Getting sick of campgrounds

[Mike_Up]

I love camping but it seems camping is so popular now that my area just doesn't have enough campgrounds to make weekend camping enjoyable anymore.

As it is right now, you can't go to the park without a reservation a month or two in advance. Gone are the days of getting off work, hooking up and going to the park to find a spot. There's no spots to be had.

And then when I can get a site, it's less than enjoyable any more.

State parks have really declined letting trash take over and break every rule on the books. It's to the point it's nothing but a party spot at Indiana State Parks. It's either the drunks or it's the neighbors with 15' dog leashes, with their animals in my site.

I was wanting to go camping but then I thought, WHY. Every time I go to an Indiana State park that I love, the DNR doesn't enforce any of the rules and it's a free for all for all the drunks and partiers. I want to enjoy being out in nature which is very hard to do any more with the screaming, yelling, and barking. I thought that was for the bars and nightclubs?

Then the private campgrounds in my area are not what they were either. They use to be rustic, affordable, woodsy sites. Now the older couples that use to own them, have sold out to foreigners or out of staters, who have turned them into RV parking lots charging twice what they use to and nickel and diming you for everything including A/C and dump station use.

It's a shame how the campgrounds have gotten trashy or more urban with little to do with nature any more.

I love my camper but it sees little use anymore and I just don't have the time to drive to the better rustic parks in the state that are less crowded, more civil, and quieter.

I hope this passes as I love my Jay Flight especially since the new models don't offer the features or build mine has from 2012. BUT I may be inclined to sell it next year because I'm losing the love for camping. I like seclusion and nature, I can socialize and party at the local pub. 😉

Am I alone if my observation?

[dewey02]

bcbouy wrote:
we spent 3 weeks at a forest service campground at bobtail lake,mid august, lakeside view on 3 sides of the camp,boat launch was a 30 foot walk.# of other campers in 3 weeks=0. before that 1 week at silence lake,again lakeside site,# of other campers in 1 week=0.it's not crowded everywhere.you just need to know where to go.and i guess you need to be in the most beautiful place on earth.

I was about to say that spending 3 weeks at a Forest Service campground is about 1 week too many, according to the Forest Service rules, but then I looked at your name and info and figured that you are talking about British Columbia Forest Service and not the US Forest Service.

So...good on ya! You found a great spot with no neighbors. Don't advertise it too much or it might not last! 🙂

[bcbouy]

we spent 3 weeks at a forest service campground at bobtail lake,mid august, lakeside view on 3 sides of the camp,boat launch was a 30 foot walk.# of other campers in 3 weeks=0. before that 1 week at silence lake,again lakeside site,# of other campers in 1 week=0.it's not crowded everywhere.you just need to know where to go.and i guess you need to be in the most beautiful place on earth.

[dewey02]

mike-s wrote:

avoidcrowds wrote:
Mike Up, there are a couple National Forests north of you in Michigan. You should be able to boondock up there, and not have neighbors.

In Michigan, you can also do dispersed camping in State Forests.

I would have a very difficult time complying with this permit requirement. You are supposed to post your name and address, when you arrived and when you departed and then leave it at the site after you've left.

Who knows how long it will stay there? If you aren't heading straight home, it sounds like an open invitation to anyone that you are not home and your house is available for ransacking. Just seems like a very strange way for the state to conduct business. And exactly how is it enforced? If the ranger comes while you are at the site, then I guess they can enforce it. If the ranger comes after you've left the site, how on earth would they know who was there?

I'm all for responsible boondocking and I try to always follow the rules, but I think this rule would keep me from boondocking on Michigan state property and instead go to the Huron, Manistee, Hiawatha or Ottawa National Forests and do my boondocking there.

[Hannibal]

You wouldn't like the places we camp. Young people, beer, occasional smell of weed, occasional gunfire, bikinis, nekid wemings, loud music, hootin and hollerin tubing down the river... The only thing I worry about is accidental damage to our truck or camper. So far we haven't had any.
Look around. There are countless campgrounds for every style. Kings Lake outside DeFuniak Springs Florida would likely be more to your liking. You can watch the bass take your bait it's so clear. Nice quiet people too. There are a bunch of small rustic campgrounds around there too. I'm sure there are some up closer to you as well. You just have to find them.

[2DHoop]

Don't quite something that you inherently enjoy, Mike.

LIFE IS TOO SHORT, and the one thing we all desire are options in which we can utilize when confronted with unpleasant situations and maximize the short time we do have to heavily outweigh the time we spend dealing with what you've experienced.

I think your best option (and the option I would employ) is to create separation from the "stuff" that causes you stress.

Like what has been previously suggested, I would alter the things that YOU can control because you aren't going to change other people and what they think are acceptable behaviors based on their general social compass.

Find alternate areas/campgrounds. Even if it requires you to spend additional time to plan and/or drive farther distances because life is too short to not enjoy the things afforded to you through your ability to employ options.

[mike-s]

avoidcrowds wrote:
Mike Up, there are a couple National Forests north of you in Michigan. You should be able to boondock up there, and not have neighbors.

In Michigan, you can also do dispersed camping in State Forests.

[wrenchbender]

I do not do campgrounds.I thought they were bad 10yrs ago hate to even think what they are like now.

[bpounds]

I feel for all of you in the crowded east and mid-west.

Campgrounds in CA are highly used as well. During summer months there are very poor odds that you can just drive in and find a spot. So when we camp during the peak months, we plan ahead and get reservations. I miss the old days, but whatcha gonna do.

Reservations can take the spontaneity out of camping, so when we have to we choose from the thousands of dispersed camping locations we have within a few hours drive. But that isn't without problems too, because the peak months are also among the hot months, and I just won't camp somewhere that I would have to run AC all day.

So most of our camping is before school starts, and after school resumes in the fall. I'll be in the Sierra's for 2 weeks in early October, and I will have my choice of campsites. No competition on the trout stream. Got another week in November, but even in CA the mountains will be cold, and trout season will be closed, so we'll probably do something in the desert that week. So many options that I don't really have to give it much forethought. Might even just drive and decide along the way.

Think about that, next time you are tempted to post derogatory remarks about good old California.

The truth though, is that no matter where you live, you just have to be more creative with your camping, and find ways to avoid the crowds. Or maybe learn to be more tolerant of your fellow campers. Being different than you does not make them trash.

[myredracer]

hohenwald48 wrote:

Also, anyone know why you can't post the symbol for percent in a reply?

It's an annoying glitch. Been around since beginning of 2016 at least. Either say "percent" or use Woodalls.

[DanNJanice]

If lived back east where 99% of the land is privately owned, rather than in the west, I probably would not even have a travel trailer.

[JAC1982]

The reservation thing really bothers me too, but, it's just part of living in a nice area. Here in CO, you need to book very early to get a reservation at any state park that's within a reasonable driving distance from Denver.

We got lucky this year and snagged a spot at Boyd Lake State Park in Loveland. It's not mountainy at all as it's actually in town, but it was nice to get away. We had an end spot, and we could only see one other campsite from our spot, the rest were behind us, so that was nice. My biggest issue was all the kids. We are not seniors, but we also don't have kids, nor do we want to hear kids screaming at all hours. However, that complaint is not really a camping issue, and I know kids will be kids, so we can't exactly get mad at kids screaming and playing in the mornings after 8am. The biggest "offender" was the campground host site, who had their grandkids visiting.

I always thought it'd be nice if there were "adults only" campgrounds that weren't geared to the senior crowd and weren't like RV parks, but there may not be a lot of interest in that... we're the only couple in our group of friends without kids.

[hohenwald48]

Folks say "boondock".

Well in Idaho (66 percent public land), Washington (36 percent public), Nevada (81 percent public) and other western states it's a little easier than in Indiana (2 percent public), Illinois (2 percent public), Kentucky (3.5 percent public) or most states in the east. The problem is the popularity of RV's, increase in population (doubled in my lifetime) and the regulations that cause private parks to be extremely expensive to build and operate.

Maybe we need to do like the younger generation and stay in our parents basement and play video games all day until we are in our late 40's. 🙂

Also, anyone know why you can't post the symbol for percent in a reply?

[myredracer]

henkelphoto wrote:
I live in Las Vegas and, outside of the town itself and the Lake Mead campgrounds, have found the CGs here in Nevada to be readily available, especially mid-week.

We just "camped" in Vegas on Boulder hwy in Aug. That's like the camping strip of Vegas. :B The CG we were in wasn't all that bad and we even had a little shade from trees on our site. In the late afternoon... It's like a ghost town in the daytime because everyone is inside with their ACs on high or at the real strip. Interesting thing we discovered is that city water out of the ground is so warm you can shower with it without using your water heater. We'd def. go back and stay somewhere like Lake Mead and spend time at Grand Canyon. We were led to believe that many from Nv, Ar & N.M. head north in the summer to escape the heat which makes more places available for us northerners.

[lbrjet]

Face it. You just don't live in a good part of Indiana for state parks and private parks.

[myredracer]

SprinklerMan wrote:
here on the east coast , they are selling campers like crazy . But they havent built a new campground in decades

Someone told us recently that they're now selling around 400,000 RVs a year. They all want to camp somewhere and are putting a huge strain on the available supply of CGs. It's only going to get worse and worse. Not many new CGs are being built and the ones that are often charge a premium in the high season. Many CGs we've been to are 40+ years old and often have low voltage, low water pressure, few sewer sites and/or very few 50 amp pedestals.

We never stay in a CG where kids and the "average Joe" can stay otherwise you'll get the party-ers, noise, open alcohol everywhere, off-leash dogs, etc. We used to have a membership in a CG network based in Wa. and they had a lot of rental cabins & tent sites and sold out because they never enforced their rules.

We bought a membership in a CG system that has CGs around the US. Better not say the name because it will only make it harder for us to get in... 🙂 We can book 90 days out and can stay in their system and move from park to park. It can still be hard to get in on short notice tho. Because this org. has mostly RV-ers using it who generally respect each other, there is very little trouble or annoying things going on. We bought this premium membership pre-owned off CL for an amazingly low price compared to new. We were just in their CGs in Wa., Or., Ca. & Nv. and none of them were a problem.

Here in BC it is very difficult to book a site in our provincial CGs and if you don't have your phone on speed dial in March when the system starts taking reservations you are SOL. RV dealers & tour companies have been buying large block of reservations and reselling them. CBC story here. It's pretty bad. Haven't stayed in a provincial CG here since the 80s and even then it was bad at some of them. Young people have been partying and trashing some of our CGs like in this CBC story. In recent years years they cut way back on staffing and there's no longer free firewood, interpretive presentations or nature talks for kids.

Then there is the cost of some CGs and at $50-60 and up it can get pretty expensive. Some KOAs can be great and some are awful. Have been in a few state parks in Wa.& Or. and they are beautiful but hard to get into. Good Sam CGs we've been to have been good. It can really help to check reviews on rvparkreviews.com but even then some folks aren't happy with even great CGs and should go straight to a high-end "park". New campgrounds for RV-ers are needed but who is going to build them?

Choose wisely and it will all be good.