For the pampered camper, a little getaway to El Capitan Canyon campground might cost up to $285 per night, but it comes with an "RV cabin" with beds, sheets, a kitchenette and solar-powered Internet access. Here, "roughing it" means sleeping in the $125 "safari tent" in a handmade willow bed, and buying a barbecue food kit at the campground store. The vegetarian tofu package is a popular option.

Despite the prices, visitors come in droves: The campground was written up in this month's Sunset Magazine. So the owners are proposing to add more of the posh campsites -- along with 100 in the affordable range.

The proposal is the fruit of several years of negotiations with the county, made difficult by the fact that the original campground permit, issued in 1969, set no rules on how many people could camp there or how close to the creek they could be.

El Capitan Canyon is located in the shade of an oak grove along a mile of El Capitan Creek, on the north side of Highway 101. From the 1970s to the 1990s, up to 3,000 people would gather here in a raunchy free-for-all on weekends. You could park your RV anywhere and pitch your tent in the middle of the creek if you liked.

That all changed when Roger Himovitz of Montecito and Chuck Blitz of Santa Barbara purchased the 3,200-acre El Capitan Ranch in 1999. Two years later, they put in the rustic cabins -- essentially camouflaged RVs -- the canvas tents on wooden decks, and the collapsible yurts for meeting rooms. They got rid of the cattle on the ranch and began serving vegetarian fare. El Capitan Canyon is today one of the only campgrounds of its kind in the United States.

During the summer, the 126 RV cabins and tents are often booked in advance, and people are turned away. The original permit, issued by the county in 1969, allows up to 275 campsites on the property, which is zoned for agriculture. Mr. Himovitz, who is now the sole owner, wants to build an additional 149 luxury campsites, plus 100 in the affordable range, for a total of 375 campsites in the narrow canyon. The campground would double in size to 120 acres.

"We're hoping we can be a place where everyone has an opportunity to take advantage of this beautiful natural setting," Mr. Himovitz said.

"Just being on the property, you feel like you're disconnected from the distractions of your everyday routine. There's an energy here that gives you a sense of comfort and security."

Along the way, he said, he agreed to move 33 campsites back from the creek, to create a minimum buffer of 25 feet from the stream.

At the same time, county officials said, Mr. Himovitz has agreed to limit the number of overnight guests in the canyon to 1,300. An additional 300 campground guests could visit during the day or attend weekend concerts there. At the county's suggestion, Mr. Himovitz also has agreed to add 100 additional spaces, located on a sunny terrace above the creek, for people who want to bike in, drive their own RVs or pitch their own tents.

"Overall, it will be a better facility," said Dianne Meester, assistant director of county Planning and Development.

"It's a reduction in intensity from what was permitted

and allowed in the past."

An environmental report on the proposal found no endangered species living in the portion of creek that runs through the campsites, possibly because of the crowds that have trampled the place for more than 30 years. In developing any new campsites, the report says, Mr. Himovitz should be required to take care to avoid removing Santa Barbara honeysuckle, a plant listed as rare by the California Native Plant Society -- or prepare a replacement plan.

A public hearing will be held on April 13 at the County Administration building to discuss the proposed permit revisions. The period for public comment closes on April 20. The county Planning Commission has the final say, unless the plans are appealed to the county Board of Supervisors and state Coastal Commission.

In addition to new campsites, Mr. Himovitz is proposing to build a new manager's residence, recreation hall, a second swimming pool and six new bathrooms at El Capitan Canyon campground. In response to concerns voiced by the state Regional Water Quality Control board, he is abandoning several old septic tanks along the creek and replacing them with a system of underground collection pipes, at a cost of $1 million. The sewage will be pumped to underground disposal fields on terraces that lie on either side of the canyon -- part of the extra acreage that Mr. Himovitz is requesting.

"They will be able to get the sewer treatment completely out of the canyon, and that is wonderful," said Mike Lunsford, president of the Gaviota Coast Conservancy, a nonprofit group.

"I have the sense that they're trying to do the right thing. On balance, it's a huge improvement."

Under the proposal, 50 of the new affordable campsites would be located on a sunny slope on the west side of the canyon, with a view of the freeway, El Capitan State Beach and the ocean beyond. Fifty of the sites would be for RVs, 30 would be for car camping and 20 for bike camping. The rates, Mr. Himovitz said, would be competitive with fees at El Capitan State Beach; and visitors could enjoy a new swimming pool, laundry, saunas and steam rooms besides. Effective July 1, the fees at the state beach will be $16 per night.

For his more affluent guests, Mr. Himovitz is proposing to add 149 luxury RV cabins and safari tents during the next five to 10 years, farther away from the creek.

A popular feature of the present operations is the "Relax & Refresh Midweek Package" -- two nights for two in a creekside cabin with a hot tub, gas-burning fireplace, continental breakfast, bottle of wine and two 55-minute "Canyon Massages."

The cost is $595.

The campground also caters to church groups, yoga meditation groups, private schools and businesses wishing to hold "team-building" seminars away from the hurly-burly of city life. Ocean Futures, the nonprofit organization run by Jean-Michel Cousteau, runs environmental camps in the canyon; and the Cancer Foundation brings groups of children to enjoy a dose of nature.

But to the surprise of Mr. Himovitz and Larry Callahan, his managing campground partner, El Capitan Canyon gets most of its business from families. The campground originally offered a babysitting service, but it had few takers. There was more demand in the cabins for two queen-sized beds than one king-sized bed.

"When people make a commitment to come here, it's so they can spend time with their kids," Mr. Callahan said.

"There's no television, so they sit around the campfire. Moms don't really like to go set up a tent."

Mr. Himovitz's entire property covers roughly 660 acres, including the campground and a 200-acre horse ranch. He has reserved the right to build three homes on his land in the future.

In 2002, Mr. Himovitz and Mr. Blitz sold 2,500 acres of El Capitan Ranch to a land trust. The trust, in turn, sold the property to the state Department of Parks and Recreation. Because of a lack of funding, the new park, located behind the campground in the steep foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains, is not yet open for public use.