Camping for conservation

Whether offering a primitive backcountry campsite or a high-end glamping experience, land trusts have many opportunities to incorporate camping into their programming.

If you are considering doing this, it is essential to remember that the balance sheet on camping facilities should reflect the triple bottom line ethic of providing benefit to investors (land trust members and donors) through returns via social, environmental and financial channels.

• Social: Campground operations must balance the protection of natural resources with public access. To maintain proper balance, land trusts should engage the local community. The social bottom line is different for each land trust, depending on size, location, target audience and local population.
• Environmental: Campgrounds can showcase the environmental stewardship values of the land trust. "Campgrounds are great drivers of public support for our work," says American Prairie Reserve's director of public access and recreation, Mike Quist Kautz. At the same time, John Svahn, associate director of Truckee Donner Land Trust, says, "Recreation is in our mission, but the question remains: 'How do we manage access while ensuring that our resources are protected?' There is never a time when we don't look toward the public for reference, and we feel that we have balanced environmental needs with public access."
• Financial: As a part of the growing ecotourism industry, land trusts investing in camping facilities should follow trends in campground management, attend trade shows, upgrade online and social media profiles and track and analyze visitor metrics.

As with any long-term endeavor, there are costs that must be recouped to sustain operations. Property taxes, online reservations systems, insurance, fuel, infrastructure, marketing and facility upgrades are some of the line items that must be considered, along with staff time. Packaging the campground projects into capital campaigns is a tried and true method of providing for future operating costs.

Chris Ward, director of business operations at Trustees of Reservations, says, "Understand what it takes, find the model that works best for your organization and take care with your planning. When done well, it is an awesome experience."

See the full article in the Winter 2020 issue of Saving Land.

Anne Sundermann is a freelance writer and former executive director of Calvert Nature Society.