by Bill Moeller
As soon as Bob and Mary arrive at the casino, they check in with security for permission to camp overnight. (This permission is required because all casinos have very good security systems, and security staff need to know who is staying overnight. Note, however, that rules vary from casino to casino.) Having overnighted at casinos on other occasions, Bob and Mary know that they should not put out their awnings or set up the grill or lawn chairs. In the evening, though, they extend the slideouts before visiting the casino.
Inside the casino, the couple enjoys a delicious supper at the buffet, then they hit the slots. Mary wins $150, while poor Bob wins zilch.
Day 13
Today is the last full day of camping before Bob and Mary arrive home. As it will be an easy day, only about a hundred miles to drive, they decide on a late start. Their destination is a rest area with a dump station, located on a small highway (see Chapter 2). This stop will allow them to arrive home with empty holding tanks.
When they arrive at the rest area, Bob sees that all the parking is under the trees, so he won’t be able to use the solar panels. He’s not worried, however, because they can charge their batteries when they get home.
Day 14
Since this will be a long day of driving, Bob and Mary plan an early start. The miles glide by, and Bob and Mary arrive home in the late afternoon. Bob parks the RV in the yard and hooks up the electric cable.
As they chat that night about their trip, both agree it was a wonderful adventure. They got to spend two weeks visiting places they could not have seen or enjoyed as much if they had not been boondocking.
Although Bob and Mary’s trip is pure fiction, we hope it gives you a sense of what boondock camping is like. The locations Bob and Mary camped are also fictitious, but they are similar to actual places we’ve visited.
Over the years, boondock camping has been some of the most enjoyable camping we’ve done. We hope the information in this book will encourage you to venture out and do the same.
CHAPTER 2
Where to Go
Boondock RVing?
Now that you’ve decided you want to try your hand at boondock camping, where do you go? For starters, there are hundreds of public campgrounds all over the country in national forests and parks and on public lands. We’ve visited many of these campgrounds and enjoyed them tremendously. Some of our most memorable places have been the Bighorn Mountains and along the Hoback River, just south of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. But sometimes our campsite has been as simple as a rest area or a wide spot on the side of the road. A suitable site for us is anywhere that has a flat piece of land where we can set up camp for the night. In this chapter, we’ll give you lots of ideas for finding your own boondock campsites.
(Winnebago Industries)
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Planning Your Trip
Before you leave on a boondock adventure, some trip planning will help ensure you have a pleasurable experience. Although it’s great fun to find an unexpected gem of a campground, and we encourage such wanderlust, some planning is always a good idea.
First, get as much information as you can about the campsites you plan to visit before you leave:
What facilities are available?
Do you need reservations?
If you don’t make reservations, is it likely that a site will be available?
What size RVs will the roads and campsites accommodate?
Are there any restrictions?
You can gather this and similar information from campground directories and travel guides (see the Recommended Reading appendix), park brochures, websites, and phone calls, or you might want to visit the park or campground ahead of time.
While much of the charm of boondocking is the freedom to camp when and where you please, you still have to maintain and manage your RV’s resources; i.e., recharge batteries, replenish water and propane supplies, and empty holding tanks. For example, spending extended boondocking time at a site where there is so much tree cover you can’t use your solar panels may mean an interim visit at a campground with electrical hookups or some travel time on the road to recharge your battery bank (see Chapter 9). Or you may find yourself running out of water and the dry camp has no freshwater source. So as you plan where you want to go, also plan for handling these tasks, especially if you are a novice boondocker.
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PUBLIC BOONDOCKING SITES
Various government and state agencies manage and oversee public recreation areas, forests, and parks.
Bureau of Land Management
Recreation Areas
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency of the Department of the Interior and administers 258 million acres of public lands. Recreation areas within these public lands are often situated along good fishing streams and rivers, making them very popular with fishermen. We often stay in BLM campgrounds. In addition to the scenery, they usually have flat areas in which to park, trash cans, and pit toilets (although we always use the toilet in our RV).
To find these recreation areas, you can start with the book Adventures on America’s Public Lands, written by BLM staffers, a full-color guidebook to BLM recreation areas. The guidebook contains maps, photos, site specifics (e.g., fees, amenities, contact information), and available activities.
Our fifth-wheel at the BLM’s Bayhorse Recreation Site along the Salmon River near Challis, Idaho.
On the BLM site (www.blm.gov), clicking on the Recreation link under Programs, and then on Trip Planning will give you helpful information and links. One link is to Recreation.gov (www.recreation.gov), which has comprehensive information on recreational sites for all federal public lands, including BLM recreation areas. You can also make online reservations for certain sites.
Forest Service Campgrounds
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, manages public lands in national forests and grasslands. Their campgrounds are often situated in very beautiful places and are quite popular. Select Recreational Activities from the home page of the Forest Service website, www.fs.fed.us, and you’ll be able to find a forest (you can search by name or by state), request maps and brochures, get information on passes and permits, and learn about special programs and outdoor safety. The information provided for each national forest varies—some give a great deal of detailed information, others less than you might want. There will always be a way to contact someone (via phone and/or e-mail) if you have more questions.
However, national forests may have potential problems for some RVers as many of them were constructed in the 1940s and 1950s and only accommodate smaller RVs. For example:
Many campsites are too short and narrow to accommodate slideouts.
Roads through the grounds are often narrow and winding. Often, trees are growing at the edge of the road, making negotiating tight turns difficult or impossible.
Branches hanging over the sites and roads can endanger tall RV roofs with solar panels, vents, storage boxes, satellite dishes, and TV antennas.
Another disadvantage in many of these parks is that they are in dense forests and are not conducive to solar panel operation or acquiring satellites for TV viewing. Recently we stopped at a very attractive Forest Service campground in northern California. We wondered why the place was empty until we spoke with the campground host. He said there were several turns in the road that had trees with low branches, and many RVers didn’t want to risk their vehicles. He offered to drive Bill around to check one site he thought we might get into. Bill, who has a pretty good eye for evaluating sites, thought we just might be able to make it into the site. With very slow driving, and Jan walking in front of the rig checking constantly side to side, we made it into the site for the night. We were even able to position the trailer so we could use the satellite dish through a hole in the trees.
By and large, it is best to know the situation in any campground before you drive your rig in. If we are interested in a particular unknown campground, we will make a special tr
ip to visit it and check out the conditions, or at least, park outside and take a walking tour of the grounds before we bring in the trailer.
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Choosing a Campsite
Once you’ve determined a campground can accommodate your rig, and you have a choice of campsites, how do you choose the best one? What do you look for? Here are some issues to consider:
Will the length and width of the site accommodate the size of your RV?
Is there enough road area to allow you to maneuver your rig into the site?
Will the angle of the site to the road accommodate your RV?
Are there any trees in the way to hinder maneuvering?
If you have a slideout, can you extend it without hitting anything or impinging on an adjacent site?
Is there anything you could bump into when maneuvering into the site (e.g., posts, poles, trees, shrubs, etc.)?
Is the site reasonably level—back to front and side to side?
What is the orientation of the sun? This is especially important if you plan to use solar panels for recharging your batteries. But also keep in mind the heat of the sun. For example, is it shining on the side of the RV where the refrigerator is located? If so, the refrigerator may not cool efficiently or have to work harder.
Is the tree cover so dense that you won’t be able to use the solar panels or the satellite TV? If you use wind power, will the trees block the wind or get in the way of the wind generator?
Are there low-hanging branches that could scrape or damage your roof or items on the roof? Will branches interfere with the TV antenna when you raise it? Are there any dead branches that might fall during a storm?
Are there any drainage issues? If you park next to a river or stream, is there a possibility of flooding during a storm? Twice we have almost been marooned by rising water, so we always ask the campground manager about possible flooding, especially flash flooding when there wouldn’t time for us to move the RV.
A well-lit area is good, but will the lights interfere with your sleep?
Are there buildings nearby that might interfere with breezes?
What is the view like from your windows and doors?
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National Parks
Like the BLM, the National Park Service (NPS) is under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior. Created in 1916, the National Park System includes 390 areas comprising more than 84 million acres. Many of our national parks have primitive or dry camping and are good places for boondockers. You can visit the NPS website at www.nps.gov and research the various parks by either park name, state, or activity. Another resource is the National Park Service Camping Guide, third edition, by William Herow, which lists nearly 450 campgrounds in 121 national parks.
Army Corps of Engineers
Campgrounds
Campgrounds of the Army Corps of Engineers are very nice places to stay. Many grounds have electrical and water hookups, and many do not. The Corps has created over 4,300 recreation areas throughout the country, offering many places for boondock camping. They are usually located on rivers, lakes, reservoirs, or at dam sites, providing fishing and boating activities. Most Corps campgrounds are located in the eastern states where good campgrounds are limited.
Enjoying the day at Modoc Campground on J. Strom Thurmond Lake in South Carolina.
(U.S. Army Corps of Engineers/Jonas N. Jordan)
Camping with the Corps of Engineers by Spurgeon Hinkle lists campgrounds by state and includes directions, descriptions of facilities, and available activities.
Click on Find a Recreation Area on the home page of the Corps website, www.usace.army.mil, and you’ll be directed to a map of the United States. Just click on the state you’re interested in, and it will pop up, showing all the campgrounds. Click on a campground, and you’ll find a description of the campground and its facilities.
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Limited Facilities
Some campgrounds have limited facilities, such as just water or electricity but no other hookups. Although strictly speaking these are not boondock campgrounds, don’t discount them as possible campsites. You’ll still get to use your boon-docking skills. If you have just an electrical hookup, you’ll still need to conserve water and keep track of your holding tanks. If you have access to water only, then you’ll have to monitor battery consumption and holding tanks.
Also, such campgrounds may be in an urban area as well as a wilderness setting. They may be federal, state, county, or city parks or private camps. Some of our favorite state campsites have had electrical hookups, but no water or sewage at the site. Usually, however, they will have a dump station with a freshwater faucet nearby. We have used this type of campground many, many times.
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Local Parks
Many small towns and cities permit dry camping in their parks. We usually try to find these great little parks as we travel. They are not only pretty but usually located in the center of town near stores and shops. We often have camped in the town park in Sheridan, Wyoming, which provides welcome shade on hot summer days with its tall cottonwood trees.
Many counties have excellent parks that only offer dry camping. And while most state parks usually have full hookups, there are a few that only have dry camping, or they may have specific sections of the campground without hookups. In many cases, some of the more popular parks will have a no-hookup overflow section that is used when the rest of the park is full. Camping is often allowed in these areas even if the rest of the park is not completely occupied. In the West, parks for horse trailers (for those doing trail riding) usually allow camping as well.
Highway Overlooks and Rest Areas
Often a pull-off along the highway at a scenic overlook or a historical marker may be a good place to spend the night. We have used such places while traveling, providing they didn’t have a sign specifically stating "No overnight parking."
Rest areas along highways are also potential overnight campsites. We find the better rest areas are along the smaller highways and the worse are those on popular interstate highways. The latter have heavier traffic and thus are noisier.
A word of caution: Do not assume a rest area, or campground for that matter, is naturally a safe place. Take some precautions (see the sidebar on page 18).
RVing isn’t a dangerous or risky lifestyle. In all our years of RVing, we’ve never been a victim of any crime, and we’ve felt secure in most campgrounds. However, a healthy awareness of safety is a good thing.
BOONDOCKING SITES: PRIVATE AND
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY
Private Property
Don’t discount the possibility of camping on someone’s land. We’ve camped on ranch land as well as along river and stream banks in countless states.
We have camped in many places that were on private land. We never stay on private land unless we’ve been invited to do so or obtained permission in advance from the owners. Asking strangers to get permission to camp on their property is easy. Just go up to the house and say, "We would like to spend the night in this area. Do you know of any place we could park for the night?" Most people are friendly if you approach them politely. Be neatly dressed, don’t look like a person with bad intentions, and you will probably get a good place to stay.
We once wanted to take pictures of Devil’s Gate, a natural gorge on the Sweetwater River, on the old Oregon Trail. At the time, it was on the private property of the Sun Ranch (the ranch is now a National Historic Landmark). We went up to the house and inquired if we could walk to the Gate and take some pictures. Mrs. Sun, who was most gracious to us, told us where we could park. We parked, came up to the house later by invitation, enjoyed the cocktail hour, and made some good friends. We stayed four days and had a great time.
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Staying Safe: Security
While we don’t want to overemphasize the potential for being a victim of crime, we don’t want you to be totally unaware of the possibility. Some suggestions for staying safe are:
Use common sense when you park your rig. If you boondock in a parking lot or rest area, for example, choose a well-lit, highly visible area.
Don’t use rest-area facilities at night.
Lock your door when you’re inside your RV. If we have the door open for ventilation, we latch the screen door.
Be suspicious of anyone who knocks on your door at night. Do not immediately open it. Turn on the outside light, use a window to ask for identification (use a flashlight to see it), and find out what they want. If you are uncomfortable with their answers, don’t open the door.
Don’t leave valuables unattended around your campsite or in plain sight in your RV or tow vehicle when you leave.
Lock outside compartments to prevent theft or entry into the RV.
Close any window near a door to prevent someone from reaching in through the window to open the door.
Secure motorized vehicles when you leave.
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Parking Lots
As mentioned in Chapter 1, most RVers practice convenience camping, staying in a parking lot overnight and moving on the next day. A long drive, weariness, or full campgrounds are some of the reasons to pull into a parking lot. And there are a lot of options with this type of boondocking, as we’ll cover below.