Camping in Stonegate

There are no campsites within Stonegate itself, but the wider High Weald around it — a landscape of small irregular fields, ancient woodland and steep-sided ghylls stretching from Ticehurst to Burwash and up towards Bewl Water — has a scatter of small farm campsites and glamping stays, typical of this quiet corner of East Sussex. As everywhere in England, wild camping without the landowner's permission is not legal, so a pitch always needs to be booked or agreed in advance, whether that is a certified site, a farm field or a glamping pod.

The terrain here is hillier and more wooded than the open Sussex coast, with narrow lanes, steep little valleys and clay ground that can turn heavy after rain, so most sites tend to be small and seasonal rather than large-scale holiday parks. Bewl Water, a few miles north, is the natural focus for an active stay, with its reservoir path for walking and cycling and watersports in summer; sites within reach of it let campers combine a day on the water with evenings back at a quiet pitch. Ticehurst and Burwash both have farm-based campsites and glamping options in the surrounding parishes, generally geared towards couples and families wanting a peaceful, low-key base rather than an entertainment-led holiday park.

Late spring through early autumn is the most reliable camping season, when the Weald's bluebell woods give way to summer growth and then to one of the region's best displays of autumn colour in the oak and sweet chestnut cover around Burwash. Glamping — shepherd's huts, safari tents and the like — has become increasingly common on Wealden farms and is worth considering outside the driest months, since the area's heavy clay soils and steep ghylls make standard tent camping harder going after rain. Whatever the pitch, the reward is the same: some of the oldest continuously farmed, most quietly beautiful countryside in southern England, with Bateman's, Ticehurst and Rye all within easy reach.