The joys of RV camping: finding the right spot to park your motorhome, travel trailer, or pop-up camper calls for a little homework

Travel America, March-April, 2003 by Nancy Baren Miller

The fragrance of pine trees permeates your national park campground site. After savoring the trout you caught this afternoon, your family toasts marshmallows over the glowing fire pit. In the background, someone gently strums a guitar. Tomorrow you'll go on a ranger-led hike and watch a slide show at the amphitheater. You' re at peace with nature, and it doesn't matter that your site lacks hookups.

ANOTHER SCENARIO: YOU'RE spending a busy week visiting an area's tourist attractions. However. you've decided to stay at the campground today. Your youngsters are delighted to try out the swimming pool. grab a hamburger at the snack ban and play a round of miniature golf. You've checked out the campground grocery store for those hot dogs you forgot. Tonight a band will perform. Next weekend, if you decide to stay, they're having Christmas in July, when everyone decorates their RVs.

Maybe it's winter, you're retired and want to defrost. The desert warmth sounds good. You check in for the season at one of Arizona's huge resort campgrounds catering to the 55+ market. You'll enjoy state-of-the-art exercise centers, whirlpool spas, indoor and outdoor heated pools, lighted tennis courts, the putting green. But they offer lots more--craft shops for woodworking, silversmithing, and ceramics, on-site restaurants, card and billiards rooms, computer centers, grand ballrooms for dances and dinner theater, and hundreds of organized special events. A few days on site. and you realize the hype you heard is true. You'll never get bored.

America's more than 15,000 campgrounds come in many sizes and personalities. A park exists to fit every budget and wish list of activities. Keys to finding your favorite campground are recognizing where you want to go, deciding the style of camping you prefer, and knowing how to do a little research.

PUBLIC CAMPGROUNDS

National park campgrounds are ideal for those seeking spectacular scenery and plentiful activities. Campers find these campgrounds at most national parks with the exception of metropolitan areas and historical sites. Some, such as Yosemite and Yellowstone, contain several busy campgrounds.

Most provide picnic tables, grills, flush toilets, individual parking spaces, and waste dump stations, Some have electric or water hookups, hot water, and showers. What you'll also find at most national park campgrounds are evening and daily activity programs, particularly during weekends or summer months. In wilderness and forest areas run by the national government, campers find very limited services--picnic tables at individual sites, pit toilets, running water nearby.

Most federal campgrounds are on a first-come, first-serve basis: some take reservations. For a listing of parks taking reservations, visit http://reservations.nps.gov/parklist.cfm. To make reservations in national park campgrounds, call (800) 436-7275. Call (877) 444-677 for information and reservations for U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers campgrounds.

State campgrounds vary from primitive (with picnic tables and pit toilets) to deluxe with full hookups, scheduled activities during summer months, nature centers, pools, boat rentals, and guarded beaches.

A few cities maintain municipal campgrounds open to everyone. Most of the northern parks close for the winter.

PRIVATE CAMPGROUNDS

You'll find private campgrounds near major attractions, in cities and towns, along the interstates, and close to national parks and forests. These vary from basic facilities to resorts where you'll want to spend a week or a season. Some have their own golf courses or are attached to casinos. Those located on large lakes or the ocean often provide boating facilities and rentals.

Remember that northern private campgrounds may shut down from early to mid-October to mid-April. Southern campgrounds may reduce activities between May and October because of the heat.

Two chains worth noticing are KOA Kampgrounds and Yogi Bear Camp Jellystone. Both have online sites with complete directories. KOA and Yogi Bear printed directories are free at the campgrounds.

KOA's 500 campgrounds are mostly in the United States and Canada, with some in Mexico and Japan. They offer clean restrooms with hot showers, laundromats, playgrounds, swimming pools, convenience stores for RV supplies and groceries, game rooms, and cabin rentals. Many have snack bars or restaurants, spas. recreation halls or fields, and planned activities. A few, such as the New Orleans West KOA and San Francisco North KOA in Pomona, California. provide tours of nearby attractions. The web site is www.koa.com.

Yogi Bear's Camp-Resorts (www.cam pjellystone.com) have more than 70 locations in 24 states and Canada. All Camp-Resorts are independently owned and operated, so facilities vary. Typical ones have swimming pools, playgrounds, snack bars or restaurants, and general stores. Other recreation ranges from boat rentals, miniature golf, and volleyball to game rooms and fishing. Some have gift shops selling Yogi Bear souvenirs. The Camp-Resort in Missoula. Montana. features Yogi Bear visits.