it is the thought of not finding somewhere suitable to camp that scares me the most. I actually feel better about going up to Scotland to do it than anywhere in England. I guess I’d hate to go up a huge hill in a place like the lakes and find out there wasn’t a spot to pitch as night draws in.
Be assured you
will find spots to pitch, these places, Scotland and the Lakes, abound in them.
Look at the Dover to Cape Wrath walk on wildwalking.uk, he wild camped for 52 nights all the way, some of them in rather populous areas. I must admit that while some of the pitches were rather public, such as beside towpaths, etc., he was usually up and away before anyone was about.
The most important thing to me is level and dry grass, ideally long enough to give your ground mat a bit of cushioning. Then you want water nearby, shelter from wind, and some privacy. A plus is where you can pitch facing east to get the morning light, while a big bonus is something you can sit on, like a rock, a log or just a bank you can dangle your legs down.
Avoid anywhere that's sloping even a little, is a bit squelchy underfoot, or has lumpy tussocks beneath your bed.
You don't always find all of the above in one go, you must be prepared to compromise, but even a pitch with most of those features will be enjoyable, and with all of them it will be memorable.
And don't feel too reliant on having your car to escape to, otherwise you're never going to get far from it. Having said that, I confess that mine always had to be just about in sight from a distance for my first three wild camps, and for the next couple it was a bit of a wrench walking away and leaving it. But from then onwards I haven't given it a thought.