The Best in Tent Camping: Northern California: A Guide for Car Campers Who Hate Rvs, Concrete Slabs, and Loud Portable Stereos

by Cindy Martinusen Coloma

Book Overview

From Santa Cruz to Yosemite National Park, from the coastal bluffs to the Nevada border, Northern California is a spectacular location for tent camping. With such a staggering list of possibilities, a guide like The Best in Tent Camping: Northern California is a must-have. Offering at-a-glance information organized with a five-star rating system, the book lets outdoor enthusiasts quickly gauge the beauty, site privacy, and security of each listing...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0897326741
• ISBN13: 9780897326742
• Release Date: October 2008
• Publisher: Menasha Ridge Press
• Length: 204 Pages
• Weight: 2.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

made our camping vacation

We just got back from a car camping vacation transversing the Northern Sierras from North to South. We used this book exclusively and it was spot on. We stayed at Warner Valley in Lassen National park by hot springs of Drakesbad,Salmon Creek by the unbelievably dramatic Sardine lake in the Gold lakes region, Woods lake by Carson pass: a true Gem in the high country with wildflowers, and Wahakaluuhepyou on the Stanislaus river where it was hot and the swimming holes were refreshing. It was a perfect vacation with especially nice campgrounds in remarkably scenic areas. I liked the fact that only the authors favorites were included in this guide. I have another camping book which lists all the California campgrounds which is just too confusing. This book has a focus."Proof is in the pudding" applies to this invaluable guide to the "Best in tent camping": we used it and discovered places that exceeded our best dreams. Highly recommended!

A good way to find good out-of-the-way campsites

There are many, many campgrounds in California, and we spent several years selecting the targets of our camping trips based on friends' recommendations, or CA State or National Parks descriptions. Unfortunately, our criteria were not often what people were recommending a campsite for, and there are so many parks in CA that a comparative selection based on raw data is overwhelming. What we wanted was:1. beauty2. quiet and serenity3. less popular sites (to stay away from the crowds)4. car-camping or near car-camping (we have a toddler).Bill Mai's guide enabled up to make some quick selections based on his descriptions and ratings. His campsites are a highly rated selection already (his criteria are pretty close to ours), the information is fairly good, he gives good input on the best season to go, and his descriptions are very accurate. We ended up going to several campsites he recommended last year and never were disappointed. This year we have plans for several others based on his input. It is simply an easy way to choose good places to go without having to worry that the site will be less than what our expectations are for it.

Carefully researched & well-organized guide for car campers.

This is the perfect guide for campers who are trying to escape California's crowded, car-choked campgrounds. Arranged by region (the Coast, Sierras, & Cascade Range),this guide rates and reviews 50 prime campgrounds. Two to three page profiles describe the campgrounds features and include information on nearby attractions and activities such as hiking, fishing, boating, swimming, picnicking, and bicycling. An easy-to-read sidebar lists contact information, facilities, open dates, parking, fees, and regulations. Written in a friendly, upbeat style, this is an enjoyable and informative read . However if you have the first edition, skip this one. The second edition updates the information but covers the same campgrounds.

An excellent book for car campers!

My family and I love this book. The narratives are interesting, insightful and up to now - accurate. Sometimes it's a bit repetitive in its advice - but that's okay too, as it continues to make the point about camping essentials. So far, the campsites have been exactly what we have been looking for - quiet, peaceful and perfect for car camping.

This book is very accurate and has become our camping bible.

We have used this book to take us to areas we have not previously discovered and are very grateful to have it as our guide as it has really made our summer exciting by discovering more of California's wilderness areas. The descriptions of the sites were accurate for the most part and we liked the humorous sidenotes the author included. I even saw a friend at one of the remote camps, turned out she had the book too!