Here are the guidelines for courteous camping, which results in wonderful camping.

When your neighbors are happy, everyone is happy.

If we think things over, we will realize that most people go camping for the very same reasons.

Number one at the top of the list is that campers use state parks and campgrounds as a means to get away from the bustling city and harsh city noises. Knowing this and remembering this will aid you when it comes to figuring out just what a courteous camper is.

First: Contain all unnatural noises and technical noises to your very own campsite. If you must have a radio or television on, walk over to near the next campsite and see if you can hear your radio or television from that campsite. If you can hear your techno noises, news, or the radio or television from a nearby campsite then your noise level is way too high. And, most likely you are breaking the park's or campground's regulations. There is no need for anyone to blast music or news or any kind of show , in a natural setting.

Next, when you are speaking with your family or friends who are camping out with you, remember to whisper or talk very low. Use the same guidelines as you use for radio and television. If you can be heard outside of your own campsite, then you are speaking too loud and making too much noise.

Once your noises, whether they be music, television show, radio show or pet noises from your dogs and cats, reach the level where they can be heard from someone else's campsite, you are obviously breaking the campgrounds' or parks' regulations. Besides breaking the regulations, you are making your neighbors very unhappy.

Second: The second inconvenience and inconsideration is that of litter, garbage, trash and flying plastic bags and other assortments of things being plopped onto our clean campsites. During your stay at the site, pick up all litter AS SOON AS you drop it. That will save you time later on at the end of your vacation. Be considerate and if you have time, pick up litter that was left there before you came there. That will be an act of kindness that will be repaid to you.

Here's one example: Basically what goes around comes around, even at the campgrounds and state parks. A few years back I visited a state park that had the bbq grills near the picnic tables. I was disappointed to see that all the grills were dirty, some of them were soiled to the point of disgusting. There were people who left their food [corn] on the grill and just left the park permanently. Others had left their tissues around and litter on the grass. The grill that I intended to use at the campsite was covered in a mudlike substance. It had rained and all the charcoal blended in together and melted out. The result was lots of melted charcoal and charcoal dust all over the grill.

I cleaned the grill , used it during my stay, but I did something more than that. I really cleaned it out good for the next person who might be coming along. Then I went to the next empty campsite-right next to me- and cleaned their grill too.

I was cleaning and working on the basis that random acts of kindness eventually get repaid. So then I left the campsite.

Months later I returned to the camgrounds to camp out again. And, wow, yes, every grill was spotless. They had all been emptied and cleaned out.

I think that after seeing my example of leaving the grills clean, that others in the park took the hint and began cleaning their own grills out before they left the park.

So, at the end of your stay, empty the ashes and old coals into the special trash cans that the parks supply. Then clean the grills and leave behind a beautiful campsite.

Another way to be considerate is to stop leaving your cigarette butts in the camp showers. People have to clean up after you and frankly, I believe that you are old enough to do that yourself.

So the bottom line to considerate camping is mainly keeping your trash and your noise contained in your own campsite.

Other bits of consideration that all campers need to pay attention to:

Attend to all your campfires and bbqs - NEVER leave the fire unattended. That is how most fires begin -through unattended fires.

Don't pour polluted water or gray water into the grounds. Find the disposal bins for them and make sure that you don't dispose of this water in any of our lakes and streams.

When hiking, use the buddy system! Take along a buddy, that's the safe way to camp. If you have a cellular phone , bring that along too but use it only for an emergency not for just plain old personal communication.

Camping out time is not the time to experience new foods. If you do that and have a bad reaction, your stomach will remind you later that you have made a bad choice. If you want to experiment with foods, do that BEFORE you camp, like weeks before or after you come back from your camping experience.

Last but not least:

Stay on your own campsite. At most of the city campgrounds the rudeness went unchallenged when children and teens and even some adults ran through or walked through other people's campsites.

All campsites have borders, and you should not be walking on any campsite space nor should you be running through private campsites. Walk on the trails and paths only and then your neighbors will be happy that you are camping out with them.

One note: Just because you have to go to the bathroom very badly, that's NO excuse to run through someone else's campsite. Just walk in the path anyway. You'll have plenty of time to reach your destination that way .

Before you run though a persons' campsite [and remember , people PAY to keep these campsites], just imagine how you would feel if someone just opened your door and walked into your house or into your RV? Imagine how you might feel and then STOP and don't dare approach anyone else's campsite unless you are invited to by that person who registered for the campsite.

There are so many ways that you can be considerate while camping out. I've mentioned just a few , but there are hundreds of other ways. Use your imagination. Use the Golden Rule, and just keep it quiet, keep it clean and keep it private.