Who here stealth camps on the AT?

[WalkingUSA]

Who here chooses to 'stealth camp' when doing the AT? Have you been caught, or known someone who has been caught?

What were the consequences?

I ask because I start my first hike of the AT and I plan to stealth camp heavily, simply because I prefer solitude when I camp.

The AT will probably be the most heavily used trail I have been on so I am looking for all ways to avoid people, since I go to nature to get away from people! Just my nature to be solo.

[d.o.c]

never got caught but stealthed a few times usuay just used shelters but i cnt see anythng tht major come of it just dnt set up til dark and take down or leave real erly

[Luddite]

What do you mean by stealth camp? If you mean camping alone, its allowed.

[Sickmont]

What do you mean by stealth camp? If you mean camping alone, its allowed.

I think he meant "off the trail away from designated camping areas and shelters" and such.

[swjohnsey]

Who here chooses to 'stealth camp' when doing the AT? Have you been caught, or known someone who has been caught?

What were the consequences?

I ask because I start my first hike of the AT and I plan to stealth camp heavily, simply because I prefer solitude when I camp.

The AT will probably be the most heavily used trail I have been on so I am looking for all ways to avoid people, since I go to nature to get away from people! Just my nature to be solo.

Outside of a national park, who is to catch you? I don't think there is any requirement to camp in established campsites on most of the trail.

I plan to camp away from shelter, too, because I start early and travel late. I have stealth camped all over even on military bases (14th hole of the golf course Andrews AFB). If you camp at twilight and leave before the sun comes up you won't ever have any problems.

[sparky2000]

The "Leave No Trace" order might just be the only caution u'll have to take - if u use a fire to cook it might be hard to stealth.

[the goat]

i've stealthed a bunch on the AT. only got caught once (in SNP) because i slept in.

that was only ranger i had seen since maine; and while he "caught" me, he didn't seem to give a rat's ass that i was sleeping in the bushes.

[WalkingUSA]

When I use the term 'stealth camp' it means camping in places that do not allow camping anywhere unless in designated places.

[Luddite]

You should try to camp in designated areas but its not a rule, just a guideline. Of course, GSMNP is a different story.

[scope]

This only applies in areas where camping is restricted, and the only places I know of are GSMNP, and some areas of the Whites in NH. You can camp where you want around any other parts of the trail, but of course try to practice LNT as much as possible. Note that it is a lot easier to stealth camp with a hammock and still follow LNT principles than it is with a tent. Stealth, in general, only means avoiding others along the trail, not breaking rules.

[WalkingUSA]

I am used to camping on the more challenging trails with much less people, so I am trying to get a idea on how crowded it will be. I really want to hike this trail avoiding people at all cost as much as possible.

I have become used to solitude on the more advanced trails the world has to offer.

[mweinstone]

lets define the three types of stealth .

pitching in the woods after failed hitching attempt by loud road.
pitching in fobbidon lands
pitching in proper areas, but way off trail secluded and pure.

mostly your asking about sneeking a night on a ballfeild or behind private structures abandoned. in watershed areas or resiviors and on lookouts and peaks.sleeping in a firetower or on farmland. deep in woods your not supposed to but just do. i think this is what you mean.

there can be consequences.sleep in a cornfeild , you might wake in a jail.

[Lillianp]

WalkingUSA, by your definition, yes I have. We found a spot early-ish in the evening, so we didn't set up the tent until dark. Before that a group of day hikers walked by, not even acknowledging us. (This was a couple hundred feet down a side trail). Other than that, the only thing that caught us was the moose at five am! We mostly kept to the rules, but there are several places in the whites where it's clear that people have stealthed before. ...Which means they weren't all that successful at LNT!

[Luddite]

When I use the term 'stealth camp' it means camping in places that do not allow camping anywhere unless in designated places.

I tried camping without a permit outside Boulder, CO in a national forest (or maybe it was within the RMNP border) once and was woke up by rangers writing me a ticket. Rangers are pretty good at catching people camping where they aren't suppose to. Of course, my orange MSR tent didn't help. I think they have infrared or something to catch the hippies stealth camping.

[swjohnsey]

Arrive late, leave early, leave no trace, don't cook where you sleep. No one will ever know or care.

[John B]

I am used to camping on the more challenging trails with much less people, so I am trying to get a idea on how crowded it will be. I really want to hike this trail avoiding people at all cost as much as possible.

I have become used to solitude on the more advanced trails the world has to offer.

Most of us here are not capable of hiking on "the more advanced trails the world has to offer." We're just a gaggle of mostly section hikers interspersed with some thruhikers. We're beneath your level. But with all the trails you've hiked, I"m surprised that someone hasn't told you about hiking the AT.

With the exception of the GSMP and a few other areas under commie control, you can camp wherever you want. I've never been 'caught' in the GSMP because I'm a sheeple and obeyed the regs, but I've heard that if a ranger catches someone stealthing, the most likely consequence is being politely told to move to an appropriate area; either that or they shoot to kill, depending on their mood.

[Namaste]

I am used to camping on the more challenging trails with much less people, so I am trying to get a idea on how crowded it will be. I really want to hike this trail avoiding people at all cost as much as possible.

I have become used to solitude on the more advanced trails the world has to offer.

What exactly is a "more advanced trail"? Please describe and give an example:cool:

Anyway, I have stealth camped plenty and never got "caught" just noticed by a Fish and Game guy down in VA who could care less. I practice LNT and I, too, am always looking for solitude.

[Uncas10]

Along most of the AT, you can just stop and camp anywhere you want. Except for the National Parks, this is almost always allowed. If you are not near a shelter or designated campground, you will be all alone. Every time. If you go 100 yards off the trail when you do it, you won't even be bothered by passing hikers.

Every once in a while, however, you will run into a short section where camping is not allowed (you'll pass a sign that says "No Camping Next 13 Miles. Stay on the Trail" or something like that). This is usually for environmental or property ownership considerations. I suspect you might get in some trouble if you get caught doing this.

[RGB]

I stealth along the Blue Ridge Parkway all the time. No way, no how that I'm paying $12 a night to camp in a *****ty campground that's covered in trash and inhabited by loud, overweight families that think they are on a wilderness adventure. They don't employ enough people in my area to ever catch you.

[sly dog]

I've stealth camped many times in places you are not allowed and I'm sure I've been seen (sleep in a lot) but no one ever said anything to me. I camped on Weverton Cliffs, in SNP, etc and always LNT. If I stealth I dont have a campfire and the only items visible are my tent and bear bag, pack is in tent with me and nothing laying on ground outside tent. When my brother thru hiked they did get busted once in Mass but I think it was just inside a state park boundry by a gated road, they were told to pack up and move.

[v5planet]

The freedom of choosing where to throw down your tent or hammock is part of the fun of hiking the AT. I almost never slept in shelters, and would generally prefer (especially towards the end) not even to pitch tent near them. Often enough you find areas that have become established unofficially through frequent use -- it is not hard to see where tents have been laid down and feet have trampled the earth.

But sometimes you will find yourself watching the sunset and sweating a bit about where you're going to sleep, and in these times wandering off the trail a few tens of yards into the woods to find an acceptable spot happens.

There are really only a few places on the entire AT that you are not allowed to camp outside designated areas. The first and most draconian is in the Smokies. Just follow the rules there. The second was in MD, where they want you to camp at designated sites, but as long as you don't plop down along the river outside of Harper's Ferry, no one will really care. NY was the same way - 'designated sites only', but that's not really how it ends up working. You're not allowed to camp in the alpine zone in the Whites (or in Maine), and this is because the alpine vegetation is so fragile and the environment can be dangerous for ill prepared (or even well prepared) individuals. Within the Whites pretty much anywhere else is okay as long as you're not within a quarter mile of a shelter. And finally, nowhere in Baxter State Park (although I saw plenty of great places off the trail you could probably get away with it... not encouraging it, but I considered the possibility). Maybe there are a few other places people can remind me of.

Anywhere else, that is to say the remaining overwhelming bulk of the trail, is fair game. Even in Shenandoah National Park you're allowed to stealth, as long as it's not within sight of roads or whatever (that is their official policy as I recall, and I had to do stealth there on a couple occasions). They couple it to a charge that you try to practice rigorous LNT. Indeed, in SNP it is quite rare to see established flattened earth where people have camped aside from near shelters, but that doesn't mean you can't wander into the tick ridden undergrowth off the trail and find a flat-enough spot to set up.

Basically, camp where you want to, but be responsible and safe about it, except in the alpine and in GSMNP where you really shouldn't screw around.

[garlic08]

The AT can be whatever you want it to be. You can be social, or not. You can hitch to many towns, or skip them and have more of a wilderness experience. For much of the trail, it's easy enough to stay out for a week or more at a time, never see more than a few cars at road crossings, pass a few hikers each day, sleep and eat all by yourself if you want to. There are certainly some notable exceptions where civilization encroaches very closely, though.

I was also a little concerned about how "crowded" the AT was going to be after hiking a few long trails in the US West. I ended up appreciating the AT for being so different from other trails I've hiked. I enjoyed the Eastern towns and people as well as the challenging hiking. In short, it was really fun.

[Digger'02]

this has to be a troll, no way you hike the PCT twice and don't count your luck stars that you don't have to worry about 40 days of rain. Further, most advanced hikers know that the AT has more elevation gain/loss and is not graded for pack stock. Troll I says.

plus this thread is about the 3rd most contentious topic on here (camping in GSMNP) followed right behind #2 guns on the Trail and #1 whatever that Wisconsin hiker dude posted last month.

[LoneRidgeRunner]

this has to be a troll, no way you hike the PCT twice and don't count your luck stars that you don't have to worry about 40 days of rain. Further, most advanced hikers know that the AT has more elevation gain/loss and is not graded for pack stock. Troll I says.

plus this thread is about the 3rd most contentious topic on here (camping in GSMNP) followed right behind #2 guns on the Trail and #1 whatever that Wisconsin hiker dude posted last month.

I agree....and the OP seems to think he's so much more "advanced" than the other WB users, so why would he need or want advice from us "lesser" hikers?
And what constitutes a "more advanced or challenging trail?"

[perrito]

this has to be a troll,....
My initial thought as well.
http://www.pmdawnonline.com/forum/images/smilies/dontfeedtrolls.gif

[ShoelessWanderer]

Yeah, I've done it many times. A lot of it depends on location. If you're on the trail away from towns & the public, you'll be fine. Government is cutting budgets so much Rangers barely have time to get the work done they have to, much less to go out in search of hikers illegally camped. Just use come sense and respect for the people & environment, and you'll be fine.

[sherrill]

If your true personality reflects your online attitude you'll get your wish.

[Alligator]

this has to be a troll, no way you hike the PCT twice and don't count your luck stars that you don't have to worry about 40 days of rain. Further, most advanced hikers know that the AT has more elevation gain/loss and is not graded for pack stock. Troll I says.

plus this thread is about the 3rd most contentious topic on here (camping in GSMNP) followed right behind #2 guns on the Trail and #1 whatever that Wisconsin hiker dude posted last month.
Bingo .