Federal and State Campgrounds

[WayRob1956]

Still doing all the research and asking questions I can as we prepare for our future FT lifestyle. Wanting to do travel through out the lower 48. Do most people stay at Federal and State Parks or Private as they go along the road? How about for 3 to 6 week stays? Which ones tend to have Full Hook Ups? I was a Scoutmaster for many years but lower back problems do not allow me to "Rough It" anymore. Looking for more of a "Comfortable" camping experience. Open to any and all experiences/suggestions. I am creating different folders for reference as we look into buying our 5th Wheel next year. Thanks for all your help.

[keymastr]

Depends on the state and even the area within the state. Most state campgrounds out west here have hook-up sites available but not TV or strong wifi. They are usually a bit cheaper than private RV parks and usually are more natural settings. Private owned RV parks will offer cable TV and sometimes pools, washer/dryers, stores etc but the sites are often much more like parking at Walmart. State and national parks usually have a 14 day limit and then you have to move on for a week or so. Private camps usually have no such rules.

National forest campgrounds are often the most natural and beautiful but no hookups. Most state and county parks will have a mixture of sites with and without hookups.

[Old-Biscuit]

State/Federal CGs--14 day max stay limits

Many State parks are becoming difficult to get sites w/o reservations and then you may need to reserve months ahead.

We FTd for 7 yrs but stays were 14 days or less.....we went FT to TRAVEL
We used State/Fed, COE (corp of engineers), Fairgrounds, city parks, public cgs, Private CGs, boondocked, family/friends yards etc

Never did stay at any Walmart or Rest Stop as we rarely just overnighted.
Traveled on Mondays....leave at 10am and setting up in next place by 3pm (250 miles or less on travel days)
Spend week or two sightseeing, road adventures etc. Tues thru Fri
Saturday was laundry/minor repairs/clean up stuff & Sunday was chill/relax in zero gravity chairs under awning with cocktails

Great lifestyle.
Go SLOW and enjoy the adventure
Use secondary/backroads for that real small town USA experience

[ralphie]

Most city/county, state and federal CGs have 14 day stay limits, but moving to different sites can sometimes resolve that.

[mikell]

Generally private state and Fed have too much paperwork to get needed repairs done even the simple things.

[jpharley]

We use a combination of state, federal, and private campgrounds. Some state parks have priced themselves out of ours business,. We can generally find lower cost private campgrounds with more amenities than some of the state parks. We love Army Corps of Engineer campgrounds. With our Access Pass for the disabled, we get half price camping.

[dix39]

jpharley mentioned a disabled access pass. If you don't have one already, I would consider a senior pass if you qualify. That will provide a serious reduction in cost when entering and staying at federal parks/campgrounds, and possibly some state parks.

Have a great time.

Steve