Tiger4x4RV wrote:
Bryan,
I read both of your TC magazine articles. Nice to see the story behind the RV.net TC forum posts.
One question re the TP factor: You never mention the 14-day max stay on many public lands as a factor which might limit your boondocking. Any comment on that?
thanks.
Hi Tiger4X4! Thanks for visiting Truck Camper Magazine and looking over the articles. I hope you enjoyed them.
To answer your question, quickly,
I don’t stay in one spot for 14 days or more.
The 2 articles touched briefly on many things and upcoming articles will go more deeply into the different policies and rules. Just like you may only have General Delivery in the same Post Office for 30 days, without written permission of the Postmaster. There is a lot more to General Deliver than I could discuss in a general information article.
As one of the Law Enforcement officers that enforced the 14 Day Rule, I have an Up’ on working within the rules and regulations. Just as your question poses, you would not be able to stay on many public lands for the remainder of 2014. Of course, that is not what you were intending. When we were enforcing this rule, it was to address squatters. Those that would move into a National Park, National Forest or BLM property, whether homeless, working in town or simply Snowbirding. We specifically looked for “Blue Tarp Camps” or people that basically moved in and began altering the area for their own benefit. A frequent comment I heard; “Well, no one else was taking care of this area, so did.”
Many Federal areas require you to register for a $10 permit to boondock and or dispersed camping. Other locations require you to stay a specific distance from roads, trails, water sources and selected roads as identified on supplied maps.
For boondocking and dispersed camping, it is recommended to visit the local authorities Ranger Station or Visitor Center. The most updated information and often free maps is available there.
It was not my intention to leave you with the impression I boondock like a Snowbird, by going into a location and staying in one spot for the entire duration. I apologize if you were left with that impression. One of the ways I document my movement, and available upon request to a Ranger, is logging my GPS location each time I stay at a new location (Unique). This is logged on a spreadsheet and now goes back more than 4 years. This is something I do to establish my travels for my own safety, as it is sent to a set of friends and family. It is also used to meet Residency, Health Care, Tax and permit requirements. All these are important when you Fulltime.
Now, some do work the “System” by each one in the party keeping an Annual, Senior and Access Pass. As their 14 day limit expires, the other party in the group uses their Pass. When I was a Ranger, we were on to this and watched it carefully. We typically began enforcing this if it exceeded 30 days. Others will move from one area to another, which in fact is allowed, such as Corps of Engineers locations, as well as National Forest Locations. This is how I am able to stay in Death Valley for 5 to 7 weeks, by dispersed camping.
As technology increases, many locations will begin enforcing the maximum stay rules in 30 days and 12 month periods, in various properties, such as National Park Campgrounds. That is why sites using http://www.recreation.gov/ will not process your reservation if you exceed their maximum stay requirements in that property. Many will opt to override this by avoiding registering online.
The key to Extreme Boondocking is to educate yourself in so many facets of where you can and cannot stay and for how long. If you are Fulltiming, like me, you have time on your side. Visit your Ranger Stations and Visitor Centers and talk to the people there. I have never found a staff member unable to help me or willing to talk to me about some really outstanding locations to camp, like my recent visit to the Vermillion Cliffs National Monument.
En' short, don't stay in one spot too long. There is a lot more to see, so keep moving and exploring!
Hopefully, this brief explanation will answer your question more thoroughly, as well as demonstrate that this topic is one that could be its own article. Be sure to watch for more articles in Truck Camping Magazine, on Boondocking and Fulltiming in a Truck Camper, by me and others.
b
