Personal camground options

NS Gearhead · Aug 15, 2013

So I'm clearing and leveling aprox. 100' diam spot to be used as a camping spot. I was tired of paying $100+ for campsites over a weekend, and the Jeep's becoming more of a PITA to tow with. I figgure we'll invite a couple or two with campers on weekends we want to camp, and everone wins! We just sold our popup, so I'm considering either purchasing a larger (but much older) travel trailer to be set up permanently or build a little cabin. Being only a couple hundred feet away from the house a cabin wouldn't need a washroom, or kitchen. Just basicly two beds and a sitting area. Maybe a counter top and cabinets. My 16' square shed cost $5,000 in material... so as much as that's a nice size, it's about twice the budget I'm working with. It's also neither insulated nor finished inside. So I guess I'm looking for opinions on what way to go... and if the cabin route, what style, size, possibly cost saving build tips. My house contractor just sold me the shed material... so I'm not sure if the vinyl siding's the majority of the cost or what. I also found a huge class A motorhome in my price range! Probably more then I need, but cool none the less. : )

dave1949 · Aug 15, 2013

I would choose the cabin approach for overall comfort and longevity. Or, you could build a picnic shelter type thing with a nice firepit/place, room for grilling and tables. That could be a common use, shared area. I think water would be very handy, either piped from the house or from a large container like the 275 gal. plastic totes.

About the least expensive cabin construction would be a shed-style roof on a pier foundation. You can use sonotubes for the piers and mix your own bags of concrete to fill them. I assume you wouldn't use it in winter?

Another consideration is property taxes, don't know how that works for NS.

/pine · Aug 15, 2013

IMO if you are going to make a real camping facility (personally I don't consider it "camping" if you're not roughing it) you should consider some sort of facilities etc...otherwise just build a fire pit off your back porch and invite your "camping friends...why walk so far for kitchen and rest room facilities?

NS Gearhead · Aug 16, 2013

/pine said:
IMO if you are going to make a real camping facility (personally I don't consider it "camping" if you're not roughing it) you should consider some sort of facilities etc...otherwise just build a fire pit off your back porch and invite your "camping friends...why walk so far for kitchen and rest room facilities?

Well my take on it is this; why drive possibly hours, burn fuel, just to pay someone to be in the "woods" with neighbors right beside you.. and have all kinds of rules imposed on you!?! The spot I'm making is completely forested. No travel, fees, rules, neighbors. : )

Obviously we'd pack for our meal(s), have a BBQ there, and possibly a spot for the ladies to tinkle... so trips to the house would only be for #2s, and showers if we're staying an entire weekend. Most campgrounds have huge central facilities... I fail to see the difference.

NS Gearhead · Aug 16, 2013

I'm thinking something like this;

Just an open area inside with a couple couches (one being a pullout), and sleeping area up above.

NS Gearhead · Aug 16, 2013

I sure like this one!

Ken45101 · Aug 16, 2013

If you found a class A motorhome for a couple of thousand dollars, I would be worried about it!

A lot of it depends on your "camping" desires. But I think something just a couple of hundred feet from the house, and running to the house for essentials, would not be "camping", nor "getting away." Yes, it might be a nice place to escape for an afternoon for some quiet to read a book, but it wouldn't meet my requirements for "getting away". YMMV.

We have a creekside campsite about five miles away from home where we keep the trailer during the summer. It's a completely different environment (water, wildlife, etc.) yet close enough to run home to feed the dogs and water the horses. Yet far enough away that going there is different than being at home.

I guess one question is "what do you currently enjoy about going camping? What do you do while you are there?" Will that fit in with your proposal?

forgeblast · Aug 16, 2013

A lady up the road from us has a small shed from home depot that she uses as a weekend camp. She comes up in the summer to paint and has the shed and a portapotty there too. I have seen these advertised MM Builders

Dutch445 · Aug 16, 2013

At one point I was thinking of doing something similar on a vacant lot i own next
to our house (we have since moved).
My idea was to build a pole barn for some needed storage, and on the back side make
a pavilion area for a camp like place to have cookouts and parties. if it was big enough,
i had thoughts of parking our 24' camper, and having electric available to run the fridge
and have lights.
you could do something similar if you found a reasonable price camper, park it, and eventually
build a structure over top and make it a little larger than the camper to make an area under
cover for bbq and picnic tables when the weather is a little wet.
just an idea
but i love those little cabins too! although i think i'd want water ran to it.