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Free Camping Collection

Established Camping

Upper Karr Canyon Campground

4 Reviews

About

National Forest

Upper Karr Canyon Campground is located off of NM6563 (the Sunspot Scenic By-way) and has a 200 person capacity There are 2 fire rings, toilet, and garbage depositories are provided. RVs limited 16'.

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Location

Upper Karr Canyon Campground is located in New Mexico

Directions

From Cloudcroft, take NM130 south and turn right onto NM6563 (Sunspot Scenic Byway). Continue along the Sunspot Highway for around 7 miles and to your left, just over the ridge you'll see a sign for the Upper Karr Recreation Area. This road can be difficult to spot so keep your eyes open.

Coordinates

32.88032303 N
105.779894 W

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Access

Walk-In
Park in a lot, walk to your site.
Hike-In
Backcountry sites.

Stay Connected

WiFi
Unknown
Verizon
Unknown
AT&T
Unknown
T-Mobile
Unknown

Site Types

Tent Sites
RV Sites
Standard (Tent/RV)
Group
Equestrian

Features

For Campers

ADA Access
Picnic Table
Phone Service
Toilets
Alcohol
Pets
Fires

For Vehicles

Big Rig Friendly

Enjoy camping on government land. Limited or no services at this camping area.

PERMIT might be REQUIRED

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For information regarding reservations, contact this campground directly.

First Come - First Served

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Contact

General Info

Jon D.

Guide

Reviewed Feb. 13, 2024

Quiet and spacious, but be cautious of the area...

First off, this was a luxury free campsite! Paved road, and picnic tables right next to the parking area! It was packed on Easter Sunday; an RV with many loud children was parked across the way, presumably for the long weekend, but, once they left, peace and quiet. The trail (or many meadows that were connected, more like) was very nice and serene, I saw not another person. There is no cell signal to be had here at all (Verizon), I had to go to the overlook point closer to the Village to even get a single bar, but you can get pretty good signal with a transistor radio, and many nearby stations, NOAA weather comes in very clear. Speaking of that, while watching the sunset there, I was attempted to be followed by what seemed like another onlooker once it got dark. I let them know very quickly I knew what they were up to, and they went on their way. I still would stay again, but, if that makes you nervous, I'd avoid.

Month of VisitMay

(4) View All

Carson

Traveler

Reviewed May. 30, 2023

Good nature

Beautiful area for tent camping. I hiked into the trees a bit so there weren’t super close neighbors. Plenty of downed trees for gathering firewood. There’s an old logging road that makes for an easy hike. It leads into a meadow with a very small pond which I’m sure would be good for wildlife viewing if you sat there long enough.

Month of VisitJune

Alli P.

Traveler

Reviewed Dec. 31, 2021

A parking lot with amenities

This is a parking lot with bathrooms, picnic tables, and fire rings that you cannot drive up to. This is more suited for tent campers and hikers. You cannot drive any where else besides the parking lot and would not be ideal for RVs or camper vans as the picnic tables/fire rings are not very close to the parking lot. We ended up not staying the night as it wasn’t realistic for our van and there was constant traffic of cars people stopping just to use the restrooms.

Siteparking lot

Month of VisitJanuary

Alex K.

Guide

Reviewed Sep. 4, 2018

Great place to hike away into your own campsite

They're a few areas that have a camp site established there but we chose to hike off into the trees and find our own spot. There are plenty of trails and campsites in the trees. Not a super popular area so they aren't too many people to fight over campsites with. They're are bathrooms there near the parking lot. They could be a little better but are just fine. Great place to cool down when coming from the basin and the 95+ degree days in the summer. Does get snow in the winter months and will drop below freezing. Beautiful pine trees surround the area. May run into deer or elk while out there.

Month of VisitJune