Melbury Down, Dorset – Low-Profile Bivvi Camp on Exposed Hills 

I knew very little about this place before I arrived. I’ve passed through the area a few times and knew the Cranborne Chase landscape is very pretty. I’ve driven up and down Zig Zag Hill, which is described as Britain’s bendiest road,  but I haven’t walked any of the areas on foot.

Short version of the trip: Melbury Down, Dorset – Nortent Skjul Bivvi Setup

On this trip, I only had two concrete goals: One was to bag the trig point TP 4764  Melbury Hill, and the other was to find a very good spot to camp.

The walk up from West Melbury is a short and straightforward walk up a hill and over the ramparts of the hillfort.

At the top, a few walkers were passing through. According to whatawalk.com, there are three routes up from the surrounding area. There are a few potential spots nearby, but it’s not somewhere I’d choose to stay for the night.

From the summit, I could see how large the area is with rolling hills and plenty of potential camping spots. I noticed small planes landing at Compton Abbas Airfield, owned by director Guy Ritchie. With time on my side, and the airfield not far away,  I decided to head in that direction and see what was over there.

The views were lovely as I walked up and down the dips of the hills. I crossed over Spread Eagle Hill and entered Melbury Down via a stile, following a path that led along the hill towards the airfield.I tought it would be cool to set up camp and watch the planes coming into land.

The hill curves around, with a farmer’s field on the right between the hill and the airfield, eventually reaching a woodland called Melbury Woods. I didn’t go as far as the woodland before heading down the side of the hill to look for a spot among the cover.

The paths along the top didn’t appear to be used recently, but they were still defined enough to know they were still being used. I don’t usually like camping in exposed places, I always prefer some kind of natural cover.

This is the kind of setup I rely on – quiet, low-profile and out of sight, which I explain more in The Way I Wild Camp – Quiet, Stealth and Low Impact

There were plenty of areas that looked flat from a distance, but once you’re on them, the ground is uneven and not great to sleep on. Large herds of deer were moving across the hillside, darting in and out of the bushes.

After a while, I headed back up towards the top. Eventually, I found a small patch of flat grass at the end of one of the paths. It was surrounded by old, dried brambles, which were perfect for the Nortent Skjul, which sat below the height of the bushes.

From there, I had an epic view down into the valley and across the surrounding hills. To my disappointment, I found out that that there are no night flights at the airport. From my camping spot, the airfield wasn’t visible. The best view I got of anything that resembled an airfield, was a windsock in a neighbouring field.

I set up the bivi and sleeping gear, then I started to  make a hot drink, when a helicopter flew very low overhead. That wasn’t something I really wanted to see.

Night was coming as I sat on the grass, watching the sky turn deep red over the direction of the airfield, with the windsock silhouetted in the distance.

It was the first clear, dry night I had been out camping this year, and I couldn’t have had a more perfect moment. The place was completely empty. No people. No noise. Just a great view, a clear sky and a great camping spot.

I slept with the top open on the Skjul, and the bug net zipped. I caught what might be one of my last views of Orion before it disappears for the warmer months.

The morning didn’t disappoint either. It’s not often you get both a sunset and a sunrise from the same spot.

I woke to a bright pink sky stretching across the horizon. After a quick coffee, I packed up and headed back the way I came.

On the walk back, I bumped into the herd of deer again, and enjoyed a slow morning as I moved over the hills. As always, I did a litter pick along the way.

The most unusual find was a matching pair of car registration plates, both over a fence from the road  and onto Melbury Hill. 

This is an area I’ll return to. There’s so much more to explore, from the valley, to the nearby woodland and all the surrounding hills.

When I visited, the place was pretty lifeless and just emerging from winter. The old bramble growth was all dried up and the trees were leafless. I imagine it looks very different in summer. It’s a special bit of landscape. Worth looking after.

#blog #melburydown #dorset #wildcamp #trigpoint