These situations are tricky (not to mention annoying). If everyone follows the rules, everyone is treated fairly. People don't have the rules memorized though. Think of campers like children. They'll do what they want until someone tells them it's against the rules. Of course they'll push back. Try to keep a sense of humor. Try to reward the good behavior, not the bad. The campground is a large area to cover and you can't spend 24 hours looking for bad behavior. That's no fun! We've had good success with a wave and a smile, as people enter and leave, and as we drive through the campground. (I like "drive through" instead of "patrol".) If someone doesn't look at you and return your wave or smile, they are the ones who aren't having fun and may need more attention. Even the good ones can't be perfect. The campfire flames up, but it will settle back down. Don't get mad and assume they'll keep it blazing. Just watch for a little bit if you're concerned about safety. If they are keeping it blazing, go over and talk to them calmly. Troublemakers don't really like you to be in their campsite, even if you are the nicest person on earth (or maybe especially). So, if you're a talker, chat with them about anything and everything including the campfire restrictions and the reasons for it. Take your time. Chat for a while. Maybe sit down. hahaha Try to stay until the fire is safe again. This technique may need a couple times during their stay to get the point across. Try to have fun with this instead of letting them get under your skin. (not as easy as it sounds I know)
Another technique, one step further in the Walmart-Greeter philosophy, is to spot the trouble before it happens. We've had groups of young people looking for a place to party for the night. You can spot them, maybe a car or two and all texting to others who will show up later. So my husband would catch them as soon as he could, before they set up camp. He'd talk to them about this being a family campground and the sheriff patrols nightly. He explained to them that there are 3 things that will invite the sheriff into your campsite: lots of cars, noise and a big campfire. And, son-of-a-gun if they didn't turn into good campers...or leave.
Then there are the ones who get angry because they have to follow the rules. I had a guy yelling at me so all around could hear him. I tried to calmly reason with him without raising my voice. That wasn't working. He just wanted the attention. So, I lowered my voice to almost a whisper. He had to come closer to me to hear. I don't even remember what I said but I could see everyone in the other campsites pay more attention too. hahaha He calmed down. I don't think I ever resolved his problem but I really didn't care if he didn't come back. I mean, why do I want to make sure that camper is happy? But at least he wasn't bothering the other campers anymore.
