So you’re camping …
Do you walk around the long way or cut through a few campsites?
The sunset is beautiful tonight … do you walk to a public area to get your picture or do you walk through someone’s bluff campsite to get the shot?
If you’ve answered yes to either scenario, please tell me why you think it’s okay to do this as I just don’t understand why you would.
How I see it, is that I paid for my campsite. The space is mine. I don’t want you to walk through my campsite because it will make a shorter walk for you or you’ll get a better picture.
I always use this example – this is my hotel room … Would you really open the door and walk right in? Would you? If I had a great view from my “room” would you walk into my “room” so you could enjoy it too?
I am so annoyed that people think it’s okay to walk through or into someone else’s campsite. This has been happening a lot lately and it seems to be 30-something’s … Is it that generation? Were they not taught manners? Were they not taught to respect someone’s space?
And … When I tell these “trespassers” that they can not walk through my site, I am the bad guy, not them, they feel they’re doing nothing wrong, but because I’ve said “no” they name call …. yes I’ve been called names. One guy said “You must be that person no one wants to sit with at the campfire”! Really? So, you’re the one with bad camping etiquette and now you name call and say mean things. And being named Karen doesn’t help these days! ha ha
This weekend a guy and girl with 3 dogs walked through our campsite … granted they were trying to go through the space connecting our site with the next, but that is not okay either. The girl actually looked at my husband and said “sorry” …. My husband went around to the front of our RV and said “No” and told them they can’t walk through our campsite. The guy called him a “dick”. The group camping behind us walked right through, and I mean right through the middle of the campsite next to us a few times before those people told them to stop.
So, I just really wanted to blog about this and ask WHY??? Because I just don’t get it.
I googled this subject last night and guess what? There are other people with the same complaint!
– Camping Etiquette According to KOA – Our third-place vote-getter was the concept of politeness, specifically, not taking a shortcut by walking through other people’s campsites.
– About Rving – Campground Etiquette – This one is more geared for RV’ers and to a couple who live in their RV. Some rules are a bit much … but a good source for camping etiquette!
While I was looking at these Camping Etiquette articles … one I found said “I’m not as grumpy as I sound” …
I’m not either …
I thought the signs below were a bit colorful … ha ha … ready for your campsite!
Totally agree! What the Fly’n Batman’s Turd are they think’n! Hi Karen!
Ha Ha Ha !!! Hi Grego!!!! Miss you !!!!
I completely agree with you. My wife and I often wonder the same thing. I think many people are either rude or don’t think or both. It seems to happen more at crowded campgrounds, and we try and avoid those.
We camped at a KOA in Rapid City and we had a nice end spot with nice green area and bushes. We came back from swimming and some guy was letting his dog walk all over our grass line it was a pet relief area. To my shock there must have been a dog there earlier because we found dried poop from another dog who must have relieved himself while we were swimming. Didn’t even bother to pick it up. I was so disgusted I told the staff and they came and picked up the dog poop. We use to have a dog and I would have never let her poop sit on someone’s grass not even my own Some people have no clue no etiquette for camping what so ever! Ugh
I agree! Thanks for sharing your frustration! Maybe people will get a clue.
Karen
It amazing, I would love to ask them how about I come poop where you walk.
What’s the big issue? It’s a shorter distance to walk, they aren’t loitering. It’s literally making a puddle out to be an ocean issue. It’s the old people who are cold and distant. The young people and those with families make a site warm and welcoming. I prefer people who don’t hate people to be around me. Being in arizona I don’t have that luxury.
The issue is respect. If you want to make friends, go to a club. It’s not everyone’s job to accommodate your selfishness.
You are defending bad actions because you are guilty and trying to justify your bad behavior by complaining about people who dislike rudeness and trespassing. It’s not Arizona – people hate rude people everywhere. I’d suggest you stop camping because you’re ruining everyone else’s good time with your selfishness. Congrats on your “preferences”; it’s rude and selfish to impose them onto others.
I agree, just happened 5 minutes ago, I even said how about I come walk through your living room?? Maybe I should ask if I can take their picture. That way if anything comes up missing I’ll know who to contact,. Got some weird look , and an eye roll! (BONUS!!) IT DOES GET OLD,
Thanks for sharing! It is so frustrating!!
I stay at a campground that gets soo crowded on weekends and the park is a wide open structure/field basically that’s along a river so ppl sort of just look for any open space and set up. Ppl put their tables and chairs right against my slide and use it as shade. They have set up their bbq pits LITERALLY 1 foot away from our bedroom window and I had to ask for them to move it because they were smoking us out, it was intolerable (let alone laughing/yelling outside of it too)
Not only that but people literally walk in between our car and our front door instead of going around our car to get to where there headed. On my site there is a hill to go down to access the water so they always flock right through my site, right past me, with no cares, and even set up. This is literally on my camp site they do this crap. I feel it’s rude because they basically are just hanging out in my site all day and going back n forth through my area . I wouldnt do this to somebody lol, I feel that it’s intruding. Like there’s an entire beach to go on and other hills so why do they have to be so inconsiderate (if that’s what it is anyway). Whew.. Well thats my view lol.
I feel for you! People just don’t get it!!! And with more people camping these days it might get worse before it gets better.
Very much agree and you stated it well with the hotel analogy. At a recent site, not only were several different groups of people cutting through our site, but what they were cutting to get to was a restricted forest service restoration area that was clearly marked “do not enter”. They entered. Everyone of them. There was no host so no one to complain to.
One afternoon, we were trying to nap in our camper van on this site, and our dog woke us up growling because a man and woman were literally pressing their faces at the blackened windows of our van to peer in!!!! We yelled. They acted offended.
But the cutting has happened at many sites, many times by all ages of campers (some seniors just now did it). We’ve tried to nicely ask them not to, but maybe that changes the behavior of a couple of them, but some get passive aggressive and cut even more. I’d like to get some stink bombs to set off or something….
Thanks for sharing! I guess it’s not an age thing, but just a rudeness in people. They just don’t get it. The only time it doesn’t happen to us is if we are in the back and/or there is nothing to “cut” to. We’ve camped where there no camp hosts and that’s tough, because if there is an issue there is no one to help … Happy Camping
I would have called the cops if someone was looking in my window. I would never look in someone else’s windows like that. I’d be worried I’d get shot and they think I was an intruder. I have a small camera outside of my trailer so I have proof that someone was trespassing. Trespassing and peering into someone’s windows is completely illegal. I’m in my 30 somethings and I am actually the one having the problem with one specific neighbor who keeps walking through my campsite each time I step outside to do something. He has to come and look each time and it pisses me off more then anything. I really thought it was old people on SSI with nothing better to do but I guess I’m wrong. It must not be an age thing but just the world we live in today. My old neighbors allowed thier dog to run everywhere and he pooped in my yard. I almost wanted to steal that little dog and find him a new home because they weren’t talking care of thier dog. The street was right there. He could have gotten hit. I could have even called animal control and they could have been fined for the violations. I have some weird storys but I’m not even going to post them here. I would have gone directly to the landlords of the park and asked they realize the issue or asked for a refund. When people trespass I always stand right there and watch them like their not wanted their and ask can I help you with something? If someone came into my property and called me names to start a fight I would have said get off my property right now or I’m calling the cops your trespassing and disturbing the peace.
Well, I found this post while googling a printable sign to put up on our site so, I’d say I agree with you lol! Our favorite site we are going to on our upcoming trip has a mini, 5 step or so pass through that connects to a trail. The entrance is from the back of our campsite. Last time we were there, people kept cutting through the small pass through from the trail (and the trail literally dumps out about 20 feet past our little pass through entrance, so it’s not even saving them much walking?!) .
We had a lady with a dog cut through then stop under our kitchen window and let her dog poop. I was standing inside right at the window. I couldn’t believe it!
Then when we were sitting outside trying to relax, a couple tried cutting through (even though my husband had put up a rope to try and block people because they’d been coming through all day), and they yelled to us about having the rope up. Normally I wouldn’t say anything but I said its a private campsite we paid for and that’s clearly not a trail and the end of the trail is 20 steps more and I was called a certain name by the lady. This time I’m making a sign saying private campsite no cut through (because I can’t find one to print surprisingly!) Thanks for this post!
I feel your frustration!!! People just don’t get it. I hope your sign works.
Karen
We are currently camping and have noticed people doing this like there is a dedicated pathway through campsites. I was raised that you do not do this and taught this concept to my family. It is so prevalent I thought maybe that was my Dad’s rule & that I am effin nuts to think this is a real thing. Therefore, I took a moment to do an internet search on the topic & found your blog. Spot on.
Glad you found my blog! Maybe I should come up with a sign ….
Yesterday I was asked to not pass through someone’s campsite when I friendly said hi to him, I said OK but was shocked and frustrated because I didn’t know there is such a rule and he seems to be so angry and offended. His camp is next to a public table and I took a short cut walking in front of it. I am a foreigner traveling to a US national park and never heard of this etiquette before and have never camped in a camp site. I would prefer people just make a sign if they really care. I also hope people would politely tell others they want privacy instead of assuming everyone should already know. And another question is, there are some homeless people in the city, am I also considered rude to pass their campsite? I also don’t want to offend them.
I guess you now know that it irritates many people. Like I said in my post, I see my campsite as my “hotel room”. I paid for my “space” and “privacy” and would not want people walking through it to take a short cut. I don’t think a sign is needed, people just need to realize that cutting through campsites is not okay.
Homeless people .. that’s up to you. I don’t walk around homeless encampments. That could be a bit scary of the unknown of drug users being in those tents.