New Oaxaca campground

Spontaneity suffers a bit doing that, and anyway, where we end up isn't all that important

40 plus years ago I made my first trip to find Grand Teton and Yellowstone - in May - got there and it was freezing and the parks were closed due to over 20 feet of snow. I was young and naive. Now I do a bit more research and I ask more questions. No point driving hundreds of miles to something that is not going to happen. We do what research we feel we need to do and make decisions based on that - which is probably why so many of us use things like GPS and maps and guide books and website to see what we can learn - and we visit forums like this one to see what else we can find out - whether it is the Church book or ioverlander we try to find out what we can - as do most.

we never go anywhere without checking first - if not with them exactly but maybe someone who has been there.

Spontaneity suffers a bit doing that, and anyway, where we end up isn't all that important

why is the Church's book being held up as a perfect example. It was, but no longer.

I do not think anyone even suggested it is perfect. It just has a lot of useful information. And as pointed out - we can go on their website to post updates - which people do not seem to do - so things go out of date. Any source of info is a compilation of all the info put out by all the travelers who contribute by providing info as they find it. My personal files are full of info from many sources as well as posts here and things I have gleaned over the years from countless sources. But that info for the most part belongs to those who published it so it is not mine to share. Each of us can created our own files to keep up to date. This forum is a great source as is the other sources mentioned. But no source all by itself can be the be all and end all - there is no such thing as perfect. By compiling this info over the years - and by following this forum - and the Church website - and the Bell website - and also ioverlander - I keep track of closings and openings and current status of many locations in Mexico. Don't expect anyone to do it for you. Not without them getting paid to do the compiling. The Church book is still a great base of info - as is the Bell website - if you keep up with the stuff. But comments on this forum also become dated and we cannot go back to look for what someone posted last year about such and such a location. That is why I immediately enter new info into my files whenever anyone posts anything. The Churches and the Bells used to keep up with all this stuff but if all of us out here do not send them the info it all becomes moot. No one can keep up with it all.

I have no idea why this did not show up yesterday - it is there today - maybe I pushed a wrong button - but other RV parks did show up - hope this screen shot works

We do not have or use any kind of smart phone - we go online at www.ioverlander.com as I posted above and looked for campgrounds and it showed nothing anywhere near Oaxaca though it did show places we are familiar with in other areas - I must be doing something wrong - or maybe the site was down or something - to my knowledge they show very few of the campgrounds I am aware of. As far as the Church book and traveling to campgrounds to find them closed - we never go anywhere without checking first - if not with them exactly but maybe someone who has been there.

When you post these oversized pictures it causes the entire page to go out of control and the sentences are twice as wide as the page - this is the second time this week this has happened I have not idea why - can we delete that map and get the page back to a usable size??

This is the iOverlander map for the area around oaxaca. If you had the iOverlanderr database installed on your Garmin or smart phone and searched for listings near Oaxaca, all those entries would be listed along with description of the places. On smartphones, photos and recent checkins would also be shown.

BTW I have the Churchs book and still use it on a regular basis despite last time wasting a fair bit of fuel and time travelling to places that were closed. That it remains a resource is nothing to do with it being up-to date which of course it is not, but because nothing much has changed in all those years except that many RV parks have just got more and more decrepit and the owners don't know when to pill the pin.

moisheh wrote:
I would not consider Ioverland "cutting edge" More of a Wiki than a replacement for Church's book. More CG's missing than ones that are listed. Almost nothing for Kino. On this forum I doubt there is anyone looking for a tent friendly CG. They list Oaxaca RV park as closed. Not so! I could not find that new park in the listing. Church's book is written so that a person who has never been to Mexico could use that book and a map and have a great time. Lists things to do and places to see, A real description of the CG's not some tenter's opinion. Sorry but I think it needs a lot more.

Moisheh

The previous campground of the same or similar name (trailer Park) http://ioverlander.com/places/114-oaxaca-trailer-park was reported closed because more ooffice blocks were under construction and http://app.ioverlander.com/places/9421-oaxaca-campground was advertised as a replacement - andwhich to my almost certain knowledge has never been marked as closed on iOverlander. The owners originally posted it on October 5th in time for the coming season. They also advertised it on a couple of other forums. I added more complete information a few days ago and after a couple of emails to the owners, they amended some minor details.

As for cutting edge, iOverlander comes close - web based, Android app and iPhone app, user updatable, colour photos and as up to date as you the user want to make it. At 7 years out of print and increasingly likely to stay that way, why is the Church's book being held up as a perfect example. It was, but no longer.

But you are correct. IOverlander was originally conceived as a resource for overland travellers heading to Central and South America and certainly not for North American snowbirds. However, like any good idea, iOverlander now has entries across the world and can cater for any special interest group that wants to make use of it - including snowbirds. Go for it.

BTW If Oaxaca Trailer Park IS still open, please let me know and I'll change the entry - or you can sign on and do it.

I used ioverlander app to find the NEW Oaxaca RV park, it's on there. The campground is about 18 km outside the city, quiet and easy to get a cab (cheap) into the city if you want.


I think ioverlander is not really designed around at least originally to "snowbirds" so Kino is likely to not be on there, although it certainly could be added.

Personally I would never buy the Churches book, the info gets outdated, and it's still in the book!

I would not consider Ioverland "cutting edge" More of a Wiki than a replacement for Church's book. More CG's missing than ones that are listed. Almost nothing for Kino. On this forum I doubt there is anyone looking for a tent friendly CG. They list Oaxaca RV park as closed. Not so! I could not find that new park in the listing. Church's book is written so that a person who has never been to Mexico could use that book and a map and have a great time. Lists things to do and places to see, A real description of the CG's not some tenter's opinion. Sorry but I think it needs a lot more.

Moisheh