Campground News — Published 2026-07-13 by HitchPath Editorial
Below the radar of most workampers, county and municipal park systems have been building out their own campground host programs. The outdoor recreation community rarely covers them. The workamping community rarely discusses them. The result is a category of positions that often go unfilled while competitive federal sites have waiting lists.
The outdoor media focuses on national parks. The workamping community focuses on federal volunteer programs and private campgrounds. County parks fall between those categories — managed by local governments, often with good facilities, frequently looking for hosts — without a natural community of practice around them.
There's no national database of county park host programs. No aggregator covers them systematically. Finding them requires direct research, which most workampers don't do because they don't know the opportunity exists.
County park host arrangements vary considerably — more than federal programs, less than the open range of private campground arrangements. Common elements:
Some counties have added stipend programs. Many have not. The quality and structure vary enormously by county.
County parks are by definition near population centers. For workampers who want proximity to family, regular medical care, urban amenities, or the social accessibility of suburban areas, county parks offer something remote federal sites simply can't.
The trade-off is scenery. County parks rarely offer the dramatic landscapes of national forests or desert BLM land. They offer accessible, well-maintained green space — which has genuine value for the right person.
Research your target counties directly. Look for the parks and recreation department website. Search for "campground host" or "volunteer" on county government job boards.
Direct phone calls to county park offices are often the most effective approach. Many county park managers aren't connected to standard workamping recruitment channels and appreciate direct outreach.