ThePewterPalace Our Love Affair with Avions

They are a vanishing breed, but self-pay kiosk (a.k.a “IRON RANGERS” DO still exist at some government run campgrounds. In recent years, the National Park Service (NPS), in particular, has been phasing these out.  But along our travels, we have come across self pay stations or “Iron Rangers” as they are referred to still at some state, county, and town-owned campgrounds.

Here are some tips to help you pay safely and enjoy your stay. At the end, we will mention some anecdotes told to us by park rangers about the self-pay systems!

ARRIVAL NOTES:

1. Most self pay campgrounds will allow you to find your spot first and then go and pay for the # of nights you plan to stay. PICK YOUR SITE FIRST to be sure there is one in the campground that can accommodate your size/needs and you are happy with. NOTHING would be worse than that you have dropped your envelope into the slot and then realize there are no available sites that fit your rig!
2. Be sure to pickup an envelope provided at the kiosk BEFORE you drive around the campground to find your spot. This way, you can fill out the envelope, putting the site # etc on it as soon as you select your spot.
3. DO fill out the envelope and return it into the kiosk ASAP and normally the info signs will say to do this within 15-30 minutes of selecting and parking in your site.
4. When at all possible SOMEONE in your party should stay WITH your RV while the other person walks or drives back to drop the envelope into the iron ranger box. This prevents someone else from claiming your site on THEIR envelope* (more on this on the “DO list”)
5. If you plan on staying more than one night, it is OK to only pay for the one night of when you arrive. Then if you DO decide to extend to more nights, it is OK to drop an envelope in each afternoon prior to that night’s stay. Possession of a campsite is 9/10th of the game. Once you claim a site, as long as you are paying for it, no one else can claim it.

DO’s & Don’ts:

• DO make sure that the self pay kiosk is a permanent structure and does not look like it was freshly installed. Especially in remote areas it could be a scam.
• DO take the envelope when entering the campground, and before you select your site- but do NOT deposit any $$ until you find a campsite and know the #.
• DO put your complete information on your envelope, including, date(s) license plate #s for any vehicles and RV, your cell # (i always list both of ours- for use in case of emergency), your name, etc. it asks for but *ALSO PUT THE TIME ON THE ENVELOPE THAT YOU ARE DEPOSITING IT. This ensures that anyone coming in after you cannot claim that site! This is VERY IMPORTANT FOR VAN/TRUCK CAMPERS AND CLASS B’S WHO MAY LEAVE THE CAMPGROUND with their RV for day trips!
• DO look on the site # post to be sure that site is not also reservable online. Some “hybrids” exist where a site can be FCFS for some nights but often reservable for especially over weekends. This is rare, but we HAVE seen this, and while the first night we were there, it was available it was not available for the extra nights we had wanted. The camp host or rangers had indicated on the tag what nights it was reserved. This spared us the trouble of setting all up and having to find another site our other 2 nights of our stay.
• DO write a check for payment when at all possible. This is your PROOF OF PAYMENT was deposited into the iron ranger box. We never put in cash unless the kiosk notes that cash is the ONLY way to pay. Ideally, some sites do allow payment online at the site. However- case in point at NPS campground at Wind Cave NP in SD- there is ZERO cell signal on Verizon so the ability to pay online using the QR code on the entry sign was useless to us.
• If possible, DO get the ranger or camp host to initial or sign the paper slip you are required to keep on your dashboard  or on the sign post IF  you pay CASH. Take a photo of your signed permit. This is PROOF that you indeed did pay. And PLEASE be sure the person you are handing cash to is the legitimate staff/park volunteer! YES, THIS IS A SCAM THAT HAPPENS! People have been known to pose as park attendants/camp hosts only to pocket the money. Be especially wary if boondocking on BLM land and someone walks up to you asking for camping fee. Do your research before you get there. Some BLM land, especially in the southwest, is now under a monthly or 6 month permit fee system where you purchase that permit online through Recreation.gov or via a specific BLM permitting site. Again, do your homework in advance.
• DO remember to detach the site post slip BEFORE you drop the envelope into the iron ranger. IF by chance you do forget (yup, been there, done that) simply take a new blank envelope, fill out the site post slip and use it. Keep the other envelope if it is numbered, do not drop it into the box empty.
• DO put your site slip into a zip lock baggie and then hang on the sign post if that is required. This way in case of rain or bad weather it is still legible. We do this at all campgrounds, even private ones, with our site tag, i.e. at Thousand Trails campgrounds you get a site tag.
• DO have a thumbtack or duct tape available to affix your site pass to the post if needed. I cannot tell you how many times the clip was broken and I had to thumbtack our pass to a wooden post or tape it to an electric meter box or meyal site pole.
• DO expect that at NPS (USFS, BLM, COE) campgrounds that at some point a ranger or camp host will come to ask you for your America the Beautiful pass and ID IF you have deposited a discounted fee as a pass holder. Do not allow them to leave with your ID or pass and be sure they are the officials they say they are.
• DO try to meet the camp host, volunteer or ranger while camping there. Ask them for tips on things to see and do in the area. Double check on any fire bans, drinking water issues, etc that may arise.
• DO leave a site even cleaner than you found it. The next person will appreciate that, and so would you!

DON’T’S:

• DON’T use cash unless you have to. Write a check instead or pay online. These boxes get broken into all the time and with cash you have no proof you paid.
• DON’T fill out your ticket envelope and drop into the iron ranger until you have found and selected a campsite that will work for you!
• DON’T assume there are campsites available if there isn’t a “campground full” sign at entry point. Due to staffing shortages, some parks may not be well monitored and if there is no onsite camp host, rangers may only come by 1 time a day or less to monitor FCFS campgrounds.
• DON’T leave the site totally empty if you have a Class B, no toad to take on day trips or a van camper if you go out of the campsite with your RV. Leave something to show that the site is attended- even if it is some old ratty chair you don’t care if it gets stolen. Take a photo of your RV in the site with your site tag on the post as proof you were there first.
• DON’T be that person that thinks they can just stay for free since payment is on the honor system. Be honorable- we know you are! If you do not pay, you are committing a crime- its called theft of services. Pay for your campsite each and every night you stay.
• DON’T leave your site tag receipt on the post after you check out. This can be confusing for inbound campers looking for a site. An empty post indicates an available site.
• DON’T assume if there is a site tag that it is reserved for that specific night you want. Many times at “reservable” NPS campgrounds, the rangers/camp hosts will put advance dates onto the tags for those dates that have been reserved online and in advance for a stay a few days into the future. We have snagged some nice sites for a 1 or 2 night stay that were open when we arrived. Look at the DATES on the SITE TAGS carefully- you may get lucky! Immediately go online to book that site for your date if available. One time we found an available site, but had no cell service (on our phone) to book it. We found the camp host. Told them we were taking the site but had to set up our starlink to get signal first. This way they knew we were taking the site and plan to reserve and pay ASAP. 

An anecdotes shared by Rangers:

Coins for payments??? Nope! Rangers have told us that when they have gone to empty the Iron Rangers, they have foundpiles of coins in the bottoms. These coins were NOT for paying for a site. But rsther, thieves will drop a few coins into the slot. If they hear a “clink” of the coins-they will assume the bucket is empty and not bother to break into it and steal the $$. BUT… if they hear a dull “thunk” or no sound then they will break in, thereby assuming there is a pile of cash that created a cushioned landing for the coins. This actually has been told to us by Rangers all around the USA and is quite common!

Another one….

Would be thieves have dropped a string with chewed gum or other very sticky substance on the end into the slot and gone “fshing” to pull back up any paper money or envelopes they can snag.

And finally….

Fellow RVers have relayed stories online that people have come up to them in dispersed camping areas (BLM, USFS) and tried to collect fees from unsuspecting campers.  Even bolder ones have parked their RV near an entry point, put out a made up “CAMP HOST” SIGN and tried to role play being the camp host and collect a fee before you entered. Do your homework before arriving!

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Thank you and Safe Travels!