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MC Camping on the Cheap

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I still roll SPAM and Cup-of-Ramen occasionally. It is a staple of my "emergency" food when I can't successfully live off the land on a trip. If I am doing an overnight, instead of hauling food, I carry a folding cooler and carry some cash. I try to find where the local people get their stuff. Sometimes, a cool farmers market, sometimes a truck-stop...
The single slice packet of SPAM and the cup-of-ramen is easy and cheap. I get a little extra riding/exploring camping like this.
 
Tuna in the foil bags works great. Can't stomach all the variants of hotdog meat you guys are discussing.:eek2:
 
I checked the previous post for a website for free camping. Most of what it offered was fee instead of free but it could be a filter I am missing. But it's a very incomplete list.

It would be difficult to start listing free sites one by one and scatter them on many posts.

Alternatively, what are the major categories of free sites? I know BLM federal acreage is free and dispersed camping. LBJ Grasslands are too but it's hunting season and I think that has an effect. What about river bottoms like the Trinity river along the hiking trails in south Dallas? Can I park the bike and backpack in to a site?

SHNF, Angelina, and Crockett all have free camping, don't they?

Any other ideas? Power line right of ways can be tempting but they are private property. When I was in college in Nac, we could hunt the paper companies lands. Would they allow free camping (or just look the other way?)

There are a lot of river bottoms where I see guys from the hwy parking and fishing. Are these OK to pitch a tent?

Two things come to mind. First, is it free? Then is it legal? Last thing I want it a sheriffs flashlight in my face in the wee hours.
 
Pretty much all national forest areas have free camping in some way, shape, or form. In my experience, the best way to find NF sites that are free and legal is to simply call the local National Forest Service office and ask. The people who answer the phones are almost invariably helpful and will give you information they know. In Cloudcroft some years ago, they actually had a handout with recommended free areas.
 
SL350 said:
I checked the previous post for a website for free camping. Most of what it offered was fee instead of free but it could be a filter I am missing. But it's a very incomplete list...
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You're probably looking in Texas then, not much free around here. Search west, east or north and freecampsites.net will return ample free campsites. Like Tim said National Forests are your best resource.

_

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Travel and/or moto camping cheap tip. I carry travel size toiletries. Instead of buying them for $1-$2 and disposing each time I refill them. My current containers are over 5 years old and have been refilled hundreds of times. Mouthwash easy to refill, toothpaste just align openings well/tightly and squeeze from one tube into the other, baby powder bottle shake tops do pop off to refill and back on again. I cut a empty toilet paper roll lengthwise 75% and twist into a cone for a disposable funnel.

Sent from my SM-G860P using Tapatalk
 
Good point. You can buy those itty bitty bottles in Walmart's travel toiletries section for about $1 each, and they last forever.
 
Trying to get my family who travels a lot to save their extra hotel shampoo and soaps. They are the perfect size. Refilling sounds easy too.

I bought some small containers off Amazon but they leak olive oil. Wonder if those 5 ounce energy drinks could be reused and recycled for olive oil and soy sauce? I just don't know anyone who drinks them but they are the correct size.

Today I decided to store some leftover lentils for the next ride. I got a 10 or 12 ounce plastic cup and put a freezer bag to line it. Once filled with lentils, I put it in the freezer. This way they fit easily into the Stanley 20oz cooking pot and can be boiled. I did spaghetti this way and cooked it Monday at a city park here in Dallas. No mess. It was still frozen after an hour ride.

I am really liking this cooking before hand, freezing, then boiling stuff to get it warm. I might try a hamburger next. Cook it on the grill, cut it in half and freeze it?
 
SL350 said:
Trying to get my family who travels a lot to save their extra hotel shampoo and soaps. They are the perfect size. Refilling sounds easy too.

I bought some small containers off Amazon but they leak olive oil. Wonder if those 5 ounce energy drinks could be reused and recycled for olive oil and soy sauce? I just don't know anyone who drinks them but they are the correct size.

Today I decided to store some leftover lentils for the next ride. I got a 10 or 12 ounce plastic cup and put a freezer bag to line it. Once filled with lentils, I put it in the freezer. This way they fit easily into the Stanley 20oz cooking pot and can be boiled. I did spaghetti this way and cooked it Monday at a city park here in Dallas. No mess. It was still frozen after an hour ride.

I am really liking this cooking before hand, freezing, then boiling stuff to get it warm. I might try a hamburger next. Cook it on the grill, cut it in half and freeze it?
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I like the spaghetti idea. Freeze it and when you get to your destination should be thawed enough to warm up quickly. Home made spaghetti only for me no canned stuff. Thought about trying it before but never have. They eat the leftovers too fast.:doh:
 
kickstand~prophet said:
I like the spaghetti idea. Freeze it and when you get to your destination should be thawed enough to warm up quickly. Home made spaghetti only for me no canned stuff. Thought about trying it before but never have. They eat the leftovers too fast.:doh:
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Actually the spaghetti was still quite a bit frozen. I boiled it for 2 minutes in the Stanley pot and then turned off the flame and let it sit for 10 minutes in the hot water. It was just right at that point.

We took chili in a tupperware on a previous trip and that had to go into a larger wider cook pot cause it was still frozen after 2 hours riding and 1 hour on the trailer. It's what gave me the idea to shape the meals BEFORE freezing.
 
SL350 said:
Actually the spaghetti was still quite a bit frozen. I boiled it for 2 minutes in the Stanley pot and then turned off the flame and let it sit for 10 minutes in the hot water. It was just right at that point.

We took chili in a tupperware on a previous trip and that had to go into a larger wider cook pot cause it was still frozen after 2 hours riding and 1 hour on the trailer. It's what gave me the idea to shape the meals BEFORE freezing.
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I was thinking of putting the meat sauce and the spaghetti all together already fully cooked and just reheat. I make some pretty tasty spaghetti here.:eat:
 
bwdmax said:
One time at the end of a week long backpacking trip I got really hungry before making it back to the parking area. I was on my way out and down to the last of my food. I dug deep and all I had was a can of potted meat and a moon pie.:shrug: So I made potted meat sandwich with a moon pie for my bread.:puke: That was 30 yrs. ago and I have not touched potted meat or moon pies since. Just the thought is enough.:giveup:
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I bet that was a weird flavor combination.:ponder:
 
tshelfer said:
We need to do a Llano campout. You're cooking.
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I think I should be fired by then and can attend.:-P Never tried to cook it over a open fire might be a disaster.:eek2: Normally I do a double batch and it simmers for a couple hours and then we chow down for three days or so. I take some to work also because they really dig in and it does not last long. I will come up someday and make some for you and the crew.
 
In Texas, navigable waters are public, but you're trespassing as soon as you touch dry land. I guess one could put a sleeping bag on a air mattress and float.:trust:
 
When we trailer, which is nearly every time on long trips, we cook a pot of chili and one of spaghetti sauce. We freeze it in zip lock bags and use it as ice in the cooler. Stays good for several days.
 
2N2OUT said:
In Texas, navigable waters are public, but you're trespassing as soon as you touch dry land. I guess one could put a sleeping bag on a air mattress and float.:trust:
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might want to research this, but i believe the mean waterline plus 100 feet is public domain. (on a "navigable waterway")
 
viffer07 said:
might want to research this, but i believe the mean waterline plus 100 feet is public domain. (on a "navigable waterway")
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Meriden said:
There is a thread on this somewhere in the archive. Some guys were wanting to use the rule as a way to ride in or near stream beds. As I recall it's off limits.
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Been 20yrs. since I looked at the law. We have a local creek that we used to ride down and there was always friction between land owners and creek goers. The mean waterline changes over time and questions arise from this. Banks erode and land owners blame users. Legal or not I have been cussed, shot at, and spent lots of time answering questions from law enforcement. The law couldn’t keep us out and it couldn’t stop the land owners from calling in and complaining. The county eventually took away public points of entrance to stop the fussing. In the event you bypass the barrier you now get a ticket for disregarding a traffic control device. Land owners who choose to access the creek are free to roam up and down.

It might be legal, but it might not be a peaceful night.
 
SB: "...toothpaste just align openings well/tightly and squeeze ..."

I have done this many times. Once I squeezed brand X into brand Y. The two had some sort of reaction and setup into a very thick substance that if you got enough out of the tube, you had to chew it like gum to soften it up enough to use it.

I was thusly engaged one morning in the park's restroom when a woman walked in and said, "oh, I forgot my toothpaste, can I use some of yours?"
 
I've said many times, "Well, it's done. There's no getting the toothpaste back into the tube." Thanks, Gina, for disproving my platitude. Me, I refill a lot of things, but I figure I can afford a buck a year for that tiny tube.
 
bwdmax;1535371It might be legal said:
That would be the test for me. With all of the parks available from the Corps of Engineers, LCRA, State, multiple counties, etc. putting up with someone hassling me in the middle of the night to save a couple of bucks just isn't worth it.

As a kid we used to camp on private property by the Brazos in north Texas. On more than one occasion the river would be a lot higher in the morning than it was the night before.
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