RV FEATURE
The pandemic and the war in Ukraine have meant that prices for almost everything are on the increase , including the cost of staying at a caravan park . We were recently quoted nearly $ 100 per night over the upcoming Christmas break . It ’ s little wonder that free-camping is becoming more popular than ever . Not only is it low cost ( or free ), the idea of pulling up to a location and making camp for the night , or even the month , is quite appealing .
But more and more travellers are favouring free camps and that means you ’ re likely to run into issues with fellow travellers who may not be up to date with the ‘ rules ’ of free-camping .
I say ‘ rules ’ because many of these locations have little or no rules and , even if there are published rules , there may not be anyone in a position to enforce them . It is usually left to the individuals to do the right thing .
Here we have what you might call a set of guidelines that could be applied to any free-camping situation . Most of them are common sense but , as we know , that ’ s not all that common anymore .
GENERATORS
A great part of the appeal of free-camping is to get away from the crowds and experience the peace and serenity of the bush . There ’ s nothing that pollutes the peace quite like the throbbing buzz of a generator .
That said , the use of generators is not illegal and , for many campers who may have health conditions to manage , their use is a necessity . While solar and battery systems in RVs have come a long way , get a couple of overcast or rainy days in a row and you ’ ll be reaching for the generator .
If you have to use a generator , limit its use to between 9am and 8pm . If you have to use it outside of those times , have a discussion with your neighbours about your need to use it so they are aware of your situation .
You can also limit the impact of the noise of a generator by where you place it . Keep it as far away from the campground as possible and point the exhaust away from other campers .
If you pull up to a shared rest area , make sure you leave sufficient space for big rigs .
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