My personal pet peeve is little girls who scream like they're being impaled while they're just playing. If you shriek like that all the time, how will anyone know when you actually need help?
I approached one camper at night to leave a note on his windshield and he caught me, so we ended up talking. He said he did it cause someone had broken into his car. I've been at this park for nearly 5 years now and vandalism is unheard of. But I asked him to please turn it off at night so stargazers can enjoy the sky. I don't think he cared much or changed his behavior but at least I spoke to him. I told him it was basic campground etiquette. In other words, 'You bonehead. I shouldn't need to have this conversation with you.'
I feel any and all pain of LED lights being on near 100% of time in RVing and sticks / bricks living -thus ruining the stargazing experiences. A-holes, aren’t they?
I was at a small forest service campground in Arizona once and a group of friends and/or family brought the disco to the campground. Flashing lights, loud music, dancing and yeehawing until 1am. Sadly I was right next to them. Finally, at 115 am I gave up and stuck my head out the window of my camper-van and yelled “Shut it DOWN!” Amazingly, they did. I think they had no idea they were being so loud and that they were disrupting the entire campground. Very much focused on themselves. Camp host hid in her camper, probably afraid of a confrontation. Most campgrounds now prominently post no alcohol specifically because of people like this. Camp hosts are pretty much volunteers or make less than minimum wage (at least in most state parks and forest service campgrounds) and are trained to avoid confrontation. If there’s a problem, they are instructed to contact the ranger to resolve the issue. Worse than noise is the fact that now you can’t safely leave anything out if you’re away from you site. Lots of petty thievery. Really, you needed a gallon of distilled water so bad you had to steal mine? 🙄
I don’t mind kids running around at all, I think it’s great that they are having a great time. However, I am not a fan of loud music. I may like your music it doesn’t mean I want to hear it.
We try to avoid KOA's and true resort type places as they always seem to be the noisiest/unruly. We appreciate the more family run places. I think a reasonable quiet hour would be 10PM to 7AM. Great video by the way.
We found that KOAs were always noisy, because their business plan was to locate close to the highway for easy access. However on our last trip, we found several KOAs that were quiet. Grand Junction CO has one at the fairgrounds - not good with a fair running, but otherwise it is a quiet park. There is one in Kansas on I70 that if you get a site to the rear is not bad, except when a truck with a Jake gets off the exit. The ones next to the trains are the worst (Springfield Missouri and along the Columbia river). We generally like KOAs because they have sites when others do not, but not all are a good night's sleep.
As a KOA member I have found the opposite IMHO. Every KOA we have stayed at has been clean, and each has had secret, quiet spots whether it is a trail in the woods or a back area. Having said that, admittedly we tend to go offseason (before Memorial Day and after Labor Day). Also most KOAs will enforce a 10 or 11PM quiet time. And BTW - every KOA is privately owned and the owner is required to live at the campground. Sorry you have had bad experiences with them.
@@newenglandrider3189 I know, me too! I drove across country and primarily stayed at KOAs and never had an issue, but I was also super exhausted and could have slept through anything.
I don’t mind the kids, what I don’t like is the loud music. I love music but I shouldn’t hear the beat 50-60 feet away. We are supposed to be enjoying nature…quiet time should be 9 to 9.
In general the further away from any big city that a CG is, the quieter it will be. A min two hour drive radius is good, three is better. Combine that with CG’s that have NO hookups with generator hours/rules (like no screaming construction HF units), and you will have a decent chance of NOT having the Loud family next door. Pit toilets help too. What parent wants to spend allot of their time with the kiddos in one of those?
we love to find spots where quiet time is 24/7, but we are realistic enough to realize that folks do want to enjoy. 10pm seems fine for the start of quiet time, and no real reason that cannot extend at least to 8am...or later.... But the key is do your research.....As always, safe travels...
Quiet hours can be whatever, although 10pm to 6am is good. What I’d really like is for whatever time is set, that it is enforced. It’s not my job as a paying customer to have to enforce quiet or ask people to turn off their bright lights.
Funny video. We have more trouble with the seasonal campers that think they have more rights. We camp Thursday to Monday. More than once I tried to back in and there’s a car or boat in my spot. Or the golf carts running all over and they think they own the place. Sorry I will come down of my soap box now. Thanks From Wisconsin
That letter sounds like the people I camped next to. He did not like dogs, my pup barked ONE time while we were sitting at our campfire talking, Two of us, at 9:59 PM and he opened his door and yelled to shut the dog up! Quiet time was 10 PM. Believe me, his yelling was louder than the dog bark. He was rude and crude, my pup was so much better behaved than he was. Not like we were sitting next to his camper, we were not even between the rv’s but on the other side of my rig. All I can add is being a good neighbor is usually a good way to having good neighbors.
The 2 things that bother me the most is constantly barking dogs and people closing car doors all the time. I wish folks could learn the shut the door quietly method.
We stay in state parks and national parks in Washington and Oregon. They don’t put up with partiers. I’d like to boon dock but my wife doesn’t feel safe doing that in this day and age.
Boondocking is the best. Trailers are not soundproofed very well and sometimes I'd rather not have others listening to what is going on In my trailer after 10pm👍😉 If you catch my drift 😝😘
I've learned the hard way, when picking your future stite online stay away from the double sites as these tend to be booked by big family gatherings. Boondocking isn't the cure always as ATV usage on the weekends is big in the west.
Around here (WI), “seasonal” means you basically lease the same site for the non-frozen months. Leave the camper there and just drive up whenever you want. Lots of drunk-driven golf carts, 80,000 Watt stereos, unsupervised children/dogs and extremely bright lights are typically involved. It’s not really camping, IMO. I’d say 10pm-8am would be good quiet hours. These should also be dark hours, to include outside lights. I’m always amazed at how some people seem to be immune to their barking dogs. Or those who are constantly slamming every door.
I boondock 90% of the time. I am full time (remote work). I go into parks when I need to dump/flush/fill. Sometimes a couple days, to a week. You can be around as many people as you want, or as few as you want. Its pretty easy to me.
I used to camp all over Alaska on and off the road system. It you tent camp or spend time outside now you will have to listen to someone’s generator running. They don’t hear it inside but the people that sit out under their awnings have to listen to it. Even back country canoeing you hear people a mile away across a like. The only way to have quiet is to boondock. We built and off-road place and it’s quiet.
Love your comments on this. I usually boondock, but if I am in a park that has a lot of people, particularly younger people, I also remember my younger days!
I like the "boondocking" recommendation - but here in Flyover Country (just east of the Mississippi) there are no boondocking opportunities. We''ve had good luck with Harvest Host which is almost boondocking.
Jack A's making noise is NOT rare anymore, young or old. Add beer and loud music and I've packed up and left more often than once because camp host's are usually not going to do anything about it till after 11:00. I'm ready to stop camping in state or national campgrounds. People just don't care about there neighbors anymore. I spend most trips boon docking. It's bad enough waiting a year for reservations, I'm glad I near the end of my camping plans.
We’re work camping at the loudest KOA on Earth. Ugh. We’re going to be boondock able next summer so we can camp in peace and quiet. Never to work camp again. 😅
Boondocking 👏 we don’t necessarily mind the sounds of kids squeezing and having fun. They will be the next generation of RVers. It’s more often adults who are the nuisance campers. Lights seem to me more disturbing these days than actual human noises. Maybe campgrounds will post restrictions on overnight circus lights. Perhaps the turning off of all the lights might make people quieter. Oh well, fwiw.
Heck, I just went to a mountain top lake, to a camp ground accessible only to 4x4, and we had a group playing loud music, screaming kids (and adults), idiots with their 4x4's decked out in lights like xmas trees, driving through the camp site at midnight with all lights on. There is no safe camping place from A-holes.
My peeves are open frame generators (that they always run all day, even if there's nothing to power) and loud music (which is invariably country). People seem to think they have a right to force everyone else to hear their music. No-services campgrounds (forest service, etc) don't seem to be any different around here, but it does seem any CG near an attraction like a fishing spot or ORV trails does attract the yahoos. I also dislike the bright lights that some use, I wish they'd at least put hoods on them so they just illuminate the ground around their site.
I love Campendium. Great resource which we can all contribute to in order to benefit the whole community. The more who contribute their experiences, the better informed we all are. As far as quiet hour, I would love 9 but 10 is more reasonable. But by 10, it should be enforced. Someone should be making a visit to the ones who seem unaware of the time. A big pet peeve of mine is RVer's who leave bright outdoor lights on all night long. If you are in a clear-sky area (like NM) and are a stargazer, that's the last dang thing you want. It is RV Park Etiquette Rule #1, in my book. Turn off your dang lights when you go in for nightie night, people. 😠 I live in a park in SW NM that is 85% residents and I for one get irritated with the folks who come and go. Especially when they come and pick the site right next to me when there are a bunch of pull-through sites to choose from. Horror of horrors when then decide to stick around. 🤣 PS: Thanks for another great video. It went by too soon. Bless you both. You look amazing. 🌹
We are retired and on the road for most of the year. We just expect a louder rowdier crowd on the weekend. That’s the way it is. The rest of the week is great and we enjoy those peaceful times. Like you said, these folks need to go inside. Hope they just learn to let it go and enjoy the quiet times…
We try to start our camping on a Sunday (when most campers are leaving) ! Usually works pretty good, not always but usually. You ain’t wrong about those tent campers either! Whenever the police visit it’s usually at a tent site! Go figure! Quietest time we ever had camping was next to a group of tenters that were deaf. Big group of people and very quiet.
Check their entertainment schedule.. if there's a band every weekend then it's probably more party based. You can also consider your own rig layout... I used to have a fifthwheel with a bedroom slideout on the driver side which puts your headboard right over top your neighbors yard if in a campground and you can hear everything loud and clear even if they're just sitting out talking quiet. I would never make that mistake again in a rv purchase.
we have all run into this most of the time not a big prob we do a lot of koa camping we have a good average for good camp sights in the 36 states we have hit
I had a 10 inch telescope and was up all night looking at the sky, the scope was computer controlled and made a distinct “whirring “ sound. Had a couple of people complain. But that was over a two year period.
Have you ever done a video (or if not, would you do a video) on general rules for when/where boondocking is allowed? Assume it’s different State by State, but maybe what general rules apply in National Parks, National Forrests, and BLM lands? Thanks!
We love state and federal parks and not RV parks. The sites are further apart and have strict rules. Then we need to hide our beers in a container! Ha.
We always check reviews from multiple sites before we book a campground. We live by "You read a review, you write a review." Because we rely on reviews, we make sure to leave a review with all the info we wanted to know.
There are a lot of private campgrounds in Southern Ohio that rent sites on a “seasonal” basis - some people have their campers in the same site for years. I generally avoid those campgrounds because I know it’s going to be rowdy (not my kind of camping). We don’t have many boondocking opportunities here either. State parks tend to be a quieter choice if I’m just weekend camping close to home. Thanks for another great video :-)
We always receive a campground pamphlet when arriving. I sure wish the number one item would be “turn off your outdoor lights when going to sleep”. It’s unnecessary to keep them on and are very likely shinning in a fellow campers bedroom window. When trolling around for a campsite within a park, we always check out the potential neighbor’s area. Stacks of wood, lots bikes, etc. mean they might be up late and kid noises might be heard 🤪 At least you know what you’re getting into. Happy Camping ya’ll.
We have seen in our area the quite hours we're from 10p.m. to 7 a.m. and that's reasonable not that you can't sit around a fore and listen to music and talk. If your in a family resort you need to realize kids will be kids.
My wife and I live in Southern IL, and enjoy camping in the many state parks in the Shawnee National Forest. Illinois state parks have quiet hours after 10:00 pm, but I've rarely seen anyone from the park or state police drive through enforcing quiet hours. One of our favorite things to do while camping is to sit out late under the stars around a campfire, enjoying adult beverages and listening to music. We are always worried that we might be infringing on someone else's idea of an ideal camp, so we use a small bluetooth speaker that we can keep near with the volume turned down low. We have experienced the party campers on the weekend many times, but we try not to let their noise ruin our camping. After all, when my wife and I were in our twenties and thirties, we were the party campers!
To be fair, you can get plenty of noise in motels also. Noise is part of staying in public places. White noise machines or just the AC fan can make a big difference.
Hey folks! We go to camps that are geared for live music by the campers...old time, bluegrass, cajon, folk, etc... Do you ever attend any of those? Camping areas areas are grouped by when the music stops...ie, families with wee ones camp in the quiet at 9p while campers that jam 24/7 camp in the far corner from them. In between are other circles of folks... Great fun.
We go while schools are still active so we don't see as many families out camping. We also run our bedroom a/c so it drowns out a lot of the exterior noise.
Wow, excellent suggestions I never wrapped my brain around before. Noise is okay with me, my interest would be just feeling safe and being safe. I stay away from “ group campsites”. But what does annoy me is sites too close together and then they must have a campfire blowing smoke right into my rig so I must close down all vents & windows leaving me to fry in the summer time inside! That is rough on me and my asthma! Great content as always my friends.
Thanks for the great video! The beauty of being retired is avoiding weekend warriors and families that go camping and let their kids run around the parks bothering other people. Dispersed camping can be great, and Alaska is the best state for boondocking with a veiw! Safe travels!
Airstream Balloon Fiesta = party if you do not get a remote spot on the edge of the group. Big camping groups in any park can be problematic if there is no clubhouse. Fireworks at a lake next door are not always known. Nice KOA had a downhill highway that boomed traffic noise at the park all night long. Lots of kids, especially camped next to you can be a big negative. Quiet hours 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM best. 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM is workable. Note, staff recommendation that the park is quiet often is focused on the behavior of campers. We have more problems with train horns, loud traffic, and in some parks the early risers going to work. One of the worst CGs for noise was an Arizona Casino (Pay/not free) that was the destination of the local motorcycle crowd. Yes, it was on a weekend and there was not much of a choice for camping in the area.
I had a permanent camp site in a campground that was across the river from a bar with an outdoor patio . It was inclined to be loud. I kept the air conditioner on with the blower on its continuous setting. Once in a while, I would turn the blower off, and sure enough, the noise was coming across the river, but we could not hear it. Yes, sometimes I was guilty of being noisy in the morning, intentionally. I liked cooking the family breakfast on my Coleman stove outside in the morning. I could really make that stove clatter setting it up, and making my cast iron skillet clatter against it. Shame on me, but I figured they got what they deserved. I got inordinate enjoyment out of doing that!!
We use RVParky to find off the beaten path campgrounds. Also consider Harvest Host or Boomdockers Welcome for some quiet nights. We've only had a couple of experiences of loud partiers in all the years we've been camping and the rangers have been quick to put a stop to it.
Great video guys. I will say that I find it interesting how fast some people, apparently such as the person that wrote in to you, can go from being recreational campers to growing a huge nose to look down on people with &/or having their brows get big & moved up. Probably what, 95%+ of everyone that's a full-timer was a recreational camper 1st? Full-timers act like where they likely came from, & the rest of us sit in the RV world, are peasant or 2nd-class citizens, we are not. I've been a camper for 40-years & an RV weekend camper type for 20+ years. We love RVing but have ZERO interest in ever being full-timers. Does that mean we're dirtbags? Being a noisy camper, especially outside of quiet hours, is rude, we can agree on that. BUT, just b/c someone decides to live in an RV every day doesn't make them all of a sudden better than everyone else & is just a rude & off-putting as the goons that act a fool while weekending are. I come from a military career background. I'm all about respect, rules, & order. I despise people / groups that can't be reasonable around others, despise it. That said, I also dislike RV parks full of broken down junky & cluttered full-timer rigs. Not only is that dynamic an eye-sore, but IMO too many full-timers are on a high-horse nowadays & that position kills what used to be a way more open/friendly vibe amongst fellow campers. And on that note, I can say that one of the biggest RV social group organizations in the country, one that I chose to not name here, advertises to attract both young/active & old RVers alike, only cares about full-timers. When I inquired about the possibility of us joining in as recreational RVers (we were looking for the old social vibe/element that camping automatically used to bring with it), that club/organization didn't even have the courtesy of responding (making it crystal clear that only full-timers rated in their organization). Bottom Line to me: I think a-hole recreational campers AND snob or slob full-timers are each just as bad/detrimental to camping as a whole.
I agree that there are lots of full-timers that group all weekend campers into the same "party" group unfairly. For the record, we are not full-timers and never have been. We do go on extended trips for months at a time. I think this question could probably have been worded a little better. There are many weekend campers who are just looking to get away from it all. There is also a group of weekend campers that are looking to have a raucous party weekend. It's that latter group that I think the majority of us want to avoid. With regard to the RV social groups. We aren't members of any, so I don't have any personal experience to share. I'm sorry to hear that they didn't welcome you. Unless their group specifically states that it's for full-time RVers, they should have been happy to have you!
Check out the surrounding area of a campground. Next to a main road? Mobile home park on the other side of the fence? In the middle of a city? These are things to consider too.
Great video as always! It cracks me up when I see videos saying what a great campground it is and there camper is so close to the next camper they can not even put out there awning. Want to figure out how long you can go off grid, then just do it in your own yard. You do not have to take an hour long shower every day!
Like Honeymooner's stated you have control of what park you stay at thus don't expect staying at beach campground over weekend to be a quiet couple of nights. My wife would pour us a couple cold ones and lead me over to party crowd for some fun! 🙂
Actually, we have fun memories of Mesa regal, and whenever we are in the area I always want to stay there. We have stayed several times and always had a great experience. It is a really fun community with top-notch facilities. I hope we will see you there again someday.
We just left a Provincial Park where our campsite was convenient located to the beach. Just a Sand Wedge away. It was noisy during the day time. Fortunately, it was nice and quiet at night. Great video. This week we are further from the water and so far it is quiet.
In Vermont, at a state park, generator hours did not apply to our neighbor because he had disabilities. During a heat wave, we had to sleep with our windows open next to him running his generator for air conditioning.
This is why I love Ontario Provincial Parks. In most provincial parks, at least one section is designated as radio-free. They recently added generator-free too! As a plus, when searching for a campsite on their website, radio-free & generator-free are filter options. I wish more provincial and state parks did this.
We recently went to Awenda, Ontario Provincial Park. The Park Rangers there were ridiculously over the top about noise, they were giving out fines all evening. We had a Ranger sneak up on us to tell us to keep it down or be fined. We were a group of 4, ages 64 to 68 with no generator, no music and having normal conversation levels. This was Canada Day and we experienced a prison like experience there. To be fair we have stayed at about 12 Ontario parks in the last 2 seasons and had good times except for the prison like Ontario Awenda Provincial Park.
Interestingly enough, our worst experience over the last two years of snowbirding to the southwest was in a national park (Death Valley - Furnace Creek). And yes, the tent campers were worse noise-wise than the RV's but there were still plenty of the latter that were in peak 48-hour weekend party mode. We left early for a nearby boondocking location and the quality of the experience was much, much better. I used to think open frame generators were the most annoying thing one could experience in a campground. That has been replaced by UTVs (which, of course, are simply open frame generators on wheels meaning the annoyance can be spready more widely).
Surpriseing the campgrounds I visited was pretty quiet. When I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, all you hear is nature. I feel like I am making a lot of noise just to go to the bathroom. 😅
I have actually encountered large,loud, and drunk tenters on 2 occasions boondocking in the national forest of AZ. AZ state parks are louder on weekends but not out of control and usually quiet down at 10pm. Great videos, Thanks for the tips!
My personal pet peeve is little girls who scream like they're being impaled while they're just playing. If you shriek like that all the time, how will anyone know when you actually need help?
Loud music and outdoor tv's are 2 things that ruin the experience for everyone. 10pm - 7 am are good quiet hours.
What is the deal with these super large rigs leaving bright LIGHTS on all night?
I approached one camper at night to leave a note on his windshield and he caught me, so we ended up talking. He said he did it cause someone had broken into his car. I've been at this park for nearly 5 years now and vandalism is unheard of. But I asked him to please turn it off at night so stargazers can enjoy the sky. I don't think he cared much or changed his behavior but at least I spoke to him. I told him it was basic campground etiquette. In other words, 'You bonehead. I shouldn't need to have this conversation with you.'
Because everybody's desperate to be noticed. They want people to look at them and say wow look at this!! ??
I feel any and all pain of LED lights being on near 100% of time in RVing and sticks / bricks living -thus ruining the stargazing experiences. A-holes, aren’t they?
Stay away from people
10 PM should be the shut off. It's reasonable and healthy for everybody.
I was at a small forest service campground in Arizona once and a group of friends and/or family brought the disco to the campground. Flashing lights, loud music, dancing and yeehawing until 1am. Sadly I was right next to them. Finally, at 115 am I gave up and stuck my head out the window of my camper-van and yelled “Shut it DOWN!” Amazingly, they did. I think they had no idea they were being so loud and that they were disrupting the entire campground. Very much focused on themselves. Camp host hid in her camper, probably afraid of a confrontation. Most campgrounds now prominently post no alcohol specifically because of people like this. Camp hosts are pretty much volunteers or make less than minimum wage (at least in most state parks and forest service campgrounds) and are trained to avoid confrontation. If there’s a problem, they are instructed to contact the ranger to resolve the issue. Worse than noise is the fact that now you can’t safely leave anything out if you’re away from you site. Lots of petty thievery. Really, you needed a gallon of distilled water so bad you had to steal mine? 🙄
Quiet times should be 10pm. - 8am.
I don’t mind kids running around at all, I think it’s great that they are having a great time. However, I am not a fan of loud music. I may like your music it doesn’t mean I want to hear it.
Ear plugs for the win..
We try to avoid KOA's and true resort type places as they always seem to be the noisiest/unruly. We appreciate the more family run places. I think a reasonable quiet hour would be 10PM to 7AM. Great video by the way.
We found that KOAs were always noisy, because their business plan was to locate close to the highway for easy access. However on our last trip, we found several KOAs that were quiet. Grand Junction CO has one at the fairgrounds - not good with a fair running, but otherwise it is a quiet park. There is one in Kansas on I70 that if you get a site to the rear is not bad, except when a truck with a Jake gets off the exit. The ones next to the trains are the worst (Springfield Missouri and along the Columbia river). We generally like KOAs because they have sites when others do not, but not all are a good night's sleep.
As a KOA member I have found the opposite IMHO. Every KOA we have stayed at has been clean, and each has had secret, quiet spots whether it is a trail in the woods or a back area. Having said that, admittedly we tend to go offseason (before Memorial Day and after Labor Day). Also most KOAs will enforce a 10 or 11PM quiet time. And BTW - every KOA is privately owned and the owner is required to live at the campground. Sorry you have had bad experiences with them.
@@newenglandrider3189 I know, me too! I drove across country and primarily stayed at KOAs and never had an issue, but I was also super exhausted and could have slept through anything.
I like boondocking. Also hate generators and drunks.
We love to camp Sunday thru Thursday! Quiet hours I think should be 10pm till 8am at least.
I don’t mind the kids, what I don’t like is the loud music. I love music but I shouldn’t hear the beat 50-60 feet away. We are supposed to be enjoying nature…quiet time should be 9 to 9.
In general the further away from any big city that a CG is, the quieter it will be. A min two hour drive radius is good, three is better. Combine that with CG’s that have NO hookups with generator hours/rules (like no screaming construction HF units), and you will have a decent chance of NOT having the Loud family next door. Pit toilets help too. What parent wants to spend allot of their time with the kiddos in one of those?
we love to find spots where quiet time is 24/7, but we are realistic enough to realize that folks do want to enjoy. 10pm seems fine for the start of quiet time, and no real reason that cannot extend at least to 8am...or later.... But the key is do your research.....As always, safe travels...
Research research research.
Quiet hours can be whatever, although 10pm to 6am is good. What I’d really like is for whatever time is set, that it is enforced. It’s not my job as a paying customer to have to enforce quiet or ask people to turn off their bright lights.
We're totally in sync. (Except for the 6 am part. I prefer 8.)
@@Pack.Leader 8 would be better but with early risers it might be asking a bit too much.
Funny video. We have more trouble with the seasonal campers that think they have more rights. We camp Thursday to Monday. More than once I tried to back in and there’s a car or boat in my spot. Or the golf carts running all over and they think they own the place. Sorry I will come down of my soap box now. Thanks From Wisconsin
That letter sounds like the people I camped next to. He did not like dogs, my pup barked ONE time while we were sitting at our campfire talking, Two of us, at 9:59 PM and he opened his door and yelled to shut the dog up! Quiet time was 10 PM. Believe me, his yelling was louder than the dog bark. He was rude and crude, my pup was so much better behaved than he was. Not like we were sitting next to his camper, we were not even between the rv’s but on the other side of my rig. All I can add is being a good neighbor is usually a good way to having good neighbors.
Everything you mentioned: golf carts, etc., are they FIPs! 😂
Avoid lakes on weekends. Party scenes.
The 2 things that bother me the most is constantly barking dogs and people closing car doors all the time. I wish folks could learn the shut the door quietly method.
We stay in state parks and national parks in Washington and Oregon. They don’t put up with partiers. I’d like to boon dock but my wife doesn’t feel safe doing that in this day and age.
Boondocking is the best.
Trailers are not soundproofed very well and sometimes I'd rather not have others listening to what is going on In my trailer after 10pm👍😉
If you catch my drift 😝😘
I've learned the hard way, when picking your future stite online stay away from the double sites as these tend to be booked by big family gatherings.
Boondocking isn't the cure always as ATV usage on the weekends is big in the west.
Great advice,have a blessed week!
Quite hours 9 AM :) ok I will vote for 9 PM
Around here (WI), “seasonal” means you basically lease the same site for the non-frozen months. Leave the camper there and just drive up whenever you want. Lots of drunk-driven golf carts, 80,000 Watt stereos, unsupervised children/dogs and extremely bright lights are typically involved. It’s not really camping, IMO.
I’d say 10pm-8am would be good quiet hours. These should also be dark hours, to include outside lights.
I’m always amazed at how some people seem to be immune to their barking dogs. Or those who are constantly slamming every door.
I boondock 90% of the time. I am full time (remote work). I go into parks when I need to dump/flush/fill. Sometimes a couple days, to a week.
You can be around as many people as you want, or as few as you want. Its pretty easy to me.
I used to camp all over Alaska on and off the road system. It you tent camp or spend time outside now you will have to listen to someone’s generator running. They don’t hear it inside but the people that sit out under their awnings have to listen to it. Even back country canoeing you hear people a mile away across a like. The only way to have quiet is to boondock. We built and off-road place and it’s quiet.
Love your comments on this. I usually boondock, but if I am in a park that has a lot of people, particularly younger people, I also remember my younger days!
I like the "boondocking" recommendation - but here in Flyover Country (just east of the Mississippi) there are no boondocking opportunities. We''ve had good luck with Harvest Host which is almost boondocking.
Jack A's making noise is NOT rare anymore, young or old. Add beer and loud music and I've packed up and left more often than once because camp host's are usually not going to do anything about it till after 11:00. I'm ready to stop camping in state or national campgrounds. People just don't care about there neighbors anymore. I spend most trips boon docking. It's bad enough waiting a year for reservations, I'm glad I near the end of my camping plans.
Well said!!
We’re work camping at the loudest KOA on Earth. Ugh. We’re going to be boondock able next summer so we can camp in peace and quiet. Never to work camp again. 😅
And: stay away from high population areas, especially on wkends. Anything within 200 miles of Las Cruces or El Paso is no bueno.
Boondocking 👏 we don’t necessarily mind the sounds of kids squeezing and having fun. They will be the next generation of RVers. It’s more often adults who are the nuisance campers. Lights seem to me more disturbing these days than actual human noises. Maybe campgrounds will post restrictions on overnight circus lights. Perhaps the turning off of all the lights might make people quieter. Oh well, fwiw.
In the words of Achmed the Dead Terrorist: “SILENCE! …, I KEEEL YOU !”. 😳 🤫
Hello! I'm watching your video, have a nice day.❤❤❤🎉
Heck, I just went to a mountain top lake, to a camp ground accessible only to 4x4, and we had a group playing loud music, screaming kids (and adults), idiots with their 4x4's decked out in lights like xmas trees, driving through the camp site at midnight with all lights on. There is no safe camping place from A-holes.
10pm to 6am works!
One hour after sunset, for quiet time.
Ban quiet generator use after 10.
And stay away from the swimming pools !
I would like to see 9:00pm quiet time, but 10:00pm is probably more reasonable.
My peeves are open frame generators (that they always run all day, even if there's nothing to power) and loud music (which is invariably country). People seem to think they have a right to force everyone else to hear their music. No-services campgrounds (forest service, etc) don't seem to be any different around here, but it does seem any CG near an attraction like a fishing spot or ORV trails does attract the yahoos. I also dislike the bright lights that some use, I wish they'd at least put hoods on them so they just illuminate the ground around their site.
I love Campendium. Great resource which we can all contribute to in order to benefit the whole community. The more who contribute their experiences, the better informed we all are. As far as quiet hour, I would love 9 but 10 is more reasonable. But by 10, it should be enforced. Someone should be making a visit to the ones who seem unaware of the time.
A big pet peeve of mine is RVer's who leave bright outdoor lights on all night long. If you are in a clear-sky area (like NM) and are a stargazer, that's the last dang thing you want. It is RV Park Etiquette Rule #1, in my book. Turn off your dang lights when you go in for nightie night, people. 😠
I live in a park in SW NM that is 85% residents and I for one get irritated with the folks who come and go. Especially when they come and pick the site right next to me when there are a bunch of pull-through sites to choose from. Horror of horrors when then decide to stick around. 🤣
PS: Thanks for another great video. It went by too soon. Bless you both. You look amazing. 🌹
The word " dang " is hideous.
Exactly number one is correct. Don’t stay in the campground.
We are retired and on the road for most of the year. We just expect a louder rowdier crowd on the weekend. That’s the way it is. The rest of the week is great and we enjoy those peaceful times. Like you said, these folks need to go inside. Hope they just learn to let it go and enjoy the quiet times…
We try to start our camping on a Sunday (when most campers are leaving) ! Usually works pretty good, not always but usually. You ain’t wrong about those tent campers either! Whenever the police visit it’s usually at a tent site! Go figure! Quietest time we ever had camping was next to a group of tenters that were deaf. Big group of people and very quiet.
Thanks for the vid, we are hitching up rv in the morning. 😎
Check their entertainment schedule.. if there's a band every weekend then it's probably more party based.
You can also consider your own rig layout... I used to have a fifthwheel with a bedroom slideout on the driver side which puts your headboard right over top your neighbors yard if in a campground and you can hear everything loud and clear even if they're just sitting out talking quiet. I would never make that mistake again in a rv purchase.
We need the toe tucks lined up waiting for the one warning only.
Done
we have all run into this most of the time not a big prob we do a lot of koa camping we have a good average for good camp sights in the 36 states we have hit
I had a 10 inch telescope and was up all night looking at the sky, the scope was computer controlled and made a distinct “whirring “ sound. Had a couple of people complain. But that was over a two year period.
Have you ever done a video (or if not, would you do a video) on general rules for when/where boondocking is allowed? Assume it’s different State by State, but maybe what general rules apply in National Parks, National Forrests, and BLM lands? Thanks!
We love state and federal parks and not RV parks. The sites are further apart and have strict rules. Then we need to hide our beers in a container! Ha.
Who goes to Disney?
No you can't , not in your average camp ground
We always check reviews from multiple sites before we book a campground. We live by "You read a review, you write a review." Because we rely on reviews, we make sure to leave a review with all the info we wanted to know.
There are a lot of private campgrounds in Southern Ohio that rent sites on a “seasonal” basis - some people have their campers in the same site for years. I generally avoid those campgrounds because I know it’s going to be rowdy (not my kind of camping). We don’t have many boondocking opportunities here either. State parks tend to be a quieter choice if I’m just weekend camping close to home. Thanks for another great video :-)
10pm to7am
You have a dog but i seriously doubt that you are noisy. Hard to judge.
the adult only fun sights are good when you find them
Beer and beanbag campgrounds are what we call them.
We always receive a campground pamphlet when arriving. I sure wish the number one item would be “turn off your outdoor lights when going to sleep”. It’s unnecessary to keep them on and are very likely shinning in a fellow campers bedroom window. When trolling around for a campsite within a park, we always check out the potential neighbor’s area. Stacks of wood, lots bikes, etc. mean they might be up late and kid noises might be heard 🤪 At least you know what you’re getting into. Happy Camping ya’ll.
Thanks for all the ideas.
We have seen in our area the quite hours we're from 10p.m. to 7 a.m. and that's reasonable not that you can't sit around a fore and listen to music and talk. If your in a family resort you need to realize kids will be kids.
My wife and I live in Southern IL, and enjoy camping in the many state parks in the Shawnee National Forest. Illinois state parks have quiet hours after 10:00 pm, but I've rarely seen anyone from the park or state police drive through enforcing quiet hours. One of our favorite things to do while camping is to sit out late under the stars around a campfire, enjoying adult beverages and listening to music. We are always worried that we might be infringing on someone else's idea of an ideal camp, so we use a small bluetooth speaker that we can keep near with the volume turned down low.
We have experienced the party campers on the weekend many times, but we try not to let their noise ruin our camping. After all, when my wife and I were in our twenties and thirties, we were the party campers!
Woop Woop! Thanks for the mention, the wife got all excited! I said relax, it's not your time yet 🤣
To be fair, you can get plenty of noise in motels also. Noise is part of staying in public places. White noise machines or just the AC fan can make a big difference.
You failed to address your spouse’s snoring. Oh wait, was this not included in the type of noise that you’re discussing in this video? 😂
Hey folks! We go to camps that are geared for live music by the campers...old time, bluegrass, cajon, folk, etc... Do you ever attend any of those? Camping areas areas are grouped by when the music stops...ie, families with wee ones camp in the quiet at 9p while campers that jam 24/7 camp in the far corner from them. In between are other circles of folks... Great fun.
Sean: I thought beer was conducive to EVERYTHING!
You two have been on the road to long! (LOL)!
I think weekends seem to be the worst in general.
We go while schools are still active so we don't see as many families out camping. We also run our bedroom a/c so it drowns out a lot of the exterior noise.
I would add campsites next to college campuses such as the north florida sites with the swimming springs near tallahassee.
Wow, excellent suggestions I never wrapped my brain around before. Noise is okay with me, my interest would be just feeling safe and being safe. I stay away from “ group campsites”. But what does annoy me is sites too close together and then they must have a campfire blowing smoke right into my rig so I must close down all vents & windows leaving me to fry in the summer time inside! That is rough on me and my asthma!
Great content as always my friends.
Thanks for the great video! The beauty of being retired is avoiding weekend warriors and families that go camping and let their kids run around the parks bothering other people. Dispersed camping can be great, and Alaska is the best state for boondocking with a veiw! Safe travels!
Airstream Balloon Fiesta = party if you do not get a remote spot on the edge of the group. Big camping groups in any park can be problematic if there is no clubhouse. Fireworks at a lake next door are not always known. Nice KOA had a downhill highway that boomed traffic noise at the park all night long. Lots of kids, especially camped next to you can be a big negative. Quiet hours 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM best. 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM is workable. Note, staff recommendation that the park is quiet often is focused on the behavior of campers. We have more problems with train horns, loud traffic, and in some parks the early risers going to work. One of the worst CGs for noise was an Arizona Casino (Pay/not free) that was the destination of the local motorcycle crowd. Yes, it was on a weekend and there was not much of a choice for camping in the area.
I had a permanent camp site in a campground that was across the river from a bar with an outdoor patio . It was inclined to be loud. I kept the air conditioner on with the blower on its continuous setting. Once in a while, I would turn the blower off, and sure enough, the noise was coming across the river, but we could not hear it. Yes, sometimes I was guilty of being noisy in the morning, intentionally. I liked cooking the family breakfast on my Coleman stove outside in the morning. I could really make that stove clatter setting it up, and making my cast iron skillet clatter against it. Shame on me, but I figured they got what they deserved. I got inordinate enjoyment out of doing that!!
We use RVParky to find off the beaten path campgrounds. Also consider Harvest Host or Boomdockers Welcome for some quiet nights. We've only had a couple of experiences of loud partiers in all the years we've been camping and the rangers have been quick to put a stop to it.
Great video guys. I will say that I find it interesting how fast some people, apparently such as the person that wrote in to you, can go from being recreational campers to growing a huge nose to look down on people with &/or having their brows get big & moved up. Probably what, 95%+ of everyone that's a full-timer was a recreational camper 1st? Full-timers act like where they likely came from, & the rest of us sit in the RV world, are peasant or 2nd-class citizens, we are not. I've been a camper for 40-years & an RV weekend camper type for 20+ years. We love RVing but have ZERO interest in ever being full-timers. Does that mean we're dirtbags? Being a noisy camper, especially outside of quiet hours, is rude, we can agree on that. BUT, just b/c someone decides to live in an RV every day doesn't make them all of a sudden better than everyone else & is just a rude & off-putting as the goons that act a fool while weekending are.
I come from a military career background. I'm all about respect, rules, & order. I despise people / groups that can't be reasonable around others, despise it. That said, I also dislike RV parks full of broken down junky & cluttered full-timer rigs. Not only is that dynamic an eye-sore, but IMO too many full-timers are on a high-horse nowadays & that position kills what used to be a way more open/friendly vibe amongst fellow campers. And on that note, I can say that one of the biggest RV social group organizations in the country, one that I chose to not name here, advertises to attract both young/active & old RVers alike, only cares about full-timers. When I inquired about the possibility of us joining in as recreational RVers (we were looking for the old social vibe/element that camping automatically used to bring with it), that club/organization didn't even have the courtesy of responding (making it crystal clear that only full-timers rated in their organization). Bottom Line to me: I think a-hole recreational campers AND snob or slob full-timers are each just as bad/detrimental to camping as a whole.
I agree that there are lots of full-timers that group all weekend campers into the same "party" group unfairly. For the record, we are not full-timers and never have been. We do go on extended trips for months at a time. I think this question could probably have been worded a little better. There are many weekend campers who are just looking to get away from it all. There is also a group of weekend campers that are looking to have a raucous party weekend. It's that latter group that I think the majority of us want to avoid.
With regard to the RV social groups. We aren't members of any, so I don't have any personal experience to share. I'm sorry to hear that they didn't welcome you. Unless their group specifically states that it's for full-time RVers, they should have been happy to have you!
Entitled people on both sides-
We prefer quiet, because we work from home. We get up early to work.
Check out the surrounding area of a campground. Next to a main road? Mobile home park on the other side of the fence? In the middle of a city? These are things to consider too.
Great video as always!
It cracks me up when I see videos saying what a great campground it is and there camper is so close to the next camper they can not even put out there awning.
Want to figure out how long you can go off grid, then just do it in your own yard.
You do not have to take an hour long shower every day!
Like Honeymooner's stated you have control of what park you stay at thus don't expect staying at beach campground over weekend to be a quiet couple of nights. My wife would pour us a couple cold ones and lead me over to party crowd for some fun! 🙂
Great tips. If we are hearing a lot of noise at a campground, we turn on our a/c which drowns out a lot of noise. Works so far.
Nice segment. Noticed the shots of MR and know that’s not your normal vibe but we so enjoyed having you there!
Actually, we have fun memories of Mesa regal, and whenever we are in the area I always want to stay there. We have stayed several times and always had a great experience. It is a really fun community with top-notch facilities. I hope we will see you there again someday.
Kinda like pulling a trailer with a generator to charge your Tesla.
We just left a Provincial Park where our campsite was convenient located to the beach. Just a Sand Wedge away. It was noisy during the day time.
Fortunately, it was nice and quiet at night.
Great video.
This week we are further from the water and so far it is quiet.
I lived at a campground up north, owners on site, was quiet, same and well kept.
In Vermont, at a state park, generator hours did not apply to our neighbor because he had disabilities. During a heat wave, we had to sleep with our windows open next to him running his generator for air conditioning.
This is why I love Ontario Provincial Parks. In most provincial parks, at least one section is designated as radio-free. They recently added generator-free too! As a plus, when searching for a campsite on their website, radio-free & generator-free are filter options. I wish more provincial and state parks did this.
We recently went to Awenda, Ontario Provincial Park. The Park Rangers there were ridiculously over the top about noise, they were giving out fines all evening. We had a Ranger sneak up on us to tell us to keep it down or be fined. We were a group of 4, ages 64 to 68 with no generator, no music and having normal conversation levels. This was Canada Day and we experienced a prison like experience there. To be fair we have stayed at about 12 Ontario parks in the last 2 seasons and had good times except for the prison like Ontario Awenda Provincial Park.
Would they allow solar generators? SInce a solar one doesn't make the noise gas powered ones do.
@@unclelala4216 Makes me think they need to have their hearing checked lol
The next step is human free
Interestingly enough, our worst experience over the last two years of snowbirding to the southwest was in a national park (Death Valley - Furnace Creek). And yes, the tent campers were worse noise-wise than the RV's but there were still plenty of the latter that were in peak 48-hour weekend party mode. We left early for a nearby boondocking location and the quality of the experience was much, much better. I used to think open frame generators were the most annoying thing one could experience in a campground. That has been replaced by UTVs (which, of course, are simply open frame generators on wheels meaning the annoyance can be spready more widely).
Surpriseing the campgrounds I visited was pretty quiet. When I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, all you hear is nature. I feel like I am making a lot of noise just to go to the bathroom. 😅
I have actually encountered large,loud, and drunk tenters on 2 occasions boondocking in the national forest of AZ. AZ state parks are louder on weekends but not out of control and usually quiet down at 10pm.
Great videos, Thanks for the tips!
Yes, gotta watch out for those tent campers 😂
Don't drop anchor near tents.
Loud & Nosey!
Just wanna see. my badge LOL. Love the Vlogs
Thanks Jerry! Hope you’re having a great day 🙏👍
10 pm
Its good to see the two of you after a long long time family. Nothing but love from Nairobi Kenya 🇰🇪.
Excellent Video and Excellent Information. Thank You.
Thanks for the ideas , 9:00 quiet hrs for me . 💕😊