Have you ever wondered what it's like being a campground host? RVer Kathy Belge loves it! She spent an entire season being a volunteer campground host around Oregon, and tells us all about and why she recommends campground hosting.
Kathy's Links:
Podcast host and writer Kathy Belge encourages women to live out their travel dreams by sharing stories, tips and advice from solo women travelers at
Episode 4 of The Wayward Home Podcast about Workamping: https://www.thewaywardhome.com/workamping-jobs/
Links and Resources
Connect with Kristin Hanes and The Wayward Home!
Have you ever wondered what it's like being a campground host? RVer Kathy Belge loves it! She spent an entire season being a volunteer campground host around Oregon, and tells us all about and why she recommends campground hosting.
Kathy's Links:
Podcast host and writer Kathy Belge encourages women to live out their travel dreams by sharing stories, tips and advice from solo women travelers at
Episode 4 of The Wayward Home Podcast about Workamping: https://www.thewaywardhome.com/workamping-jobs/
Links and Resources
Connect with Kristin Hanes and The Wayward Home!
Are you curious about what it's like being a campground host? In this episode of the Wayward Home Podcast, I'm talking to an RVer who spent an entire season camp hosting. She'll tell you all about it coming up. Let's go. Welcome to the Wayward Home Podcast, all about Van Life, boat life, and Nomadic Living.
We'll bring you tips, interviews, and stories from the road and on the water. Now, here's
your host, Kristen Haines. Hi there. I'm Kristen Hanes, publisher@thewaywardhome.com, and I spend half the year in my DIY sprinter van and half on my sailboat in Mexico. And my goal is to help you live Nomadically too.
So today we're talking about camp hosting with podcast host and writer Kathy Belge. Kathy is a solo Arve who lives with her cat on the road. Kathy encourages women to live out their travel dreams by sharing stories, tips, and advice on solo women rv.com. Kathy, thanks so much for joining us today. So glad you're here.
Yeah. Thank you. It's great to, to make this connection. Totally.
So first of all, tell us a little bit about, um, why you started out RV in the first place.
What's your story? Yeah, okay. Well, first of all, I'm not full-time, so didn't want to give that impression. But, um, you know what, RVing, I've, I've been a lifelong traveler.
Um, when I was 20 years old, I walked across the United States, which is a whole different story, but, um, I've always wanted to travel and experience things and see things. And RVing had been a dream of mine for years, and then I had camped for years. I love being outdoors. It's, it's my sanctuary. It's where I go to find peace and, and, uh, it's like my church.
So, um, want it for years and years to do RVing and, um, I think maybe like a lot of people, I was in a relationship with somebody who wasn't that into it. Um, and then when we broke up, then I was like, oh, you know, I need somebody to go with or whatever. You know, you get those thoughts in your head and then I don't even know what it was, but one day it just kind of clicked for me as like, Hey, you know, you can do this on your own.
You don't need a partner and. From there, I just started taking the steps to make it happen. Very cool.
And so how much time do you spend on the road as opposed to, to being
at home? You know, it varies, but, um, I, so I've been doing this for about four years now. This year I just got back from, I think I was out six months last year.
I came home earlier than I had planned because I had a dog who was, who, uh, was getting too old to travel. So I ended up coming off the road. . And then I think the year before that again, it was like six months. So I try to spend like six. My goal is six to eight months. Uh, this year I'm off a little early again because I broke my foot.
So, uh, yeah, I'm back home in my house recovering from a broken foot.
Bummer. It took you out of it earlier than normal. That's a bummer. Always something unexpected,
huh? Yeah, . I mean, especially when you're traveling solo and you had to figure out, I had to figure out how to get back in my rv, so it was a whole, a whole, a whole other story.
We won't get into that right now.
Yeah. So you travel alone, um, with your cat, and what were some of the difficulties of when you started out alone? Were there any difficulties or did you just kind of, once you made the decision, you just
jumped right into it? I mean, I think there were difficulties. I think you tend to forget them as you, you know, kind of get into this.
But, uh, I think a lot of the things like everyone, like not sure where to go, where to camp. even like how the different components of the RV work. I remember my very first time going to dump my, um, black tank and I was at a campground. and you know, I had watched all the videos online, how to dump, and then when I go to do it, I, you know, I know the directions.
First, you pull the gray and let you know, or first you pull the black, then you pull the gray, and I could only find one lever down there. And I just was so confounded, I didn't know what was going on. Well, it turns out in my rv, the black and gray were combined and I needed a fellow RV or to come over and.
Help me figure that out. So I think, uh, that was one of my first lessons was not just how to dump my tanks, but just the community that's out here. And I really came home from that first trip feeling like, oh my God, I am part of this new community now. This new subculture, a adventurers, RVers, travelers.
And we do, we're out here and we support one. So that was wonderful. Oh, what a cool
thing to, to find out when you're, you're on the road for the first time. That is so, that's so neat. So, , tell us a little bit about like why you started, um, camp hosting, um, and how long have you
been doing that? Oh, yeah, that's a great story.
So, um, after I started RVing, I had my RV for about a year. I started making plans to quit my job and go on the road full-time or for extended period of time. And, uh, so happens that the day I quit my job was March 13th, 2020, which, uh, as you know, was the day everything shut down. So, um, I had to pivot what my plans were and I didn't know what I was going to do.
and one day it just kind of came to me that I felt this was during the pandemic, so much was closed down. I felt like maybe I could stay closer to home and one way to do that would be to be a camp host for Oregon. And I come from Oregon. We live in a beautiful state. I know you spent some time in Oregon as well.
Um, and so I decided that I would look into becoming a campground. So that that was how it all started. And the truth is, I have a background in customer service. I travel solo, but I'm a very social person. I'm an extrovert. I like being around people. And so this felt like it would be a really great match for.
For me and my skillset, so,
oh, cool. So your first campground hosting gig, how long did you stay at that particular campground?
So one of the things that I like about hosting as a volunteer and in Oregon is that the gigs are for 30 days, so therefore a month. So you get enough time to spend in one location and get to know it, but also you're.
Stuck somewhere for like a whole season. Um, as a traveler, that really appeals to me because I get to dive into a
community,
get to know it a little bit, get to explore all around there from a home base and, um, yeah, and just. . Yeah. That's one of the things I love about being a volunteer as opposed to a paid camp post position where usually they want you to be somewhere for the whole
season.
Right. That's what I was wondering. And a season is usually about six months, right?
I'm gonna guess I haven't done that yet. , so I'm not sure. So I can speak strictly to being a
volunteer. Totally. Yeah. I think that that's something that hold people back is that they have to stay for so long, and it's neat that you have found something where you stay just 30 days.
So if someone's interested in that, how, how do you find those types of opportunities or how did you do that?
Yeah, I think, um, I just started researching online, I think where everything starts. , I started looking into, there was a, a county park that I had stayed at that I had really enjoyed and I reached out to them and then in the process of that to start looking into Oregon State Parks.
And, um, you know, it was quite a process. You have to go online, you have to do an application, they do a background check. Um, there's certain criteria you have to have in order to even qualify. . Um, and I also think one of the things that happened for me is I kind of lucked out because I got into the process sort of late in the year.
I didn't start looking into this I don't think, until about April of 2020. Um, some camp hosts had had pulled out because of the pandemic and they weren't gonna be able to make it up. The campgrounds in Oregon, cuz people come from all over the country to host in Oregon. They love hosting here. It's not just people from Oregon who host so.
if you're thinking of posting, don't think that you have to be restricted to the state where you are domicile. That doesn't have to happen. Um, but some people had pulled out because they couldn't make it. And so I was able to not just get a site, but get one of the premier site. In all of, you know, what I consider one of the premier hosting positions in all of Oregon, which is, um, at Wwa Lake State Park out in, out near the town of Joseph, which is in eastern Oregon, and the WLA Mountains, which is just spectacular, beautiful, beautiful area.
And I was, it was, it was wonderful. And so from there I kind of got hooked from that first position. I got hooked and. Hosting. Um, I try to start out every travel season with a month long hosting gig so that I can, um, just kind of get, you know, in the groove of things. Um, it's a great way to get a free month also of paid a paid, not paid, you know, you're not paid, but a free site for a.
Yeah, I
was gonna ask you about that. What were some of the perks, and does that include like your hookups and everything and or what is, what's included with, with your volunteer
hosting? So it, it does depend on the actual campground, and most of the ones in Oregon do have full hookup sites for the hosts.
Um, most of them, like some of them have laundry as well. , they, they don't provide propane, but they do provide water and electric in a site. And, um, some of the, most of the sites have good cell phone service. A couple of the ones that don't. They might provide you with wifi, but that's not always guaranteed.
So that something so much should definitely look into before accepting hosting gig is what the cell signal is in that particular location. . Yeah,
that's a really good tip because you don't wanna be somewhere for a month if you have to work online or, or be online. That'd be challenging, huh? ?
That, that was the hardest part for me.
Actually, the, the first year that I was out at Willow Lake, there wasn't cell reception out there. At least not for my carrier. And, um, since then, I've, I've broadened my scope of internet connection, but, that first year, that was definitely the most challenging part for me to drive six miles to get, uh, cell phone service.
Oh my gosh. And did you have to go do that every day?
No, I wasn't at that point, I didn't have an online job or anything, so I didn't need to connect every day.
That's good. So, yeah. So at that park or some of your other parks too, what, what are some of the duties that are required of, of this type of campground?
Host a volunteer. .
Yeah, so it kind of, again, it varies on where you end up and also what time of year. I discovered that because the first time I hosted out at w Laua Lake was, was in June and July, and then the next time I was there was this year in May, and so in May out there, it was still covered in snow and we had snow almost every day.
So primarily what we were doing in May was clearing out. The sites to get them ready to be ready for the campers when the snow cleared. Um, but primarily, and that's, I guess that's not necessarily my typical experience. My typical experience has been more, you're really a point of contact for the campers.
That's your primary duty, is to welcome the campers, greet them that they have questions, sell them firewood, um, just kind of be the, you know, The face, I guess, of the state parks because they really don't have enough staff, so they really rely on these volunteer hosts. Um, but then the other thing you do is a lot of litter pickup.
Every time, uh, somebody vacates a campsite, you would go in and, and just cl clean it out and get it ready for the next camper to come in. Um, and then did I say selling firewood? That's another thing. that is part of the duty duty. So it's, it's depending on where you are, it can be, they say, they say you should put in four hours a day, five days a week.
And I've found in my experience that usually it's less than that because you can get your duties done. Oh, and I do wanna add, especially in Oregon, there's no restroom cleaning. I know that's one thing that maybe a lot of people. Concerned about is uh, am I gonna have to clean bathrooms? So in this Oregon State Park system, no, that's something that the
Rangers do.
Yeah, that was definitely something I was going to ask you cuz when I was reading, I think I was reading the book Nomad Land, which some the people have read and they were definitely cleaning bathrooms and doing more of the icky labor. So that's good to hear that you don't have to do that in
Oregon.
Yeah, I think if, maybe if you're doing a. Camp hosting. That would probably be expected, but not for the volunteers.
Oh, that's so cool. And do you also, did I forget if you mentioned, do you have to also deal with checking people in and helping people with with that, or is that more of a ranger that
does that?
Yeah, actually that was one of the frustrating things is that we didn't have access to the registration system. So I know for me there were times when. people would show up, and especially for me, my heart would go out, it'd be like solo women showing up, like, you know, eight o'clock at night and we're full.
And, um, me not really having access to looking to see like who didn't show up or that kind of stuff. So that, yeah, that was something that we don't necessarily, we have, we have a list that they give us of who's checking in that day and who's checking. But we don't have access to the actual online system to see, oh, did somebody cancel?
Or whatever. So that's more of the Rangers.
I see. Oh, that's kind of a bummer to have to turn people away when maybe they could have found a spot that night, huh? ?
Well, yeah, and actually that was one of the most frustrating parts for me and e and especially during Covid, um, because things were so short staffed and just, I think Covid protocols.
Some of the parks were not taking walk-ins at all. You had to have a reservation. So even if there was an opening, sometimes we couldn't let someone take it. Now I know that a lot of those that has changed now, nor back to more normal with, with everything. But that was super hard for me to turn someone away when I knew there was probably an opening.
Yeah, that's
challenging. Um, so what were some of your favorite things about hosting? So,
a couple things. One is just meeting the other campers and, um, greeting people as they come. You know, these, the unexpected connections that just happen, chatting with people who are out camping. But I think the other thing, and the big thing is meeting the, making friends with and community with the other hosts.
So normally you're not the only one at a campground. There's usually other hosts there, and depending on the size of the. Maybe, you know, multiple hosts. So, um, for example, last summer when I was hosting out at Silver Falls. State Park. There was just such a great community there. There was a, it's a huge park.
There's a lot of hosts and they have this little host community, and almost every night there would be a campfire and you just go hang out and be social and really make connections with other people and you, and that's also a way that you find out, oh, where are you going next? And talking about some of the other hosting.
uh, other opportunities to host in Oregon or o or even other places. And also just talking to how pe some of, a lot of the people who host are full-timers. I'm not, but a lot of them are. And so just learning from full-timers how they, how they, you know, plan their lives on the road and, and that kind of stuff.
Yeah, that's, those are some of the things that I love the most.
Yeah. So it sounds like it could be a really neat opportunity for someone traveling solo who does wanna find friendship and connection. Uh, would you recommend that to people who are looking for that
community? A hundred percent. A hundred percent.
Without a doubt. And it's spent, and especially, you know, um, the, the other thing that I've appreciated is, , and this is true for camping altogether, but especially when you're hosting with, with people there, uh, there, there have been times where I've been hosting. with people who I would never have met in any other circumstances.
People who are very, very different from me with very different political leanings and whatnot. And we find that place that to connect and and form friendship. And I think that that is so lacking right now in our country that is so divided politically. And I feel like this is one place. Um, we can sort of bridge those gaps and that's something that's very important to me.
That's one of the reasons why I like to travel, is I want to get out there and meet people who are different from me. I don't want to just be in my little bubble of people who think like me. So, um, that part I really enjoy as well. Yeah.
And you're bonding over something you love, you know, camping and nature and hiking and the outdoors and meeting people, so that's really neat to bring people together in that way, I
think.
Yeah. And then I guess another thing that I, I do, that I did love was just being in a place. For a while and then being able to just go out and explore everything that was around there and learning about the different communities and learning about the different, um, nature areas around where I'm hosting, because these state parks usually are in places where there is other.
Things to do and see, not just like within the park itself, and a lot of the parks themselves are amazing, but to then go out and explore, like especially out there in eastern Oregon where I just, every, every day off I was off exploring different places. Yeah,
that's definitely a huge benefit and there's so many beautiful places to see in, in the country and in Oregon.
Um, did you ever have any like weird experiences as a camp ground?
Oh sure, of course, . And that's why community's great. Um, I do remember there was one point where we had this, um, couple, and they were from Texas. I don't know if that's important or not. They were in a huge class arv, and they came up and they were very upset because there were ants in their campsite and they demanded to be moved to another campsite because there were ants there.
And so, thought that was amusing. So, um, some people are better suited for RV parks, I think than than state Parks . Um,
totally. And that's really hilarious cuz you expect you're gonna see an insect when you're in nature camping. . Yeah.
Yeah. It reminds me of those, um, national, those national park t-shirts that they sell that was like, it was nice, but there was too many bugs, you know.
Yeah, so anyway, that was one, that was one experience that I, I definitely remember just being kind of weird .
Totally. But I'm guessing most of your experiences are, are pretty positive, right?
Yeah. You know, you just have to have the right mindset. I think when people show up to. A campground, you have to remember this is their vacation and this might be the only vacation that they have for the summer.
And so you wanna make sure that what you can, you know, if there's something you can do for them, that you do do that. That if they end up in a site where you know, the water's not working, like let's get the water fixed so that they can enjoy their time or you know, whatever it is. So, . Yeah.
Yeah. I think about that a lot too.
When I'm in a campground, I don't go on campgrounds very often, but I think about it and I'm like, wow. A lot of these people just, these are their few days off where I feel lucky that this is my seventh month of camping so far this year before we go to our sailboat, and I'm like, gosh, that's so lucky. I feel so thankful all the time.
You know where you were saying that? It's just that's their vacation. It's a few days, so it's something to be reminded
of. , right?
Yeah. Absolut. Yeah. So if someone was going to, to do this, you said you did some research online and um, so how do you recommend someone go about finding these in their particular area or a
particular state?
Yeah, I would just go ahead and Google like, um, state Park campground host. , put the name of the state in and see what, what the requirements are. I know there are groups out there, like for example, in Oregon we also have a Facebook group for hosts. So now that I'm in the system, I'm on an email list where they send out alerts when there's openings.
And also I'm in this Facebook group where, people talk about the experiences they're having at the different parks and whatnot, so I don't know if those kinds of Facebook groups are open to people who are not currently hosting, but that might be a place to start, is to look for Facebook groups to get information.
I ended up, uh, when I, before I started, it just happened a coincidence that somebody that I knew was also a campground host, and so she gave. , I was able to get on the phone with her and talk with her a bit about it before I actually went and had my first experience to know that this would be a good fit for me.
You know, I wasn't a hundred percent sure before I started and, and that's the other good thing about it is if you do wanna give something like this a shot, if it's only a month long, like if it's not the best fit for you, well that's only a month of your life. It's not like you've made the six months commitment.
but, um, as
Yeah, that's so true. It's
good to keep in mind. Yeah. But as far as, you know, finding out just to do research and see what the requirements are, see if you meet the requirements, um, you know, a lot of times, um, they, there is some physical abilities that you need to have. But actually this friend of mine I was talking about, um, her partner is in a wheelchair and they host together.
And as a matter of fact, they just won the award for you. Best campground hosts of 2021 or whatever. So, uh, just because you have physical, a physical disability doesn't necessarily mean that you can't do this as well.
Very cool. That's a great thing you pointed out cause I was going to ask that before. So thanks for addressing that.
Um, so with your plans, what, what are you gonna do next? Are you gonna stay in Oregon? Are you gonna seek out other states or what's, what's your, your plan?
Yeah, that's a really great, uh, question. Uh, I don't know right now, like I said, I'm, I'm back in my home. I'm recovering from a broken foot. I was planning to head back out in January, but now it looks like my recovery is gonna take a little longer than.
So, um, I travel in a 23 year old class B rv and, um, I've had a lot of breakdowns and whatnot, so actually I'm looking to get something newer before I head back out. . So I'll probably be heading back out in the spring and maybe sooner depending on how my healing and my purchasing process goes. But actually I'm looking into a paid host position this year considering doing actually a paid host position where I would be in one place for longer.
Um, just kind of weighing my options right now, seeing. Well, you know what? Yeah. What? I'm not sure, I'm not a hundred percent sure. That's one of the things I like about this lifestyle is that you don't have to decide, you know, like you can kind of wing it a little bit.
Oh, for sure. Yeah. When everybody asks what our plans are, that's always a hard question to answer.
I'm like, here's a rough draft, my plans. But they can change in the heartbeat. . Yeah.
Right. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm looking into, uh, a position here in Oregon. And, or maybe, but then I'm, you know, that's appealing in a lot of ways because it's a paid position, but then it also restricts me from traveling the way that I've wanted to travel.
So, we'll see. Oh, I was just gonna say, and, but I will keep doing my podcast and keep doing the blog regardless of where I end up.
I
wanted to ask you about that. Tell us about your, your podcast and your blog.
Okay.
So I started my blog when I first started traveling and I named my RV Squeaky. So I was calling this, uh, adventure Travels was squeaky and was just kind of blogging about my experiences.
But at some point, and it may have been actually after hearing you speak Kristen, at a summit, I decided to try to take this more seriously and try to turn it into, uh, more. Uh, a thing that could potentially earn me an income. So, um, but I started the podcast primarily because I'm a podcast listener. I love listening to podcasts, and when I was starting out on this journey, I listened to a lot of RV podcasts and I didn't find any.
That were speaking specifically to my experience as a solo woman. There are, you know, different considerations for people traveling solo and especially for women traveling solo. And there are a lot of us out here. So I decided, well, I have a degree in journalism, I can do this. And I just jumped in and decided it doesn't have to be perfect.
Um, what's most important is the stories that we're telling. And so I started the Solo Woman RV podcast and then I eventually changed the name of my blog to, uh, solo Women rv also, uh, because I just wanna be a resource for other women who are out there who. Who maybe want to jump into this journey or maybe who are on this journey and feeling like they want community and want to connect with others like them.
So that is a little bit about why I started both of those
things. That's awesome. So of course we'll put a link to both, uh, your podcast and your website down in the show notes so people can find you. Um, it sounds like a great resource for not only just women, but for people traveling in RVs. And I think that's fantastic and I'm really looking forward to seeing where you go next after your foothills.
Yeah, . Thank you .
And one more question I had to ask. What type of RV are you looking for?
Oh, actually I'm looking for a newer Class B and right now the one that is appealing to me is a Truvado, the Winnebago Truvado the thing, uh, you know, everybody has the thing that they're looking for in their rv and for me it's very important that I have a dedicated workspace because I do write and produce a podcast on the road.
And so a lot of Class Bs, you either have a bed. A, uh, workspace. And so this one you could have both kind of at the same time. So that is one of the ones that I'm looking at, but, um, haven't made a decision yet. Cool. That's
so exciting. Um, yeah, thanks for coming on and talking to us about camp hosting.
Hopefully will inspire some people to get out there and give it a try. I love the idea of the free hosting. That's such a neat, you know, the volunteer hosting that sounds like a, a really neat way to do it. So thank you for sharing
everything you know so far. Thanks for having me on, Kristen, this has been wonderful.
Well, thanks so
much for joining me. On episode 18 of The Wayward Home Podcast, you'll find links to Kathy's podcast and website in the. If you want to learn more about campground hosting and other types of work camping jobs, go back and listen to episode four of The Wayward Home Podcast, where I talk with seasoned work camper, Cherri Collier, who even worked at Amazon Camper Force, will join me next time on the podcast and have a great week.