Sleeping in Car = Camping?

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mjlucarelli
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Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by mjlucarelli »

Curios...when you pull up to a trailhead the night before a hike, planning on sleeping inside your vehicle for an early start, and see a sign that says no camping do you stay and sleep or find another spot to park? I have done it a handful of times and I don't really feel like I am camping since I am not pitching a tent or starting a fire, etc. but I do have to admit I worry I will get woken up in the middle of the night being told I need to leave. Has anyone actually been fined or told to leave for sleeping at a trailhead with a no camping sign? What do you guys think? Sleeping in your vehicle = Camping??? Thanks
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by benmangelsdorf »

I wonder about this too. I have a few objectives for the season that I would love to sleep in my car at :mrgreen:
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by seano »

I've never been fined, but have absolutely received "The Knock" and had to move on. Sleeping in a "no camping" or "day use only" area is one of those things that's illegal but sparsely and variably enforced. Use your best judgment.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by drewski »

This has been discussed in this forum before.
I think that it is most likely to be enforced when the trailhead is close to a campground, and the camp host or other "management" is checking on it. Years ago I heard of someone being fined for sleeping in their car in such a case at Angel of Shavano campground and trailhead.
Keep in mind that some times the legal dispersed camping starts just a few hundred feet from the day use parking area. Thinking of Blanks cabin on Mt. Shavano.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by nyker »

In that situation, I'd be more worried about those spots where it says no parking or no standing or no overnight parking specifically...
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by Scott P »

mjlucarelli wrote: Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:37 pm Has anyone actually been fined or told to leave for sleeping at a trailhead with a no camping sign? What do you guys think? Sleeping in your vehicle = Camping??? Thanks
It depnds on where you are, but at places such as the Longs Peak Trailhead, rangers do occasionally look for people sleeping in their vehicles.

I got the knock at least once that I can remember. I parked at the side of a road and slept in my car in Green River Utah and someone knocked on the door and said that I was just in the State Park.
Last edited by Scott P on Wed Jul 07, 2021 12:19 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by Scott P »

drewski wrote: Tue Jul 06, 2021 10:34 pm Keep in mind that some times the legal dispersed camping starts just a few hundred feet from the day use parking area. Thinking of Blanks cabin on Mt. Shavano.
Now that you mention it, there used to be some crazy hermit squatting near that trailhead that used to tell people they couldn't camp there (even if they were camping legally). Does anyone remember that? I know there used to be a few threads on it, but that was years ago. It was April 2007 since I was there last.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by mtnkub »

Unless you have camping equipment outside, sleeping in your car is typically considered parking, not camping.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by CaptainSuburbia »

I've slept in my car at dozens of trailheads without issue (including Longs 3 times). The only knock I ever got was from Homeland Security at Arkansas. They wanted us to be aware that there was explosive activity going on at Climax Mine. We went back to sleep pissed he woke us up for nothing.
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by Chicago Transplant »

I consider it parking, but I am not the one writing the tickets or doing the enforcement. I think of it this way, its legal to park overnight and walk a 1/4 mile up trail to throw a tent down on the ground and potentially impact the vegetation in the area. The same 4 points of rubber on my car on on the same 4 points of dirt/pavement as if I sleep in the car and do not have that impact to the vegetation. The only real difference is where I pee is closer to the parking lot, but overall seems to be a lower impact. Especially if there is a trailhead pit toilet, sleeping in the car is low impact.

As far as the knocking on the window, we wanted to sleep at a campground near Blackhawk/Central City once after the Arapahoes so we could climb rock in CCC the next day. The CG was closed so we slept in the car in a pullout a little below it and had a Sheriff wake us up. When he realized we were well equipped and not just drunks for the casinos that were crashed out he let us stay there. Funny part is I was so groggy from being woken up that when he asked "Why are you sleeping in your car" my immediate reaction was "because we don't have a tent", before I cleared my head and explained our situation. :lol:
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by JulianSmith »

Oh Aspen...
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Re: Sleeping in Car = Camping?

Post by JQDivide »

It really depends on who is 'patrolling' the area.
We do it all the time in select spots.
You just have to be invisible. Don't set up chairs, or cook dinner.
Park and go to sleep.

Got the knock in the middle of the night at the Colorado Trail TH off of 204 in Durango. We were sleeping there before our trip to Chicago Basin.
And we saw the officers the next morning eating breakfast.
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