Dispersed Camping: A Rest for Both Brain and Budget

After our trip to Mesa Verde, I was a bit over budget and worn out. Luckily, the San Juan National Forest is a short drive away from that national park. My friends at Mesa Verde recommended a section of the forest near Transfer Campground. They were right, it was beautiful and peaceful.

While Transfer is an inexpensive place to spend the night, it's still a campground. It costs money and you can count on neighbors within a small child's stone throw. I needed solitude and didn't feel like paying for the inconvenience of  others' presence.

Dispersed camping, sometimes called primitive camping,  is a great way to take a break when you're on the road full-time. It's allowed in large parts of the national forests and on land that belongs to the Bureau of Land Management and is usually free. A very limited number of state parks also allow it (California's Anzo-Borega Desert State Park is one).

When you camp in this manner you utilize an existing site  that has no services (water, toilets, etc.), following Leave No Trace Principles so that you minimize your effect on the site and the flora and fauna near it. Human waste is buried or carried out (in my case in my composting toilet), trash is packed out, and wastewater is kept as chemical-free as possible and either packed out or carefully dispersed. Usually the only evidence of a campsite before and after you leave it will be a fire ring and tire tracks.

Dispersed camping usually allows you the luxury of space between you and the next nearest camper -- sometimes miles of space. While time limits vary, you can usually stay two weeks (or until your water and supplies give out). Most places require you go a significant distance away (such as 25 miles) before making camp again. The idea is that this is temporary camping, not seasonal living space.