Getting out into the “Boonies” as my father used to say when I was growing up cleanses my soul and recreates my personality more so than a cup of coffee! (Yes coffee has that effect on me – without it I am sad, agitated and have no sense of humor!)
So, Boondocking it is, adventure it is. Getting OUT there, away from it all. What makes it better is when I can do it with friends and/or family. As my next blog post shows, I very much enjoy doing it solo but there are times when others are a necessity also. Nowadays boondocking refers to dispersed camping in out-of-the-way places. No hookups. For me electricity is generated by my solar panels. I bring water with me and I use a compost toilet. When I leave nobody will ever know I was there or it will be cleaner than when I arrived.
Boondocking is so much more than just camping. When I mention camping to someone I realize that their definition may be very different than mine. For instance as I grew up my parents took us camping at every chance they had. We almost always stayed in campgrounds or state parks where there were designated areas for people who needed hookups (water and electricity) or not. We mostly went in tents. There was generally a picnic table and a firepit and an area just for that space and we paid a nightly price to be there. Others consider camping to be going to RV Parks, hooking up to all of the services, playing in the pool and recreation area and then returning home. I guess that’s as good as a getaway as anything else, it just seems more fun to sit around a camp fire and make smores or cook scrambled eggs and bacon over the fire in the morning or….. ahhhh, the smell of that stake on the grill!!! yummmmm
Boondocking with others is a lot of fun. Of course there is the comradery, the joking, the falling down drunk or just falling down because! LOL. Goofball sort of stuff. I gotta pick my “Others” to camp with based on my frame of mind.
Sometimes I just want to know that someone I know is around – not that I want to spend time with them or anything (lol), it just comforts me knowing they are there.
Then there are the times when I want to turn up the music, make a roaring fire, dance, get drunk and fall out of my chair! I’ve been known to do that and it has it’s own fun (except in the mornings after).
And then the in between of them both where you share your campfire, your stories, your dreams, etc. where you are with others not as a separate person but as a group who care for one another on a personal basis (not a physical – or maybe that too). A group not predefined but perhaps recreated as the adventure rolls along.
When I boondock I do it far away from city life because I don’t want the lights of that city messing with my view of the stars and I don’t want the city noise or smell – or hassles. I camp in either my RV, my truck or my converted school bus.
As a side note: Many of you know that I am raising my granddaughter (I adopted her after my daughter passed away). Of course that means she is very much a part of Boondocking and she loves it as much as I do. I do not mention her for safety sake but she is always a very joyous part of it all. (of course that means that I don’t drink anymore but that’s probably for the best!)… (ok, ok, ok – I have been known to drink twice since she has been with me – since April 2018 – but that was with very dear and trusted friends. oh my)
Everyone worries that changes to laws surrounding our public lands may make dispersed camping impossible or limited. My vision of Boondockers United is to see it grow as big as the ARA and give us a voice where there is none now. Do you know that there is a National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds? (arvc.org) Do you know that they are a massive voice advocating for the use of RV Parks and Campgrounds as the ONLY solution for campers? Did you also know that Hotel and Motel associations are advocating for LESS camping because of the loss of income to their members?
WHO do we have? Dispersed camping needs a voice – BOONDOCKING needs a voice! Let’s do it! Join us now.