There are some campsites that merely aspire to views and others that have them in spades. Look north from Forestside, a 156-acre organic dairy farm, and you’ll enjoy a 180-degree vista that takes in both the Weaver Hills and the Peak District’s Dove Valley, and still has room for more around the edges. At night, all those distant parts that looked uninhabited suddenly switch on their lights, presumably for the benefit of those watching, enchanted, from the farm.
The site consists of a single-acre mown field with a slightly rougher field below for those who prefer their camping a little less refined. As the name suggests, the farm is right next to a wood (listen out for tawny owls in the evening) that rises steeply behind it up Marchington Cliff, giving some shelter to the south. A sort of very upmarket shed houses the facilities, which including four highly civilised shower rooms. In the tourist info room there are some laminated maps of a short, circular farm walk to sharpen your appetite for dinner or get the blood circulating in the morning.
At this tiny campsite, your most difficult decision is where you spend the rest of your day, as there are numerous attractions within striking distance to tempt you off the premises, including horse racing at Uttoxeter (4¾ miles) to the heart-stoppingly beautiful Manifold Valley cycle trail (18 miles). Don’t mention it to the kids, but you’re also just a dozen miles from Alton Towers.
