Colorado Kid

It seems like most on this list like, Stealth Camping. why?? My problem has always been, where do you get water and a hot shower?

boomhauer

I would actually say that few on this board stealth camp.
They probably have stealth camped but choose not, because it is generally easy not to.

skookum

People on this board like to talk about stealth camping. NTTAWWT

mev

Slightly off-topic, but a question to the OP: It seems like you start a lot more threads than ever replying to any threads including your own. Why?

Rowan

Much depends on prevailing wind conditions and the distance between start and next opportunity for next potential paid-for accom facility. On tour in Australia and Europe, I have done a fair number of suitable roadside or bush camping without disturbing others, including government..

indyfabz

saddlesores

why stealth camp?.....well, after a long day on the katy, there ain't nothing better than scoochin' into the woods and setting up camp where noone can find ya's. ya can build a big ol' campfire and blast the melodeon all night long! jus' you an'yer trusty stomach steinway....it don't get no better'n this!

Leebo

Hot shower? Hmm. Could boil water, use a stream or lake, really nice here in New England after a hot day pedaling. If you are asking those questions, I think you are missing the whole point. Water? Try some filters or such.

fietsbob

One doesn't do it every night, silly, (like backpack-hiking, for days..
out into the mountains)

you mix a wild camping night, with a hostel or motel night,
commercial campground and so forth . as you go along..

I have ordered breakfast in a cafe , washing up in their WC ,
while it's being prepared.




...

andrewclaus

Carry your water from your last source. If you plan on getting surface water, carry a means to purify.

Wash up when you can, perhaps in a public restroom at the end of the day. If the weather's warm, do some laundry then too, wear the clothes dry.

And it won't kill you to skip a day of washing--sort of goes with the whole idea of that kind of camping.

Brian25

A solar shower has been my solution/ makes it possible to keep decent hygiene. Typically, I use the shower in town, supply up with more water and end up camping somewhere outside of town.

reppans

zacharyhoyt

Every year I get a week off from work, and I use it to go to the Adirondacks on my bicycle. I much prefer at-large camping to staying in a campground, and here it's legal on state lands within the park as long as you're 150 feet from the road, a trail or water. I always prefer to camp near a lake or river so I can swim and get relatively clean that way, and I filter my water or bring it from a spigot in a town if I can find one. I like the quiet of dispersed camping, the one time I stayed in a campground there were so many people around that it was hard to sleep soundly. I have not tried stealth camping in the sense of illegally camping and trying not to be seen, that would presumably come with its own set of issues and I wouldn't want to do it.
Zach

andrewclaus

I agree there's an attraction to water-side camping, but after many dry camps, I find I sleep better away from the water. Usually fewer people, fewer bugs, fewer animals after your food, lower humidity (less dew in the morning), and often warmer temps. I'll stop at that lake or river to clean up, stock up on water, take in the view, then leave and find a high, dry, breezy site to camp.

axolotl

+1

TheLibrarian

For many its a bit of a pipe dream. Many who want to leave it all behind and wander for weeks or months don't have much. of course the reality is it costs money to travel evn by especially by bike. 30 days of food and gear to cross the US vs a $500 plane ticket but its about the journey and the wander. Those who actually tour have the dedication and fortitude to hold real jobs, go for a week or two a year or are so well off or young they can pick up and go for longer. As much as its a test touring is about freedom and adventure mixed with nature and to some extent living off the land or at least living on the road.

bikenh

VERY off topic...Why is it as a beginner, no matter what topic you are talking about you are expected to know everything? Why should someone reply to threads they know nothing about? If you don't know much about a topic, how can you be expected to give any decent input on a subject?

I remember quite a few years back when I was just starting back into biking and i was looking around at different message boards, some I flat out walked away from because they wanted me to post 5 messages before I could ever ask a question. I was suppose to waste my/everyone who read the messages time, bandwidth, etc just to get 5 messages posted before I could ever ask a question on something I wanted more information on. I walked away from those message boards. I knew I didn't know what I was talking about, so why I should I be posting anything other than questions. Sounds like a pretty stupid concept to me.

Now if the poster doesn't reply back to ask/clarify more...then you got yourself some vital things to discuss. I'm not saying anything in particular about this poster as I generally don't follow/pay attention to user names, so I don't watch posting history behavior or anything like that.

Just something to think about.

J.Higgins 

I like to stealth camp when I ride solo. That way I only have to take care of me. I choose to stealth camp in State forests and town lands, as well as national forests - anything besides private land. Hot showers are nice, but a wet washcloth and a little Dr. Bronner does the job quite nicely. I don't carry a stove, so no worries about cooking odors and/or wood smoke. Solo bliss.

If I have a partner, we stay at campgrounds/campsites. Otherwise, I take my Missus. She was was never taken camping when she was a kid, so consequently its very difficult to get her to sleep in a tent. BTDT... waaay too many times. Easier just to dee up some cash and get a room at an inn or B&B - which she really enjoys. It is what it is, and to be frank, I enjoy it as well. Its just not the same as seeing the sun come up over the ridge and being out in the wild.

axolotl

According to the Advance Search tool, the OP has (as of this moment) started 288 threads, yet has only posted 130 other times. In other words, most of the time s/he starts new threads and then disappears. That sounds like trolling to me.

imi

Rob_E

You bring your water with you and you don't have a hot shower. Or, if you're seriously remote and well prepared, you filter some water from a natural source.

I suspect that there are some who stealth camp regularly and have their own cleaning methods. I have only done it a few times, and it's always been in between established campsites, so one night in the woods without a shower is not the end of the world. I try to have some wet wipes on hand for a quick sponge bath, and I clean up a little better at the first restroom I come across. I do have a water bladder that can be used as a portable shower, but I have found that situations where I might want to use the shower are also situations where I might value the extra drinking water more, so I haven't used the shower much.

TiHabanero

Never stealth camped and it sounds like it may just invite trouble someday. Guess I should try it, but not south of the Mason-Dixon line!

ricrunner

For showering I bring a Do-Dad that I think was invented by an Aussie that attaches to a drink bottle of any size with mouth sizes up 50mm, I usually use a dedicated 1 litre bottle and can get 15 minutes out of it. It has a valve that you just lightliy pull out and a few minute holes in the head. It was expensive at $25 but very useful. I do not need to stealth camp here as not really required to do, but if I am within 15 km of a town or city, you have to do it, as camping inside that zone usually incurs the wrath of a ranger. I camp 995 of the time as prefer not to pay. Will use a caravan park when need a decent shower or laundry or power to charge, although have a solar panel and battery 35000ma.

indyfabz

The problem with these types of threads (you usually get one or more every year) is that "stealth camping" means different things to different people. For example, with some restrictions/rules, you can legally camp on much (if not most) undeveloped (i.e., outside of established campgrounds) U.S.F.S. land. Same with some state forests in some states. Stealth camping to someone else may mean camping or private or public land where camping is not permitted.

I stealth camped/trespassed once. Last year. Private nature center maybe 10 miles from my house. Wanted to get out of the city to try view a meteor shower in the middle of the night. I didn't care for the experience. I didn't like sneaking around and having to rush out early the next day to avoid the possibility of being discovered. The only thing redeeming about it was that shortly after I pitched my tent, a nearby fox started screaming.

jamawani 

I'm waiting to hear back from the Colorado Kid.