“We had a long weekend in November and, whilst we would often drive up to Scotland in search of a decent walk and incredible wild camping, we fancied something closer as the forecast wasn’t good. We found Manor Grange via the web and thought it might be able to offer that wild camp feel. We spoke to Annie via the phone and she was happy to accommodate us last minute.

Immediately on arrival, we knew it was going to be a good stay as we were greeted by owner Annie, who is fantastically characterful. We had a great chat, as we share a love for Defenders, and after completing some quick paperwork we followed her through her land filled with livestock down to the wooded area. This felt like an adventure in itself.

We parked at a lovely old railway bridge, and leaving our cars behind, Annie showed us through the gates and into the young, beautifully natural protected woodland. As we walked through the trees we saw deer, rabbits and birds. There were various secluded clearings in the large woodland where you can setup camp. However, Annie took us all the way through to the top of the valley with the torrent that is Aysgarth Falls just at the bottom. The view was superb and the freedom to camp anywhere, forage for wood and ‘go back to basics’ whilst still being on a ‘campsite’ was something we haven’t experienced in England.

Annie left us to it, though I think we could have chatted to her all evening, and we set about building a fire. We cooked a meal as the sun went down with the wood we scavenged from the ground. It started to rain so we just rigged up a tarp between the trees and eventually fell asleep to the sound of the Falls below. After cooking on the fire the next morning, we walked down to Aysgarth Falls, around 10 minutes from where we’d camped. It had rained overnight and the falls were really raging and best of all we had them all to ourselves given that we were up with the sun. We made the most of the site that morning, lazily packing up and reflecting on our stay. Annie was waiting with a grin to say goodbye to us as we drove back up to their house – she knows all too well how amazing it is down amongst the trees and could tell we’d had a good time.

I write this review, well, more of an account of our stay, several months after visiting and yet it still feels like yesterday. It felt really rather special. So, if you are the type that prefers basic, natural and unrestricted camping, please do give Manor Grange a try and I hope that you are able to create some memories that will stay with you for some time.”