My most-requested video: How I find campsites & trails

[@ChrisZBr0wn]

Absolutely awesome discussion about finding good spots! Well done Donald 👍

[@sagebrushbob2321]

Gaia GPS is very good about listening to its customers. Their new 'overlanding' map layer is set up for the needs of people like us, showing nearly every jeep and cow trail out there navigable by a nearly stock 4x4 vehicle. It makes route planning almost fun instead of a chore.

[@softroadingthewest]

Yep, I pretty much use that and only that these days. I do sometimes throw on the public lands overlay; even though it's incorporated into the overland map, sometimes I find it a little difficult to distinguish and wish they had made that a little more vivid. But yeah totally agree, it's fantastic.

[@stphns1737]

I didn't know they had added that! Thanks for info!

[@tjkrueger2655]

Been waiting for this vid. I have a similar process and philosophy about it, to find remote campsites/vantage points for night sky photography, using Gaia, Google maps and PhotoPills, which shows based on a location you drop on the map where the sun, moon, stars, milky way, etc will be in the sky and obstacles that might impede it. Lots of trial and error as you say, and exploring and often being thwarted by one thing or another, but when something works out and you find 'the spot', it's so rewarding. It's getting crowded out there, so I hold those locations close to the vest like you do.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

Excellent video! Some of the best campsites and locations are places I’ve found myself. I too enjoy the process of researching new places to visit, that’s the part that builds the excitement!

[@jimfisher2711]

Great info for someone like myself that's just getting started in overland camping. Thank you!

[@04JALD]

You do really well with info videos. You have a good voice and presentation that kept my attention all the way. Great info by the way. Thank you Donald

[@KnittedSchnauzer]

Very helpful. I appreciate your information on which iPads have GPS. I gather then, that you are able to use the iPad in areas where there is no cell service. I found a super deal on a Garmin Overlander GPS. It works wonderfully in showing the roads, trails and especially, what category land you are in, i.e. public vs private.

[@softroadingthewest]

I can use it anywhere, because I pre-download the map data at home, when the iPad is connected to my home wifi. The only reason for a cellular-capable iPad is for the built-in GPS receiver, that way the iPad can show you where you are on those maps. The downfall is if I end up going someplace unexpected and I haven't downloaded map data for that area, it does me no good. I try to overshoot what I need to download, but for example on the Colorado trip where I ended up going completely off into left field so to speak, I was out of luck. I had to use Gaia on my phone to navigate, downloading map data at times when I had cell signal.

[@OverlandAdventureTimes]

I love the planning process! I can see why a lot of people use Gaia, but I started using Caltopo with planning hiking routes, and it's transitioned well into overlanding, for me. And you're right, some of the best spots have been down an unplanned, unmarked side road!

[@ChrisZBr0wn]

I LOVE CalTopo and it doesn’t get enough hype. Best mapping software I’ve used for this. Beats them all with having the ease of saving maps to an account that can float to each device. Not to mention all the layers, markers, and sharing you can do with it

[@johndej]

Excellent information! Thanks for sharing.

[@scottalpine]

That’s some great info thanks. I had Gaia for a couple of years and seldom used it so I just went back to google earth for my trip plans. The BDR routes have some great places to camp but they can be very popular in the summer especially on the weekends when folks are out running the roads. And one more tool to use is watching KZbin videos where folks fly their drones around and give a nice look at the scenery and campsite views. I’ve found a few good spots that way.

[@gringo3009]

Good stuff Donald!

[@jayfoster5756]

Great summary Donald! I have been planning my adventures like this for years. I too enjoy spending hours of research for unique trips.

[@ryanb2182]

Gaia is one of the better (or best) off road apps in my opinion. The functions to me are way better than the others apps you see pushed by others.

[@softroadingthewest]

Good to know. It's worked well enough for what I do that I haven't felt compelled to try anything else.

[@midnightadventureswa]

Good morning Donald, great video I have found my old street navigator that I bought from Costco that had lifetime maps I’ve been finding out that they have been updating more and more forest roads on it so there’s still a good tool for navigation and tracking your route😊

[@richardevans6655]

Great Vid and info Especially the chuckle worthy bits

[@thomasquigley7040]

This was a great overview. Thanks Donald.

[@BirdPhish]

I'm up here at 9000" in Utah with an epic view of Cathedral Valley below...and gleefully paying the price lol...windy and freezing. Found the spot in much the same way you find your spots Donald...thanks for sharing!

[@softroadingthewest]

Enjoy!

[@ant4x499]

Thank you for sharing this very useful information Donald

[@madcratebuilder]

Very informative, even this old dog learned a new trick.

[@HEKNBAK]

Great advice! Thanks for sharing your experience.

[@warrenscorner]

I finally downloaded the Gaia app. I don’t think there’s any dispersed camping here in Western New York but there are some places in Western Pennsylvania. If I wanted to stay in New York I would probably have to go to the Adirondacks. Great video! Thanks Donald.

[@softroadingthewest]

Yeah, this clearly gets way more difficult in the eastern half of the country. I've camped at least four times this year in developed fee campgrounds because that was the best or only option in the area. Nothing wrong with that at all and campgrounds are often constructed at really interesting locations. Until about 5 years ago, my entire life I didn't even know dispersed camping was a thing and ALL my camping had been in campgrounds. 🙂

[@michaelelliott1519]

I use the Gia app and my old Garmin as well. When I was recently over in New Mexico and my planned route ran through private property. I had to reroute 40 miles out of my way and once I got beyond the downloaded portion of the map, Gia proved pretty useless without connection. Luckily Garmin got me around and back on track.

[@softroadingthewest]

Yes, great point. I failed to mention the other ways the old Garmin comes in handy. Super useful when I emerge onto a highway in an unknown area, have no cell signal for my phone's nav, but need to navigate to a town or other known location. Also simply the fact that it always displays what the next crossroad is, very nice when you're doing 60 on a busy highway and are looking for a specific road where you need to turn off.

[@acoupleofscrewsloose]

This is exactly how we do it too. We’ve found some amazing camp spots. Gaia GPS is fantastic and we have a system for marking not only favorite spots but also marking dead ends, etc. and also it’s great being able to make notes about those places which helps us remember what we think about those places. Our iPads are wifi only but they do have gps (edit: this is not true, see my comment below) and work fine using the downloaded Gaia maps (downloaded at home). We totally agree that Google maps satellite layer being much faster than Gaia’s satellite layer. We use both apps to do researching. We also are not interested in doing the BDR. Who knows, we might bump into you out there one of these days (or in Eugene, we live south of Crow and are in town every week).

[@softroadingthewest]

Oh interesting. I guess perhaps with the older used iPads I was looking at some years ago, the cellular vs wifi thing was a factor. It doesn't surprise me that all of Apple's devices now have GPS. Honk and wave if you see me around town!

[@acoupleofscrewsloose]

@@softroadingthewest We've had our iPads for years now and thought after seeing your response I better check and see what exactly did we get. Turns out we did purchase iPads with wifi+cellular but we never signed up for the cellular part because we didn't need it. I remember now doing the research that we could still use the gps with it and that's why we got that iPad version. I'm so used to using it as a wifi only device that I completely forgot that our iPad has the cellular option feature. I'll see if I can edit my comment above. Yeah, if we see you, we'll honk, wave, or go say hi.

[@almantinaa]

I usually used the combination of Google maps and exploring on the go but want to give Gaia a try too because sometimes google isn't telling me if there's a road where I suspect it to be.

[@offgridrecon]

Great info Donald! 👍🏻❤️🇺🇸

[@thatoneguyazadventures]

Awesome and informative video and it just confirmed what I already knew - we do things very similar. 😉

[@stphns1737]

Super helpful video. Thank you!

[@masonstruckadventure9368]

One thing that was not mentioned is safety. Let people know where your where abouts, make sure your rig is solid for your adventure and when you do find a camp site explore it by foot because predators are every where animals and especially people. Get out have fun. Thanks for sharing

[@softroadingthewest]

I mean, this wasn't a "Guide To Backcountry Adventures" video, it was really just to answer the specific question I get asked the most: how I find campsites. It would take a much more comprehensive video to cover all the facets of exploring & dispersed camping. There are definitely a lot of other pieces to the puzzle. 🙂

[@nismo370z4]

Good advice !👍

[@fifteenbyten]

Very informative Donald. Thank you. I'm wondering if you have ever tried the offline feature of Google maps to navigate remote areas, and if so, how does it compare to Gaia.

[@softroadingthewest]

I've never tried it, no. I'm sure it would work for navigating, but I would miss have the public lands overlay I use in Gaia, which has frequently been critical in making sure I'm camping where I'm allowed, especially in areas where public and public land is checkerboarded with roads winding randomly in and out of the squares.

[@fifteenbyten]

@@softroadingthewest Good point about the benefit of the public lands overlay. I can definitely appreciate that.

[@thatoneguyazadventures]

I know this is old, but something else to keep in mind with Google Maps is that the offline maps does not download a satellite view, it's only the street view which isn't very useful in the backcountry. The satellite view may work for a short time as its cached data in the Google Maps app, but eventually it will no longer work and it makes it pretty useless when you don't have a strong LTE signal.

[@futureoflink]

Have you thought of leading any groups starting in Eugene?

[@softroadingthewest]

Honestly I'm not super fond of group trips and also not super fond of leading people. 😄 Usually if I am spending time & gas to be out somewhere, I need to be producing content, but I struggle to film effectively when I'm with other people. Still something I may consider in the future though.

[@pala4833]

Tippy Taco is fully self sufficient

[@softroadingthewest]

LOLOL Yes indeed

[@peterolsen3797]

remember to fly a drone in a National Park is FORBIDEN with a without a Permit issued by the Parks Ranger or the Federal government. Now to get a permit is a yearlong process, and odds of you ever getting one is more than, 1,000,000 to one. The Ranger can take away your drone and possibly arrest you. You need to have a FAA registered Drone, a drone pilot license, and, that damn permit. Always ask a ranger first.

[@softroadingthewest]

Not to worry, I don't set foot in national parks. I can't make ANY monetized KZbin videos period in a national park without a permit, even with no drone. Too many people in national parks for my taste anyway. Plenty to see in national forests and BLM land.

[@drewolm]

This is a cool video. I’m sure a lot of people are going to find this useful. That said, how hard is it to just get in your vehicle and drive to some public land? There’s no way people are that limited. Even so, 2023 and people can’t google “how to go camping”? Watch a couple KZbin vids? If you’re the type of person that won’t move unless someone gives directions every step of the way, maybe the great outdoors is simply going to the nearest park.

[@softroadingthewest]

Well, to be fair, I went my entire life (up to about 5 years ago) not even knowing dispersed camping was a thing. I thought if you were out camping, you HAD to be in a campground. 😄 I knew nothing about public lands either. There are certainly other people who - like me - are just learning about public lands and dispersed camping late in life, and perhaps this video will be something they stumble upon when they start Googling. 🙂

[@norsefalconer]

"How hard is it to just get in your vehicle and drive to some public land?" Depends on where the person lives. It's definitley no where near as easy on the East Coast as it is west of the Mississippi. On the East Coast, almost everything is privately owned. Public lands are a patchwork, and without research, you're likely to trespass, and that can be a VERY bad experience.

[@Sea1fly]

Yeah that’s because your not full timing or travelling for long periods of time so yeah when u can sit at home great

[@jonnybkuehl878]

Great video!! Thank you sir!! @kuehlkuest