New to randomcamping and public land.

[KrazyKraka187]

Hey guys, I know there are a few posts in this about random camping and public land, but im still confused. Basically to keep this short and sweet, are there maps online that can show me where all the public land is located so I can random camp and shoot my guns? Location dosent really matter, I live in Edmonton and im willing to travel pretty much anywhere. I went and got a Alberta Public recreation land map, but all it shows is a little tepee in a random spot on the map... and when I Google that area it brings me to the Alberta website and says I need to pay for camping and that no firearm usage is allowed. Also how can I be sure im on public land and not on private land? Ive gone and looked at this site here ( http://esrd.alberta.ca/recreation-pu...s/default.aspx ). If im reading that correct then all the land in green should be public and free for me to explore. Are there no land owners in the green area? Also where do you guys leave your vehicles when out in the bush? Are there parking lots or something similar? Or do you just leave them on the side of the road, drive them a bit into the bush?

I'm new to this, no family or friends are really outdoors men and its something I have grown keen to. Just trying to get as much info as I can before this summer hits. Sorry if this question gets asked a lot.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

[overhere]

Get maps at map town for crown land and go explore just find out regs pertaining to the area you want to camp ...like motorized vehicles allowed off road and how far back to camp so on..

[MaverickMetal]

i don't mind hot spotting some nice areas for you. Where are you from where are you camping?

[KrazyKraka187]

Originally Posted by MaverickMetal

i don't mind hot spotting some nice areas for you. Where are you from where are you camping?

Im from Edmonton, I just went and picked up a Back Road Map and im thinking of anywhere in and around Bighorn backcountry http://esrd.alberta.ca/recreation-pu...n-backcountry/

[sjd]

I think it's a real flaw with ESRD's recreation access website that it only shows leased public land where you have to ask permission. If it included a layer for all public land it would be much more useful.

To the OP going north will give your more options and room than going west. Wildland Parks are also a good place for solitude.

[schmedlap]

Assuming that you are talking about "rough" camping, and not where you can park your 5th wheel ...?
If you just get some good back country maps, do a little planning and observation, and if you just want real solitude, pick a remote area, take some time to go down all those back trails (with due caution for not getting trapped), and you will find some truly amazing and beautiful places to set up, very far from any other human occupation. Back when I had such ambitions, and slept in the back of my old Toyota 4x4 under the canopy, my friends and I found some truly amazing sites. Some could be accessed with "ordinary" vehicles. A couple of my favorites could only be accessed with good 4x4's - my absolute favorite was up to 3 winches across bogs on a seismic line, 2 kilometers off a very "back" trail, but the site on a hillock overlooking the creek, in the foothills, was unbelievable - I'm not sure anyone other than the original seismic crew or the odd hunter had ever been there, and the stars at night - hard to describe . Another required fording a significant river, at a point 1k from any "road", up a cliff-cut over many large wash out humps, and 5-6 kilometers down seismic lines with some very boggy spots - then a 2k hike into the target creek down vehicle impassable lines (we were fishing, and the farther away from civilization ...?). There were many others - just loved to see where we could go.
We did not find such places quickly off the maps. Much time spent, on some occasions, with the maps spread out on the hood of the truck. Had to be a little "intuitive", and analyze contours, etc. Time spent towing each other out of the worst holes. On a couple of occasions, time spent hiking out to find someone else with a good 4x4 to come to the rescue - hell, we survived. Actually, the "exploring" was as much or more fun than the fishing. Many weekends spent 90% on the exploring end, but the relatively brief time fishing was usually worth such effort.
If you are just off a real road, you have to find a way to get your vehicle all the way off it. There are no "parking lots" for such places. Some of such roads have lumber truck and oilfield truck traffic which will potentially devastate your vehicle otherwise. And nowadays one has to be concerned about pure thievery, regardless of how far back in the bush one is. I would not ever leave my vehicle out of sight of my camp now, as we sometimes did many years ago.

[purgatory.sv]

Originally Posted by schmedlap

Assuming that you are talking about "rough" camping, and not where you can park your 5th wheel ...?
If you just get some good back country maps, do a little planning and observation, and if you just want real solitude, pick a remote area, take some time to go down all those back trails (with due caution for not getting trapped), and you will find some truly amazing and beautiful places to set up, very far from any other human occupation. Back when I had such ambitions, and slept in the back of my old Toyota 4x4 under the canopy, my friends and I found some truly amazing sites. Some could be accessed with "ordinary" vehicles. A couple of my favorites could only be accessed with good 4x4's - my absolute favorite was up to 3 winches across bogs on a seismic line, 2 kilometers off a very "back" trail, but the site on a hillock overlooking the creek, in the foothills, was unbelievable - I'm not sure anyone other than the original seismic crew or the odd hunter had ever been there, and the stars at night - hard to describe . Another required fording a significant river, at a point 1k from any "road", up a cliff-cut over many large wash out humps, and 5-6 kilometers down seismic lines with some very boggy spots - then a 2k hike into the target creek down vehicle impassable lines (we were fishing, and the farther away from civilization ...?). There were many others - just loved to see where we could go.
We did not find such places quickly off the maps. Much time spent, on some occasions, with the maps spread out on the hood of the truck. Had to be a little "intuitive", and analyze contours, etc. Time spent towing each other out of the worst holes. On a couple of occasions, time spent hiking out to find someone else with a good 4x4 to come to the rescue - hell, we survived. Actually, the "exploring" was as much or more fun than the fishing. Many weekends spent 90% on the exploring end, but the relatively brief time fishing was usually worth such effort.
If you are just off a real road, you have to find a way to get your vehicle all the way off it. There are no "parking lots" for such places. Some of such roads have lumber truck and oilfield truck traffic which will potentially devastate your vehicle otherwise. And nowadays one has to be concerned about pure thievery, regardless of how far back in the bush one is. I would not ever leave my vehicle out of sight of my camp now, as we sometimes did many years ago.

True.

[propliner]

Make sure that when you finally get out there that you pack more garbage out than you brought in. The slobs are really becoming a problem and we need to start babysitting them. Thanks.