When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Have you ever thought of wandering north to Alberta and British Columbia? There's tons to see and do and lots of camping options. The missus and I finally checked off a bucket list item and visited Bella Coola this year. The Big Hill is not to be trifled with and the trip across the Chilcotin Plateau is wonderful. Closer to (my) home are Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper, Waterton Park (borders Glacier National Park), and Kananskis Country. You'll find lots of free (or cheap) rustic campgrounds in both AB and BC that provide a boondock-like feel, and once you're away from the big cities you can literally head up a logging road and find somewhere to set up camp. We spent 20 days on the road this summer and only paid for camping three nights (by choice). Here are a few pics:
Free campsite beside a lake in the West Kootenays:
Free camping beside a lake east of Prince George:
Heckman Pass Summit (spent the night here on the way home from Bella Coola):
Nice spot beside a creek in the Trout Lake area:
On the way to a backcountry rec site north of Mica Dam:
Boondocking in the Bella Coola valley:
Let me know if you have any questions. April can't come soon enough!
I kind of concentrated on the boondocking or wild camping as I'm a country kid and quite often we take the 'fly by the seat of our pants' quite literally and it is not possible to find campgrounds with open sites to camp in. We usually plan on what we want to see or do, what museum or feature in the area we want to visit, then figure out the staying overnight later.
Oregon, if you can get past the politics, is a beautiful state to visit and explore. We have the Pacific Ocean, Columbia River, Cascade Mountains, Steens Mountains, Wallowa Mountains, the Blue Mountains and that is just scratching the surface of the Volcanoes. Lakes, rivers, streams, sagebrush, gold mines and much more...Unfortunately, unless you visit in the summer (May - end of August, with a few exceptions, you may be hard pressed to find any 60°+ temps. We have snow capped mountains 12 months out of the year. If you can handle mid 40's for a low, that opens up a lot of the state to more months of the year.
So, I'll focus this on some of our favorite trips / places in Oregon (and let others comment on other areas), since we live here and spend a lot of our time on one adventure or another here and that I'm very familiar with. A little information should you get up this way.....to keep it in the 50's (or above) for here, that would be May -September on average.
Diamond Lake, "The Jewel of the Cascades"), They have now (using Covid as an excuse) put all campgrounds there on the reservation system. So, reservations recommended for anything other than a 1-night stay. (11-mile bike/hiking trail around lake) 3 USFS campgrounds (no hook ups but water - showers and RV dumps in 2 campgrounds available) and a full-service Good Sam 'Resort' RV Park (part of the resort concessions) & tons of wild camping. Easy direct access to Mt.Thielsen Wilderness Area, Mt. Bailey & Trails, 3 Lakes, Garwood Butte & Trail, Skookum Prarie and Lake Trail just to mention a few. Your jeep would be a big plus for some of that. We spend 4 to 6 weeks a year up there (lived near there for a lot of years.) and watch fireworks from out on the lake in the boat. We start working on Reservations at the USFS primitive camp site there in December. With the exception of July 4 +/- one or two days, there will be spaces available throughout the season, but we have our favorites that in recent years have become other people's favorites as well so to get those spots, my calendar alarm is set at 6 months out so I can reserve spots for the end of June into July and again in September after Labor Day. Season is June-October (2 of the 3 USFS campgrounds at the lake are closed in Sept and Oct.) To avoid High Mountain artic adventures in snow mobiles, snow cats and cross-country skis, a visit prior to the end of Sept. is advised. Day trips from Diamond Lake to Crater Lake National Park (nearly adjacent to Diamond Lake - not fully open until July), Union Creek - Upper Rogue River, Fort Rock, Newberry Volcanic Crater (which could be trip by itself - Paulina Lake, Obsidian flow and Lava Tube hike to mention just a few.
Captain Jacks Stronghold in the Lava Beds National Monument. It makes for a very long Day trip from Diamond Lake, but doable: That, actually, is good for 3-5 days or more days of camping / exploration, especially with the jeep in tow. Lava Beds National Monument (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) has a lot of things to see and do beyond Capt Jack and the Modock War.
A trip on I-84 through the Columbia River Gorge and the Columbia River National Scenic Area. Numerous things to see & do from waterfalls to the Columbia River & Steamboat Dinner Trips, to several Musuems to Train adventures out of Hood River. Should you ever head this way, I can narrow it down a lot more for you.
Malheur National Wildlife Refuge - Diamond - French Glenn - Steens Mountains
Hwy 97 from K Falls to The Dalles. Along the way, numberous sites to see and camp. Bend, Madras, Shaniko, Antelope (The Rajneesh are long gone) - Access to Deschutes River and Erickson Air Musuem - take a ride in a WWII fighter plane.
Sounds like you would appreciate Ozello Island on the central west coast of FL. There is a small campground that I am aware of; not fancy. There are three "old FL" restaurants on the island that my dear wife and I frequent. There is also a few decent places to eat on the adjacent mainland. Another place you might enjoy is Yankeetown. There is a campground there and a very nice waterfront restaurant. Both places are bicycle friendly. Two years ago our son spent a couple of weeks boondocking around north central FL and the only time they had a hookup was when they parked at our place. He has a 4WD 350 truck with self-contained camper and is not afraid to get off the pavement.
Have you ever thought of wandering north to Alberta and British Columbia? There's tons to see and do and lots of camping options. The missus and I finally checked off a bucket list item and visited Bella Coola this year. The Big Hill is not to be trifled with and the trip across the Chilcotin Plateau is wonderful. Closer to (my) home are Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper, Waterton Park (borders Glacier National Park), and Kananskis Country. You'll find lots of free (or cheap) rustic campgrounds in both AB and BC that provide a boondock-like feel, and once you're away from the big cities you can literally head up a logging road and find somewhere to set up camp. We spent 20 days on the road this summer and only paid for camping three nights (by choice). Here are a few pics:
Free campsite beside a lake in the West Kootenays:
Free camping beside a lake east of Prince George:
Heckman Pass Summit (spent the night here on the way home from Bella Coola):
Nice spot beside a creek in the Trout Lake area:
On the way to a backcountry rec site north of Mica Dam:
Boondocking in the Bella Coola valley:
Let me know if you have any questions. April can't come soon enough!
Northern Lite sure does make a nice rig. Wish the bathrooms were larger otherwise we'd still have our 811. Made it up to Fernie this year and the WigWam river which is a fantastic cutthroat fishery.
Steve,
Go west, young man, go west.
If you need heat, stay more south.
We'll be in Quartzsite AZ in a couple weeks with 500 of our favorite camper friends.
Since our TC (the self same set as yours) runs on 330 watts of solar, there is plenty of sun to fuel the panels.
You won't need the heater much either.
To find the best spots takes time and an experienced eye.
Jeanie has developed a great talent for finding wonderful eateries on the road via her cell phone acumen.
She does research of eye popping destinations, on the move.
We've visited many museums and interesting locales, mostly while on the move.
We use many of the mapping apps, and iOverlander for user reports on spots to camp. Most are easily accessible with a truck camper; maybe down a dirt road; unusual places like unpopulated hot springs and idyllic forest groves.
With your RV knowledge and skills, you could set up a mobile shop to cater to the estimated 200K new friends (snowbirds) who wind up in southern AZ between Nov. and March.
I can see a big magnetic plastic sign on both sides of your Northstar.
Although I have not been responding to each post I have read and am printing out all of them. Asking here was my wife’s idea (Andra) and it was a good one! I really do appreciate all the responses!
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
) - Access to Deschutes River and Erickson Air Musuem - take a ride in a WWII fighter plane.
