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The Field Dictionary
32 plain-English terms for camping on public land — each with the scene it paints
Backcountry campingBackcountry camping means camping out in the wild -- miles from the nearest road or campground, BoondockingStrip off the romance and boondocking is just dry camping on public land nobody bothered to deveBoondocking powerEverything that keeps your lights, fridge and laptop running when there is nothing to plug into Car campingCar camping is exactly what it says: you drive right up to your site and unload from the tailgatDesignated Dispersed SiteA designated dispersed site is dispersed camping with a marker on it -- instead of picking any fDeveloped CampgroundA developed campground is the drive-right-up, numbered-and-maintained kind of camping -- a laid-Dispersed Camping CorridorA dispersed camping corridor is a ribbon of legal camping running alongside a forest road -- on Dispersed campingDispersed camping is the government's own name for camping out on public land where nobody built✦Dispersed vs DevelopedThese are the two ways to sleep on public land: a developed campground is a built site -- numberDry campingDry camping means there's nothing to plug into at your site — no electric, no water, no sewer — Dump stationA dump station is a legal, plumbed place to empty an RV's holding tanks -- usually a concrete paFood storage order (and bear boxes)A food storage order is a signed order from a forest supervisor -- or the equivalent regulation FrontcountryThe frontcountry is the developed, drive-right-up part of a park or forest -- the campgrounds, tGray water and black waterGray water is what drains out of your sinks and shower; black water is what leaves the toilet. T✦High-clearance vs 4WDTwo different specs that people treat as one: high clearance is the gap under your rig -- how taInholdingAn inholding is private land sitting inside the boundary of a national forest, park or other pub✦Leave No TraceLeave No Trace is the seven-principle outdoor ethic -- plan ahead, travel and camp on durable su✦MVUM (Motor Vehicle Use Map)The MVUM is the free black-and-white Forest Service map that legally decides which roads and traMoochdockingMoochdocking is parking your rig on somebody's private property instead of paying for a site -- ✦Overland vs off-roadOff-roading is about the terrain -- the rock, the mud, the dune, the hill -- and clearing it IS OverlandingOverlanding is self-reliant vehicle travel where the driving is the point -- you carry your own Potable waterPotable water is water that's been tested and treated to a legal drinking-water standard -- the Primitive campingPrimitive camping is camping stripped to the studs — no electricity, no running water, no flush ✦Proclaimed boundaryThe proclaimed boundary is the outer line drawn around a national forest by proclamation and exeStage 1 and Stage 2 fire restrictionsStage 1 and Stage 2 are the two rungs of a ladder a land agency climbs as the woods dry out: StaStealth CampingStealth camping is sleeping in your vehicle somewhere that isn't a campsite -- a city street, a Vault toiletA vault toilet is an outhouse with a sealed tank instead of a hole -- a small building set over WashboardThe regular crossways ripples that form in the surface of a dirt or gravel road -- ridges and trWild campingWild camping is the British and European name for pitching a tent outside any designated campsitWilderness areaA wilderness area is a piece of federal land that Congress itself voted to leave undeveloped, anroad maintenance level (ML1-ML5)A road maintenance level is the Forest Service's 1-to-5 rating of how much road a given forest r✦stay limit (the 14-day rule)A stay limit is the maximum time you're allowed to occupy one spot on public land before you hav