What To Look For In A Campsite
What makes one campsite better than another? Great question as we all have our "favorites" of what we like. Some people it is a must to be close to the bathroom while others would rather be away from the noise of the bathroom. Basically in choosing a campsite there are three things to consider: safety, proximity to items, and features of a campsite. You will decide where to camp depending which category is most important to you.
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We have friends that love to camp with a stream running behind their campsite. While other friends try to stay clear of water because of fear of their little children falling in and drowning. So depending on how you rank the importance of safety, proximity to items, and features will determine how you choose a campsite. It is so good to have thought about this before choosing a campsite.
Safety
Safety first in looking for a campsite. What are things at a campsite that are safety issues?
One being, look around and see if there are any dead trees still standing. We appropriately call dead standing trees widow makers as if a dead standing tree falls on you it will create a widow if you are married. Believe it or not I have been camping and had a dead tree fall. Very scary to hear the crack and then falling of a dead tree in the dark and not know if you were in line with the fall of the tree. Scan and walk around the campsite looking at the trees to determine if any are widow makers.
Also consider the location of the fire ring to the tent. Is the size of your tent far enough away from the fire ring?
There are many more things to consider about what to look for in a campsite when considering safety but these are just a few to get you thinking.
Proximity To Items
Proximity to items means when choosing a campsite consider:
- The distance to the bathroom
- Camp store location
- River/stream/lake Close?
- Trail Locations
- Parking lot Location
- Street/security light
- Nearest road
- Proximity to a main attraction.
Each of the items listed have pros and cons and you have to decided which one is important to you and your family.
The bathroom for example: if you are close to the bathroom you may hear the door open and close all night (hopefully it doesn’t slam), if there is light outside the bathroom, is there a smell that comes from the bathroom, traffic to and from the bathroom (do people walk right by where your tent will be to get to the bathroom.
Check out our post “Momma’s Favorite Equipment Camping with Littles” to see how we learned to camp far away from the bathroom.
Proximity to items matter as some people want to be far from a street/security light while others like the sense of security a light offers. Look for a campsite based on its proximity to items.
TIP: Before you go on the trip ask your spouse (or just you do it) to put these 8 items in order of importance and then discuss. You will have enough going through your head when you get to the campsite than to try to decide what is important in this area. There is much freedom in deciding ahead of time what is important.
Features of a Campsite
Every campsite for the most part is a little different than the next. Except one time I will say Heather and I pulled up to our camping spot to a field of grass with painted squares that were all the same size.
Features to think about when looking for a campsite:
- Does it have a fire ring and if so where is it in location to everything else
- Is there a place to put the tent and is it large enough for your tent
- Does the parking spot work (is the car in the middle of your spot or to one side?)
- Are you close to the next camping spot on either side
- Are there any items around as mentioned above
- Is there a picnic table
- Is there room for your family
- Is there shade
- Is it flat
- Is there a view of (mountains, lake, etc.)
- If it rains is your campsite going to be washed out?
- If a car drives through at night will headlights light up your tent?
- Is there a garbage can/dumpster close to your site? One time at 4:30 a.m. the garbage truck came to empty the near by dumpster and we all woke up thinking the truck was going to drive over our tent!
I could explain each of these features in depth but again every family has different ideas as to what is important but these are all things you must consider when looking for a campsite.
Safety, proximity to items and features of a campsite all must be considered when choosing a campsite.
It is best if you have thought about this before hand. I wish someone would have told me to think about how close the highway was to the campsite. Here we thought we were going to have a quiet campout only to hear the highway all night and during the day.
Maybe you have camped for years and have just now figured out from reading this why your spouse or child likes/liked campsites.
Having this conversation before a trip will save you some anxiety in choosing a campsite.
Let us know what is your most important item when looking for a campsite?
