Camping in U.S., Canada & reservations
 

Hi folks,

First off, I know we're talking a massive geographical area, so I'm just looking for some general information.
All my touring experience is in Europe, where wild camping can be tricky, at times, so campsites are my most common place to stay.

I never make reservations, preferring to pull in whenever the urge strikes me. I'll use local information or OSMand, or, in desperation, Google maps to locate a campsite if I haven't come across one.

But, from my understanding, the spontaneous stop may not work over there?

The post below mine is asking about campsites being fully booked (already!) for January!
Does this mean that if a cyclist rolls up looking to pitch a tent they will be refused?

I've never been refused here, no matter how full a campsite is. They will always find a place. Sometimes in creative places! I was once told to set up my camp in the playground!

I just need a few square feet to pitch my tent for one night - no electricity etc. A shower would be nice, but not essential. And drinking water.

And another question....
Over here it's common if you arrive out of hours to find a place, set up and pay the following morning. Is that the norm over there too?

Many thanks

Frank

In the states, it is going to depend on if it is a private or state campground. And for each depends on the state. Some state parks have hiker biker policies while others do not. West Virginia State parks do not have such a policy but I was told by an attendant , in the event the site is full, hang around till he leaves for the night and then go pick a spot.

In PA, some private campsites have hiker/biker policies while others do not. Which frankly I don't understand that if you are on a bike or hiking route why you would not have some out of the way patch of land for folks looking for a last minute campsite.

To expand on spinnaker's post, there are three different types of campsites: Those run be the federal government (such as national parks and national forests), those run by state governments (State parks), and privately run campgrounds (mostly recreational vehicle or 'caravan' sites). Federal sites can be booked on recreation.gov, not sure about each state but California is through the State Parks' website, and I have no clue about private campgrounds. Most are not a problem to get into without reservations in the 'off' seasons except for the most popular (such as Yosemite Natl Park in California), but try and reserve a few weeks in advance if you can.

Yep, definitely depends on the campground. We couldn't get in to quite a few National Parks because they were "full", even with a whole bunch of empty grass. Which might mean another hours ride, with all the no trespassing signs everywhere else. Or we'd have to pay for a full sized RV site because the concessionaire needs to make their cut.
State parks are generally better with hiker/bikers, although we did go to one hiker/biker/kayaker where every site was full of car campers and we had to wait until after 7pm to get the disabled site. Nice try, but don't put a hiker/biker campsite next to a car park would be my recommendation.

In Canada, in National Parks, if you're there at the height of the season, you should have booked already.

However, outside National Parks, you might have reasonable luck finding a place if you look for municipal campgrounds. They're the ones run by the towns.

For example, this is Golden's Municipal Campground: Golden Municipal Campground and RV Park - Amenities

Golden is in a scenic area just outside the famous National Parks in the Rockies. The rates for the campground are normal for that area, and it looks like they still have room even mid-season.

Not all of them. In fact, I would bet the farm that it's only a tiny fraction as there are countless developed U.S.F.S. and BLM campgrounds that are first come, first served. Stayed in two of them last month in MT and rode by many more. Every U.S.F.S. campground in the area of Seeley Lake is first come, first served, and they were all packed to the gills the Friday before July 4th. Ended up getting a room. Nice relief from the 90+ degree heat.

Depends. I have seen signs in private/commercial campgrounds that instruct people to pay the next morning. In public places like state parks and U.S. Forest Service campgrounds, there are often fee envelopes and an "Iron Ranger," which is basically a safe. You are supposed to pick a campsite, fill out the envelope and deposit the fee. You usually tear off a tag from the envelope that you then hang on a post at your site as proof that you paid. There is a chance you could get rousted if you don't comply. For example, park police may patrol the facility. If they see you occupying a site without the tag they might think you are trying to camp without paying. Some state and federal facilities have campground hosts. They are volunteers who live at the facility for some or all of the season. One of their duties is to check to make sure people have properly registered. I try to make sure I have plenty of $1 bills on me if I am planning to camp at federal facilities as the fees can often be odd amounts, like $7. Don't want to be stuck with only $20 bills.

In Oregon there are also county campgrounds, and in the midwest (Nebraska, Iowa), and smaller cities in other states where camping is allowed in many of the city parks.

As, I think most of the information shared is accurate, you may need additional strategies. In my experience, 1. If a campsite is full, ask a camper if you can put a tent up on their site. 2. Never ask local police but do discuss your issue with the fire department, if there is one. They are often helpful. 3. Approach a local Church. They may open a piece of their lawn. 4. Depending on how rural, a business that has some land, like a convenient store, might be obliging.

Having said all this, I would recommend you plan your stays and make the appropriate reservations as to not be a burden on others except if a problem happens causing your timing to change.

I'd recommend booking well ahead for national parks unless you're riding in the shoulder season, then you might be all right. Rowan and I were able to find camping locations on a tour we did in the Rockies in late August.

I'd also recommend booking a couple weeks in advance if you're planning to be at a campground on a weekend ... and maybe a month in advance if you're planning to be at a campground on a long weekend.

So familiarise yourself with the long weekends in Canada and the US.

And if you're feeling a little bit uncertain, do a Google search for campgrounds a few days in advance, then email them or call them to find out if they've got spots. Their websites might also indicate if they are full or not.

I think one of the fundamental differences between the US and to a degree Canada, and everywhere else is in the meaning of camping. For you, me and just about everyone else from outside North America, camping still means, to some extent, pitching a tent. To Americans, it means setting up an RV. That means "campsites" are areas for motor vehicles to park, with hard ground, and are not places to make pitching a tent easy.

The proliferation of RVs in North America means that everything is geared towards accommodating them. And that means campsites are booked for them. Even though there might be grassed areas around the campground, they aren't capable of taking an RV... so they don't count in the minds of campground owners and managers.

I've even seen signage that specifically says no tenting for campgrounds.

Private campgrounds also can be tricky, even in Europe. We were refused at one German campground, despite it being listed as available for tenting. It was just one episode on several that turned us off Germany as a touring option. Often private campgrounds are the domain of long-term residents, and all the behavioural issues that carries. I've also found private campgrounds to be less well-maintained than their federal, state and town run counterparts.

So... long and short of it... be prepared, as a European, for some culture and sticker shock... and book ahead as advised elsewhere in this thread.

Hi, OP here,

Many thanks for the information - but not really what I was hoping to learn :)

My understanding is:
Some campsites do not actually have places for tents - so the only option here is to pay for an RV place?
Hiker/Biker sites are for tents and cheaper than the RV option?
Campsites will refuse you if they are "full" and send you on your way even if there are no other options in the area?

So my next question is.....
For those recommending reservations in advance, how do you do that other than for a short tour?
Realistically, how do you know what date you will be at x campsite when that is 2 months after you start?
I can't imagine myself even booking something 2 weeks down the road - there's just too many possible variations that can occur in those 14 days.

@ Rowan - in my experience most campsites have long-term residents (that covers Germany, France, Belgium, NL, Austria, Italy, Spain), but only once did I have an "iffy" feeling in one - but that was wintertime in NL, and most of the residents were migrant workers. Having said that, when I was fixing my travelling partner's flat tyre the next morning in the rain, I had no shortage of offers of assistance. There is a different vibe in these places, but nothing that has put me off. It's been German speaking campsites that have squeezed me in somewhere when I was late and it was full.

Thanks all!

Frank

Some campsites do not actually have places for tents - so the only option here is to pay for an RV place?

Yes.


Hiker/Biker sites are for tents and cheaper than the RV option?

Yes ... but not all campgrounds have those.


Campsites will refuse you if they are "full" and send you on your way even if there are no other options in the area?

Possibly.



So my next question is.....
For those recommending reservations in advance, how do you do that other than for a short tour?
Realistically, how do you know what date you will be at x campsite when that is 2 months after you start?
I can't imagine myself even booking something 2 weeks down the road - there's just too many possible variations that can occur in those 14 days.

It is a difficulty ... that is why many of us are prepared for options other than camping in a campground.

Also, with the booking ... it is important in National Parks, but elsewhere, not so much. It is important before long weekends, but on other weekends, not so much. It can be important on weekends in general, but on a Tuesday, not so much. And it depends very much where you are. If you're in the middle of Manitoba, probably not a problem. If you're heading toward Banff in Alberta, possibly a problem.

Some routes you will be OK. For example, the Pacific Coast Route has enough Hiker Bikers at State Parks for you to be able to pitch up at a campsite with a shower every night. It's a good ride anyway.

This is one of the major challenges of touring, which I hate in the US and Canada. The problem s not just confined to camping but hotels too. You really never know if you are going to need a reservation or not so you need top make them. If plans change, weather turns bad etc then you are usually stuck. You have to stick to the plan or you spoil the whole itinerary. Outside the US, I have only toured in Italy, Switzerland and Austria. I love touring there because you always have the option of getting on a train to get you to the next town where they might have a room or cmapsite.

Just had a discussion with a friend of mine that owns a campsite down in Georgia. They actually eliminated tent camping because people from the inner city would come up and basically trash the place. They were truing to keep a well maintained campsite but some of the customers were making it a difficult job.

Most campgrounds don't have specific tent areas in the midwest. You buy the site based on the amenities of the site, anything from a primitive site with pit toilets and a hand pump well for ~$10 up to a site with full power and water designed for an RV for $30 or more, and any range in between. Not all campgrounds will have all levels of accommodations, as others have mentioned any popular campground is going to be geared towards RVs. DO keep in mind any campground in a popular locale is likely going to be booked months in advanced if it is a holiday weekend, too. On the other side, many of the primitive federal and state campgrounds are set up for local reservation only, on first come first serve basis.

Hiker/biker campsites are commonly mentioned around here, but be aware that they are regional. Camping in Michigan, I have never seen one.

The thing to remember is that in America, you buy a specific campsite, you are not paying a fee to enter an area to setup wherever you want. Therefore, if they are full, they can and often will send you away. That said, it varies wildly on the person taking your money and the actual grounds you are at. I've seen it before on busy weekends where they will try and accommodate tenters, but no guarantees. Also remember that it can be some distance between campgrounds in America.

Many areas explicitly allow wild/dispersed camping. Michigan's rules, for example: DNR - State Forest Campgrounds & Dispersed Camping

I stand corrected; yes, a lot are first come, first served. A lot in the Sierra Nevada Mtns of California, and in Southern California, are this way.

My view is biased because I live and mostly tour in an area with a lot of public land. In the mountainous western US, there's no need as a bicyclist to pay for camping. Free "dispersed camping" on US National Forest land is a well-accepted practice in many areas.

I plan my days to end in a place where the map is green and start looking for a place to lie down. If I'm planning ahead and that does not appear possible, say in a mostly agricultural or pastoral area or the rare city, I'll search the warmshowers.org network (I'm a frequent host).

A motel room once a week or so is nice. Maybe I'll pay for a commercial campground once a week if they have a tenting rate. Sometimes a local motel is only $20 or so more than an RV site.

Another class of camping not mentioned is the free town park. Ask at the local law enforcement station about that. Sometimes you'll get an escort and they'll check on your site during the night. (Once during a tornado warning, I got escorted back to the station to sleep inside.)

If you are considering staying at a place where it might be good to have a reservation (e.g., commercial campground on a weekend) you can always call a few days ahead to check. They may tell you that they will find a place for you even if all the sites are full. Back in '99 our group of 13 managed to cross the U.S. with only once not being able to camp where we had intended (Presque Isle S.P. in Erie, PA) because of capacity problems, and we stayed in a lot of commercial campgrounds.

Can you give us a better idea of the area? For example in the West except for major urban areas or the coast, its really easy to find stealth camping if you have to.

:):) That's the $64,000 question! :):)

I'm considering 2 possible, general routes

1) Trans-Canada (East to West) from Halifax. That may or may not include "dipping" into the US at times.

2) From S.C. to New Orleans, then North following the Mississippi, then West, probably in Canada

After either of those options the GDMBR south to NM, or the Pacific Coast to San Diego.

Time/Climate permitting maybe a side trip into parts of Texas, then continuing south through Mexico, Central America and down the west coast of South America.

That's why the original question was kinda vague :)

For me, it is just not possible to book accommodation so far in advance on that kind of trip. I don't even book it on weekend trips here (Benelux). My longest trip thus far was a 3 month trip to Spain & back and the only reservation I made was for a hostel in Paris - And I managed to mess that up by mixing up the dates! :)

I've no problem wild/stealth camping where I can. But even so, an official camping spot for a shower & laundry every few days would be nice :)

My question was prompted by some information I have here from Canada in front of me. I was looking through the campsite facilities and noticed that a lot had no tent symbols!

Many thanks for all your input!

Food for thought

Frank

If there are no tent symbols, then tents are not likely welcome ... often not even in an RV site.

And you can try booking a few days in advance as you go along. I did this when I toured Australia. About Tuesday-ish, I'd book a place for Friday or Saturday night because I knew weekends were busier.

The really long advanced booking times are for National Parks during peak season. National Parks will only make up a portion of your trip, chances are a relatively small portion.

I've never encountered a state or national campground that didn't accept tents. Typically the tent symbol meant a site is tent only.

As to the OP, it's hit and miss as others have stated, whether a state campground will have tent only sites and varies state to state and campground to campground.

Some state parks are just day use facilities with no campsites at all for either RVs or tents. On a Rand-McNally map those parks with campsites will show the tent icon. The day use facilities will not have the icon.

Attached is a screenshot of NW Connecticut. I camped last week at Housatonic Meadows SP that shows the tent icon. Nearby Kent Falls and Mohawk Mt SPs do not have camping facilities thus the tent icon is missing...