If you've never gone camping before, you may think that it's all about picking a soft spot in the woods and pitching a tent. While it's entirely possible to do that, it's a bit of a different story when you have a vehicle with you. These tips give you the information you need to find a campsite while still allowing you to enjoy nature.

Step 1: Know the Terminology…

Here is a quick breakdown of the different types of public land and methods of camping.

National Forest: In general you can camp for free anywhere in a national forest, as long as it is not a “fee area” or if there is a sign specifically telling you not to camp in the spot you are interested in. Camping in a non designated area with no facilities is referred to as “dispersed camping”. Most national forests will also have many designated Forest Service (FS) campgrounds with varying prices and amenities. We find that the average price for a FS campground is $15-20$. Some are even free! Most fee based FS campgrounds will have water, pit (or flush) toilets, and fire rings.

National Parks: These are sites that have been deemed important enough to be federally protected and curated to allow the public to access, but in such a way that their impact remains minimal. NPs are very popular amongst US citizens as well as foreign travelers. I would say that NP campgrounds average about $20+/night. Their rules are usually pretty a bit more strict as far as collecting wood, draining dish water, etc. They will often have centrally located bathrooms with a designated room/area for washing dishes or disposing of grey water. Sometimes they will have showers (usually coin operated) and sometimes they will even have camp stores and/or a laundromat. Most National Parks will have several RV parks located just outside the park's borders.

State Parks: State Parks will often have lots of amenities like showers and hookups for RVs, but they will usually come at a steeper rate. In my opinion, SPs are great for people who live nearby and want a nice place to camp for the weekend. Most of them seem to be entirely reservable.

BLM Land: Areas controlled by the Bureau of Land Management are considered public land as well. As far as camping goes, BLM land is pretty similar to NF, it can be used for dispersed camping, and will often times have designated/fee based campgrounds as well.

RV Parks: They are primarily geared towards people with very large RVs (often full-timers) who would have difficulty finding a large enough campsite with all their hookup requirements anywhere else. We have only stayed at RV Parks when we have exhausted every other option.

Stealth Camping: If you are traveling in a relatively discrete camper like ours, you can get away with camping in low profile neighborhoods. If you do need to stealth camp in a neighborhood or any other “non-legit” spot, it is best to show up just before bed, and get up and out of there earlyish the next day. If you want to camp in a city without fear of the dreaded midnight knock on the door, you can consider staying in the parking lot of a Walmart if there is one nearby. Walmarts often allow overnight parking for at least 24 hours with no judgment. There is the added benefit that many of them are 24 hour, meaning there is a nice clean bathroom nearby.

Step 2: Get the Apps…

The Ultimate Public Campgrounds App (AKA: Ultimate CG) – This is our favorite app because it not only lists most all of the designated campgrounds, but it also shows dispersed camping as well. For each location listed the app will show several details including the months of operation, amenities, and a $ scale from cheap to expensive.

Allstays Camp&RV – This app is great for finding locations and details on private RV parks, dump stations, Walmarts, and other spots at would be useful to RV campers. This App is definitely geared more towards people with larger RVs, but can still be helpful to people with smaller campers or even tent campers.

Have you traveled to different campsites? What do you recommend doing when trying to find one?

Article Source: Instructables