Are there any places to go camping in San Francisco?

We’re going to San Fran for a month on business and in order to do so we had to forgo our annual camping trip. Is there any where we can can go camping in San Fran? I’m thinking a backwoods kind of deal. Really roughing it, not a commercial campground or anything like that but just woods where there will not be a lot of people (mainly tourists).
If there are any places to camp outside of San Francisco that are not too much of a distance away please let me know. I need all the options I can get! I really want to be able to go camping this year!

The closest camping to San Francisco (besides illegally pitching a tent in Golden Gate Park) is Angel Island. You would have to take a ferry to get there, and hike in a bit to get to the campsite, but you will have great views of the city.

Other than that, there are a lot of campsites in the coastal areas around San Francisco. Here are some car camping options: Mt. Tamalpais State Park, Marin Headlands, and Samuel B. Taylor State Park. For backpacking, there is Angel Island, Point Reyes, and Marin Headlands. There are even more campsites farther south in the Santa Cruz mountains, so it will be a bit longer of a drive. If I were in your shoes I would go to Angel Island or Mt. Tam.

I don’t think tourists will be a problem at any campsites. Tourists usually want to stay at a hotel on Fisherman’s Wharf, and maybe take a tour bus to Muir Woods but they won’t be camping there. A lot of these campsites WILL be pretty full of people though, at least locals. If you want really secluded camping, you will have to go somewhere far away from California’s population centers and Yosemite, somewhere like Humboldt County.

WSTK-ITV – Calvary Campground Summer Camp: Joshua Mills Pt.1

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