Expert: Ernest Tufft - 8/17/2007

Question
I have hosted a reunion trip for my group of friends on Memorial Weekend for the last 9 years and I am looking to something a little difference to 2008 weekend.  Our group size for reunion trips have ranged anywhere from 20-60 people and we have toured many of the group campgrounds in the sierras, mostly undeveloped.  This year I was hoping to find a developed campground for 30-50 people within 3-5 hours of the San Francisco Bay Area.  A couple of the key elements we look for in a campground is proximity to a body of water (river, lake, beach) and distance to other campsites.  We like to play guitar, sing around the fire, etc… so we usually like to be away from other campers.  Any recommendations?

Also, here’s a far fetched idea I am playing around with and the options might be limited or non-existant but I was wondering if you knew of a group campground setting, private or public, that allows amplified music.  We have a bunch of musicians in our group that would love to have a campfire open mic, for our private group of course.  Any help or direction would be appreciated.

Answer
Hi Ted,

Sorry for the delay.  I wasn't prompted for your question for some reason.  I'm not much help for you though.  Certainly private resort/camps that churches and clubs should be good possibility with the number of people you are including.  If you are from a large metro area in California, check with your parks depart. to see if they have campgrounds out of the city.  Stockton, my hometown, for example, has a large campground at Silverlake in the Sierras, about an hour away from Stockton.  They have group facilities for the purpose you are talking about, but to use them, you'd have to be a resident of Stockton.  Good luck, and if you think to report it, please let me know how this turns out.