Darla
I am looking for a campsite not too far from the Bay Area, like 2.5 hours max. I am 22 and planning on going up with a group of friends (6 of us) and I am looking for a campsite that is low on cost, and one where we won't get in trouble for making a little (really just a little!) noise past curfew. We are not loud, rude or abrasive, we just may not want to go to bed at 10pm. Thank you in advance!
Answer
Bay Area camping
(links to pages for parks with hiking, or nearby)
North Bay (Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties)
⢠Angel Island. Hike-in campsites. (For descriptions, go to the Angel Island website)
⢠Austin Creek State Recreation Area. Tent and backcountry campsites.
⢠Bothe-Napa Valley State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠China Camp State Park. Walk-in campsites.
⢠Doran Regional Park. RV and tent campsites. Since this park is situated on an exposed, sandy spit on the south side of Bodega Harbor, there's not much privacy.
⢠Marin Headlands (GGNRA). Walk-in and group campsites. (For descriptions go to the GGNRA camping page)
⢠Mount Tamalpais State Park. Walk-in campsites at Pantoll and cabins at Steep Ravine Environmental Campsites. The Pantoll sites are well-shaded, but uncomfortably close to both Panoramic Highway and the Pantoll parking lot.
⢠Point Reyes National Seashore. Hike-in campsites. (For descriptions go to the Point Reyes camping page)
⢠Samuel P. Taylor State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
East Bay (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties)
⢠Anthony Chabot Regional Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠Del Valle Regional Park. Tent, RV, and youth group campsites.
⢠Mount Diablo State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠Sunol Regional Wilderness. Tent and group campsites.
South Bay (San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz Counties)
⢠Big Basin State Park. Tent, walk-in, and RV campsites, and tent cabins.
⢠Butano State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠Castle Rock State Park. Hike-in campsites.
⢠Half Moon Bay State Beach. Tent and RV campsites, on a bluff just above the ocean.
⢠Henry W. Coe State Park. Tent and RV campsites, plus backcounty camping.
⢠Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠Grant County Park. Tent, RV, and youth group campsites.
⢠Sam McDonald County Park. Youth group campsites and horse camp.
⢠Memorial County Park. Tent, RV, and group campsites.
⢠Mount Madonna County Park. Tent, RV, group, and youth group campsites.
⢠Portola Redwoods State Park. Tent and RV campsites.
⢠Sanborn-Skyline County Park. RV and walk-in campsites.
⢠Uvas Canyon County Park. Tent and youth group campsites.
Recommended reading:
Camping and Backpacking the San Francisco Bay Area, by Matt Heid (order this book from Amazon.com). All bay area camping and backpacking destinations are described in this book, which includes park maps for the car and hike-in campgrounds, and trail maps for the backpacking excursions. General trail info helps in planning hikes. I do wish Heid's book encompassed coastal Sonoma County campgrounds like Pomo Canyon and Bodega Dunes, and there are no campgrounds maps, a feature I really miss. Despite those quibbles, this is a great guide for bay area campers who love to hike.
⢠The Best in Tent Camping, Northern California, by Cindy Coloma with Bill Mai (order this book from Amazon.com).
⢠The Best in Tent Camping, Southern California, by Charles Patterson with Bill Mai (order this book from Amazon.com).
⢠California Camping, by Tom Stienstra (order this book from Amazon.com). I refer to this book constantly when planning camping adventures in the state, and find it best used to obtain campground specifics and a general feeling for a place. My problem with the book is that I have a hard time following the driving directions. As an example, when driving to Letts Lake, in the Mendocino National Forest, the directions refer to a series of junctions, and instruct the reader to turn right or left, without ever mentioning the names of the roads. For me, this is the book's biggest shortcoming; it may be impossible to include more detailed driving directions, since each campground profile has a limited amount of space. In any case, for campgrounds way in the middle of nowhere, I always supplement this book's driving directions with either AAA or National Forest maps.
⢠Camping with Chris http://www.campingwithchris.com/ local reviews by a local guy!
i need some info on california camping?
Ethan C
OOOOkkkk..
well, me and one of my best friends have been schemeing to take a bus to california for a few weeks next summer (we live in michigan), and we want to start making plans so we know how much money we will need to save up.
what we first need to know is, where do we stay?? we are both avid outdoorsmen, and agree it would be MUCH cheaper and just as fun to stay in a tent. We'd like a campground that allows tents, but is close to the beach, and close to a town so we can go shopping ( it would be best if it was a town with lots of parties too :P), and would let minors stay without adults. Also, i was wondering if it is legal to just pitch a tent on the beach and stay there?
Next- can someone tell me the legal driving age in california, and also tell me if it would be legal for us to drive, even though we have michigan registered licenses? if we are legal to drive, we would be old enough to rent a car, or would we have to take one of our own instead of a bus?
thanks :P
Answer
The driving / car rental questions have already been answered.... So I'll skip that part.
Unfortunately, you can't just camp on the beach, that's a big no. However, there are some campgrounds that have beachfront sites, but they are usually reserved far in advance (check ReserveAmerica.com for site availability).
Did you want to just camp, or did you want to go see the sites while you're out here? You might want to investigate the campground you'll be in if that's the case. In some campgrounds, I wouldn't leave your stuff at the site for too long while you're out and about. Better to have a vehicle to lock it in. An example is San Onofre State Beach in Southern CA - it's right along the freeway with campsites up on the bluffs, and the campground is well south of the nearest town. It's a world class surf destination, but unfortunately there's enough riff raff there that will "go shopping" in your camping gear while you're down at the beach or in town getting supplies.
A few of the beach front sites up near Santa Barbara only allow RV's and trailers too, so check the rules on each park before you commit. In addition to beach camping, there are some great spots to go that are in the mountains - so don't rule that out. Coming from Michigan, the mountain atmosphere will be a great experience too.
If you guys can drive together, you could plan it out to camp on your way out, hitting a variety of really cool places. You could drive out Hwy 40 and hit the Grand Canyon for a night or two, then on thru to CA. You can hike in Joshua Tree National Park, check out Vegas, etc. Or you can take the northern route through Colorado. Once you hit I-15, you can go north to the Sierra Mountains, or South to SoCal. Lots of beautiful places to see.
If there are 2-3 of you, driving may actually be cheaper than bus tickets... they aren't exactly cheap!
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