Expert: Steve Summers - 5/7/2007

Question
I'm researching an article for the Union-Tribune on the difficulty folks encounter trying to get a camping spot along the coast of Calif. I'd like to quote you in my story, if that's OK. What's your sense of the difficulty? Have the rick totally hijacked the coastline, or are there still some dirt cheap bargains if you're sly? How sophisticated do you have to be to get a campground? Is it crazy to try and camp without reservations? Thanks, Terry Rodgers, Staff Writer, San Diego Union-Tribune 619 293 1713

Answer
Hi Terry,

Sorry for the delayed response. I have been without email for a couple days.

The problem is basically a simple one of supply and demand. As cities grow and become more crowded, more people have the desire and need to get away for some relaxation time. As more people learn about the joys of camping on the coast, the demand increases. However, the supply has not changed in decades, with some minor exceptions. Unfortunately, the State Parks system has neither the morney nor the desire to aquire more land for State Beaches. The Department of Parks has its hands full just trying to staff and maintain the parks already in the system. The pressures of coastal development further increase the problem, since less land is available for parks.

I don't believe the rich have hijacked the coast, per se. I believe in our capitalist system, which rewards those who succeed and take risks. If someone can afford a place on the coast, more power to them. Like many in the middle-class, I hope to succeed enought to buy my own little piece of the coast.

As for dirt cheap bargains, I don't believe there are many out there. Even camping has become rather pricey at my favorite campgrounds. Regular campsites can easily cost $20 per night, while full hookup sites for RV's can cost close to $40. If there were any such bargains, I'm not sure that I would feel comfortable publishing their existence. Once your "secret spot" is known to all, you could wind up arriving there to find out someone beat you to it.

You don't need to be terribly sophisticated to get a campsite. All you need is a calendar and a phone or Internet connection. State parks and beaches go on sale 6 months in advance, on the first of the month. For example, all sites for November went on sale May 1. If you have a specific site in a favorite campground in mind, you do have to be quick with the mouse button. Certain sites are gone within the first few seconds after 8 AM. For example, we booked a site in Carpinteria on May 1 in a very popular part of the park, "Santa Rosa Long Row". We tried to get a second site (2 is the limit), but everything was booked in that area within 10 seconds. Other sections of the campground took longer to book, but those were for tent camping and shorter RV's. It takes a little planning, but it can be done.

Certain times of the year, you can get away with no reservations, particularly midweek.  However, if you show up at a campground on Saturday at noon on 4th of July weekend looking for a spot, you're hopelessly naive. (I have seen this by the way). We've gone camping during the off-season on weekends without reservations, and been lucky enough to get sites. However, it is not recommended for the novice camper.

I have seen some interesting changes over the years when it comes to making reservations. I really love the site-specific reservation system. It guarantees your spot, so you don't have to arrive at the campground wondering which site you will get. At popular campgrounds, it used to be first-come, first-served, and people would arrive at 5AM to be first in line. Sometimes there would be disputes about who arrived first, and more than a few words were exchanged if it was thought that someone cut in. It was very hard on families to get the crew out so early, so you usually sent an advance scout to get in line. For awhile, they had a lottery system, but all that was really a lot of extra work for the rangers and volunteers. The site-specific system is much better. You know what you have before you even leave the house.

Also, the Internet has been a great help in the reservation system. When it first came on line, it had many problems, chief among them the response time. Often, you would click on a site, and it might take 10 minutes for the system to respond and tell you it was booked. Sometimes people would make a reservation and not know if it went through or not. I spoke with people who booked four sites without knowing it. Now, however, the technology and bandwidth have caught up with the vision, and Internet reservations are quick and easy. The servers are fast, and can handle the absolute CRUSH of people trying to reserve at 8AM. It's quite impressive, actually, and I would be very interested if you could find out what sort of servers they have that now handles the load.

One thing I would change is the long advance reservation time. It is very difficult for many people to plan their lives out 6-7 months in advance. Things happen. That's a very long time for the state to be holding your money, for a site you won't get to visit for quite a long time. I'd like to see the reservation window cut back to 3 or 4 months.

Feel free to quote me, and send me a link to the article if you do, please.