Southern California: A Guide for Car Campers Who Hate RVs, Concrete Slabs, and Loud Portable Stereos

If you buy this looking to do some pack-it-all-in and hike-in camping, you are going to be disappointed. This book is for the car camper who wants to drive in and erect a tent. Some of the sites do allow RVs, it is true, but for the most part, these aren't going to be giant cement parking lots with RV hookups and people listening to the ball game on their satellite TV hookups. The site amenities are listed in great detail, and Bill Mai's accompanying blurb about his personal experience at each site is very helpful. There are miniature maps and detailed directions for each site, too. I like his 6-component rating system, covering beaty, privacy, spaciousness, quiet, security, and upkeep.

If you buy this looking to do some pack-it-all-in and hike-in camping, you are going to be disappointed. This book is for the car camper who wants to drive in and erect a tent. Some of the sites do allow RVs, it is true, but for the most part, these aren't going to be giant cement parking lots with RV hookups and people listening to the ball game on their satellite TV hookups. The site amenities are listed in great detail, and Bill Mai's accompanying blurb about his personal experience at each site is very helpful. There are miniature maps and detailed directions for each site, too. I like his 6-component rating system, covering beaty, privacy, spaciousness, quet, security, and upkeep.

Found the book really useful for description - a little flowery - but overall great. I used my Mapopolis GPS to find my way there and then around the vicinity. Good book for reference

I am currently planning a camping trip where I would like tent camping to predominate over RV camping. I've read the entire book to find a suitable campground for me and my family and friends. I really appreciate that Mr. Mai rates each campground in the areas of BEAUTY, SITE PRIVACY, SITE SPACIOUSNESS, QUIET, SECURITY, CLEANLINESS/UPKEEP. I have numerous "camping in California" books and I really appeciate the "SITE PRIVACY" information contained in this book. For example, another book I have rates "Montana De Oro State Park" an overall 9 out of 10 which sounds great, but Mr. Mai give this park 2 out of 5 because although the park has many trees to shade it, the limbs of the trees are high and don't offer privacy from other campers. When we camp, we like to feel as if we are the only ones in the park. This book also offers info about bear in the area which I haven't typically found in other books (I want to know that I am headed into an area that's home to black bears - not that I wouldn't take the trip - I just want to be aware.)

I love this book. I've been using it for 3 years. When I decided to take up camping, I didn't know where to start (i.e., where do you go? what do you bring? what happens when you get there? etc.) This book answers all these questions and more. Bill Mai writes in an enthusiastic and pleasant style as he reviews various campgrounds. He gives detailed descriptions of each campground that are informative, helpful, thorough and accurate. He has personally camped at most of the campgrounds he writes about, so his reviews are based on personal experience. I have camped at several of the locations he recommends and have yet to be disappointed. I use this book often not only to find my next campground, but also to peruse the reviews that I enjoy reading and re-reading. I even take it with me to browse while capming, and I've shared it with other campers who spoke of the book very positively and found it very helpful. When I was contemplating going camping, I looked and looked for a book like this, and was lucky to find the perfect camping book.