River eddy in the Missouri River Photo by:
Robert Linder (Stock Exchange)

Hello and welcome to AllCampgrounds!

This week, we’ll be sharing some great camping news for all you tent camping and RV camping enthusiasts.

The summer camping season still has a lot of life left in it, so this won’t be all!

We’ll return to our usual (and unusual) coverage of the best RV parks and campgrounds, tent camping parks, and other top quality camping destinations next go around.

But for now, it’s time for news: AllCampgrounds has you covered with the very latest on the camping scene.

First off: Yellowstone National Park needs our help! After the recent rupture of an ExxonMobil pipe, forty two thousand gallons of crude oil have been spilled into the Yellowstone River. An oil cleanup effort is ongoing. Though the national park extends for over two million miles, damage to this nearly 700-mile tributary of the Missouri River could have a profound effect on the local wildlife. More than 100 calls have been received to date from concerned locals – many of them campers, I’ll bet! – who want to help out with the clean up effort. Good luck, everyone!

What’s Next for Privatized Camping in State Parks? asks the Florida Independent. Not much, to judge from the public’s overwhelming reaction to Governor Rick Scott’s plans to partially privatize Honeymoon Island State Park and create a selection of “high impact” tent camping and other camp grounds. “Nearly every Florida lawmaker was opposed to the plan,” says the article, and no follow-up plan is anticipated for right now. Of course, we want to hear from AllCampgrounds viewers: how do you feel about state park privatization? Have you had better camping experiences in private or public lands? Let us know with a comment.

Here’s a question many campers have asked already this season (and in seasons past): Camping With Kids: Are We Crazy? Read the adventures of a couple who brought their toddler and preschooler out to enjoy the great outdoors out in Canton, Massachusetts. Not to spoil the ending, but good fun was had by early – proving that it’s just about never too early to start enjoying your tent camping. Congrats to mom and dad for taking the plunge and finding a new family hobby.

Finally, check out safety tips for hiking and camping in bear country. This is a subject we’ve devoted a lot of attention to here on AllCampgrounds, but it’s worth repeating, especially after the fatal bear attack earlier in the month. In addition to a great listing of what to do to prevent and respond to bear encounters, this article offers a video on bear safety that will help you keep the local critters from sampling your food.