Illegal Highway 1 Camping

County Code §3162 clearly states: “No person shall camp in the right-of-way of State Highway 1 between the Carmel River and the Monterey–San Luis Obispo County line at any time.” Despite this, illegal camping has surged in recent years, fueled by social media, “van life” trends, rental RVs, and “free camping” websites.

This behavior is not just against the law—it is profoundly disrespectful to Big Sur. The Critical Viewshed policy of the Big Sur Land Use Plan was created to preserve the coast’s wild and unspoiled beauty for everyone. Setting up makeshift campsites along Highway 1 undermines that promise. Each tent, van, or fire ring degrades the public’s visual access to one of the most extraordinary landscapes in the world.

The second greatest concern is fire and sanitation. Illegal roadside camping leaves behind human waste, toilet paper, and trash—and too often, smoldering coals or campfires. These actions endanger wildlife, pollute the environment, and put residents and visitors at extreme risk. Local fire agencies have responded to dozens of roadside fires over the past decade, many of which could have turned catastrophic.

When people camp illegally and then post about it online, they normalize and even glamorize this behavior. Each post becomes an invitation for more people to do the same, multiplying the damage and the danger. What may seem like one person’s “adventure” becomes a community-wide burden, and a direct threat to the coast itself.

Big Sur belongs to everyone, but it can only stay wild if we all do our part. Visitors need to plan ahead, use designated campgrounds or lodging, and resist the temptation to treat the highway as a campsite. Protecting this coast means respecting the land, the community that lives here, and the policies designed to safeguard it for future generations.

👉 No roadside camping. No fires. No trash. No exceptions.