Dan posted an update
a year ago (edited)
A Common In Surrey: OEX Phoxx 1V2 Camp
Late March 2025
I found Common and its neighbouring nature reserve, on Google Maps and thought they looked like promising spots.
It’s surrounded by villages and roads, all offering free on-road parking. It’s also home to a hill trig point. These parking spots provide easy and direct access to the common.
With a couple of hours of daylight left, I set off to find a camping spot. For the first hour, the common felt empty, so I walked further in to explore the wooded areas. However, about an hour before sunset, dog walkers started appearing and I realized the area wasn’t as secluded as I had hoped.
The common has a network of well-maintained tracks, along with plenty of smaller paths winding through the heathland and woodlands. Even in the forested areas, I was never far from a path.
The area is also used for military training, and there are warning signs about touching suspicious objects. I’m not sure how often it’s closed to the public, but I did come across old bullet casings, tear gas canisters, glow sticks, and other military remnants.
As the rain set in, I had to make a quick decision on where to camp. I chose a small cluster of trees in the heathland, aiming to be as far from a path as possible. However, once I’d set up, I realized I was still relatively close to a main track. Despite that, I had an undisturbed night.
In hindsight, I should have headed to the neighbouring areas instead. From the map, it has fewer paths and seems to offer larger, more secluded areas for wild camping.
Heads up:
The army left quite a bit of used paraphernalia scattered around the forest after training exercises, with warning signs advising against touching these objects.
However, that was nothing compared to the sheer amount of plastic bags full of dog poo left behind by dog walkers. They were everywhere – along the paths, in the forested areas and even piled up around bins.
Dog poo means dogs, and that means dog owners. There were a lot of them just before dusk. When I first arrived, the common seemed empty, but as I got closer to the center, they suddenly appeared.
I also saw a few dog walkers in the early morning as I was leaving. Good mobile phone and internet connection.
#wildcamp #tentcamp #surrey #common #phoxx1v2
