Comments on: Family Camping – Skip the Campground

By: Roy Scribner

Roy Scribner — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:02:14 +0000

Hey Joshua, I’d just give the Angeles National Forest office a ring at (626) 574-5200 and ask them. You also have Cleveland National Forest down by San Diego, and the San Bernardino out east. Click on the US Forest Service link (“Find a Campground”) and use the “By State” drop-down on their home page.

By: admin

admin — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:43:29 +0000

Wow! This sounds great, but how do you find out where “undeveloped public lands” are? If I drive around my Los Angeles hinterlands I can find plenty of national forests, but they always seem to either be locked up, regular campgrounds, or posted no-camping spots. Where does one find these magical Xanadu’s?

By: John Soares

John Soares — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 23:03:10 +0000

Roy, I’m talking about the USFS maps you buy at ranger stations. They’re not topo maps; they are essentially road maps that show important features in the forest, such as lakes, mountains, campgrounds, and trails. That said, the Forest Service also creates topo maps of popular hiking areas, such as Desolation Wilderness and Mokelumne Wilderness in the Sierra Nevada.

I have Topozone software for topo maps. It gives me all the topo maps in California. (I have to print ‘em out myself.)

By: Roy Scribner

Roy Scribner — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:53:41 +0000

Jim – that sounds like a great place! I have yet to run into any bears or mountain lions here in the Bay Area, but the place is thick with mountain lions. There’s a lot of food, though, so I think that keeps them busy.

John – do you get your maps from USGS? I’ve only got 1:300,000 right now, which are totally inadequate for anything other than locating public lands, themselves. You really need 1:24,000 when you are “on the ground.”

By: John Soares

John Soares — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:27:41 +0000

Roy, I’ve camped a lot in my life, but rarely in campgrounds. I almost always go find my own spot alone in the wilderness, just as you suggest.

It is very helpful to have the US Forest Service maps for a given forest. They show all the roads. By looking at the USFS map and the terrain as you are actually driving, you can figure out where possible level spots will be.