Etiquette Question - Unoccupied Backcountry Camp

[LDennis24]

Could be out burying the teeth and hair from the last person that upset them...  but really, some people don't think before they act, I would not even set foot near it. Stupid people act before thinking and you could be dead because they thought you were stealing and they are dumb and are willing to kill you over a Jetboil or Coleman stove. It's a crazy world out there!

I get that some people don't react rationally, but the original poster didn't say anything about using any of their stuff. Basically just camping at the site using his own equipment. This was in a wilderness area so there shouldn't be a bunch of crap left behind, but some people unfortunately do so.

Yeah thanks, I read the OP before posting. I didn't say he intended on using it. I said THEY might think he intended on using it and freak out. For those calling it abandoned, how long did you sit and watch the equipment before determining it was abandoned? What does a roll up sleeping pad look like after 24 hrs or sitting four days in the woods? How about 8 days? 14 days? Maybe they just left it that morning and the bear showed up and tore everything apart and it just looks abandoned? How do you know? Is someone else not allowed to leave camp for 10 hours while it's daylight and hunt or scout and return after dark? I'm getting the feeling some folks build their gear up by visiting "abandoned " campsites. 

[pickardjw]

If all the crap is in the same place weeks/months later on a return trip I say fair game to tidy it up in a pile off to the side and camp there.

It would depend on how critical the camp site is. If it's only a little more convenient than the others, I wouldn't mess with it. If it's a thousand times better than the others, I'd chance it. Unless just being there made the hair on my neck stand up.

What is it, 14 days max on NF land? If you're leaving camp up any longer than that to save a spot, YTA.

[PacificNWhunter]

One of the places I've hunted has an established camp tucked in the trees with some gear up in the branches. I ended up hunting close by and camping in a different location. I ended up meeting the people who hunted up there the next year and they were pretty cool about me being there, they have been going in there for 20 years. Personally I'm looking for solitude so I moved on to another spot.

[joedawjes]

Thanks for the responses, everyone. It seems like people are pretty split.

I keep noticing that some people say "my spot" which is understandable but incorrect in my opinion. By the letter of the law, no individual owns the land. So, it can't be one individual's spot. It's everybody's spot. However, I understand that people get possessive over land that they don't own. We have a long track record of human behavior as evidence.

I think that it's first some first serve, but I'm willing to cede the spot if somebody comes in super pissed off. Personally, I don't care too much that the camp exists in an area where established sites are illegal.

To be clear, this camp is WAY off trail and one drainage away from being one of the most remote spots in the area. It's also a very tidy camp. So, I'm thinking that 1 or 2 groups uses it consistently. I wouldn't use their items. I would just pitch my tent. I realize that staying there is a risk, but it's a risk I'm willing to take because I think it's a small percentage of people who resort to violence without a conversation. I think that I'd be able to de-escalate a tense situation with my words.

[pianoman9701]

It's one thing if it's a cheap tent and a lawn chair meant to save a spot. It's another altogether if it's a true camp with equipment. Leave it alone and start your own. Could be a base camp. Might be a camp taking several trips to develop. If you were inhabiting my camp when I got back, I'd have some questions for you. They might be less than polite.

[MADMAX]

Don’t worry
If we continue to fight amongst ourselves
We wont have any hunting
Direct your effort in a different direction like the upcoming commission meetings
Just an opinion 

[pianoman9701]

Don’t worry
If we continue to fight amongst ourselves
We wont have any hunting
Direct your effort in a different direction like the upcoming commission meetings
Just an opinion 

Different opinions are what he asked for. That doesn't mean we're fighting among ourselves. And, most of us can do more than one thing at a time. We can have differing opinions on specific topics and direct our efforts in the commission hearings.

[MADMAX]

I hope your right
👍

[2MANY]

This is bazaar.