Free Camping in British Columbia

September 9th, 2010

If you're on a budget, or just prefer not to pay a lot of money for what is generally just a basic parking space, then free camping is the way to go! Especially since camping on Crown Land in Canada is always free! For more details on camping on Crown land and any provincial restrictions go to: http://tracksandtrails.ca/2009/04/camp-for-free-in-bc

Many free campsites are boon docking sites, but many are actually rustic sites - some with water and electric. Some are well maintained by those who use them, but some may have trash or debris from thoughtless campers who were there before you. If you don't mind the unexpected in order to save some money and have a great site, consider exploring the world of Free Camping.

There are more than 1,200 BC Ministry of Forests recreation sites located around British Columbia with services ranging from user maintained, managed without user fees and managed with user fees. Obviously you get what you pay for, but you might be surprised at the value of the user maintained sites if you're willing to do a little dry camping.

The Ministry of Forests offers more than just camping. For families on a budget, or looking for a true back to the woods experience, the Ministry of Forests offers an extensive network of trails that highlights BC's natural beauty.

If you haven't heard about these trails and opportunities it's time you did! Check out their website here: http://www.sitesandtrailsbc.ca

What to Expect

You do get what you pay for, but sometimes you may be pleasantly surprised. However, if you plan on camping free, plan on doing some dry camping and bring your own water, food and toiletry provisions. Popular and heavily used areas will not be as pristine as the more remote and less used areas. Sites with a minimal fee will be nicer, generally, than those that have no fee, and so on.

There are typically no formal showers, toilets or safe drinking water at the no fee sites. If there are outhouses, they will tend to be very rustic, usually made from plywood and generally in various stages of upkeep. You will have to pack out whatever trash you pack in, especially since there is often a "no fire" ban in many of the regions depending on the fire hazard and time of year.

Water sources may include streams, creeks, springs or rivers. This is untreated water and you share it with cattle and wild animals. There's no way of telling what animals, carcasses or problems there may be upstream of where you are collecting water, so be sure to boil and treat all water you drink from natural water sources. Better yet, bring your own treated water with you.

Fuel, such as wood for camping fires and cooking may require a woodcutting permit. And, depending on the time of year and conditions, open fires may not be allowed at all. Bring an alternative fuel source.

Types of Recreation Sites

All recreation sites are on a first-come first-served basis and the length of stay is a maximum of 14 days. There is no reservation and there are no camping passes. Whoever gets there first has their pick of sites. So don't expect to get there on a Saturday afternoon in the height of the season and find a prime camping spot.

In spite of the sparse resources at many sites, campers love these sites. You'll often find yourself sharing even the most remote sites with one to forty other campers.

Your site may be the trailhead to a dozen of the thousands of kilometers of hiking trails, or you may find you are waterside at a small lake or river.

• Managed With Fees - You may recognize these sites as the typical "Pay" campgrounds. Managed With Fees sites are typically managed through partnership agreements with a recreation groups, community organizations, First Nations, private citizens, or through local governments and forest companies. The user pays a fee to help cover the cost of maintaining the campground and for the services the partner provides to the user. Such services include cleaning, security, supervision, facility and resource maintenance and trash pick up and removal. Fees vary somewhat from site to site depending on the facilities and size of each campground.
  

  For current fees for Managed With Fees sites, visit the following website: http://www.tca.gov.bc.ca/sites_trails/rec_site_trail_guide/reservations_fees_discounts.htm.

• Managed Without Fees - These sites, like the Managed With Fees sites are also managed through partnership agreements. No fees are charged for the services provided because either the provider uses volunteers to provide the services, or there are no services available.


• User Maintained - Camping is free at user maintained sites, but only because users provide the upkeep at the site. The Ministry of Forests will pump toilets, remove hazard trees and replace signs and other structures where necessary and do what is basically needed to ensure camper's safety. But there are no frills, bells and whistles or extra services at these sites. They are a step up from Managed Without Fees, but depend heavily on the work of those who use the site, so their condition may vary from site to site.