Stuff stolen while on a hike

[llamadave]

Originally Posted by 86Scotty

I've camped all over the West and what I like most is that no campground is needed. There are more free Forest Service campgrounds, hunting camps, BLM sites, etc. than I could ever camp at.

Remember, SMB's are for getting away from this stuff!

Scotty, I am dreaming of a 4x4 Vanessa-2, and I do like non-campgrounds. But we are having a wonderful time now in the Canadian Maritimes, currently near a beach on Prince Edward Island. We like the hiking trails in the national and provincial parks, and the campers here are mostly quiet and friendly.

David

[jim2901]

It's discouraging to hear reports like this. When leaving our site for a hike we generally take everything with us; mainly due to rain, wind or animals. We mark our site with an "Occupied" sign attached to the campsite post and leave a cheap disposable table cloth on the table. So far… we've had no problems with theft or site-nappers. I like the idea of the collapsible cones.

[86Scotty]

Originally Posted by llamadave

Scotty, I am dreaming of a 4x4 Vanessa-2, and I do like non-campgrounds. But we are having a wonderful time now in the Canadian Maritimes, currently near a beach on Prince Edward Island. We like the hiking trails in the national and provincial parks, and the campers here are mostly quiet and friendly.

David

Thanks David and I'm glad you guys are and I'm jealous! I'm not anti-campground at all. In fact, I love them, just less when I hear about our loss of humanity in them. That goes for most other places I go too. I enjoy the State Parks in my area, or at least I did for many, many years. If it weren't for this pesky job I'd be camping in lots of places, both formal and informal.

Thanks for this thread. It is actually a fresh subject around here and lots of good info has been shared.

[Orv]

Originally Posted by Beasty Boy

Yea,40 bucks a night,stuffed diagonally side x side at Emma Wood S.B.
I think NOT I was just there last week. Ya can't spend the night at ANY
Ca state beach and all state and private campgrounds are 35-40 bucks a night Ruined my plan to take a casual drive up the coast to the Redwoods. Came home. Gonna go to Escalante instead. Utah beats the hell out of Ca anyway

I was there because I had a medical appointment in Ventura very early the next morning, and didn't want to have to get up even earlier to drive down. (I'm a major night owl.)

From my perspective I got an ocean view for less money than I'd have paid for a room at Motel 6 that overlooked a parking lot, so I was OK with it. Not somewhere I'd want to stay longer than overnight, though. It's not "camping" in any real sense.

I think if your goal is inexpensive, quiet camping along the central coast area, your best bet would be the campgrounds in the Los Padres National Forest. They're not beachfront, but the Santa Ynez mountains have a beauty of their own. Anywhere beachfront is going to be crowded.



Generally you'd pay about $30/night for campgrounds that have running water and $20/night for ones where you have to bring your own. One bonus is most of them are on roads too narrow and twisty for big Class A's, so you won't have a land yacht for a neighbor.

[carringb]

Originally Posted by YoTerryh

This is nuts and about the most egregious example of an overzealous BLM "Officer" (?) that I've ever heard of!

It's unfortunately a necessity at popular campgrounds near big cities. Otherwise people drive out from work mid-week and "claim" a site so they have one to come to Friday night, which of course prevents the actual ready-to-camp campers from getting a site.

Checking in with the host first would have surely prevented this. I've been on the "other side", striking out trying to find a campsite late in the week, because nearly all of them were already claimed by said ghost campers who had no intention of actually camping for a couple more days.

[Kirk B]

Originally Posted by carringb

Checking in with the host first would have surely prevented this. I've been on the "other side", striking out trying to find a campsite late in the week, because nearly all of them were already claimed by said ghost campers who had no intention of actually camping for a couple more days.

I agree, but in this case the host was a bit flaky. I'm a social type, so I checked in with the host and chatted with him for a bit when we claimed the site. But he must not have made rounds that night and did not notice that we actually slept there that night!

I generally don't camp in formal campgrounds. As has been mentioned - that is a freedom that a very capable 4X4 can afford you - you can pretty much camp anywhere! In the state of Washington though you can spend $30/yr for a Discover Pass that will allow you to camp at many DNR, BLM, and Fish & Wildlife campgrounds throughout the state without paying more. It's a nice option to have. We moved on from this particular site where we had trouble though and camped on land owned by The Nature Conservancy right on the Hoh River (we were right on the bank). It was a beautiful location, but it required 4WD and high clearance to get there. The most beautiful camp spots I've ever found were like this, with some kind of "filter" to keep standard vehicles out.

[rltilley]

I take anything of value with me when we go out for the day when staying at campgrounds. I even pack the wood if I have room. I have taken to setting up an old tent in our spot since when we leave it looks like the site is vacant.