Dispersed Camping: Exploring the Beautiful Backcountry of Siskiyou County and Beyond
Want to get away from it all and immerse yourself in nature? Then go dispersed camping!
In the Siskiyou Land Trust’s March 9th, 2021 webinar, local hiking guidebook author John Soares shared what he loves about dispersed camping and gave key advice on how to do it safely and ethically, all based on his recent book Camp for Free: Dispersed Camping & Boondocking on America’s Public Lands. The complete webinar was recorded and can be viewed below.
Key topics in the webinar, based on John’s book and his three-plus decades of experience:
- Why dispersed camping and boondocking are similar, but not the same, and why John mostly uses the term “dispersed camping”
- How to find legal areas for dispersed camping
- How to maximize your chances of solitude
- Picking a good spot
- Where do you do your bathroom stuff?
- Safety considerations
- Ethics: Leave No Trace
- Wildfire prevention
John’s presentation focused on the Why and How of dispersed camping, not on specific sites for dispersed camping.
Born and raised near Redding, Ashland resident John Soares has lived in and near Siskiyou County most of his life. In addition to Camp for Free: Dispersed Camping & Boondocking on America’s Public Lands, John has written several Northern California hiking guidebooks for Mountaineers Books, including:
Day Hiking: Mount Shasta, Lassen & Trinity Alps Regions
100 Classic Hikes: Northern California, fourth edition
Hike the Parks: Redwood National & State Parks
Urban Trails: Sacramento
Get details of all the books on his Northern California Hiking Trails website
Dispersed camping site in eastern Siskiyou County.
John Soares and his sweetheart Stephanie Hoffman in in their Kia Sedona minivan.
