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How to Choose a Camping Location. Deciding where to locate your campsite is a little
less challenging when you keep the following tips in mind. You will need Daylight Previously
used site Responsiveness to local conditions and topographical map (optional). Step 1.
Explore the area thoroughly while there is still plenty of daylight. Step 2. Look for
resources that make camping easier and avoid dangerous landscape. Make sure there is a
nearby source of water. Be on the lookout for potential hazards such as overhead branches
and loose rockfall. Consult a topographical map to see where the wind and rising heat
will likely come from. If you don't have a topographical map or don't know how to read
one, remember that warm air rises, so higher locations will be warmer at night. Step 3.
Give some thought to how the site will fare in weather extremes such as high winds, flash
floods, and electrical storms. Step 4. Seek out campsites that have been used by others
in the past. Don't camp on top of sensitive vegetation or plants that are endangered or
threatened, and vary your routes to your water source and the latrine so that they don't
damage the site. Step 5. Choose a site that provides a natural response to local conditions.
Seek out the shade of the forest in summer, and a site some distance from water in mosquito
country. Now you're ready to head for the back country. Did you know John Wesley Powell
was given authorization in 1884 to begin the first systematic topographic mapping of the
United States.