August 2011: Who's Camping???

[renodesertfox]

Howdy Campateers,
If you're planning a camp-out during the month of August 2011 and want to share and brag a little bit, where you are going here's the thread to post your plans to! Thanks for looking! We all had a long winter and looks like everyone across the country is having a hotter summer! Thanks for hangin 'round our campfire!:cool:

[surmisez]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Me!!! We're going camping again in Wells State Park, Sturbridge, MA. We actually got a spot right on the water, so we're very excited. It will be lovely to sit and watch the sun rise and set over the lake!

Not sure if we've got access to the lake from the site or not. It would be a great bonus if we did. If not, it's a quick walk to the little beach.

Plus, we have our lovely utility trailer, which makes loading and unloading a breeze, and we only need to take one car!

I love camping! Wish we could do it more often!

[SilverMaggie]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I think I am as well. Looking around for some local dispersed camping in the San Juan National Forest. If I don't get out there soon, I think I will explode!

[shawnbebout]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I am planning to go back to my spot the weekend of Aug 5 & 6. Then the next weekend I plan on "exploring" this spot. N40° 33' 46.1" W105° 34' 35.3" You can google earth that spot. That will be the weekend of Aug 12 hopefully.
maggie, if you are on facebook, try looking at this link
https://www.facebook.com/Colorado.Ca...lorado.Camping

[GlitterHiker]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Plus, we have our lovely utility trailer, which makes loading and unloading a breeze, and we only need to take one car!

I'm so glad it's worked out well for you!

As far as August camping: I have a 2 night / week-end trip planned. In the D.C. area, the heat and humidity can be stifling, so I'm avidly reading the tips on camping in hot weather.

[citykidzmom]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

We are !! It's time for our 2011 Family Campout! August 6-9. I'm excited ! The kids are excited! The rest of the adults in the family...not so much. But that's ok, they aren't gonna rain on my parade.
We're either going back to Indian lake State Park or we're going to Longs Retreat.

Can't wait,
Kathy

[Just-in-time]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I am...WOOHOO!!! First time and just my daughter and myself. Myles Standish State forest near the end of the month. We have a nice spot right on the pond. =)

[surmisez]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I'm so glad it's worked out well for you!

The utility trailer is fabulous! Wish we had one last year.

Camping can be so much better with the right gear, for the particular type of camping you plan on doing.

[CulverCityCamper]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Me and my daughter are going to the Kern River (very hot there!) the 18th for three nights with friends, then a bunch of us are headed to Lodgepole in Sequoia for the holiday weekend. Can't wait!

I hope all you guys have a great time on your outings!

[GlitterHiker]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I am...WOOHOO!!! First time and just my daughter and myself. Myles Standish State forest near the end of the month. We have a nice spot right on the pond. =)

Looking forward to hearing your trip report when you get back!

[SilverMaggie]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

I am planning to go back to my spot the weekend of Aug 5 & 6. Then the next weekend I plan on "exploring" this spot. N40° 33' 46.1" W105° 34' 35.3" You can google earth that spot. That will be the weekend of Aug 12 hopefully.
maggie, if you are on facebook, try looking at this link
https://www.facebook.com/Colorado.Ca...lorado.Camping

Thank You, I will check that out!

[globalpassenger]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Hi everyone! One week until our epic trip!! Hooray! We leave Sunday August 7. This site has been invaluable for our planning on a number of fronts - camping tips, gear organisation, bear and critter management, food ideas, and more! I would like to thank you all for being such an unusually friendly internet community. I don’t believe I have ever encountered a forum devoid of flaming, trolling, and name-calling before!

So our trip will take us from Connecticut to California, over the best part of three months! The current plan is to head down to DC on day one, visiting the Amish, then staying with a friend for a night before heading to the Smoky Mountains. We hope to spend 3-4 nights camping our way down the Smokies, then down to Savannah GA, the Okeefenokee swamp, and on to Florida to see a friend.

After we are done visiting, we are on our own timeline, and intend to head on up to Montana via New Orleans, Carlsbad Caverns, Roswell, Great Sand Dunes NP, Rocky Mountains NP. Hopefully we should arrive in Montana before the Going To The Sun road closes! We intend to spend a week or so at Glacier, then head down to Yellowstone for a week, then exiting via Grand Teton, down to Utah to spend a few weeks hitting the parks there and the North Rim of the Canyon. After Arches we will head to Colorado for Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Mesa Verde, and some nice mountain camping! Then we head down to AZ, and after we hit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, we’re off to Vegas to relax for a few days Depending how our motivation and budget are standing up, we have a California loop including Death Valley, Sequoia, Yosemite, San Francisco, the Coast Road, Los Angeles, a friend in San Diego, then back to Vegas to sell our car and fly back to Australia!

We have all of our gear sorted out although we have yet to do an accurate trial pack of the car - it is hard when you’re still using a bunch of the stuff you inted to pack for living! We drive a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee, which means we have a fair amount of space, but need to take at least 2 large suitcases full of clothes and things back to Australia. We have all the usual car camping gear, although we got good light gear to facilitate backpacking if the opportunity to ditch the car for a few days arises. We dream of hiking the Canyon and hope we can arrange it without having a permit yet - our timing is unpredictable so we couldn’t book it, however we are flexible so we can hang around for a while to try to score a first-served permit which I understand is a possibility?

We expect to stay in cheap motels every so often (crappy weather, poor planning, lack of available camp site) but definitely hope to keep it mainly camping. To help find campsites on the fly I have lots of campsite POI files for my GPS, a couple of campsite finding apps for my cell, plus a complete set of old fashioned AAA printed campsite booklets. I hope to do a fair bit of dispersed camping once we pass to the West.

I’d love to hear any tips people might have for living out of a car for three months, and finding campsites on the fly. Also some suggestions for great perhaps lesser known places to camp/see/hike would be appreciated! A complete list of the major parks we intend to hit is as follows:


Shenandoah & Smoky Mountains
Everglades
Carlsbad Caverns
Great Sand Dunes
Rocky Mountains
Glacier
Yellowstone
Grand Teton
Capitol Reef
Bryce Canyon
Zion
Grand Canyon North Rim
Monument Valley
Canyonlands
Arches
Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Mesa Verde
Petrified Forest
Grand Canyon South Rim
Death Valley
Sequoia
Yosemite
Big Sur
Joshua Tree

All of the Western states have really written themselves, and we are completely inspired and excited about those, but I’d love to hear some great ideas for places to camp and things to do for the journey from Florida to New Mexico.

Also if anyone has done swamp tours in Louisiana and Florida, I’d love to hear if they are similar or markedly different experiences. We really can only afford one, and at the moment I’m leaning toward Louisiana but there must be something special about a tour in the Everglades!

Thanks everyone!

Tom

[SilverMaggie]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Wow! You are a busy person!


Zion is my personal favorite and Joshua Tree N.P. is my old stomping grounds!
Now I live about 10 miles from Mesa Verde, I need to go visit that soon!

Have a great time and be safe!

[renodesertfox]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Howdy GP! Glad everyone helped! If you get a chance and get connected with the internet would love to hear how you are doing on your trip. Or after your trip with photos too! That would be great! Seems everyone is camping in August, wish we were! But someone has to take care of my swimming pool and swim, so it just might as well be me this go around! Good luck with your journey and may you always have a great campfire!

[GlitterHiker]

Re: August 2011: Who's Camping???

Sounds like a fantastic trip!! Hopefully you can keep us posted while you're on the road.