Daniel Tomko

Daniel Tomko is a lead data analyst at Hipcamp, where he builds the models and tools that help millions of people make better decisions about where to spend time outside. His work has ranged from predictive fall foliage maps to campground availability analysis—the kind of research that turns raw data into a reason to pack a bag and go. He has written for the Hipcamp Journal on camping without a car, fall foliage road trips, and morel mushroom camping.

His deepest obsessions are birds and fungi—particularly morels. Every spring he is out scanning burn scars and south-facing slopes with the focused attention of someone who knows exactly what they are looking for. He has built a morel mushroom map tracking California finds by elevation, forest type, and post-fire conditions. The birds are harder to map but no less carefully logged.

California Camping Guide is where that analytical instinct meets genuine time in the field. Dan has spent years working through the state's campgrounds systematically—not just reading permit windows and elevation charts, but actually sleeping there, cooking over a fire, and paying attention to what makes a site worth returning to. The recommendations here are shaped by both the numbers and the experience of being in the places the numbers describe.