Camping throughout the southwest ... suggestions?

[Lonnie Utah]

This is how it's done people.   (Outside Capitol Reef....)

[Mike Sellers]

pink flamingos are a nice touch-homey!!

[Colorado David]

To me, the perfect remote photography camping unit would be the four-door 4X4 of your choice with a roof-top tent, a dual battery system and a 12 volt refrigerator.  That way you camp at the location where you're planning to shoot your sunrise shots.  When you're finished, you stow your roof-top tent and drive to your next location.  No trailer to worry about.  You'll have a comfortable bed and a del refrigerator without the hassle of a trailer and with the dual battery system, you run the fridge without fear of being stranded.  No air conditioning though.

[Lonnie Utah]

To me, the perfect remote photography camping unit would be the four-door 4X4 of your choice with a roof-top tent, a dual battery system and a 12 volt refrigerator.  That way you camp at the location where you're planning to shoot your sunrise shots.  When you're finished, you stow your roof-top tent and drive to your next location.  No trailer to worry about.  You'll have a comfortable bed and a del refrigerator without the hassle of a trailer and with the dual battery system, you run the fridge without fear of being stranded.  No air conditioning though.

Two words: Bear Country.

[paulrrulon]

I love the book Photographing The Southwest volume 2 , A
 guide to the natural landmarks of Arizona however their are several guides for different areas & are worth a look prior to the trip. The book gives some insight into camping . HTH.

[Colorado David]

Two words: Bear Country.

I've camped a lot in bear country, including Alaska where the bears are serious, in ground tents and never had a problem.  I'm more inclined to be concerned about humans than bears, but in either case, I've never had a problem.

[NancyP]

In the midwest, primitive camping means "no water, no electricity, no sewage disposal" car (tent) camping, or a backpack-to-get-there site.

[Lonnie Utah]

I've camped a lot in bear country, including Alaska where the bears are serious, in ground tents and never had a problem.  I'm more inclined to be concerned about humans than bears, but in either case, I've never had a problem.

This was 30 mins from my house, and Utah isn't really considered bear country.  When a child is killed, it leaves a lasting impression.

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=1363845

[Colorado David]

That is certainly a tragedy and I'm sure it changes your behavior in bear country.  Did you know the victim's family?

[Lonnie Utah]

Another one today.

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=30935893&nid=148&title=area-closed-to-camping-after-bear-ransacks-2-trailers&s_cid=queue-9

[Michael Lloyd]

An unmet friend of mine, Ara, has a website- http://theoasisofmysoul.com/ where he documents his travels over the last few years, more than a few actually. He bases himself out of Terlingua Ranch, TX but hits the road with Spirit once Spring arrives. Once the desert "cools down" he returns to "the oasis" for winter. At the moment the site is somewhat dominated by the release of his book but if you dig in he talks about "cheap" camping throughout the west. I'm really enjoying his book... but that's not why I linked to his site. The site has a lot of little hidden gems on it that, with a little detective work (Google Earth, etc), you should be able to find remote sites. 

[Colorado David]

Here is a link to a site you might like; http://expeditionportal.com/  The Oasis of my Soul author posts updates in the forum there.  There's lots of good information and lots of opinions, just like any good forum.

[bellimages]

Sorry that I didn't respond to all your helpful comments. I thought that I had my setting adjusted to notify my email of new topics. I guess not. Regardless, it just proves how useful this forum is. You are ALL so helpful.

Seeing your travels makes me yearn to get out and explore. From what I saw, it looks like many of you are single guys. While my wife gives me the freedom to get out and see the world (and photograph). I am not able to go for more than a few weeks at a time. I'd love to spend a winter in the southwest .... coming to civilization only to restock. With that said, I guess that I worry too much about all the "what ifs."

As one of you said, it's not the bears that you worry about, as much as the psycho people out there. I'd be concerned spending the night in an open parking area, say at Bisti. I'd feel like a sitting target for vandals and the like.

I'm fortunate for the nights that I've spent off the beaten path. They are DEFINITELY my favorite. On the other end of the spectrum, I drove into the campground at Zion one night. The ranger at the gate told me that I was getting the last spot. I cringed. And yes, it was the worst night of my two week trek!

One more question. Why does the BLM require that people have a self contained unit? That's way more than I want to travel with. I try to pack light, and travel cheap. I use conventional backpacking "toilet etiquette" if you will (burying waste). Isn't that allowed?

[HSakols]

I'm glad you enjoyed being off the beaten path.  Here are some good Leave No Trace principles: https://lnt.org/learn/7-principles

[bellimages]

Thanks for this link. I'm proud to say that I abide by these principles. In fact, I take it one step further -- I clean up after people who have not. It's depressing that the general human population doesn't abide by this in their daily lives. If they did, our roadways would be free of litter. I just can't figure out why people toss litter, as if the Earth was their garbage can.

[pcgpcg]

...I clean up after people who have not...

Thank you!

In general, you can camp anywhere on USFS, BLM, and National Monument land. You cannot camp on Indian reservations unless you have special permission, as it's their land, not ours.

The only time I park my truck/camper at a campground is when there is not convenient public land nearby that is free and private.  You should not camp within 200' of streams/lakes or make a fire ring where one is not already established. BLM prohibits building fires on the ground unless you have a fire pan. I assume the BLM requirement for self-contained vehicles is an effort to enforce the leave no trace ethic.  Unfortunately the cattle industry has already made a joke out of that.

Also, I hope it goes without saying that despite the fact that 4x4 vehicles can drive right through sand and over sagebrush quite happily, you should never take them "off road" on public land, as the auto manufacturers love to show in their ads. Stay on two-track roads. Sorry this almost turned into a rant.

As for bears... don't attract them! Never dump grey water or bury food or human waste anywhere near your campsite. When I'm in bear country and really concerned, I don't cook - it makes too many smells. You can boil water and then dump in a freeze-dried meal, but nothing more.  I'm always careful anywhere there are bears, but I'm extra vigilant farther north. For some reason when you cross the Canadian border the bear situation just changes. Black bears there are just as dangerous as grizzlies - not like Great Smoky Mountains or Yosemite NPs.  Don't attract them. I've spent over 50 years camping and hiking in bear country and never had a problem, though I've been very concerned a few times. If you are in serious bear country, you should carry bear spray, know how to use it, and understand how to identify bear behavior... http://www.amazon.com/Encounter-Survival-Guide-James-Shelton/dp/0969809905#

[Colorado David]

Buy a Trasharoo.  http://trasharoo.com/TRASHAROO%20/About.html

[Plateau Light]

The problem you will encounter is that you are looking for areas in the tribal nations. BLM lands are simple with camping a minimum distance from highways but the Indian nation lands are off limits unless you get an ok from a chapter house. I camp about a half mile to the west of factory butte on BLM land.

Robert
Www.robert-park.com
Www.nevadaartprinters.com

[sunnyone]

Here are some map sources that may be useful -

     http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/gis/USFS_Southwestern_Region_MVUM_Repository.html#Carson

     http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5407274.pdf

     http://plicmapcenter.org/?st=UT

     http://publiclands.org/Get-Books-and-Maps.php?plicstate=NM&site_id=7795

Unfortunately, the BLM doesn't seem to offer any downloadable maps. The publiclands.org site provides a map that has campgrounds and points of interest and if you click on the little checkbox in the lower right corner labeled "Land Status" it will provide information on the map regarding land ownership - BLM, Tribal, National Forest Service, etc.

If you can close in on a specific area you're interested in, you can head over to the USGS web site and download PDF's of all the USGS quad sheets for those areas. The new USGS quad sheets are great because they now have an aerial imagery layer you can turn on or off as you wish - and they are FREE!

Go here for the USGS quads (you can enter the name of a state to zoom into the coverage for that state, then zoom further for specific areas you're interested in). These quad sheets are fairly large with the aerial imagery, but I think worth it.

     http://store.usgs.gov/b2c_usgs/usgs/maplocator/%28ctype=areaDetails&xcm=r3standardpitrex_prd&carea=%24ROOT&layout=6_1_61_48&uiarea=2%29/.do