Campground Review: Platte River Campground in Pike National Forest

I’ve had this idea in my head for a while about camping on the river. I was envisioning a very zen experience with riverfront camping – waking up and opening up the tent to be right on the water. The fact that I learned it’s actually a horrible idea to pitch a tent that close to water (flooding, etc.) is irrelevant, but in my quest to camp on the water, my boyfriend and I decided to try out a weekend at the Platte River campground in the Pike National Forest.

Campground Review - Big Meadows at Shenandoah National Park

Big Meadows is as close to an ideal first campground as you can get. With real bathrooms and a host of other amenities, it's a great introduction to camping without sacrificing scenery. Here's what you need to know before you go.

Directions
At just over two hours from DC, Big Meadows (and Shenandoah in general) is convenient to the entire metro area. You do have to take 66, meaning you will want to gouge out your eyeballs if you leave anywhere close to rush hour. This shouldn't be an issue if you're camping on the weekend, or if you can manage to leave by lunch on Friday. 

Beginner's Guide To Choosing Your First Campsite

Camping is supposed to be a simple way to connect with nature, but if you've never done it before, choosing a campsite can seem much more complicated. Fortunately, you can book a campsite online in most parks at www.Recreation.gov. Even if you can't book your campsite online, playing around on the website will help you learn more about potential campgrounds.

Campground Review - Green Ridge Campground at Shadow Mountain Reservoir

Campground descriptions usually read like a foreign language to the beginner camper, so without further ado here is my first campground breakdown for my fellow newbies. More to come...including campgrounds outside Colorado! Yes, I did go camping a few times before moving here. And by that I mean three times. One was really more of an RV park. Anyways...here's what you need to know before you go to Green Ridge Campground!

There is a 100% chance that red spot is at the tunnel before Idaho Springs.

How To Pack For Your First Camping Trip

So you’ve gone hiking, and you didn’t hate it. In fact, you kinda sorta fell in love with the great outdoors (it’s easy, don’t be afraid to fall hard). Now, you want to go camping. Pinterest will lead you to believe that you must either buy a ton of stuff or haul a ton of stuff with you. Not so.