Chettle Orchard Campsite.

The first thing you learn about the Dorset village of Chettle is that its village store has a good line in award-winning pies. There’s a sign announcing as much on the A354. But, before you reach the little tin-clad shop that’s selling these lauded pastry goods, there’s another sign funnelling campers off the country lane, onto a farm track and into a tree-lined meadow. This is where you’ll pitch your tent,  in the grassy surrounds of Chettle Campsite. Pitch first, pies later.

“The best way to describe Chettle,” says the man behind the first campsite in the village, “is to say it’s quirky and it’s rustic.” This, coming from a man whose idea of a hot tub is an iron bath set over a fire beneath the stars, means you can’t help but be curious about the place. His campsite is several acres in size, with cars parked away from tents and simple facilities that suit a summer-only site reached by mown pathway through the grass. There are a couple of compost loos, a couple of open-air washing-up sinks and a pair of rustic showers with water warmed only by the sun (finger’s crossed). The central focus of the place is the communal campfire and a little field shelter for protection from whichever element might prove a bit too much.

Along with seasoned campers who arrive with their own family tents, the site has a fairly even mix of pre-pitched bell tents too, whose cream-coloured canvas adds to the field's rustic appeal. Bell tents can be rented, furnished or unfurnished; there are six of each available and a handful of campervan pitches too. The thing that’s common to them all is a dug-out fire pit and plenty of room for sunbathing, stargazing and generally enjoying yourself. Rustic it may be, but rough around the edges it is not. The whole thing is carefully planned and when you find out that Paul (‘the man’ behind the site) has 20 years in events planning, it’ll come as no surprise.

And what of 'quirky' Chettle village? It’s a five-minute walk across the fields past “the big house”, a Grade I listed country manor whose estate includes, not only the camping field, but the whole of settlement beyond. There’s a 13th-century church, an eccentric and popular restaurant that's like something out of a Hardy novel and the time-forgotten village store, of course, with it’s award-winning pies. If you want to continue walking, meanwhile, the village sits on the Jubilee Way, a 90-mile footpath through the Dorset countryside. This is the Cranbourne Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a great place to explore that feels a million miles away from the Dorset most of us know. In truth the Jurassic Coast, Durdle Door, Lulworth Cove and the like are only a 40-minute drive. Likewise Salisbury and Stonehenge. All close enough to visit but far enough to forget if you want to stay away from summer crowds.