Key:backcountry
 backcountry
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| Description |
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A feature (typically a campsite, shelter or river put-in point) in the backcountry (wilderness inaccesible by car). 
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| Group: tourism |
| Used on these elements |
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| Requires |
| See also |
| Status: in use |
| Tools for this tag |
The key backcountry=* is used on a tourism=camp_site or waterway=access_point to indicate that the feature is located in the backcountry.
Usage for campsites
Backcountry is an American English term meaning a remote, inaccessible, undeveloped area, usually in wilderness. As an example, Algonquin Provincial Park, Canada, distinguishes between two types of campsites:
- designated backcountry campsites that can only be accessed by hiking or canoeing for several hours through the wilderness
- “drive-to” developed campgrounds, which are those reachable by car or RV and they offer facilities such as power, toilets and running water.
Naturally, since they are far away from civilization, backcountry campsites usually offer next to no facilities. In the past, the tag backcountry=yes has sometimes been misunderstood and applied to any campsite without facilities, regardless of whether it is actually in the backcountry or not. In a 2024 community forum discussion, there was an agreement that this usage should be avoided: the appropriate tag for any camp site with no facilities is camp_site=basic and the tag backcountry=yes should be reserved for campsites that are in fact in the backcountry. However, this means that as of 2024, data consumers should not rely on the tag backcountry=yes to mean that the campsite is in the backcountry. A number of campsites currently have this tag that are next to a public road or even in the middle of a town.
To distinguish whether a backcountry camping site is designated or not, use informal. Note that some mappers tag mere suggestions where they think there is a good place to sleep, which is a questionable practice. If that is the case, you might find no traces of people using such a place for camping.
Usage for water put-ins
In 2024, this tag started to be used also for waterway=access_point, i.e. places where you put your boat into a body of water. It is not intended to be used for access points that are only accessible by foot, but rather for those in true backcountry areas. A rule of thumb that has been suggested is that such put-ins are either located at the start or end of portages, or are typically only practical for packrafters, as reaching them requires several hours of walking.
Other usage
There is some use with amenity=shelter, which is likely fine, and with tourism=camp_pitch, where it is redundant, as these should be part of a tourism=camp_site.
Values
backcountry=yesbackcountry=no
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