California Camping?

I think the key is to seek out the more forsaken (usually trashed, unfortunately) desert areas. Been to New Jack City?

Hiking the CDT over Cajon Pass, there was plenty of stealth camping near roads, but I never tried to reach them in a vehicle. Might be worth some driving around in that area, though.

There is BLM land just outside the park near the Joshua Tree (the town) entrance of the National Park. The rangers used to have directions to there which they would give out if all the campgrounds were full – you could ask if they still have them. Best to check it out in daylight, though. I once tried to find it at night and ended up stuck in sand the next morning (with my old VW Jetta) – a friendly off-roader pulled it out with his truck.

Hey Jeff, I was getting ready to tell you all about my favorite spot on the ridge above Hwy 1, just south of Big Sur, when I remembered that the area burned last year. So I checked, and Prewitt Ridge (my favorite spot) and a lot of the surrounding area is indeed under closure. That being said, I’ll just generally point out that there are a multitude of primitive campsites in the backcountry of Los Padres National Forest where you can crash for free, and presumably the closure will be lifted in the next year or so. Typically, you need high clearance to get to those campsites, there’s no water, and there are fire restrictions. Also from July onward the flies and mosquitos can be a force to contend with, but those are the facts of life in the central coast, and you learn to live with them. By the way, another reason to love the Los Padres backcountry: dogs allowed!

In California, you have an abundance of choices on campgrounds—national forests, state and national parks, lakesides, beaches, mountains, and so on. The top 10 best campgrounds in this part of the country are the following: Big Basin Redwoods State Park, North of Boulder Creek; Camp Edison, Shaver Lake, Northeast of Fresno; Cold Springs Campground, Sequoia National Park, East of Three Rivers; D.L. Bliss State Park, Lake Tahoe; Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Northeast of Crescent City; Kirk Creek Campground, Los Padres National Forest, Big Sur; and the Leo Carrillo State Park, Malibu.