Wild Camping for Riders: How to Sleep Under the Stars on a Motorcycle Tour — And the Ultralight Seat That Goes Everywhere You Do
There is a version of motorcycle touring where every night ends in a hotel room with a hot shower and a restaurant dinner. It is comfortable, convenient, and entirely valid. But there is another version — one where you pull off a forest track as the light fades, pitch your tent in a clearing with a view of the mountains, cook a simple meal on a small stove, and fall asleep to the sound of wind in the trees. This is wild camping, and for many riders, it is the purest expression of what motorcycle travel is really about.
Wild camping — camping outside of designated campsite facilities, in nature — is legal in varying degrees across different countries and regions. Where it is permitted, it offers an experience that no campsite, however well-equipped, can replicate: genuine solitude, genuine connection with the landscape, and the particular satisfaction of having found your own place in the world for the night.
Finding the Right Spot
The art of wild camping begins with finding the right location. The ideal wild camping spot is flat enough to sleep on, sheltered from wind, close to water (but not so close that you are in a flood zone), and far enough from roads and paths to ensure privacy. It should leave no trace of your presence when you depart.
On a motorcycle tour, your spot-finding options are significantly better than those available to car travellers. You can access forest tracks, farm roads, and coastal paths that are impassable to four-wheeled vehicles. This gives you access to a much wider range of potential camping locations — and often the most spectacular ones.
Research the regulations for wild camping in each country or region you plan to visit before you go. Scandinavia's allemansrätten (right to roam) gives walkers and riders extraordinary freedom to camp almost anywhere in nature. Scotland has similar provisions. In much of continental Europe and the United States, wild camping is more restricted but still possible with careful planning.
Setting Up Camp
Speed and simplicity are the virtues of motorcycle wild camping. You are not setting up a base camp — you are creating a comfortable overnight stop that can be packed and gone in under thirty minutes the next morning.
A good wild camping setup for a motorcycle rider typically includes a lightweight tent (under 1.5kg), a sleeping bag rated for the expected temperatures, a compact sleeping mat, a small cooking stove with a single pot, and a water filter or purification tablets. The entire shelter system should fit into a compact dry bag that straps to your motorcycle without significantly affecting handling.
Arrive at your spot with enough daylight to set up comfortably. Rushing to pitch a tent in the dark is frustrating and often results in a poorly chosen location. If you are planning to wild camp regularly, build your daily riding schedule around arriving at your intended area by late afternoon.
The Evening Ritual
The best part of wild camping is the evening itself. With no check-in time, no restaurant booking, and no other guests to consider, the evening is entirely your own. You cook when you are hungry, eat where you want, and sit outside for as long as you like.
This is where the right gear transforms the experience. A comfortable seat makes the difference between an evening spent perched awkwardly on a log and one spent genuinely relaxing in your chosen spot.
The Cokima ADV Camping Chair is built for exactly this purpose. Weighing just 1.3kg and folding to a compact 41×17cm, it fits easily into a pannier or tail bag without compromising your luggage capacity. The high-strength aluminium frame supports up to 150kg, and the breathable mesh seat provides genuine comfort for extended sitting — not just the token comfort of a camp stool.
What makes the ADV Camping Chair particularly clever is its 2-in-1 design: the backrest converts into a clothes-drying rack, giving you a practical solution for drying riding gear overnight — a feature that any touring rider who has dealt with wet kit will immediately appreciate.
Key features of the Cokima ADV Camping Chair:
· Weight: 1.3kg
· Folded size: 41×17cm
· High-strength aluminium frame
· Maximum load: 150kg
· Breathable mesh seat
· 2-in-1 design: chair + clothes-drying rack
· Integrated cup holder
Wild camping is not for every rider, and it is not for every night. But for those who try it, it tends to become a defining part of how they travel. The stars are brighter when there are no streetlights. The morning coffee tastes better when you made it yourself. And the road ahead always looks more inviting when you slept well under the open sky.
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