Campgrounds requiring minimum stay ?

[Cogan_Farmer]

I will be doing a trip from Pennsylvania to Yellowstone in Wyoming this coming June with my son. We hoped to camp along the way in state parks. Problem is when I attempted to make reservations, all of the parks seem to have minimum 2+ nite stays in order to make a reservation.

Are there parks without the minimum stay requirement ?

Thanks !!!
Cogan

[thomasroy]

Cogan Farmer
Google Free Camping in the United States. You can find a lot of places you can camp for free. A lot of states have parks you can camp for free or a minnium fee. ($5.00 a person.)I have found that some small towns have camping in thier city parks. (It may not have shower , but has a bathroom. Look at this site www.dispersedcamping.com
If You planning on Camping in Yellowstone good Luck and enjoy your tripbetter have Rev. I belive tent camping the park is in side a fenced area.Because of wildlife.Here is another site Go to tutorial and look at Park Links by State/Provinceby mellow
good luck and enjoy your trip
thomas

[Cogan_Farmer]

I like free although I don't mind paying either. My issue is that it seems that most of the camping areas that I tried to make reservations at have this 2 night minimum stay. I would like to camp 1 night and get on with the trip out west.

What is your experience as far as rangers imposing a minimum stay fee ?

Is this just a weekend thing ?


Thanks !!!
Cogan

[Timmer]

If it were me, I would just take off and start riding. If you have a laptop with you and mapping software, each day you could project your estimated destination and look for camping spots. Some of the best campsites I've ever found were based upon local recommendations. We're doing a long loop down through Denver for the IBA convention and we'll follow the advice I just gave (except for our lodging in Denver).

[thomasroy]

Cogan Farmer
Here is a idea. Post a new thread .Call it looking for campgrounds. Or what ever and post the route you are planning on taking and see if anybody on the board can help you with campgrounds.
thomas

[Cogan_Farmer]

That sounds like they way to go for me so that we can ride without limitations.

This will be a trip of a lifetime for us. I named my son Jackson (17) after Jackson Wyoming and I told him last summer that we must go to visit as neither of us have been there. Anyway he says "Dad if we are going to make the trip we cant do it in the minivan !" So that got us started, I have looked up and down for some good used bikes. We now have a 1995 BMW 1100RS & a 2004 Yahama FJR 1300 ready to roll. Just counting the days.

Thanks Guys !!!
Cogan

[Mellow]

I just about never make reservations unless I'm traveling on during a holiday.

I just show up, never had a problem finding a site.

[G wizz]

I just about never make reservations unless I'm traveling on during a holiday.

I just show up, never had a problem finding a site.

Mellow,
Obviously you haven't ridden in parts of Minnesoda. Some campgrounds there arn't motorcycle friendly, and even with open sites avalable will turn away guys on bikes. (As me how I know this)

[Mellow]

Mellow,
Obviously you haven't ridden in parts of Minnesoda. Some campgrounds there arn't motorcycle frendly, and even with open sites avalable will turn away guys on bikes. (As me how I know this)

I've been lucky enough to never have been turned away.... The way I see it, I'll gladly NOT give them my money if they don't want it...

I'm sure they have their reasons.. could be they've been burned in the past by a bad group.. who knows.

[gdawg]

on my return trip from Missouri, Texas next month, i run across trying to find a campground between texas and south carolina, probably two of them, but it's the holiday weekend.......everyone wants two nights stay... i am hoping to find some people that will put me up....

[kvocal]

This site may be of some help.

It lists campgrounds across the US and Canada. In includes Federal, State, County, KOA, and private campgrounds. You can also make reservations. You can also get hunting and fishing licenses for various sates on the site as well.

http://www.reserveamerica.com/

[Doug Huse]

Got roughly 50,000 miles camping from a motorcycle over the past 8 years. Never have made a reservation; reservations mean you have to keep a schedule. Ouch! Schedules mean you can't stop and enjoy that small town museum that grabs your attention. And have never had a campground tell me there was a two night minimum. That might go hand in hand with the reservation thingy. One thing, all my travels have been on the western side of the Mississippi. They might do things differently in the east. (I guess that goes without saying!) Enjoy your travels.

[SidecarMike]

I like free although I don't mind paying either. My issue is that it seems that most of the camping areas that I tried to make reservations at have this 2 night minimum stay. I would like to camp 1 night and get on with the trip out west.

What is your experience as far as rangers imposing a minimum stay fee ?

Is this just a weekend thing ?


Thanks !!!
Cogan
It's pretty common around here if you are making weekend reservations. During the week they don't care and dif you just show up, they don't care. Just reservations.

[George]

Never seen a minimum stay requirement. I don't make reservations, tho, so not a problem. Here's pics of my last two "camps" on the way home from my recent spring trip:
2893 2894

No minimums, no fees, no reservations. Common kind'a spots for me. :D

Camped many nights (just added 14 to my count for the year) thru Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. Highest price was $7/night at Clarissa Falls, Belize, full service with free coffee in the AM. Cheapest was $0 at several STealth sites, including a goat pasture in Belize. Check all the pics at picasaweb.google.com/cattmando (http://picasaweb.google.com/cattmando).

[RSnyder]

I have been camping for over 7 years across the country on my bike and have always found a place to camp. That is not to say that sometimes it did not take some looking/riding to find a place. I have only been turned away from two camps. It was not because I was on a m/c but because one do not allow tents and in Yellowstone park they do not allow camping in a tent or soft side/popup trailer because of the bears.

Part of the fun is the search for the place to stay. I have found there are some County parks that have campgrounds and most have had showers. When we decide its time to look for a place to camp we hardly ever pass a camping sign post along the road we have found some very nice places and met some really interesting folks along the way.

We even try private camp areas and have always been welcomed. On several mornings when we left there were no motorcycles allowed posted the next morning at the office. Sure did not see it when we went to check in. I think it has alot to do with the way you present your selfs when you arrive and what you do while you are there. Some make it hard for the next group that arrive.

[Ironheadziggy76]

+1 on this.

Not a camping story, but I visted at a Hindu temple this weekend and a group of bandanna wearing riders/pillions was there. You know the type, the ones who pay extra for shirts with frayed cut off sleeves. At first I thought that was cool that a group wanted to expand their horizons, but then...while still in the temple.. a bunch of them started giving each other the finger and generally cutting up like 5 year olds. One cracked his pipes a few times right in front of the entrance and laughed at how funny he thought he was. :(

In other news, this weekend I came up with a new word since my usual ftard and a$$monkey was getting worn a little thin. The word is: "DorkOff" ; as in, these guys were true DorkOffs. :D

Ya know Bob, we think a lot alike on this topic. I probably make some local riders mad, but I really don't care anymore. :p I refuse to ride with what you call DorkOffs, and we seem to be blessed with them around here. I normally only ride with a small group, Myself, my cousin (Cowboy5) and a couple of other close friends. We try to ride as we call it, "Flying under the Radar" so NOT to attract attention. To us it's about enjoying the ride and not "being seen" as I think that's all many riders care about. And I don't mean being seen as in wearing a hi-viz jacket, but rather making an a$$ out of themselves.

We are blessed with all types of DorkOffs here, we have the Harley crowd who can't park a motorcycle without constantly racking the pipes, (The official look at me trademark).

We have the sport bike crowd who are wannabe stunt riders, their official look at me trademark is holding the throttle wide open and bouncing the engine off of the rev limiter with an open four into one pipe.

We don't have many dual sport riders, but they make their presence known by riding on the sidewalks, as they haven't actually figured out the dirt part yet.

Sounds like I'm and turning into the old man who yells at the kids to "Get off my lawn". :p