USFS CG with "must reserve" requirement
Recently stopped at the USFS Sycamore Grove CG near Red Bluff, CA, where I was last in June 2016. First thing I noticed was this sign. Drove around the CG and many spots had an "open" sign...
Forum Discussion
I was a USFS campground manager for a National Forest that had about 30 developed campgrounds (100's of individual campsites). We tried to always have some first come first served NON-reservable campsites at each campground (approximately 30% of the sites). We thought this was fair. However, I have been retired for about 8 years now and perhaps the rules have changed. I know some states have also gone to a reservation only policy. I've written letters to the local State government with reasons for why they shouldn't do this...but alas to no avail. I've got to say I am definitely NOT a fan of having all the sites be reservation only.
There are unintended consequences of having such a system. By having some non-reservable sites, a person is able to occupy a site and then determine (based on weather, interest in the area, etc.) how long they want to stay (up to the 2 week limit). They can simply re-up each day prior to a certain time (usually late morning). But if all sites are reservable, most are already reserved for the weekends (THurs - Sunday) so even if you find an open site on a Monday, you can only stay for a few days, because the site is reserved, even if nobody shows up for the weekend.
And I am not interested in making reservations 1 year in advance and locking myself in to specific places and specific days that far in advance.
There are unintended consequences of having such a system. By having some non-reservable sites, a person is able to occupy a site and then determine (based on weather, interest in the area, etc.) how long they want to stay (up to the 2 week limit). They can simply re-up each day prior to a certain time (usually late morning). But if all sites are reservable, most are already reserved for the weekends (THurs - Sunday) so even if you find an open site on a Monday, you can only stay for a few days, because the site is reserved, even if nobody shows up for the weekend.
And I am not interested in making reservations 1 year in advance and locking myself in to specific places and specific days that far in advance.
