Can bike tourers tell me about their experience with stealth camping?
I've done some tours and I'm sick and tired of paying $100 to pay for a motel room everynight. I want to try to camp with a tent from here on out, but I have no clue about how to go about stealth camping
I haven't done it, but from what I've read online:
1. Nice guy routine
Don't even stealth camp. Just look presentable and talk to people at a church or police office. Explain you are on a multi-day bike ride and are looking for a safe place to set up your small tent. Cops might direct you to a nearby park, and even tell a night patrol car to keep an eye out on you for safety. A church will probably tell you you can sleep on their lawn and maybe use their bathroom.
2. Typical stealth camping
Just hop off the bike somewhere that isn't near homes, walk 15 feet into the woods, and set up camp. Nobody is looking for you, and the chances of someone walking by are slim.
But, if you do it in a public park or nature preserve, there's a chance you'll be woken up by a pissed park ranger. Worst case is a small fine that is less than a hotel. Nobody is going to haul you away in a cop car, so who gives a shit? Just act apologetic and leave.
3. My primary concern about stealth camping
Ticks and lyme disease. Unlike a dedicated camp site, you might walk into a spot swarming with ticks (after dark), and wake up totally f**ked. Lyme disease has exploded in the last two decades, it's worse than people realize. If you are touring in tick country, be very afraid.
If I was going to stealth camp, I would spray the tent, my shoes, socks, pants with permethrin. And, yes, I wouldn't walk into the woods without shirt tucked into pants tucked into socks in shoes all sprayed with the nasty shit. Then I'd get into an enclosed bivvy, also sprayed with the shit, and sweat myself to death overnight. lol
Seriously watch out for lyme. It's not even the disease that's so bad, but the cure - powerful antibiotics that will permanently fuck you up
>>971608
hmm I hadn't thought about ticks. I'm in Southern Ontario, I don't hear about it much but I know there are ticks out here.
I think the church idea is a good one.
>>971608
>>971611
Ticks like wet areas with lots of Deciduous trees. The ticks live under the fallen leaves and lay eggs under them. Ticks do not like evergreen forests, forests where the ground is covered in pine needles, because they can't hide and survive under pine needles as well as leaves.
So to avoid ticks, camp in a spot that is on a hill in a pine forested area with lots of pine needles, rocks or dirt as ground.
I'd also advise you to buy some concentrated permethrin online, and create a spray mix (follow instructions for proper mixing ratio), And spray that on your clothing, tent, and camp site, to keep ticks away. If you walking around in the woods, get a pair of light colored tropical pants, and stuff the pantlegs into your socks. Look at your pants occasionally to check for ticks. If you spray your clothes with insecticide, there probably won't be any, though. Bring along DEET as well.
>>971600
Here in the U.S., check out National Forests.
The rule of thumb is you can camp anywhere in a national forest, EXCEPT:
>private property
>an area dedicated to some other activity
>any place they prohibit camping
For the most part, you can just camp anywhere.
What setup does you guys use?
I love the idea of going camping with my road bike. I live in Sweden where its allowed to camp and passthrough where ever you like (allemansrätt), so no stealth needed.
My concern is the packing, Im thinking of bikepacking like pick related, but where to put the tent? In the frame bag? Any recs on a cheap tent with compact packing size?
I will use a carbon bike so no racks or panniers. just say fuck it and get a bike trailer?
>>971716
Man this bike is a set of Compass tires away from being posh AF!
>>971600
/out/ is the best place to ask your question but you may have more roadside rights than you realize. Instead of stealth, research legal options.
>>971716
Well, you can separate the tent in two shits: the frame's sticks and the tent's fabric/cloth.
You can store the fabric inside any bag in your setup, just like another big clothing.
You can wrap an old pair of pants arround the tent frame's sticks (like pic related, but without cinnamon) in order to avoid scratching your bike frame. So, you can attach them to the bike frame using some velcro (you can craft good velcro shit for less than 2 usd). I proppose the downtube or the toptube but you can attach them wherever you want.
Well, a carbon bike is not recommended for touring so avoid load too much shit in it.
>>971716
>carbon roadie pulling a trailer
I want to see that.
>>971783
great advice, thank you!
