Have the weekend off? Looking for an adventure? Heading out to the nearest national or state park to see nature is the obvious choice, but there is a huge difference between taking a vacation versus going on a quick trip. As much as I love a good splurge every once in a while, my goal is to make seeing the world accessible and cheap. In short: I'm broke, and don't need to be broker. The good news is - car camping is as cheap as it gets! In this post I'll break down all the costs to consider before heading out on your adventure.
The first thing to consider is location. If I'm going on a trip, it's going to be somewhere beautiful enough to merit the time and cost. Within a 7hr radius, no matter WHERE you're starting, you can find a place worth traveling to, and have the time to really see it in just 2 or 3 days. The obvious tradeoff is that farther away = more gas, but as you'll see here, gas is really the only major expense. So: depending on your car, gas for a 7hr trip, there and back again, comes out to be around $150. That is for 1000 miles total at 24mpg, so it could be much cheaper depending on your gas mileage!
Next is food. Food can be reeeally cheap. The trick is to buy groceries beforehand! On my 3-day trip to Badlands National Park, I spent $25 on groceries and had ample leftovers. The purpose of my trip was to see nature, not to eat prestigiously, so my only restaurant expense was gas station coffee (after realizing the woes of instant 'coffee'). Canned soup, granola bars, and fruit will keep you full and scurvy-free!
Finally, we have the cost of lodging. If you've picked up one thing about me, it's that this is a price I simply will not pay. Sleeping on public land, or 'boondocking', is SAFE and FREE! National forests and grasslands are free to camp on. I'll go more in depth on finding a site later, but do your research beforehand to locate free reputable camping sites and then don't pay a penny to sleep. You likely will not be alone - plenty of others take advantage of the free sites too! - but it's comforting to have other campers around you.
Grand total - for a trip 500 (FIVE HUNDRED!) miles away, total cost is ~ $175 total for gas, food, and lodging for 3 days. I find this price to be well worth the adventure. A lower price also increases accessibility. I want travel to be a part of my life more than just once or twice a year, and even trips as far away as 500 miles can have a cheap price tag. Someplace 100 miles away could be as cheap as $55. That's just a few hours of overtime. That's a week of coffees if you have a coffee problem. That's a jar of coins in your closet. That's a must!
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