Boondocking before Thanksgiving

[Patrick Mc]

My wife and I spent a great 3-day pre-Thanksgiving boondocking holiday on BLM land South of Joshua Tree NP. And, we only got stuck in the sand once! (Well, twice if you count the jack wheel sliding off the board that we were using to tweak the alignment for a better dinette view. )

The closest campers to us were camper-shell campers about ¾ mile away. One tent-guy, on the second day, picked a spot right across from us. Miles and miles of open range camping and he parks there. Before he set up I fired up the generator and he left in about 2 minutes.

One odd thing, though, was that there were no animals. We saw three or four birds, one chipmunk, and a lizard in three days. There was lots of coyote scat but we didn’t see or hear one.

Overall it was very beautiful and relaxing.

Pat

[Doug Mager]

OOOOH, what purdy pictures,, I'm envious!!!!

[Raya]

Very nice! I can't wait to try some BLM camping myself sometime.

I had to laugh reading your "tent guy" story, because the same thing happens with boats: You pick a good spot in a roomy, remote bay and within half an hour another boat will come in and anchor practically right on top of you. Must be some deep-seated human nature thing, but it can be annoying!

R.

[Cam A]

Re: "tent guy" It seems that there are two groups of people. Some, like myself, would much prefer to savour the wilderness alone (or at least, just those in my party). Others are not comfortable unless there are multiple other humans about. Those of one bent have a hard time understanding the other.

[Raya]

Others are not comfortable unless there are multiple other humans about. Those of one bent have a hard time understanding the other.

True, and there's nothing wrong with being like "tent guy." It just makes you wonder why that sort of person would choose a remote camping or boating area.

"I know, let's go camping (boating) at someplace that's really wild and alone; maybe we'll see someone else there whom we can camp (anchor) right next to so it won't feel so much like wilderness."



Human nature: You just have to laugh sometimes.

R.

[Patrick Mc]

True, and there's nothing wrong with being like "tent guy." It just makes you wonder why that sort of person would choose a remote camping or boating area.

"I know, let's go camping (boating) at someplace that's really wild and alone; maybe we'll see someone else there whom we can camp (anchor) right next to so it won't feel so much like wilderness."



Human nature: You just have to laugh sometimes.

R.

What was odd was that he presented himself as an outdoorsy type. He was wearing a sleeveless OD shirt and desert camo pants. He was very slow and methodical in setting up camp (it was raining off and on). My wife thought that perhaps it was a favorite spot of his, but he first drove past it then returned. I checked that spot after he left and didn't notice anything special about it. More than likely he figured, accurately, that I had a good store of ice-cold beer on board.

Pat

[Chris B]

Pat - We've never been to the BLM on the south side of Joshua Tree, only on the north side. Not many animals there, either. Lizards and ants! Your photos are beautiful! Where, exactly, is this BLM property located? I don't know if I can talk my husband into going there because then he's miss his tri-tip dinner in Pioneertown, but it's worth a try!

We were camping in Lake Tahoe awhile back and I think that we were at Camp Richardson. Only about three campsites were being used and somebody came in and set up camp right next to us. I don't understand the closeness, either. However, when people see pictures of our boondocking locations, they always ask if it's safe, so maybe some people just feel safer in numbers.

[Patrick Mc]

Pat - We've never been to the BLM on the south side of Joshua Tree, only on the north side. Not many animals there, either. Lizards and ants! Your photos are beautiful! Where, exactly, is this BLM property located? I don't know if I can talk my husband into going there because then he's miss his tri-tip dinner in Pioneertown, but it's worth a try!

We were in the South overflow area that was on the map that you posted on the Casita Club site. (I'm Len Satic there). There were also boondockers South of the I-10 and along Box Canyon Road on the way to Mecca. We'll be checking them out soon.

If you want Lat/Lon info, I will send them to you.

We had ants, too. They had big mounds but were very docile.

My wife bought 24 pounds of tri-tip when it was on sale for $1.99 a pound. We cook our own. Which is another reason why we don't need a sadsack guy tenting across from us.

Pat

[Christi V.]

your so lucky to live where you can enjoy camping this time of yr!! The sunset is absolutly gorgious!!
I hope the spiders and the snakes have retreated for the winter...LOL

[Chris B]

Pat - I forgot about that map! We'll have to try the south side. (and bring our own tri-tip)

Chris

[Al and Cindy K]

Great pictures - thanks for posting them. We certainly don't have any places like that in the southeast.

Al