How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Trip recommendations, current conditions, and other trail related Q&A
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retired jerry
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Re: How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Post by retired jerry » September 19th, 2021, 2:25 pm

chip has bad influence on me

there was a thread about this quite a while ago

if you go inside the Bull Run restricted area, and the authorities apprehend you, if you tell them you know it's restricted they'll probably fine you or whatever

if you claim ignorance and said you didn't know it was restricted and saw no prohibition signs or anything, then they'll probably just give you a warning

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adamschneider
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Re: How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Post by adamschneider » September 19th, 2021, 2:28 pm

Get a Forest Service map (or look at one online, e.g., GPS Visualizer or CalTopo), and just browse around and find a decent road that goes along a creek or river that has a flattish valley bottom. (V-shaped ravines aren't good for camping, obviously.) Best case scenario: a decent road that has multiple tiny spurs off of it, which may or may not be marked on the map. Take note if a few possibilities, because you won't know for sure what it's like until you get there.

Overall, you'll probably have much better luck with creeks/rivers than lakes.
Last edited by adamschneider on September 19th, 2021, 8:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

IsaacHughes
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Re: How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Post by IsaacHughes » September 19th, 2021, 6:09 pm

Chip Down wrote:
September 19th, 2021, 2:18 pm
If I wanted to troll just for fun, I would create a new account and ask about camping opportunities at Bull Run Lake. :lol:

So, you want seclusion, but also water and scenery. Hmm. One thing to consider is drive/hike to a lake, and follow the inlet or outlet creek far enough to leave the flipfloppers behind, maybe 30 minutes or so. Or maybe just follow a creek up or down from a road crossing.

Note for those w/o offtrail experience: It can be easy, or it can be hard, and often you just don't know until you get there. Stay a bit away from the creek, so you don't get sucked into a gully where camping is impossible, and also to avoid a riparian-zone brushfest that often fringes waterways.

As for safety and preparation, there's really not a lot that can go wrong. Your drive is objectively the most dangerous step in your scheme.

Just off the top of my head, a fun possibility could be: drive hwy 26 past Rhododendron, turn left onto road 27, drive to the end where the road approaches wilderness and thus becomes a trail, and just stroll up towards Devil's Campground. There are creeks crossing the trail/road, lots of open forest where you can go in search of a nice creekside camp, and if you get bored you can hike the trail network around Zigzag Mountain. Although, come to think of it, the rain this weekend might fill up the mudbogs on rd 27, so maybe that would have been a better plan for a week ago.
The rain that we just had might put a damper on a bunch of trails and make for some soggy areas. Definitely true. I'll keep researching spots and plan a trip for when I have a little bit more time in advance to plan I think.

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Bosterson
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Re: How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Post by Bosterson » September 19th, 2021, 6:21 pm

For car camping (and really, if you're not going to go properly backpacking, why bother going far from your car when the car can have lots of fresh food, a bigger stove, not having to carry sleeping gear, etc), the Gifford Pinchot should offer lots of options, as it's basically a network of back roads. If you feel like a slightly longer drive, you could go to Randle, WA and then down FS 23 along the Cispus - lots of easy free camping sites there and a really nice area.
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teachpdx
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Re: How do I select an area to camp in without a campground?

Post by teachpdx » September 19th, 2021, 8:58 pm

I’ve stumbled across some great car camping spots just from looking at satellite imagery, especially in the less dense forests of central Oregon. My favorite car camping spot of all time was found randomly this way. Find a few spots, drop some pins on the map and check them out!

And I’ll second Jerry for the dispersed camping near Badger Creek. That’s a nice intro to non-campground life.
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