Camp Washington Ranch

Scenery by far the best part of this as people mention it and wonderful place to see water streams and stay writing some of my homework however food didn't seem to be as fresh as it should have been

There are only a few sites with water and electric hookups. The dump location is directly in front of a site so you may need to dump elsewhere (we did because it was blocked by another camper at the time).

There’s a nice lake and walking paths. The place is dated but, the folks are friendly and nice stop for a couple of days.

We camped here on our way to Carlsbad Caverns.

We stumbled upon Camp Washington Ranch when looking for someplace to stay near Carlsbad Caverns. It is an interesting property. While it was originally a ranch, it was purchased in the 1980s by a non-profit that serves adults with disabilities. There are group homes on a corner of the property but they also rent the property as a wedding venue and have four RV camping sites. We were surprised by the ponds and creeks running through the property (since its in the middle of a desert) but figured out that it receives excess water from the springs that service Carlsbad Caverns National Park. 

You can walk from Camp Washington to Rattlesnake Springs Picnic Area (part of the National Park), which was a neat adventure. The picnic area was developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps and you can visit the springs and see the irrigation system developed by the CCC. Rattlesnake Springs provides all of the water to the National Park and, we figured out, also explains the ponds and creeks in Camp Washington Ranch! 

It seemed like we had the whole property to ourself during our stay. We made our reservation and paid over the phone, and didn't see any staff or residents while we were on the property. Would definitely recommend to anyone needing a place to stay before heading to the national park for a cavern tour.