Ah, my old stomping grounds. Sorry, no fires allowed. Leave no trace and all that, you know.

This is one place where a no fire rule can be justified - The area is generally high and dry and can become a tinderbox in the summer.

A little more info in this post.

ok; forget the knife advice folks!
hmmm anywhere else near nj i can walk and light campfires?
The Sock

Check the National Parks Website for regional parks and their individual rules. There are a number of parks where you can get Backcountry Camping Permits, but most will not allow fires except at certain designated camping areas.

Also, check the Appalachian Trail Conservancy Site for trails and backcountry shelter locations, which are open and free for hikers to use on a first-come first-serve basis. You can have fires at many of the shelters because they have established fire rings. There are also a number of sites where you can pitch a tent that have fire rings of there own.

I know here in Virginia they have "Dispersed Camping" where you can pick any spot to camp as long as you follow the "Leave No Trace" principles and it doesn't look as if the spot is overcamped. In a few almost rare places campfires are allowed if it hasn't been a very dry season.

Thanks for that Nicodemus. Using designated camping areas is no problem. I can't even light a fire, I know I'm not ready to be Daniel Boone yet! :-)
One thing I don't understand: If an 8 dollar mora is all I need, why are people discussing knives costing several hundred dollars? Is it because I just want a camping knife and they are talking about a 'survival knife' they might be cutting their way out of a plane with?
The Sock

Almost everyone who you meet here is just as interested to talk about "Equipped to camp", "Equipped to do outdoor cooking" or "Equipped to hike". But the site is called "Equipped to survive". So that looks to me to be the starting point of all discussions. I am a big fan of Mora and Frosts knives. The thing is that there is a limit to what you can do with them. You will not need the extra strength if you go on a regular camping trip and everything goes as planned. A lot of camping guides advise just a folding knive or multitool. But if you get lost you might have to use the knife for heavier jobs. Since you say you can't even start a fire I presume you don't have all the skills you would need to survive when you are "under-equipped". Then it is worth considering carrying a stronger knive that can take some abuse (law permitting). A fine shop in the UK is www.heinnie.com. This tread started more or less with the argument that there are excellent knives that do not cost several hundred dollars.

Part of the reason why I think some of the people have advised a 8 to 10 dollar mora is simple. I could suggest you buy a 130 dollar folder. Good blade steel, durable rugged.....able to handle the light bushcraft for a "light" hiking/camping trip AND able to hack thru some serious mess if it all goes downhill. But then when you fly back over to your side of the pond you either have to sell it, taking a big hit on the cost you paid for it, or give/throw it out soaking the full brunt of the cost.
Or I could suggest a relatively inexpensive sheath knife that will handle all the light brushcraft requiered, most if not all medium without having to be too carefull and maybe some of the heavy, "the poop hits the fan" I'm in serious trouble here stuff if you are carefull in what you do. When all the fun is over, you can still take it home, after all its much akin to a fishing fillet knife in profile and can easily find a welcome home in your kitchen.
My suggestion to you, for what its worth, is get yourself a nice swiss army knife, like a farmer, outdoorsman, or hunter. You will still be able to have it over there in the UK, then a mora, or if you want a folder a buck 110. Hunters, farmers and general outdoorsmen have been using the humble buck 110 for generations to handle the tasks at hand and it can be had for 25 bucks or less....not much to lose if you ditch it when you fly home. You can think of it as a "rental". Just my 2¢, hope you have a great time and good luck in your adventure.

-Bill Liptak

Just for clarity - in the UK, you can only edc (i.e. carry without a specific good reason) a sub 3in non locking folder.

But you can own all sorts, and if you were camping/backpacking a sheath knife would be perfectly respectable. You just have to use common sense - a Mora in your backpack while camping is fine - having it in your pocket when you go to the pub isn't.

You could certainly buy a decent sheath knife for camping and as back up if you find yourself in difficulties out in the woods. You could then check it in your luggage for the flight home, and take it home for the next trip you take.

Try Britishblades for more advice

Thanks for the clarification, although I was only referring to having to ditch the locking folders. I didn't think the ditching of the fixed blade was needed, although it might be problematic (i.e. Less than legal) transporting it to and from the airport. Don't know what the laws there are pertaining to that.
As a side note, if its not illegal to own a locking blade, just carry it, another option could be to just ship it to your house prior to flying home.

-Bill Liptak

Thanks everyone I think I get the picture now. A mora will be sufficient while nothing goes wrong. If it does, I might be glad of a stonger knife.
As bigreddog says I can carry anything I want in my rucsack in the UK; otherwise no one could get the kitchen knives home from the shop.
But in the UK I have no use for a sheath knife.
Think I'll go for the mora and stick to the appalachian trail, where it's difficult to get lost. Thanks for reminding me the US isn't the UK, where I can't be more than 3 miles from a road.

I definately misunderstood how your laws work.

All of the other suggestions have been great ones.