Plan to camp/survive in the Nevada desert for 365 days

I don't get why your plan is much different than just moving to, and living in Rachel. Rachel is about 28 miles from Area 51, whereas Campfire Hill is about 13 miles. I doubt you'll see anything at Campfire Hill that couldn't be observed from Rachel. Unless your plan is to be constantly harassed, day and night, by the cammo dudes.

FURTHERMORE - you do realize that there IS winter in Nevada, right? I have video's on Youtube, and many people see the snow and refuse to believe it is the Nevada desert. I have camped there in both March and October, in LOVELY sub-zero conditions.

reply to post by weavty1


The only problem with camping "year-round" on public lands is locations. You are only allowed to camp in one spot for 14 days. After the 14 days you have to move your camp 5 miles to a new location to "restart" the 14 days.

Good luck tho!

You are not living in the RV. You are a traveler. You spend no more time in one spot than two weeks. The BLM has the final ruling here since federal law trumps the county law.

Note than the county line is around Queen City summit. You can shuttle between Nye and Lincoln county.

I don't think you would learn much living in Rachel. Better to a get a job as a ranch hand with Steve Medlin.

A person may not occupy undeveloped public lands or designated sites or areas for more than 14 days within a 28 consecutive day period. Following the 14 days, a person and their personal property must relocate to a site outside of at least a 25 mile radius from the occupied site for a period of 14 days. An occupancy limitation rule was established to reduce user conflicts caused by long-term occupancy that may hamper reasonable opportunities for other members of the public to camp in or use the same area. Additionally, long-term occupancy can result in vegetation trampling, erosion, wildlife disruption and improper waste disposal. BLM established occupancy limits for camping with the publication of a notice in the Federal Register on Oct. 5, 1993

from
www.blm.gov...

Well I learned something myself in your little planning adventure. I knew about the 14 day limit, but not the 25 mile rule. Still the Nellis range is so big, you could keep moving around on just the east side of the range (the more primitive area) by ping-ponging 25 miles. If you take into account the length of roads, you could probably stay in view of the front gate just by going up and down Groom Lake road, with maybe a little bit of a zag to get to the 25 mile limit. I'd still suggest crossing the county line periodically, just to avoid being on the wrong side of the very corrupt Lincoln County Sheriff Department. [Nobody in Rachel calls the cops. They take care of business themselves.]

Getting gas in the area is a problem since the one gas station in Rachel is shut down and will probably never be opened again. [The story I got from the locals was a permit had expired and now it would cost serious money to start the station up again. Had the owner never stopped selling gas, it would have been a different story. Some sort of grandfathering clause.] If you are parked most of the time, your supply person can give you enough gas to keep you hopping.

This sounds like a dream I have always had, camping out at/near Area 51 for an extended period. I have spent a couple of days with my holiday trailer there, once at the mailbox and another time at the Coyote Summit spot, but never more than a few days.

But an extended excursion is what I have always dreamed of. My thoughts were of a medium-sized motorhome, towing something like a small 4WD Suzuki "jeep" behind it. Use the Suzuki to run the 32 miles from Campfire Hill into the gas station at Ash Springs, to get jerry cans of gas, not sure if they have propane there, I believe I remember seeing a tank there. Gonna have to dump the grey and black tanks in the motorhome eventually anyways. Another 7 miles further to Alamo regardless, grocery store.

I would build an observation platform on the roof, also for radio antenna and satellite internet. The Suzuki would be used for exploration of the border, border crossings, etc.

It is about 30 miles from Campfire Hill to Coyote Summit - you could do a 14 day rotation between the two points.

reply to post by FosterVS


Coyote Summit isn't a very good place to watch the base. Of course the good news is the base can't watch you from Bald Mountain at the summit. It is a good place to watch Red Flag.

The camo dudes do rounds down the ET Highway. They would probably log a trailer being present on Coyote Summit, but not bother the occupant if far enough off road. At some distance from the border, they are obligated to get your license plate.

I've had a visit by the game warden (or person claiming to be the game warden) at Coyote Summit, allegedly to insure I wasn't doing any hunting. Well as in killing game. The BLM ranger does a daily trip through the area, often eating lunch in Alamo. I suspect the ranger just logs what he can see from the road, though I did meet the ranger once near the front gate border. I think the ranger wouldn't bother anyone provided the vehicle hasn't exceeded the 14 day limit.

A winter in a tent around the range will get old fast. The condensation from your breath will coat the inside of the tent. I found this out camping out on Tikaboo once in November, i.e. after the Nellis airshow. Everything was wet. Even my scanners. In the winter, it can be tough to dig a hole in the ground for ...well you know.

Tempiute has some nice views of the airspace over the range. For whatever reason, it is not popular with the range visitors.

Technically most of the parking area at the Power Line Overlook is declared wilderness. That means you can't drive on it. From time to time a sign shows up indicating the limit. You need 4WD anyway to get up there. That was why I suggested the 4WD Sprinter.

It occurred to me that a tent would never survive a desert wind storm. In Alamo, you see a lot of metal roofs simply to take the wind. I've seen water tanks blown over when the wind acts up.