Many of the areas we go to have both dispersed camping and several "primitive campgrounds", we usually end up out in the boonies and don't use the campgrounds. If you use the campgrounds, why and what advantages do they offer?
A designated campground will often have picnic tables, some campfire rings, and some one-holer outhouses. If you don't need these things don't stay in a fee site.
The only advantage is you have some reasonable confidence you can maneuver your rig in the site, not get stuck in soft dirt, have low branches, etc. Boondocking requires you look for those things while getting into your chosen spot.
Increasingly, there are sites now a combination of the two. The Forest Service nationwide is decommissioning little used campgrounds if the use by the public does not justify the expense of maintaining them. Bt decommissioning, the FS is removing the picnic tables, outhouses, etc. Basically leaving a big flat area, often shaded with large trees and next to a stream, with road access. The site may still be open for self contained boondocking.
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Log off and go camping!
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Was talking to a friend one day who always went boondocking.
He said, "Just realized that I haven't been boondocking all summer.
Haven't been since I bought my new RV. He took a beer can opener and said come on with me. Dragged it down the side of his new RV, gouging the paint." He said, "NOW we can go boondocking again." Unconsciously he must have been reluctant to scratch his paint, so missed going all summer. It just sat in his driveway, or pristine campgrounds, and he had just freed himself, to go anywhere. . .
to date, we've found that many of the primitive campgrounds or dispersed camp sites are down at the end of a very dusty, bumpy road not a good thing for our class A diesel.
we search for sites that are a mile or less off the pavement, and have found a few.
I wish there were more.
TexasShadow
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In your neighborhood Corky, Anza Borrego State Park is a good example of a very large park where primitive-boondocking camping is allowed but where in reality there is not as much public access as you would think. There are lots of 4x4 roads buy you wont find too many people even try to access them with trailers or mh's. A tow bill into Anza Borrego starts at $250 and goes up from there. The 30 mile or so stretch of highway from Shelter Valley to Ocotillo Wells looks like it might have some boondocking spots but you are better off in one of the three campgrounds because there just arent any roads into the desert. Ok so what do the campgrounds save you? A $500 towing bill.
Corky52 wrote: Many of the areas we go to have both dispersed camping and several "primitive campgrounds", we usually end up out in the boonies and don't use the campgrounds. If you use the campgrounds, why and what advantages do they offer?
We know of a number of "primitive campgrounds" which have pit toilets, picnic tables, and fire pits. Usually 6-8 well spaced shady camp sites and very rarely more than 3 RV's camping. Since most don't have water, there is no charge and the people there are those who like peace and quiet. Using the pit toilets means we don't need to worry about filling the black tank and in Arizona gray water can be dumped on the ground where not prohibited. These places are usually next to a trail head, meadow, creek, or other enticement but too far away for the average joe to drive to, that's why we use them.
If we had four days of rain where we live I am not sure that we could get out of the dispersed camping area we might chose. I am a little leary of pulling off into the woods and getting out again. When we want to really be alone, we take our small tent and hike in.
And I like knowing that there is water available if we need more.
And I do not know if it is leary or leery.
The campgrounds offer me a place to spend all my extra money, to test out my new earplugs and see how they drown out other folks' generator noise, to meet the folks who keep walking thru my campsite on their way to the outhouse, to choke on the smoke from other folks' campfires...need I go on?
Tiger4x4RV wrote: The campgrounds offer me a place to spend all my extra money, to test out my new earplugs and see how they drown out other folks' generator noise, to meet the folks who keep walking thru my campsite on their way to the outhouse, to choke on the smoke from other folks' campfires...need I go on?
Hooray for dispersed camping!
LOL
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not a good thing for our class A diesel.
