Gill Head Farm

Gill Head is a lovely little working hill farm that’s been run by the same family for several generations. Ensconced within the Lake District National Park, yet far removed from the tourist hordes, it offers space for tents and caravans, as well as B&B accommodation and six rather funky timber camping pods. The main camping meadow is wide and flat with space for around 50 pitches (the 21 hardstanding caravan pitches are in a separate field), offering campers grand views to the mighty Blencathra – known locally ‘Saddleback’, a ridge of six separate fell tops– and Northern Fells, stretching right down the valley to Keswick. In keeping with the splendid, spacious location, the site has a laid-back, natural feel. There are fields and streams to paddle in, an organised play area for children, and decent facilities that include a modern and spacious shower, toilet, and laundry block. There’s even a log cabin (with TV lounge and undercover BBQ area) for communal get-togethers and wet-weather relaxation. Beyond lie the Lakes and a wealth of hiking, biking, ghyll scrambling, and water-based activities (Ullswater is less than a 10-minute drive away) and the owners have been thoughtful enough to arrange regular onsite activities, games, and even bushcraft courses (run by local firm Reach Beyond Adventure). Those ‘who don’t want to feel like they’re on a campsite’, as the owners put it, can ask to pitch in the ‘hidden’ field, which comes with its own waterfall and steep, wooded banks. You’ll have to walk further to the shower block, but it’s a small price to pay for such pleasant, leafy isolation.