How Picky Are You Picking a Campground?

[Reed Cundiff]

We primarily boondock but are picky. We prefer to leave rig at a site and then drive about in 4x4 tow vehicle to find good sites that.

1. We can get 34' fifth in.
2. We can get it out, i.e. able to turn around and not have to back out a few miles (which has happened twice in Mexico - so glad Elaine is a great driver as I would wind up a puddle of frustration.

Do check at Forest Service Office to find where there are established campgrounds, and, more particularly, where they might suggest dispersed camping.

Have to find such sites in the middle of the week since there are a lot of like minded folks in Colorado and Oregon. It is a lot easier to find great sites on BLM land in western NM and eastern AZ.

Reed and Elaine

[oakcreekeric]

What a great question... very cool to see everyone's thought process... now my turn..

I guess we would be considered more "persnickety" than anything..

Obviously there is always the "it depends" factor... if we're en-route, we'll stay just about anywhere that's safe.. However, when looking for a destination, we put on our investigative hat on...

I am pretty picky when looking.. I want it to be near our desired location, I want it to be relatively safe, I want it to be clean and, mostly, I want the site to be level (above all else, the most important for me).. I think that's my criteria...

Now, my GF on the other hand.. well.. she gets the ol' slide ruler out and measures and belabors everything... are we too close to a pit toilet (state parks), are we too close to a turn/corner, will the lights flash into our campsite, are we too close to the neighbors are we close enough to the showers (for the kids), and on and on... it can be a bit extreme at times..

I feel we're extremely fortunate here in Wisconsin.. I truly believe we have one of the best SP systems in the country.. and that's why we're "persnickety"... Every place we go, we end up comparing to our parks... most of the time we make due and deal with things.. as someone above said.. we are usually gone riding the HD's and exploring the area.. we traditionally don't spend a bunch of time at the campground itself.. but when with the kids.. we do look at different criteria... it's a balancing act for sure..

My methods of narrowing down:

• Reviews - Trip advisor, Google, RV Parky
• Google Earth view - Like to get the birds-eye view
• Website - pictures/campground maps - Let's face it, first impression is important
• IRV2 - I'll put the question to other forum members (probably the best route)
• Google Maps - I like to know the area and what conveniences are around (gas, grocery and restaurants)

Once I've done that, I give a qualified list to the GF and she tears it apart and we make a decision..

So... like I said... Persnickety !!!

[jpharley]

We have criteria we use when looking for a campsite. We want the area to be safe, reasonably priced, and we want it to be open meaning no trees hanging over or into the side of our 5th wheel. We are not fond of trees and the damage they can do to our RV. Untrimmed trees in a campground will mean no business from us. Plus we have a rooftop satellite and look for sites that will be open to get a signal. That does not mean an absence of trees. We have stayed at many sites with trees and still able to get the rooftop satellite locked in.

[R2Home]

While we are not too picky, one of the main things we look for is a good area for pets. We travel with our Labs and having a place that they can run in after being in the motor home all day is as important as anything else.

[dix39]

Like some others we're boondockers. When traveling we overnight in rest areas, truck stops, etc. Easy in and out. Also much faster and no check in-out times. We've been doing that since the '70s.

If we are staying more than just overnight because of some nearby attraction the desired accommodations are a fresh water fill and place to dump somewhere nearby. That is all dependent on the length of stay. Electrical power is good if AC is extremely necessary, but not essential. Green grass, trees, and a little stream or lake is the frosting on the cake. The fewer people the better.

Any way it's done is a wonderful experience. That's just our choice.

Steve

[twogypsies]

There's a big difference between 'campgrounds' and RV parks. This post is titled 'campgrounds' but some are referring to RV parks.

Campgrounds are public parks. These are always our first choice. They are surrounded by nature and away from cities. Many are by rivers or lakes. National forest campgrounds are awesome. Most don't have hookups. Folks that use these kinds of campgrounds typically enjoy nature and makes use of the trails, boating, fishing, etc. They're out doing things. When there are limits on how long you can stay (typically two weeks) and when there are no typical amenities such as pools, clubhouses, etc. you have less to complain about.

RV parks can cause many issues and the main ones for us would be the lack of space between sites and lack of some privacy with no trees or manicured sites. Having a lot of amenities creates more noise.

Using public parks or boondocking on public lands (national forest/BLM) makes for no complaints for us. How we pick staying at a particular campground just depends on what we want to explore outside the campground. The campground itself is just fine with us. We know it will be in the midst of nature. That's all we ask. We don't need hookups or amenities.

[ArmandV]

Another vote for it depends.

It depends:

1. On my route and how many miles I plan to drive each day.

2. On the season. Are campgrounds open during winter or fall along the way?

3. The price. I, too, avoid, RV "resorts" as they are more pricey.

4. Whether I am traveling or have reached my destination. If just stopping for a night's sleep, I am less picky. If it is the destination campground, I look at reviews on price, cleanliness, location and amenities.

[SpaceNorman]

Another it depends vote here.

We split our campground stays into three categories - "sleep stops", "roadside" campgrounds and "destination" campgrounds. Each category fits a different need and gets a different level of scrutiny from us.

A "sleep stop" is exactly that ... a that's typically less than 12 hours while we're en route to somewhere. Rest areas, Walmart and other "big box" parking lots fall into this category. As long as we're welcome to park there - and don't have our "spidey sense" alarming over personal safety concerns - we're good.

A "roadside" stop is a campground for a short term stay (1-3 nights). We prefer these to "sleep stop" type locations - especially if we're on no schedule - even for overnights. When we're not on a schedule - we try to stop between 3-4 pm. We're happy to enjoy a walk around the park, pulling the grill out to cook dinner, hanging outside, etc. Our primary concerns about a "roadside" stop is proximity to our route of travel (don't want to drive 30 miles out of our way to get to campground and then 30 miles back ...), accessibility (can we get in and out of the sites with relative ease?). We look for something reasonably level. We're flexible with regards to hook ups. We typically travel a full tank of fresh water and empty holding tanks. While full hookups are obviously preferred - we can be happy with an "electric only" site for a couple of nights if everything else lines up.

A "destination" campground is one we expect to spend weeks at. These get scrutinized pretty carefully. Full hookups are a must. Site size gets scrutinized (we need enough to park a 44 foot DP, extend the slides and awnings - and park a small Jeep Liberty). The site doesn't have to be huge - but it needs to be "adequate" for our needs. If the anticipated weather is appropriate - a pool is pretty high on the list (DW loves a pool!). After that - it all about proximity to things that interest us (kayaking, bicycle paths, etc.). Price is a factor - but not the driving factor.

We're not big on the "five star" RV resorts (pavement, landscaping and luxury "common areas" aren't big selling points for us) - so we tend to start our search looking for "moderately" priced CG. (To us, "moderately priced" means nightly rates that are roughly 30% of the going rate of room at a typical "decent" chain hotel (think Holiday Inn, Marriot or comparable)). We'll adjust up or down a bit based on what's available. If the "five star" RV resort ($$$$$$$) type parks are the only thing available - we may re-examine our travel plans to reduce the amount of time we plan to spend in the area (or skip it all together). High prices like that usually means it's an area with tons of people and traffic - both of which we're happy to avoid.

Like OakCreekEric - we leverage anything/everything we can find on the internet to qualify a "destination" campground to the best of our ability. Google Earth, Google Maps, Park Website, CG reviews ... are all brought to bear as we research the site. We consider the research that goes into our trip planning to be a part of the journey - and actually sort of enjoy the time and energy we put into it.

[Jake21]

If staying more than one night, picky. DW and I are cyclists averaging 12-14 hours in the saddle per week. Researching routes to ride from the park takes a lot of time. Also, for extended stays I prefer paved parks. Dust gets old for us pretty fast.