Outdoor recreational use tends to be concentrated around recrea- 

 tional facilities. 



tionai values of forest and range lands. More 

 recently, recreational home development has been 

 mostly limited to private lands. At the present time, 

 an estimated 10 percent of all households in the 

 United States own recreational property. ^o 



Sites on public lands are developed with facilities 

 because of their specific capabilities, such as scenic 

 values, or to permit uses otherwise unavailable be- 

 cause of fire hazards or fragile environments. Some 

 sites, such as campgrounds and picnic areas, provide 

 services like safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, 

 and other conveniences which are necessary for main- 

 taining some recreation opportunities. 



Sites may also be developed on public lands at a 

 central location, such as a visitor center, in order to 

 inform and to educate visitors. For many people, vis- 

 itor centers, with the associated interpretive services, 

 are an important part of the outdoor recreational ex- 

 perience. Over 500 such centers are now located on 

 Federal lands. These facilities are often concentrated 

 in areas of especially high use and help to orient visi- 

 tors to recreational opportunities, to interpret the 

 national and cultural history of the area, and to 

 develop an appreciation for the basic ecology, man- 

 agement, use, and protection of the Nation's forest 

 and range lands. In so doing, interpretive services 

 fulfill an important role by encouraging user self- 

 regulation while enriching the recreational experience. 



The nature of developed recreational sites is such 

 that a number of opportunities may be available 



which induce entrepreneurs to provide services on 

 either public or private lands. Because developed and 

 dispersed recreational activities are often complemen- 

 tary, such site development can contribute to the 

 availability of a wide range of recreational opportuni- 

 ties, which, in turn, can promote a private operation's 

 success. For example, campgrounds may serve as a 

 focal point for the placement of trail heads or visitor 

 centers as well as a prime area for rest and relaxation. 



Large numbers of developed outdoor recreation 

 areas appear throughout the United States. For 

 instance, there were 15,852 campgrounds listed in the 

 Rand McNally directory in 197731 (table 3.8). The 

 private sector supplies a majority of the campgrounds 

 in the North and South, while a majority of the 

 campgrounds in the Rocky Mountains and Great 

 Plains and Pacific Coast States are public. In the 

 public sector, the Forest Service supplied 43 percent 

 of the campgrounds; States, 26 percent; local govern- 

 ments, 10 percent; and the National Park Service, 

 5 percent. 



Generally, public campgrounds have placed greater 

 emphasis on scenic and other qualities of the natural 

 environment, while private campgrounds tend to 

 provide more convenience facilities. This situation is 

 reflected in 1977 Woodall statistics which indicate 

 that three-fourths or more of all private campsites 

 had electricity and water." By comparison, less than 

 one-fourth of the public sites had electricity, and one 

 in ten had water at each site. The basic camp site fee 

 at private campgrounds averaged $4.60 in 1977, while 

 the fee at public campgrounds averaged $3.22." 



These campgrounds may accommodate either tents 

 or recreational vehicles or both. The tent has been the 

 traditional shelter for many years, but, by 1976, the 

 use of recreational vehicles had surpassed that of 

 tents. Nonetheless, there are some indications from 

 recent surveys that tents may be regaining their 

 former popularity. 3'' The tent camper generally 

 requires a site offering flat ground, water, sanitary 

 facilities, tables, and fireplaces. By comparison, 

 recreational vehicles require a level place to park, 

 facilities for depositing wastes and refilling with fuel 

 and water, and usually an electrical hookup. Camp- 

 sites usually cost in the range of $2,500 to $10,000. 



'"Ragatz, R. L. Private seasonal-recreational property devel- 

 opment and its relationship to forest management and public use 

 of forest lands. Unpublished report for the Southeastern Forest 

 Experiment Station. 301 p. 1978. 



31 Rand McNally and Company. Rand McNally campground 

 and trailer park guide. Editors' annual. Chicago, 111. 1973 and 

 1977. 



"Woodall Publishing Company. Woodall's campground direc- 

 tory, 1977. North American edition. Highland Park, 111. 1977. 



33 Rand McNally campground and trailer park guide, op. cii. 



3" Kottke, M. W., and M. I. Bevins, G. L. Cole, K. J. Hock, and 

 W. F. LaPage. Analysis of the campground market in the North- 

 east, report III: A prospective on the camping-involvement cycle, 

 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, NE Forest Experi- 

 ment Station, Upper Darby, Pa. Research paper NE-322. 1975. 



85 



