Introduction
Among long-distance hikers, the phrase stealth camping is often used colloquially to describe camping outside of designated sites – usually without a permit, or just off-trail to avoid campground fees, rangers, or crowds. In this sense, “stealth” implies informality or discretion in site selection rather than genuine concealment. Most of these sites are not hidden at all; they are frequently visible from trails and close to water sources and other high-use corridors. On heavily traveled long-distance routes, such as the Appalachian Trail or the John Muir Trail, this practice has contributed to the proliferation of unofficial campsites. The effect has been amplified by GPS-based navigation platforms (e.g., FarOut) and social information-sharing, which catalogue and distribute the locations of these informal sites. The result is increasing ecological pressure on narrow trail corridors where soils, vegetation, and water resources were never intended to absorb concentrated, repeated camping use.
Such impact is easily noticeable in my local hiking areas. Along the Continental Divide Trail in the Never Summer Wilderness near Grand Lake, Colorado, I counted more than forty individual campsites impacted by shelter pitches and trampling in a single five-mile trail corridor. All campsites were within twenty yards of the trail, and all of them were easily visible by a passing hiker.
In this article, I describe a different type of stealth camping, with the aim of increasing awareness about the problematic practice of stealth camping as it is often practiced by long-distance hikers, versus stealth camping as a practice that minimizes ecological and social impact. Here, stealth camping is not about skirting regulations or saving money; it is about the technical discipline of becoming invisible in a landscape. This version of stealth is rooted in fieldcraft: the deliberate use of terrain, light, sound, and behavioral discipline to reduce detection probability to near zero. The differences here are notable: one is convenience camping under a euphemism; the other is a practiced skill with roots in scouting, military reconnaissance, and minimalist wilderness travel.
This article is about the latter – the art of not being seen.
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Terrain and Site Selection
The foundation of concealment lies in terrain analysis. Landscape morphology determines whether a shelter blends seamlessly into its surroundings or stands out as an anomaly. Flat, open, or linear features (e.g., trails, meadows, ridgelines, and shorelines) are intrinsically high-visibility environments. These locations channel human movement, concentrate sightlines, and offer little background disruption. A tent pitched in such a setting becomes a landmark!
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