chrisx

Example; Pacific Coast bike route. Here you can stay at a hiker biker site most every night. Are there other long distance routes where there are hiker biker sites most every night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XY63EFwTZyM

staehpj1

Not that I know of, but there are plenty of opportunities to camp for free in plain sight over much of the country. On the Trans America for example, it isn't very hard to average <$5 per night. On the TA this can be done mostly using sites listed on the Adventure cycling maps, but on other routes it is also possible. The Southern Tier was similar in that regard. It is usually pretty easy to find free camping in the middle of the country and a bit harder as you get closer to the coasts. I have found that rural small town parks and picnic grounds usually work out well especially in the great plains.

But you asked about hiker biker sites so I'll add... I have only run across hiker biker sites on tours here and there other than on the pacific coast. These were often in National parks.

Tourist in MSN

Campsites on the C&O but quite different than Pacific Coast sites. C&O is wilderness, no showers, no power, water is from hand pumps.

I stayed in some hiker biker sites in Glacier NP when I rode the Glacier Waterton loop.

staehpj1

Oh yeah, I should have mentioned there are places like the C&O Canal Towpath, the Katy Trail, and similar that have something you might call hiker biker sites. You said long tour though so I am not sure they qualify or not; it depends on what you call long, I guess.

fietsbob

get maps from each state.. hiker-bikers will, typically, be a section of state run campgrounds ..

Really popular routes for bike tours would support land use choices for private campgrounds.

But in the US the 'Big' Money is in RV camps with Hookups .

staehpj1

Other than the three states on the west coast and Wisconsin, are there other states with much in the way of hiker biker sites in their state run campgrounds? I have not really run across any and I have toured in a fair portion of the US and ridden in a few others. I think my count is 34 of the lower 48 and I don't recall seeing state run hiker biker sites other that WA, OR, CA, and WI.

jamawani 

What do you mean by "hiker/biker"?
If you mean designated campsites in parks or campgrounds where the cost is about $5 per person -
Then, no - there aren't many, unfortunately.

Oregon is, by far, the best.
California's used to be pretty good, but Calif has been slammed by budget cuts.
Washington State Parks have some mowed area off to the side without even a picnic table.
Many National Parks - esp. in the West - do have nice hiker/biker sites.

Longer distance rail trails often do have a few hiker/biker sites - such as the C&O or the Katy -
But they do tend to be on the primitive side.

If you are talking about cheap/free camping - -
You can camp for free on most federal National Forest Service and BLM lands.
Or course, you need to know where they are and the boundaries.

Most state forests also allow you to camp free or cheap -
Most federal and state wildlife areas do not permit camping with some exceptions.
Many Montana Fishing Access Sites (FAS) do permit free or cheap camping.
Often just a portalet next to a small parking area - but always on the water, of course.
These are often lovely, out-of-the-way places to camp.

Ditto on small towns in the Great Plains - the smaller, the better.
If there's a KOA by the interstate, they are not likely to let you camp in the town park.
Because the west coast has hiker/biker camping - the east coast tends to be worst.

But did you know that you could camp way out Down East in Maine on bluffs overlooking the ocean?
Cutler Coast - - State Parks and Public Lands: Maine ACF - Search Results
Or under Verrazano Bridge on Staten Island?
Or on the beach at Cape Lookout?

Takes some digging - but stuff is out there.

FBinNY 

If you're willing to sleep rough, there's an almost infinite number of places you can camp in. I don't like to sleep in full view of busy roads, but usually don't have problems finding quiet out of sight places to pitch a simple tent and sleep. Campfires are out, so I'll eat dinner elsewhere, but can make coffee on my small stove in the AM.

Besides simply finding places out of sight, I've knocked on peoples doors and asked if I could sleep behind their house --- rarely refused, and often gets invites to dinner with the family. I once had a police sergeant tell me I couldn't stay where I was planning to camp, so I asked what my options and he wrote down an address and gave me directions. When I got there, his wife was surprised (he never called) but invited us in, and he showed up later for dinner. For me, meeting and speaking to people along the way is an important part of my travels, so I prefer trying to simply finding a place to hide.

BTW- the farther you are from home or the start of the trip, the more gracious the welcome, so start conversations by talking about the trip and where you rode from and are headed. People are far more welcoming of a traveler than just someone looking to crash.

staehpj1

Not sure what the OP means by the term, but to me the main thing that makes a site a hiker biker site is that no reservation is needed and they will not turn you away if arriving on foot or bike whether the park is otherwise full or not.

It typically also means a site that you will be required to share with other hikers and bikers. Sometimes that means a regular site with more folks crowded in than usual and sometimes it is a site that is designed to be a group site.

It also usually means different a pricing model than for folks arriving by motor vehicle. Hiker bikers are almost always charged per person, while those arriving by car are usually charged per site or per vehicle. So hiker biker sites might actually net them more fees per site since they crowd a bunch of cyclists onto one regular site. I have been in a regular car site that they used as a hiker biker site with as many as 20 cyclists all of whom were charged $5. I have also been the only one in a hiker biker site.

gorshkov

Whitefish state park in Montana has hiker-biker sites; I suspect that at least some other MT state parks do to. Fall Creek Falls SP in Tennessee also has hiker-biker sites (and hot showers for no extra charge). This may have changed; both of those are from a tour I did in 2008.

indyfabz

Never seen any in PA or NJ state parks.

As noted, there are often plenty of legal places where you can camp for free or for very little money, including municipal parks and fairgrounds. Some of these places even have showers and flush toilets. There are also some cyclist-only facilities that have sprung up. Twin Bridges, MT, Dalbo, MN and Winthrop, WA come to mind. I also remember reading about a couple who established one near Republic, WA. Not sure if it's still around.

FBinNY 

IME I've never seen designated hiker/biker spots in the state parks I've camped at. OTOH - I've never been turned away because a park was full. The camp sites are laid out so there's space for cars and/or trailers which obviously have specific space needs. A person pitching a small tent fits just about anywhere so like Jello there's always room.

That said, showing up at a full capacity campground can be s study in human nature. Sometimes you'll run into a rule book nazi for whom Full means Full. But even then you can usually talk your way past that, or as happened to me a few times, another employee or manager will use some common sense. The only issue if fires. A few times I've beel allowed to stay as long as I agreed to no fires, or in other cases the park manager would arrange with someone to let me use their fire grate.

If you're traveling without itinerary, and finding your lodging on the fly you have to learn to help people see things your way. But that's part of the joy of that kind of travel.

indyfabz

Yeah. You really don't need much space. I was actually told by a ranger at a developed campground located in a NJ state forest that they would never turn away anyone arriving by bike. And I should clarify my earlier comment: That campground has a couple of group sites where they put AT hikers. They are not official hiker/biker sites, but that's where hikers and cyclist get put (unless they want regular sites). It's actually helpful since at least one of the group sites has a bear locker, and there are bears in that neck of the woods. Some very big ones.

adventurepdx

While I'm not doubting that some of Washington State Park's hiker/biker sites are a grassy field, the ones I've encountered west of the Cascades tend to be pretty similar to a regular "drive in" campsite with picnic table in a forested setting:

Lewis and Clark State Park, south of Chehalis. This one even had a covered picnic shelter right next to the hiker/biker site:




Columbia Hills State Park outside of The Dalles, OR. A bit grassier, but there is picnic tables and trees (though a better windbreak would be appreciated):


Cape Disappointment north of Astoria, OR. This hiker/biker site even had a bear box!


I don't have pics, but from experience the hiker/biker sites at Beacon Rock and Deception Pass are also wooded with picnic tables.

The biggest difference is pricing. Hiker/biker sites in Washington are $12 per site, vs the $5 per person in Oregon. So it will be more expensive if you are solo touring, but cheaper if you have a party of three or more.

Cyclebum

Not specific to your question, but the most comprehensive guide to campgrounds I've found.

at_hiker59

Ohiopyle State Park had hiker/biker sites just off the Great Allegheny Passage.

burtsbees

That is a great app. I think I paid $10 for it a year ago. Money well spent.

indyfabz

That makes sense.

adventurepdx

Yes, the allstays app is great! One good thing about it is it stores info about an area you search. So if you lose wifi or 3G/4G, you can still access this campground info. Well worth the small amount they charge.