This article courtesy of The Arizona Daily Sun.
Written by Cyndy Cole, Sun Staff Reporter. First posted Tuesday, August 9, 2011 at 9:00 am on http://azdailysun.com.
To find campers living in the forest, just go to the outskirts of cities like Flagstaff and Prescott.
The proximity makes it convenient for people living in their RVs to reach jobs, groceries or doctor appointments, or to pick up mail they’ve forwarded to a post office.
The camping areas are well-known by forest rangers.
“Little communities develop where these people group together,” said Jon Nelson, patrol captain for the Coconino, Kaibab and Prescott national forests.
This year, the Kaibab has seen a lot of people living in their motorhomes or trailers year-round, Nelson said.
“It seems this year we’ve received more complaints on the Kaibab from other campers and from our employees,” Nelson said.
Technically, it’s illegal to live in the forest for even a day, whether in a motorhome, a camp trailer or a tent.
“It doesn’t matter how many days you stay on the national forest — you can’t use it for residential use,” Nelson said.
