Hoosier National Forest Dispersed Camping/7 Tips for Those New to Dispersed Camping
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ก.ค. 2024
- This week we camped in the Hoosier National Forest. There are National Forest Campgrounds in the Hoosier National Forest, but we prefer the more secluded dispersed campsites. If you've never dispersed camped before, it can be a little stressful the first time, especially if you are not familiar with the area. We thought some of these tips might help.
Campinawe.com
www.fs.usda.gov/hoosier
www.blm.gov/maps
blm-egis.maps.arcgis.com/apps...
gaiagps.com
onxmaps.com
treadlightly.org
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My backpacked down to the lake one time. That was the most epic camping trip I think I've ever been on, camping right next to the lake it was stunningly beautiful. But that was 5 mi straight downhill to get there and then 5 mi straight uphill to get out. I just turned 60 years old and I'm not in a hurry to do that ever again. I like your suggestion of dispersed car camping in that park that place is beautiful
It really is beautiful! We used to backpack, but unfortunately, I think those days are over. Knees can't handle the downhill and uphill is just exhausting, lol! We'll stick to shorter hikes. We love that we can still find places to get away though.
What a great video, thanks for sharing 🫡
Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
really helpful and informative, thank you!
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Fantastic video and very helpful! :)
Thank you! And thanks for watching.
These were great, thanks!
Thanks for watching!
Hello again!! We've done a ton of camping but never dispersed so your video was quite helpful! Thanks for sharing your experience! 💙Terry and Terri
Glad it was helpful! We still get a little bit nervous when we disperse camp in new areas we aren't familiar with, but it gets easier the more you do it. Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
@@HEKNBAK I can understand that.... You are very welcome!
Possible #8: Perhaps I am somewhat paranoid, but I also take security into consideration for campsite choices. I tend to like the sites set back away from the road sufficiently where it is less likely for someone to even notice you're there. That can sometimes narrow your choices but it tends to be worth my peace of mind. Some sites can even be a little too convenient from highways, and I like to avoid these in the event they are used for illicit purposes, trafficking, rendez-vous's etc. As a tent camper it concerns me more than it might someone with a larger more-secure trailer camper. Now that you're scared - you're welcome!
Love that, lol! You are right - we would completely agree. We shy away from sites right on the road if we have a choice. We also try to park out trailer with the door away from the road and always park the truck facing out in case we need to leave quickly.
Hello from south korea! Thank you for great information ❤ hunting season can be dangerous when camping so should check before camping 😮 good tip👍🏻
Thanks for watching! Yes! Very important.
This was helpful ty!
So glad! Thanks for the comment!
Just came across your channel. Fellow Hoosier here, now living in Florida. We camp a lot in our camper but not dispersed camping. Did a lot of tent camping in my younger days in North Central Indiana. Mostly on family land. Anyway just wanted to say Hi and that I subbed the channel.
Thanks so much for joining us - welcome! We're long time tent campers too, but as we are getting older, we are liking the convenience of a camper. Thanks for watching!
We’re new to trailer camping and we’re worried about the roads in Hoosier (our home state!) so we really appreciated your tips!
Yeah! Fellow Hoosiers! This is our first trailer too. This area is pretty accessible for small trailers and there are lots of spots. We have been here on a holiday weekend in the summer and had a hard time finding a spot though. We're gonna be heading to the south part of Hoosier soon to see if we can find any good areas down there. Thanks for watching!
We love camping in the HNF, Hope to see you out there someday!
Yes! Probably our favorite place to camp in Indiana!
I’m from the southern Indiana area and just recently wanted to start dispersed camping and this helps a lot.
AWESOME! Glad it was helpful - thanks so much for commenting!
The Hoosier National Forest is absolutely amazing to disperse camp ! So peaceful there & so many different places to choose from everytime there. It's my home away from home, about an hour & a half away.
Thank you !!!
Thanks for watching!
All good tips.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
awesome
i just went there 2 days ago
its amazing place
Thanks for watching! Agreed! We will be spending a couple more nights there in a few weeks.
Great tips!
Thank you and thanks for watching!
Thank you and thanks for watching!
Awesome spot. Looking to get up to Hoosier national in the next couple weeks!
Thanks for watching! We actually just got back from another trip in Hoosier and will have a few more Hoosier videos coming out the next few weeks!
@@HEKNBAK awesome looking forward to watching them
Thank you for this! I live in north central Indiana, never even knew there was dispersed camping here. Errr, it really irritates me picking up after others! Thanks!!
You're welcome - thanks for commenting! That we know of, the only place there is dispersed camping in Indiana is Hoosier NF. We're not aware of any north of Indy, but we have camped in a couple state forest and Fish & Wildlife areas that were nice.
We have enjoyed your videos very much. We might give this a try. Our rig is a small toy hauler and is 12 feet tall. Do you think we would run into allot of tree branches up high? Are there certain sites that would be better for our rig? We do not have four wheel drive. Our rig length is 41-1/2 ft We don’t have orvs, we just like the layout. Thanks Rick and Mary Jo.
Thank you so much! There are definitely places in Hoosier that you can dispersed camp with a full size camper. Every time we are there, we will see a few. The bigger you get the more limited the options are. I don't think you would be able to get into the site we were in, but there are others closer to the road that are more open. Dispersed camping is always a little bit of a gamble since you have to just drive around and see what you can find, but at least in Hoosier you always have the horse camps as a backup option if you aren't able to find something. We try to get into the forest by early afternoon so we have plenty of time to try to find a spot, and we will stop on the side of the road, get out, and walk the site to make sure we can get in it before making a decision. Hope that helps! If you decide to give it a try, we would love to hear about it.
Next year we'll have to get out in time for fall colors.
Yes, sad that we missed it but still beautiful in its own way.
Research is one of the big things to remember, whether it is campsite selection or route planning. Do your research.
@jeraldheirich3589 Thought I would share that we had an experience this past week where we didn't do enough research and ended up on a road that was a little out of our depth of experience. We would have been ok, but were also pulling our camper! We ended up making it through with the spotting and experience of some others on the trail, but did do some damage to our campinawe and to Heknbak. We are usually really good about researching our routes and reading maps, but this was a last minute decision and I was more focused on how we were going to get to where we wanted to be later, instead of focusing on where we were in the moment. We took comfort in knowing we were prepared with recovery gear, supplies and even an emergency locator, but it was still a very stressful situation. So completely agree! Video will be coming in a few weeks.
This was a great video for a newbie…appreciated. Can I ask, I’d like to try dispersed camping…how do you know if you are actually using an official camp site, and is anything required in Indiana permit wise for dispersed camping? Great video. Thanks!
Good question! It can be difficult to tell sometimes. No permit required. Technically the US Forest service website says you can camp anywhere in Hoosier National Forests but there is a long list of exceptions, like to close to campgrounds or streams, or of course where there is no camping posted. The first thing we look for is fire rings. Often if there is an established fire ring, you are probably ok. The ones we find the most difficult is trailheads - no camping at Trailheads. Sometimes we find a site with a fire ring, but it looks like there may be a trail there too. So then we go to the map and try to figure out if it is actually a Trailhead or just a random or old trail. Someone did post though that they saw that the forest service had started marking some of the dispersed campsites (putting up a marker at the site), which is great because then you know for sure it is a campsite, but it also raises concerns that they may be planning to switch to a reservation system for dispersed camping, or may be closing many of the sites. I haven't seen anything on the website yet though that says you can only camped in marked sites. You can also stop in at one of the headquarters if you want to be really sure, lol! They can often point you to some good spots.
I hope that helps. When we visit a new area for the first time, we will often stay in a forest service campground the first time or the first night to scope out the area if possible.
Thanks so much for watching - Happy camping!
@@HEKNBAK That’s great info. You beat me to it. I’ve seen some nice places that are really cheap and nice camping areas. That’s great advice to just pay the first time down, and explore. I think I’ll start there to learn and maybe I’ll meet some locals camping who are veterans with advice. I so appreciate your time.
Lol! We're headed up to Manistee NF this week. We've never been there and I'm pouring over maps looking for forest service roads that look like they might have dispersed camping off them. There's a definite chance we could end up in a campground though.
Hi, my husband found your site and we have been enjoying your video.
I commend you for leaving the sites cleaner, but I would recommend a pair of gloves 🧤 for it. Nowadays you never know if someone who does drugs left it. Fentanyl is so dangerous even on your skin and even if it wouldn't be high levels you probably still don't want it on. Stay safe and thank you for your videos.
Awesome! Thank you so much for watching! You are absolutely right - Tim has been saying that too. We have a box of disposable gloves at home. I just keep forgetting to put them in the camper. I'm sure we even have some work gloves I could just keep in there also. It is definitely something I need to do.
Hi 🙂
Thank you for the helpful information.
I too live in your state and my camping methods are transitioning also.
If I may suggest a long handled griping tool or a sharpened nail on a stick tool for picking up debris.
Myself, friends, and coworkers have all come upon meth labs which were 'cooking' and can and have blown up upon picking them up.
I at the least will tap something with my foot before I'll put my hand or face near it.
Travel happy & safe.
I have a 21 foot a-frame camper. Would you say it would fit in many sites around HNF?
We think you should be able to find some that would fit. That one we were in might be difficult but there are others that are more open. We always stop on the road and get out, walk around to scope it out. We've come across some pretty good sized campsites and even a few pull throughs!
@@HEKNBAK we plan on hitching up and driving down soon to get a lay of the land and plot some possibilities on the map so we have some options when we go out.
If you’re worried about finding a spot, go during the week. Mon-Thur. Avoid holiday weekends. Avoid the first weekend of deer firearms season, usually mid November. You’ll be competing against hunters camping.
@@billdailey6315 Yes! Great advice. It is so different camping during the week, compared to weekends. A lot quieter.
Would you mind sharing where the dispersed camping you used in the video might be?
We don't have the exact location or coordinates but I can tell you what road it was on and the general area. We were on County Road 1460 W which is just south of the Hickory Ridge Lookout tower. From the tower head south on 1460. There are a lot of sites on 1460. That specific one was in a section of the road with several s curves just a mile or so down the road. Many of the county roads in area have sites. Hope that helps!
This appears to be on Hickory Ridge Road, which intersects Tower Ridge Road just east of the fire tower in the Deam Wilderness Area. I've been camping in this area for over 50 years. Be advised that the Forest Service closed 7 of the previous 16 dispersed campsites on Hickory Ridge Road in 2022, and the remaining 9 have small signs designating them as permissible campsites. There still exist unmarked dispersed campsites on side roads farther east and south of Hickory Ridge Road; I would not be surprised if the Forest Service closes some of those, and designates others, in the coming years.
@@clarkmorrison7243 Thanks for sharing that! We agree that this is likely the direction things are moving. We camped in Pennsylvania state forests this summer and they have just recently switched to a reservation system for their dispersed campsites, which are also designated. I would imagine it's at least partially a result of the damage and problems caused by campers who don't respect the forest, but I'm sure there are other issues as well. Thanks for watching and commenting!
If I'm sure at all I unhook my TT and confirm my TT and me won't get stuck be it trees or mud.
Yes! That's a good idea!
Rubber-tramps beware! Get to the forests fast! Get out of the desert! Move from scarcity to plenty now. Rubber-tramps, I am one of you. Go! Now! The next plan-demic is in motion. Run! Plant seeds. Gather resources. Dig in. Enhance your perceptions. Eat together one and all. Do not fight amongst yourselves. Go! I’ll see you when you arrive… pass it on!
Were the sites you visited on this trip quiet and peaceful?
The one we camped in was really quiet. Not a lot of traffic on that road. There are other dispersed sites on this road that were full, but everyone was quiet. We've always found this whole area though to be pretty quiet.
What small trailer is that?
That is a Campinawe! www.campinawe.com We love it. Small and rugged enough to get to places we want to go, but more comfortable than a lot of teardrops out there. We tend to travel 1 to 3 weeks at a time with it right now, but are planning longer trips in the future.
That is a Campinawe! www.campinawe.com We love it. Small and rugged enough to get to places we want to go, but more comfortable than a lot of teardrops out there. We tend to travel 1 to 3 weeks at a time with it right now, but are planning longer trips in the future.
Great video. Too bad you are preachingvto the choir. People who liter don't listen!! But we all have to keep sending the message. ❤❤
Yep, gotta keep trying! I will never understand it though. Thanks so much for the comment!
Camper camping isn't camping
Lol, this is our first camper and being lifelong tent campers until now, it's been a bit of a transition!