The Complete Book of Boondock RVing: Camping Off the Beaten Path

I bought this book to learn more about how to boondock. Most of the suggestions were things I already knew. More than half of the book is devoted to the electrical system -- batteries, solar panels, inverters, wind generators, etc. (The author must have a strong interest in this subject.) If you are interested in this subject and are a newcommer, the book will be helpful. My own experience has been that even though I have solar panels at my home, when camping, you usually want to park in the shade under trees. While driving, your alternator does the charging. Also, as another reviewer mentioned, the list of boondocking locations was very minimal.

This is a good book for the basics of "Boondocking", RV camping away from hook-ups, but it is not complete. The author goes into great detail about electrical systems, which is important as ample electricity is a key, but he glosses over the other key to successful Boondocking: water management. Use of fresh water occurs with washing and cooking, and the resultant cleaning up. He covers washing but spends little time discussing cooking that doesn't require much water for clean-up and has little discussion of what to do with the resultant greywater. He seems to do his Boondocking in a large motorhome, since he spends some time discussing oven recipes, so he probably has ample fresh and grey water capabilities. I suspect that hardcore Boondockers camp in smaller rigs which allow them to get further into the back country and don't have that luxury. Hence a crucial aspect of Boondocking is poorly covered.

This books covers a wide range of subjects associated with boondocking in an RV. Am quite impressed with it, especially the parts about batteries and electrical systems. Most stock RVs are not designed for being "off the grid" for very long at all (without running a noisy and $$ generator) and it really helps you design improvements in boondocking capability. At least, it'll let you speak the language of electrical systems if you go to professional to have improvements made. There are books that offer more detail in the subjects covered, but that means buying several books. This one will get you started and then some. All the info in the book is useful, researched and concisely written. Have fun and we'll see you on the road.

This book has it all! Written by a couple who have been "living the life" for many years, every word has the feel of authenticity and experience-based knowledge. A lot of the material might be found in other sources but we needed a guidebook to read AND have on the shelf for reference. My wife and I have been "fulltimers" for 11 years, but have spent little time dry-camping, or "boondocking." We wanted more information on solar panels and water maintenance and we found it all here. I found no negatives about this book.

This is a well written book, but geared toward people with large RVs. There is an extended section on Boondocking electricity, monitoring batteries and engine alternators. Then a chapter on solar and wind power, which is all very nice, but not what we were looking for and not what a large majority of people can afford. We have an 18 foot super light-weight trailer and use a Honda generator. I guess we thought this book would be more about places to go that were interesting. The list of "Selected" Boondocking sites was very limited. If You are looking for a better choice try the FREE Campgrounds book by Don Wright, either the Western or Eastern edition. Lots of great sites listed in this book.
The bottom line is that the Complete Book of Boondocking will go on our next garage sale.