River Dove Camp

Book to stay at Alder Carr Farm and you’ll get an idyllic riverside camping spot that you don’t have to share with anyone – except, perhaps, the resident rare breed sheep. And, if you count them, the otters in the river and the buzzards, ospreys, and red kites in the sky. What we’re trying to tell you is that this place is full of wildlife and very much part of the farm – but there are no other campers here. This is a solo-hire Hipcamp. Book it and you have staked your claim on a patch of grass and a stretch of river for a few days of getting back to basics in Derbyshire.

That setting plus access to a tap for your water, a compost loo, and a fire pit is all you get for your pitch fee so don’t come expecting showers, hot water, or WiFi. It’s almost wild camping so it won’t be for everybody – but if that’s the kind of camping you like, we think you’re going to love it here. How could you not? Even wannabe wild campers should feel at home here as although it feels pretty wild, it also has incredibly welcoming hosts (not to mention a couple of pubs within a half-hour walk). Amy and Alex will meet you and settle you into your pitch, showing you where everything is on their 25-acre smallholding. That means pointing out the water tap by their veg patch, the coop, where you can collect fresh eggs in the morning, and the site of their Saturday-morning farm shop.

Life at Alder Carr Farm can feel like the good life indeed. So much so, in fact, that many people don’t venture far from their secluded pitch on the farm with its wild swimming, wildlife watching and crackling campfire. Should you wish to explore further though, there’s lots to see and plenty to do. Your idyllic riverside pitch is just three miles from the historic market town of Ashbourne and a similar distance from Dovedale – the southernmost part of the Peak District National Park.