RE: Who does this?

[Starryart]

 
DH and I just got back from a vacation at our little cabin in the woods of Colorado.  We love our cabin and enjoy our time there each summer, and even though we don t have our PU with us, we still have to drive through every campground we see while we travel.
 Our teenage daughter thinks we are crazy because we love to check out CGs and the popups within. We can t pass a CG up without driving through and checking it out- does it have pretty sites, water, electric, what views does it have, how close are the sites, etc.. We enjoy PU watching to see what brands and styles we see there.
 Does anyone else do this while traveling from place to place?

[brainpause]

 Starryart
We will often do this while traveling, except we rarely try to look at a private cg, KOA, etc. We like to drive through SP cg s and look at them, as there are several near us or not too far off the interstate when we travel.
 
 Larry

[Redwolf]

 Starryart
We frequently check out National and State Parks if we have time.   We never check commercial campgrounds, as we don t care for them.

[Trlrboy]

 Starryart
We will usually drive through SP s or ACOE parks if we re in the area.  We also always get a campground map and mark down some favorite sites so that if we go back we can try to get those.  We keep the maps in a binder and use them all the time.

[startx]

 Starryart
We do about like trlrboy, we check them out if they are close, and mark what sites we like.  Then we usually loose the maps, so I haven t quite got the system worked out, but it could also be that I have SO many helpers in loosing things.
 
 We also will sometimes strike out on a sunday morning, picnic supplies and a cooler of drinks all loaded up, and drive to a park considered " not too far"  for a weekend trip, and check it out.  Nice break from the normal routine, and it gives us an idea of where we might want to go.

[Turn Key]

 Starryart
Don t we all do this???  Don t worry.  If DD is lucky, she ll figure this out some day.

[Starryart]

 Starryart
I agree ...We like state parks and national forest CGs the best also. We never camp at private ones except on the Frio river. There are some good ones there. Frequently we write down the spots we would like to stay at and then lose them so I really like the binder idea. Think I ll get one ready for the next time we go looking around. Thanks!

[Campaholics]

 Starryart
We generally go to the State Parks.  We always walk the CG map in hand, marking the good and the bad.  We did this for years, and lost them.  I m also looking for good ideas.  
 
 For the last couple of years I have been entering them in a spread sheet, one sheet for each park.  I also include the address of the park, approximate driving time, etc.  This year I started adding some directions from the main roads if it s not well marked.
 
 The Campaholics

[Biskit4Camping]

 Starryart
Oh yeah... SURE we do:)  Private campgrounds mostly... North Carolina is LACKING in good public parks... SAD but true!  Such a shame cuz we live in such a beautiful area:)
 
 But yeah, we do a lot of campground looking... Since we camp about every other weekend, sometimes on our non camp weekends we ll pick up the map, look in the trailer life, pack a lunch, then take a Sunday drive.  Also, in the off season, we do the same thing, whenever we feel like getting out of the house, and have that thing called... uhm... what is it again?  Oh yeah!  TIME.
 
 Chuck(ie)

[rccs]

 Starryart
We almost always check out a State Park or County Park with camping when are in the area. We also mark down the good looking sites and features of the sites when we drive through. If it is a place we have camped at or think we will for sure and have the time to walk around I will make down some information on every site in the campground so if I call to make a reservation I have an idea what the site that are available are like, maybe a little overkill but it has came in very handy many times when I call to make a reservation. I even have every site listed and rated in my book for a State Park we camp at that has over 400 sites. It took me two trips there to walk all of it and compile my list of information, but I enjoy doing it, after all it s all about camping isn t it?

[garym053]

 Starryart
The only place we do private CG s is Maine. Otherwise we check out all the state and national parks we can. (Where they ll let us! Mass. Parks are becoming less and less co-operative about this, but then maybe they are afraid we ll check out the bathrooms!) We also get a CG map and circle sites that appeal to us!

[vjm1639]

 Starryart
We most certainly do this too! As a matter of fact, we just checked out several different campgrounds on our long 4th of July camping weekend in Lynchburg!  I will also write down the sites that we like but most places we do this with don t even let you reserve a certain site, so I m not even sure WHY I do this!!  []
 
 Vicki

[Jo Ann]

 Starryart
This is cult isn t it....at least we don t have to shave out heads....
 
 
 
 YET!!!!!!!!
 
 
 and i already sent email to our guru dave about passing pamphlets...aaarrggghhhhh

[vjm1639]

 Starryart
ooooo...but I DON T want to wear an orange robe!! Orange is NOT my color![]

[B-flat]

 Starryart
On occasion, I do drive through a campground that I might be considering for the future.  Yes, I look at the other campers during the drive through.  Biskit, NC does have some pretty nice public parks if you mean State Parks that allow camping,  Jordan Lake State Recreational Area is one of my favorites.  You can find it and others at:   http://www.ncsparks.net     There are also some National Forests and Parks in NC:  Uwharrie and some others have campgrounds:   http://www.cs.unca.edu.nfsnc