.:: Bay Area Camping Guide :.

It's wednesday, about midday. You sit at your desk, grinding through your to-do pile. One pain in the ass down, but the stack seems even bigger than before. Traffic was terrible this morning — one of the seven wonders of city life, right? Then it hits you: you need some time off. Just a few hours out in the fresh air, somewhere green and fragrant: somewhere cars dare not tread. You ring up your boss and he miraculously agrees to give you the afternoon off and following morning too. After lunch, you cruise home, throw your gear in the car and head out. You're going to spend tonight under the stars, with a soundtrack of water and wind.

I created the Bay Area Camping Guide to help plan just such a trip. Living in the Bay Area, we're blessed with some fantastic natural getaways that are easily accessible and pleasant almost year-round. Even if you have some favorite spots up in the high Sierras, up on the north coast, or wherever, you've likely missed some places where you can throw down your bag closer to home. Places where you can enjoy some peace and quiet at a moment's notice, and without a long, gas-guzzling drive.

The campgrounds, all public, are listed in order of driving time from downtown Berkeley, where I live and a fairly central Bay Area location (sorry everyone else, you'll have to make slight adjustments to these times). My personal bias is towards tent camping near a quiet lake, river, or stream — especially places where you can take a swim in the warmer months — with easy access to some nice walking trails.