Vivi said:
Basically my ideal place would be somewhere I could do something along the lines of the book "Walden." Go somewhere, build my own shelter and station myself there for a while. I don't want some place with specific regulations on everything, I just want untamed, wild forest for me to go play in. Where I could make a litle hut, keep fires at night, find my own food everyday and so on. That sounds like some amazing fun, making my own temporary dwelling and reading by the fire every night under the stars.
Unfortunately, in America today nobody lives in isolation. Even if you bought yourself a little patch of woods, there's always a nosy neighbor who is willing to mind your business for you. It can be tough to find solitude, especially if you live in the more heavily populated corridors.
If a "walden" or true wilderness experience is what you want, it's too bad you don't live out west. I believe that the most rugged and unregulated experience you can find in the lower 48 are
BLM lands. Basically, go west of the Mississippi. Take all the towns, cities, and farms and set them aside. Throw all the county, state, and national parks into the same pile. Kick in the odd federal monument or two. Throw in the national forests (which are quite large). What's left over are the BLM lands. They manage 261 million surface acres in
12 western states.
The rules for land usage in the BLM lands vary from location to location, but I've found that if you follow the simple rule, "Don't be an asshole" you get left alone. Basically, you have to avoid polluting the place and burning it down. If bringing guns in, make sure they're registered to you. Don't carry a gun without a hunting license in hunting season. Don't kill things out of season. Don't fish without a license. Pack your garbage out. And so on and so forth.
What you
won't find in the BLM lands are a lot of pre-designated camping grounds and noise rules. If someone's making too much noise, just pick yourself up and move a few miles away.
Of course, you also won't find a lot of law enforcement out there waiting to take care of you. Make sure you know what you're getting into before you go chill in a particular area. Get good maps, ask around locally about conditions in the lands, and be aware that there are other people out there looking for a wilderness experience that may not be the same as yours. It sucks to go hiking and run into a lot of 4-wheelers tearing the trails up, but there you have it. (Actually, some areas may restrict certain usages. I don't think that hiking and camping is ever restricted, but you should always check into local rules before heading out).
Also, remember that during the summer months, most of the west is put on a fire lockdown. No open campfires allowed, period. The entire west turns into one giant tinder pile come June or July or thereabouts. So if you want to enjoy fish over an open campfire, you might want to head down into Appalachian trail country, or up into the upper midwest or someplace like that.
Note that the BLM lands really are what's left over. Basically, it's what no one else wanted to use. There's cattle being run on some of this, and some mining and so forth, but the reality of it is the BLM lands may not be the "prettiest" experience you can hope for. If you want something a little more regulated but also a little more scenic, look for national forests. After that comes national parks, then state parks, then national monuments, then county parks.
But it's all good, depending on what you want to do. For example, I'll be spending my outdoors time this year in mostly county parks, with an occaisonal national monument and state park thrown in. Why? Well, because they're close, cheap, and reasonably easy for novices to handle. My kids are 5 and 7 this year, and they have to start somewhere.
Sorry for rambling. I think it's been too long since I've gotten away from town....
