Touring - Why are there no Recent Stealth Camping Posts?

So I will admit that this occupies much of my spare time, but usually the summer does not go by without someone making a post about camping on public land.

After being flamed over property rights, I've updated my journal (http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/journal/?o=lt&doc_id=1385&v=nb) and invite serious tourers to have a look and let me know what you think and if the journal is complete enough.

I do enjoy those post on stealth camping, although I've never done it myself. I'm a day tourer. Besides, living in Los Angeles it would be quite dangerous.

I always love to hear about stealth camping. I've done some no trace stealth camping myself.

Once in Germany I realized that I couldn't make it to the next city before dark. I saw a dirt road and a small forest. I talked to an older couple and asked them about the legalities of camping in the woods. They felt that "only a very bad person would not let me do so". So I rode down the dirt road, pushed my bike into the finely manicured woods and cooked a meal at dusk. I was going to wait til after dark to set up my tent. After a little while a car pulled up along the dirt road, someone got out and looked over my way for some time. Then he left.

It was now dark and I was considering setting up my tent. Two vehicles pulled up and two flashlights started moving towards me. A voice called out "Polizei! wer sind sie?". "Police! who are you?" I identified myself as a confused Canadian who "didn't know" that camping in the woods wasn't legal in Germany. After all it's legal in Canada I told them ;-)

The two officers were very friendly and told me how much they admired me for cycling all over their country. They insisted that I move on since the hunter who had the land tenure didn't want me there. It now dawned on me that the wooden tower near my campsite was for hunting ..doh! They then told me to just cycle up the road a few km's and they would just leave me alone. So I did just that.

I stealth camp in Germany all the time. I wouldn't cook on someone else's land for fear of fires. If one waits till dusk and doesn't cook, it's hard to imagine anyone seeing or having a problem with it.

here's my stealth campsite from Monday morning the 14th.

110 miles out of Seattle on Sunday, half on gravel rail-to-trail, then up a logging road outside of Cle Elum, Washington. Packed up and rode the 110 miles back to Seattle (9 hours) Monday.

Maybe nobody posts because it's not such a big deal. I camped once on the top of the mountain in the background (http://www.borealphoto.com/articles/plein-air/velo/2005_grand_tour/_DSC1530.jpg). I got there at night after much climbing.

I've quite a bit of stealth and not-so-stealth camping while hitch hiking within Canada. Once in Jasper where people walking by woke me up, once in a ditch in Sakatchewan where I got up after the constant honking of cars. I was in plain view. Once in Sudbury where I wasn't hidden by anything but on a treeless hill so I couldn't be seen from the highway, another in Saskatchewan, behind some bushes, hidden from the road but not from the railroad. I'd wake up every time a train passed. I was packing inthe morning when a truck pulled over. I thought, WTF, a truck? it was a CN truck on rails. :p

My two favorites:
- In Kelowna, BC, I camped on top of a cliff overlooking some mansions.

- Again in BC, I had planned on camping on top of the Kootenay pass. When I got there, I found a small pond with a water pump, a toilet and a cabin with wood stove for skiers. I slept in the cabin.

I love stealth camping but what more needs to be said on the subject that hasn't been said already?

What more needs to be said??
Welllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll -

First, the various agencies managing public lands continue to restrict public access. Unless there is constant opposition we'll be locked out before long. Valles Caldera in New Mexico is a perfect example. Putchased with public funds seven years ago with a directive to be managed a a for-profit trust, it allows thousands of cows to graze but not a single person to camp for fear of damaging the "resource" - Hah!

Second, unless we remind people that they have a right to use the lands many newbies will meekly go to the various campgrounds, set up their tent in the allocated 6'x6' site next to a Winnebago and listen to horns honk all night as people get up to go into their coolers or to fins the flashlight. Maybe not all people want a more remote experience, but we have to be there to let them know they can.

Third, stealth camping sites are just, plain more beautiful. A few pictures now and then help confirm it. I'm still a little meek about stealth camping in national parks. One time in Glacier, the "designated" backcountry campsite was in a bunch of mosquito-infested undergrowth with no view when just a few yards away were lovely sites that were on durable surfaces with a little wind to keep down the bugs.

Honey Lake Valley, Calif/Nev Border - Memorial Day Weekend - Evening and the Next Morning

jama,

The same things have been said many times over on dozens of threads in here. Anyone who wants information on stealth camping can google or search this forum.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a stealth camper myself & I like it over organized site. But if you were to lobby for the right to stealth camp on wilderness lands & national parks and make it a public issue, we'll lose 100%.

Stealth camping is really just about using common sense and leaving no trace.

What more needs to be said??


Unless we remind people that they have a right to use the lands many newbies will meekly go to the various campgrounds, set up their tent in the allocated 6'x6' site next to a Winnebago and listen to horns honk all night as people get up to go into their coolers or to fins the flashlight. Maybe not all people want a more remote experience, but we have to be there to let them know they can.



I couldn't have said it better myself. Here in South America they don't call it stealth camping because you don't see many campgrounds. Back in Canada, the idea that you are trespassing on unimproved, unmarked, unfenced land that is not being cultivated or used for grazing is absurd. As stokell says in his journal you're not trespassing unless you refuse to leave. It's not stealthing if they know you are there, so you are only trespassing when you are not actually stealth camping.

What more needs to be said??
Welllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll -

First, the various agencies managing public lands continue to restrict public access. Unless there is constant opposition we'll be locked out before long.
I was puzzled to see posted signs along the Shavers Fork of the Cheat River in WV in what I thought was National Forest according to my map. Turns out it was NF, but leased out for hunting.
When I asked a local about camping, his response was "nothing will be said" if I wanted to camp there.
I only had two people (looking for a place to camp themselves) spot my free camping spots in six days.

I find these stealth camping posts both interesting and informative. I have never stealth camped, even while cycling VA to CO on the TransAm in 2005. I just never considered it seriously, but now I wish I had.

In many parts of the TransAm, the distances between places to stay for the night (campgrounds, motels, etc.) were often inconvenient for me. For example, the first place was 36 miles from my day's starting point (way too short of a ride), and the second place was 85 miles (too long). So I would just stay at the first place, knowing that I could have done many more miles. I'm thinking now how great it would have been to stealth camp, say, after 60 miles of riding.

David in FL

I'm extremely bad at Stealh camping. I think people stumbled upon us every single night. We would usually just rolling into a city and try and find a park or some bushes we could sleep at. this is in downtown portland where like 5 bums came upon us.
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a397/bronskcloosper/P1010024.jpg

Bronsk
Dang, that's not much cover,man. Ballsy. I'd call that Naked Stealth camping or maybe Landscaping Camping.

I've camped in the grassy spots at freeway onramps a lot, once woke up to a dozen cops with flashlights shining in my eyes, seems someone had gone missing and I was seen from the freeway so the cops thought I was the missing person dumped along the road.

Most stealth camping is fine IF you leave no trace, not because you want to hide your activities, but because if you leave a mess people will take issue with it and you'll be forced out. Used to be a few great hideaway campsites around here, but people kept leaving messes and camping was eliminated.

I camped out in salinas once between the bushes along the highway and a board fence behind the houses, when I woke up and started getting everything together to continue on, I startled some girl who was out in her backyard feeding the dog, talked for a short while, swapped names etc, and got moving, 5 months later I ran into her camping out in golden gate park in san francisco, rode up to south sac with her, and ended up going with her for four years. So stealth camping can have unexpected results.

Ken.

Why no recent posts? Because Stokell hasn't started a thread in a while.

" As stokell says in his journal you're not trespassing unless you refuse to leave. It's not stealthing if they know you are there, so you are only trespassing when you are not actually stealth camping."

That's not true in Ontario where Stokell and I live. It's true in some places but any fenced or agricultural land is de facto posted. And many of the local areas are within various minicipalities that also have ordinances.

"As stated earlier in this journal, stealth camping is staying overnight in a location which is out-of-sight, unmarked, unimproved."

That doesn't make any sense. That's defining the term with regard to the land type while the "stealth" in question is the tactic chosen by the camper. If you're good enough to stealth camp out in a location that isn't out of site, is marked and is "improved". more power to you. With good fieldcraft you can be in the open and unseen.

Why no recent posts? Because Stokell hasn't started a thread in a while.

" As stokell says in his journal you're not trespassing unless you refuse to leave. It's not stealthing if they know you are there, so you are only trespassing when you are not actually stealth camping."

That's not true in Ontario where Stokell and I live. It's true in some places but any fenced or agricultural land is de facto posted. And many of the local areas are within various minicipalities that also have ordinances.

"As stated earlier in this journal, stealth camping is staying overnight in a location which is out-of-sight, unmarked, unimproved."

That doesn't make any sense. That's defining the term with regard to the land type while the "stealth" in question is the tactic chosen by the camper. If you're good enough to stealth camp out in a location that isn't out of site, is marked and is "improved". more power to you. With good fieldcraft you can be in the open and unseen.


Please try to get your quotation marks in the right place.

It is the Province of Ontario and not me that makes the laws. This is what the Crown says regarding trespass:
"2. (1)Every person who is not acting under a right or authority conferred by law and who,
(b) does not leave the premises immediately after he or she is directed to do so by the occupier of the premises or a person authorized by the occupier" (is guilty of an offence).

To me that means that if you are camping on private property you are not trespassing unless you are told to leave and refuse to do so. The Act goes on so say that methods of giving notice are:
"5 (1)
(a) orally or in writing;
(b) by means of signs posted so that that a sign is clearly visible in daylight under normal conditions from the approach to each ordinary point of access to the premises to which it applies; or
(c) by means of the marking system set out in Section 7"

Section 7 says that marking trees with a red mark is an acceptable sign.

Read and believe.

"Please try to get your quotation marks in the right place."

I wasn't even quoting you, sounds like you are feeling... left out.

Rules and regulations are spread all over the place in our system. There is the statute, there are any applicable by-laws, there is case law, etc... So it doesn't much help to have just one piece of the puzzle.

"Prohibition of entry

3. (1) Entry on premises may be prohibited by notice to that effect and entry is prohibited without any notice on premises,

(a) that is a garden, field or other land that is under cultivation, including a lawn, orchard, vineyard and premises on which trees have been planted and have not attained an average height of more than two metres and woodlots on land used primarily for agricultural purposes; or

(b) that is enclosed in a manner that indicates the occupier’s intention to keep persons off the premises or to keep animals on the premises. R.S.O. 1990, c. T.21, s. 3 (1)."

Note "woodlots", there is an interestingly vague concept.

how about THIS addition to my stealth touring setup?

Digital camo tarps. bought some this spring and have been using them most every tour, (except last weekend, where i went super ultralite with a silicone tarp) - these are three bicycling camps from this spring and summer (snow pics, june 19,20,21 in Mt Rainier natl' park)

this humdoggies blend in A LOT of places, provide an effective line of sight block, and work well atop a pitched tent to hide the thing from prying eyes. I have used it with success 'stealth' camping for free in hiker/biker sites.... if you somehow forgot to pay, AND the ranger doesn't see you from the truck when they do their campground checks, is it considered 'stealth' camping?

it's not like there's any proof that you didn't pay. I don't like campgrounds though, the ground is way too hard.

I have used it with success 'stealth' camping for free in hiker/biker sites.... if you somehow forgot to pay, AND the ranger doesn't see you from the truck when they do their campground checks, is it considered 'stealth' camping?

No, that's just theft.

bwaughahahahaha........stickler.


if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it fall, does in make a noise?

i believe only REFUSAL to pay would be 'theft' and a mere 'forgetting' to pay is absentminded feebleness......

additionally, i have come across hiker/biker sites with no envelopes to pay the pipe....do you just stuff money into a metal tube in the middle of the woods so you can hang out overnight for 10-12 hours?
if you feel a BURNING ETHICAL NEED to pay at all campgrounds, maybe you'd like the KOA or the good sam endorsed ones......

What about mindful forgeting?

Anyway, i am basically with you, I won't go out of my way to pay them, particularly in the off-season. But I pay them if they are there to be paid. Like you i probably am not stuffing money into a squirrel hole.

how about THIS addition to my stealth touring setup?

Digital camo tarps. bought some this spring and have been using them most every tour, (except last weekend, where i went super ultralite with a silicone tarp) - these are three bicycling camps from this spring and summer (snow pics, june 19,20,21 in Mt Rainier natl' park)

this humdoggies blend in A LOT of places, provide an effective line of sight block, and work well atop a pitched tent to hide the thing from prying eyes. I have used it with success 'stealth' camping for free in hiker/biker sites.... if you somehow forgot to pay, AND the ranger doesn't see you from the truck when they do their campground checks, is it considered 'stealth' camping?

Wow! Awesome photos! I really love the idea of camo tarps, but I haven't seen them anywhere. How do they work?

Currently I'm using a Hennessy hammock with a Coyote Brown fly. I was told that it was the colour that most people had trouble recognizing and therefore blended into the background. Is this significantly different?

additionally, i have come across hiker/biker sites with no envelopes to pay the pipe....do you just stuff money into a metal tube in the middle of the woods so you can hang out overnight for 10-12 hours?
if you feel a BURNING ETHICAL NEED to pay at all campgrounds, maybe you'd like the KOA or the good sam endorsed ones......

I wouldn't throw money down an empty tube with no envelope either, but I wouldn't try to get around paying either, especially a biker/hiker site. If it's a public or private site, there's something to be paid for, whether it's the ranger (public), property taxes (private), the water well, the septic or outhouse, the sink, the mowing or the signage. Further, if you pay for a biker/hiker site, then they know it's been used, and usage means that biker/hiker sites don't go away.

Wow! Awesome photos! I really love the idea of camo tarps, but I haven't seen them anywhere. How do they work?

Currently I'm using a Hennessy hammock with a Coyote Brown fly. I was told that it was the colour that most people had trouble recognizing and therefore blended into the background. Is this significantly different?


Stokell,

the digicamo tarps (actually oversized ponchos i converted into a big, double size tarp- i have a third still usable as a poncho, and use as a second tarp...) work very well at hiding campsites. You can find them at some army navy stores, Federal army navy surplus, in Seattle, sells online, and i bet you could order them thru them....i will try to find a web address for you.

the effectiveness of the digi camo is MUCH BETTER than the vietnam era jungle stripe camo, and seems to blend with more colors more easily, both greys of gravel/dirt, the browns of dry foilage and the greens of lush. the pattern is very nondescript to the eye, and it just BLENDS into the background.

I will attempt some 'partially obscured' photos from one of my next trips and will post it...those Coyote brown hennessy have something strong going for them, that's for sure, but imagine it underneath a digicamo tarp...

it's not like there's any proof that you didn't pay. I don't like campgrounds though, the ground is way too hard.

From checking the original post, I don't believe trying rip someone off for an overnight visit to their campsite is the issue here. As stated by another member, that is theft, and it most certainly is not stealth camping.

One thing I have learned from living with poor people is that the less you have; the more willing you are to share.

Camping with approval on someones land is not stealth camping, and I've done both. It seems that many members don't really 'get it'. If this topic raises your blood pressure because of property rights or other ownership issues, move on. This is not the thread for you. I 'get it', and I really enjoy the interaction with others who 'get it' too.

Hunting Catalogs like Bass Pro (huge Toronto store), or cabelas have lots of regular camping gear in camo. Of course camo has one stealth failing, if one is stumbled upon it doesn't look like one were trying to play by the rules but just set one's stuff up by accident in a private field. Camo is significantly different from a uniform colour because it breaks up the outline of a solid shape and digital camo is different since it tries to be difficult to see through devices that use pixles, so those photos they wanted to use in court...

for something a little simpler:

http://www.kifaru.net/MGtipis.htm

[QUOTE= Back in Canada, the idea that you are trespassing on unimproved, unmarked, unfenced land that is not being cultivated or used for grazing is absurd. .[/QUOTE]

The only reason for it is careless people....if you control permits, such as in Quetico Nat. Park(CAN), they know you know if you can or cannot have a camp fire, and it limits the campers/canoers in the area, making it much nicer. I would love for the Nat. parks to offer a tourer camper permit....20-50 bucks for the year, and youre able to camp on any public land, in or out of the parks. That would be too nice of the gov't though. Funny thing is, is that in Yosemite, youre not allowed to be seen from the trail, WITH a permit, so youre kind of stealth camping anyways. Oh by the way, I stealth camp in Sequoia Nat. forest all the time, never caught. If I did, I'd just be completely honest..."I thought thats what I paid for when i entered" , all theyll do is give you a warning. Theyre Forest Rangers, by nature theyre really nice people.

Here we are halfway on a trip through the Pyrenees from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic:
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f109/levinpugsley/069_69.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f109/levinpugsley/HPIM2415.jpg

I'm new to touring and I'm getting ready to ride across america. What do you think about just asking the people who live on the property. If you tell them that your riding your bike some crazy distance, it seems like they would be willing to let you stay there reguardless. Maybe this is a little nieve, what do you think?

Why are there no Recent Stealth Camping Posts?

We've been hiding out.

"asking the people who live on the property"

There are places and people that are really hostile to outsider, can be a regional thing. There are people who have already been asked 100 000 times and just don't want to see another freeloader. But in general, I think people are really helpful. Officials can be really helpful as well. Sometimes asking a police or firestation for directions to a place where you can camp works great, other times it ends up in a motorized escourt through the county. How you are treated depends on your personality to a large extent, what kind of first impression you create.

The other side to all this is that at 47, I have a fully paid up house three kids. People may admire that you are on a long trip but they may be a little condescending about the fact you can't afford it. To me slow travel like, bike, foot, canoe really only works if I get a free place to rest my head, at least some of the time, plus the free places tend to be more interesting. I think for me to go around asking for the help of others is something of a misrepresentation. I may be better off than they are which is why I can afford to be on vaccation since 1999. If I was 20 and travelling during the summer, it would be a different thing.

Stealth wise I recomend trying it out in you local area until you are comfortable, then you will feel confident when you move out of your comfort zone. It's like climbing; practice a few rippers so you are comfortable with the idea of falling, at least in reasonable situations.

Also, right at the moment, by coincidence I'm reading a resistance bio. Guy spent several years living in the bush in Norway being chased by nazis. Kinda makes stealth camping seem like a walk in the park.

I stealth camped this summer, but it seems to be somewhat against the stealth camping asthetic to take precautions to not be seen/discovered and then spend a lot of time talking about it.....:D :eek: :rolleyes: :p :(

It's okay, i've long left those campsites......

I think your right peter, i think that it is alot like climbing in the sense that you have to practice it a couple of times. It seems in one sense like people are going to judge you by the impression that you give them. That being your personality as well as race, social class and gender ect. Thanks for the advice, I think to a certain extent part of touring is the people that you meet along the way and the experiences that you have with them. Anyway once again, thanks for the reply

I'm still firm in the belief that you must stealth alone.

DR, I think meeting people is great to, though I find it works best for me when I"m not after anything. Others can sell them term life and end up on the christmas card list, as you say it's individual. So hoteling around your own back yard is like a Dale Carnegie course for campers.

I do stealth alone but if you pull it of in Battalion force, all the better. Before satalites, it was never a sure thing how many were lurking around the next Kopje.

stealthing it alone seems like it could be a little nuts. You know just in case you run into any real crazies

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/journal/page/pic/?o=lt&pic_id=113574&v=5l&size=large

Stealthing in a Toronto park

stealthing it alone seems like it could be a little nuts. You know just in case you run into any real crazies

Then it isn't stealth camping is it? Stealth means no one knows you are there.

When I tour I try to steal campsites whenever possible, rather than stealth camping. I usually stay at state parks, and I usually get away with it about a third of the time. I never blatently ride right past a ranger station that is staffed, but if I arrive late enough that all of the employees have left for the night I never put any money into self pay boxes, and I usually arrive at campgrounds late. If I'm in an area that offers hiker/biker campsites I always pay. But as a solo biker, I don't believe that I should have to pay the same price for a campsite that a family of four in a car would pay. So I have no ethical qualms about skipping out on campground fees whenever the opportunity arises.

The last time that I really stealth camped was two summers ago. I was on the last night of a tour around Michigan's lower peninsula, riding in a heavily industrialized area along the St. Clair river, which forms the border between the US and Canada. I found an empty brownfield on the side of the road in the shadow of a huge powerplant that had been turned into a park of sorts. It was across the river from one of the largest chemical refineries that I have ever seen. I pitched my tent under a bush for maximum stealthiness. That's it, end of story. Nothing interesting happened. It was just a filthy disgusting place to camp and I was overjoyed to be out of that place in the morning, and on my way to Detroit.

Stealth camping means you hope nobody knows you're there. Stealthiness does not mean you actually succeed at not being seen.

stealth, this weekend. campsite with bike parked in the center of photo, from about 30 feet.

stealth, this weekend. campsite with bike parked in the center of photo, from about 30 feet.

Wow! That is so cool! What is that you have your bike covered with? For me that is always the problem; stashing the bike. My new tires have reflective strips on the side, my panniers are also reflective. How do you dowse that fire?

that is my digicamo tarp system, strung out as a lean to, and another digicamo poncho covering the bike, behind the birch tree.

I just lay the bike down, or I make sure it is below the level of lights, or behind something solid.

Stokell, I ran into a problem with my Urbanite. I installed a set of Cool stops now to get the front tire off I need to remove the blake completely on one side. The Cool stops get trapped behind the barrow snazy for for this bike. I did have conventional olde pads and they didn't have this problem. Have you had anything similar?

Stokell, I ran into a problem with my Urbanite. I installed a set of Cool stops now to get the front tire off I need to remove the blake completely on one side. The Cool stops get trapped behind the barrow snazy for for this bike. I did have conventional olde pads and they didn't have this problem. Have you had anything similar?
No, but then again I don't know what Cool stops are, so I'll get back to you.

that is my digicamo tarp system, strung out as a lean to, and another digicamo poncho covering the bike, behind the birch tree.

Where do I find one of those digi-what-yama-call-its? I'll need one for my North Sea Route trip in April

Question for all you "stealthers" -- were you uneasy at all when you first started? On the first leg of our RTW bike tour, we started stealth camping about half way through. We spent 4 nights hidden away, but even though I was reasonably happy that we were hidden from most people's view, I was still uneasy and didn't get a good night's sleep. I was hyper-aware of every sound and whenever the wind moved something or an animal maybe came near the tent I was wide awake analysing every scratch and rustle to see if it might be a mass murderer approaching us or a pack of hungry wolves. Ha! Crazy, I know, but there you are. Does it get any easier? Should I just sleep with earplugs?

It depends what (or all) things you are worried about. I do feel a little conspicuous stealth camping in "foreign" areas where I may not know the rules. If you look at all these threads cumulatively, there are different reactions to the legality or imposition represented by this kind of thing. From some countries where it is your right, to countries where it is probably illegal, but nobody really cares, to places where property rights are very strongly felt, or where you are just as likely to be regarded as the potential mass murder. To me that is a kind of social fear, augmented by a sense that perhaps at my age and median wealth I don't have much of an excuse. I think one can deal with that by a little local experience where one gains confidence and then extends it to a wider sphere. One can of course choose less confrontational options by selecting regions where the habit is accepted, or the population density is pretty low.

You can also do a little mental work on your right to do it. Most countries have some population that wanders around nomadically sleeping where they please. Gypsies, tinkers, wanderers, or in NA our large population of homeless. In many regions these people are accepted and the police will not interfere with them even if they turn to aggressive pan handling or whatever. Another privileged group are Yachties who can drop a hook almost anywhere, world wide. You do have a right to sleep, and if you don't cause any harm you could probably manage to get your back up about your right to do it where you need to. Just like your right to breath.

Here in Ontario we have a trail that runs 700 miles and has it's own guidebook, and at least back 30+ years never had designated campsites it's full length. You sorta weren't supposed to sleep anywhere except it was developed for through hiking and it was substantially on private property. I never really felt that bad about camping on that puppy, just keep your head down. Seemed almost government supported.

As far as the bad people and bad animals stuff is concerned. Some places do have those problems, so you need to separate out the real threats from the imaginary ones. Where I live I consider both threats pretty imaginary. I do give some thought to it when buying tents. I knew some kids who self-napalmed by setting their tent on fire so I always carry a sharp knife, and consider tent design relative to escape. I think that the kinds of sleeping accommodations you take can create some vulnerability. A guy in a Hennessey inside a mummy bag is not as quick to react as a guy lying under an open bag under a tarp. It's not so much that one is safer than the other but just think your situation through so you are comfortable with it.

Try to think out of the box. There are certain reactions that people naturally follow. If you were traveling along and saw two otherwise identical faint paths (not trails just lines through the woods), one going downhill to clean water and one going uphill, which would you take? There are patterns to people's behaviour. Even mass murderer's looking for a love connection choose certain kinds of places because other people are there. Most places you should want to stealth camp are really not those kinds of places. But be aware that as you drive through the countryside, you are probably following some kind of behaviour pattern and trying to do something that has been done before, so just try to pick some less obvious options. In hunting, people will create funnels to bring animals close to the bow. If you know animals need to cross a fence you just tie a top strand down to a lower one, thereby lowering the height of the fence where you want to set an ambush. A similar idea in landscape architecture, are desire lines, the places the design does not provide a path, but a path will emerge. So if you want to maximize your security don't do the obvious.

Stealth camping really isn't camping at all. It's more a quick bivy. I am just there to sleep, not eat, not build campfires or stick shelters. Not for the swimming, or fishing etc... Maybe thinking of it as camping exaggerates the sense of vulnerability, I'm just not there that long.

Be aware that there is a response to any fear you may have. Of course, some of them like traveling with a bunch of people and maintaining a perimeter, or going nocturnal, are not really practical. But one shouldn't assume this is some kind of crap shoot, there are things than can be done in any situation. Everyone starts out thinking there are monsters under the bed, but a lot of serious work has been done on this subject. The army manuals, many of which are on-line, have some interesting info. I like one Japanese manual called Night Movements, a seminal work. It talks about night combat but also describes the kinds of errors and perceptual exaggerations that are common to leadership and service in a night environment. You can find free downloads. Own the Night is another manual.

The point being that with just the tinniest amount of thought you can evade humans, the real risk to fugitives are patterned behaviour like routine, security breaches, and getting the necessities of life like food. As a self contained traveler you aren't necessarily subject to any of those risks. Anything you fear other people fear also, just get into the habit of thinking of that as your strength. Believe me, you rule the night, 99.9% of the people want to be tucked in safely at home.