Curious as to what people do when they go to a first come first serve campground without formal registration. BLM for example states: "Camping equipment and/or a recreational vehicle is set up at the site to clearly indicate the site is taken."I don't want to leave valuable gear at a campsite to show it is "taken" and we don't want to have stay parked in the space. Interested in what people have done successfully in this situation.

A couple of chairs placed around the fire ring, is a good way, Or putting up a dining fly, or eazyup. Maybe a grill sitting there. You got to mark it somehow, and chairs, grills, and canopies are the easiest way.

My understanding is that on a federal first come first served campground such as NPS or BLM is that unless you are ready to occupy you are not supposed to leave any thing to "claim" the sight. I don't know what to suggest other than that. We arrive and setup and done, if we don't get a "choice" site then so be it. I will say that it ticks me off to arrive at a site and see a lawn chair or cooler sitting there with nothing else. They are taking a site and not using it for a day or so and to me that just aint right. If you want to be the "first come" then set up and use the sight!Steve

57 Panhead wrote:My understanding is that on a federal first come first served campground such as NPS or BLM is that unless you are ready to occupy you are not supposed to leave any thing to "claim" the sight. I don't know what to suggest other than that. We arrive and setup and done, if we don't get a "choice" site then so be it. I will say that it ticks me off to arrive at a site and see a lawn chair or cooler sitting there with nothing else. They are taking a site and not using it for a day or so and to me that just aint right. If you want to be the "first come" then set up and use the sight!SteveI've seen this a couple of times and I've always been tempted to move the chairs to the dump station :B

57 Panhead wrote:My understanding is that on a federal first come first served campground such as NPS or BLM is that unless you are ready to occupy you are not supposed to leave any thing to "claim" the sight. I don't know what to suggest other than that. We arrive and setup and done, if we don't get a "choice" site then so be it. I will say that it ticks me off to arrive at a site and see a lawn chair or cooler sitting there with nothing else. They are taking a site and not using it for a day or so and to me that just aint right. If you want to be the "first come" then set up and use the sight!SteveNot sure why one would do it any other way. Set up, go pay the tube, have fun you are done.

57 Panhead wrote:I will say that it ticks me off to arrive at a site and see a lawn chair or cooler sitting there with nothing else. They are taking a site and not using it for a day or so and to me that just aint right. If you want to be the "first come" then set up and use the sight!SteveReally?....maybe they've already been enjoying their paid-for site in a smaller RV ( for days, for all you know), and just drove their RV over to the nearest grocery store, or to visit other areas in the park to hike...or see some local sights, planning to return later for dinner and a good night's sleep???There is certainly no requirement I've ever heard of that after campers have selected and paid for their sites that they must occupy it continuously 24/7 during the reservation!To answer the original poster, most of us leave chairs, and some use an orange traffic cone to indicate that we've paid for a site for that night.

Claiming a first come campsite | Good Sam Community

Ski_Pro_3
Explorer
May 25, 2013
Veebyes wrote:
koda55 wrote:
I would think that if someone has paid for their site and leave for site seeing or what ever, if someone wanted the site and went to pay for it, the host or ranger would not give them the site because they will see it is paid for when they check to see if that stheite is available.

The issue is not about paid for sites. It is about people who attempt to claim sites without payment.

Also about people who pay for sites, but don't occupy them. Most all campgrounds require the site be occupied on the first night of the reservation or it's forfeit. This is about folks who come up on a Wednesday, say, and sometimes pay, sometimes not, put out a couple chairs or a pup tent, but they don't actually start to camp until the weekend.

Since I'm retired and camp mostly on weekdays, I've seen this happen on occasion.
Veebyes
Explorer II
May 25, 2013
koda55 wrote:
I would think that if someone has paid for their site and leave for site seeing or what ever, if someone wanted the site and went to pay for it, the host or ranger would not give them the site because they will see it is paid for when they check to see if that stheite is available.

The issue is not about paid for sites. It is about people who attempt to claim sites without payment.
koda55
Explorer
May 24, 2013
I would think that if someone has paid for their site and leave for site seeing or what ever, if someone wanted the site and went to pay for it, the host or ranger would not give them the site because they will see it is paid for when they check to see if that site is available.
royl
Explorer
May 24, 2013
57 Panhead wrote:
My understanding is that on a federal first come first served campground such as NPS or BLM is that unless you are ready to occupy you are not supposed to leave any thing to "claim" the sight. I don't know what to suggest other than that. We arrive and setup and done, if we don't get a "choice" site then so be it.

I will say that it ticks me off to arrive at a site and see a lawn chair or cooler sitting there with nothing else. They are taking a site and not using it for a day or so and to me that just aint right. If you want to be the "first come" then set up and use the sight!

Steve

Maybe they are driving the RV to get supplies or sight see. Not everyone pulls a toad.
deleted-2
Explorer
May 24, 2013
jessjerr1831 wrote:
Pulled into a campsite at Mezadian P.P. Paid our fees for a few days and thought no more of it. The next day as we were still in the campsite a couple drove up and said that the site we were in was theirs as the night before they had left a couple of chairs at the site. I said, no chairs were here, we paid our money and were staying. Right then a park employee showed up. She had the chairs. She agreed the chairs were there yesterday but they did not pay for the site! So, no money paid, no site saved. But, they said, they were going to pay but went to Stewart and decided to stay there so did not get back to pay. They thought the site was still theirs. They got their chairs back but that was all. Sheeeesh!

I think that's pretty cool.
Lake Almanor's Rocky Point started doing that to site savers that don't pay first.

It's easy to drive thru, select then pay within 30 minutes.
That way the host comes right to your spot and posts a fee paid tag on the post.
pkunk
Explorer
May 24, 2013
I make these and they've worked for me for years. I put on the back "stolen from xxxx"
Jagtech
Explorer
May 24, 2013
Gau 8 wrote:
Jagtech wrote:
I've stayed at a couple of CG's that require a vehicle or trailer be actually parked on site at all times, or you will lose your spot, regardless if you've already paid for it. That makes it difficult for a motorhome owner to go out for groceries or a case of beer!

Not if you have a Toad!

You're absolutely right, and that's part of the reason I now pull a Jeep. But lots of MH owners either can't or won't pull a toad, such as those with a Class B or a small class C.
super_camper
Explorer
May 23, 2013
I wouldn't recommending claiming a site like this with just a chair and other stuff left over like leveling blocks. We went sight seeing for a day with our MH and left a chair and leveling blocks and everything was gone when we got back.
jessjerr1831
Explorer
May 23, 2013
Pulled into a campsite at Mezadian P.P. Paid our fees for a few days and thought no more of it. The next day as we were still in the campsite a couple drove up and said that the site we were in was theirs as the night before they had left a couple of chairs at the site. I said, no chairs were here, we paid our money and were staying. Right then a park employee showed up. She had the chairs. She agreed the chairs were there yesterday but they did not pay for the site! So, no money paid, no site saved. But, they said, they were going to pay but went to Stewart and decided to stay there so did not get back to pay. They thought the site was still theirs. They got their chairs back but that was all. Sheeeesh!
Veebyes
Explorer II
May 23, 2013
It is pretty easy to tell the difference between the site scammers & the folks out for the day. The site scammers leave cheap pup tents & cheap chairs, maybe a cone, at the site. Those out for the day are more likely to leave all kinds of stuff there just like tent campers do.