group hang with 10+ participants, a hike and/or stealth hang would not be a good idea. I don't know what the situation in France is, but in Germany it's not permitted to hang outside dedicated campsites. People do it, but if you're unlucky, you could be fined. And the larger the group, the likelier it is that you're noticed and people take offence. There's also the question of hygiene / sanitary facilities. For a small group of people it might be OK to just do their business somewhere in the woods. For a larger group and more than one night, this would be a bad idea.
I don't really see where the hygiene problem would be. Of course, you should like to camp out !
But let's find 10 people first, and discuss the sanitary facilities after ?
No one will bother you in a French wood if we just set camp in the late afternoon and set off in the morning. We can also make a fire and cook some sausages. Many tracks are pretty deserted.
I like being a little adventurous and seeing natural scenery.
That's my vision, but I will adapt to the majority !
NB. I think it is even forbidden to hang a hammock in France, but between what is written in the law and what is applied in real life, there is a huge gap, and I am pretty sure that in a deserted place like the Vosges, you will never have any problem, even with a party of 10, but again, I will comply with the majority.
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