Dispersed camping guide
Short, sourced answers to the questions that come up when you camp on public land outside a campground. For the rules in a specific forest or field office, see its area page.
- What is dispersed camping?Dispersed camping is camping on national forest, grassland or BLM land outside a developed campground. Where it is allowed, what it costs and the rules that usually apply.
- Boondocking vs. dispersed camping: what is the difference?Boondocking means camping in a vehicle without hookups. Dispersed camping means camping on public land outside a campground. The two often overlap, and on public land the same rules apply.
- What is BLM land, and can you camp on it?BLM land is public land run by the Bureau of Land Management, mostly desert, sagebrush and grassland in the West. How camping there works, including stay limits and long-term visitor areas, and how to tell where it is.
- National forest vs. BLM land: what is the difference for camping?National forests and BLM land both allow dispersed camping, but different agencies run them, with different maps, stay limits and rules. How they compare, and how to tell which one you are on.
- How long can you camp on public land? Stay limits and the 14-day ruleMost public land limits dispersed camping to about 14 days in one place, but the details differ by forest and field office. How stay limits work, with the published limits for researched areas.
- What is a Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM)?A Motor Vehicle Use Map shows which national forest roads and trails are open to which vehicles, and when. It is free, and it tells you where you may drive to camp.
- Fire restrictions and fire orders on public landHow fire orders work on national forest and BLM land, what Stage 1 and Stage 2 usually mean for campfires and stoves, and where to find the current order before you go.
- Do you need a permit for dispersed camping?You rarely need a permit to camp outside a campground on public land. You may need one for a campfire in California, an overnight trip into some wilderness areas, some parking areas or a long winter stay.
- What is a wilderness area, and can you camp in one?A designated wilderness is federal land Congress has set aside to stay roadless. You cannot drive or bike in, but you can camp in most wilderness if you walk or ride stock in.
- What is an inholding? Private land inside national forestsMany national forests have private and state land inside their boundaries. What that means for dispersed camping, and how to tell public land from private.