Kingman Wash, near Temple Bar Marina, Arizona, is a rugged spot that offers a unique camping experience right by the water. This location is perfect for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle, with plenty of space to park and enjoy the scenic views of Lake Mead.

Visitors rave about the clear water and the opportunity to swim or boat, making it a great place to cool off during the hot days. The access road can be a bit rough, so it's best to come prepared with a sturdy vehicle, especially if you're towing a trailer. As one camper noted, “The drive there was a bit choppy... but the view of the lake was worth it.”

Wildlife is abundant here, with friendly wild donkeys and coyotes roaming around, adding to the charm of the area. Campers appreciate the peaceful atmosphere, with many mentioning that other visitors are respectful and keep the area clean. One reviewer highlighted the great hiking opportunities nearby, particularly the trail to Arizona Hot Springs, which is a must-see.

While there are no amenities like drinking water or toilets, the freedom to have fires and the ability to bring pets make this a popular choice for those looking to enjoy a more primitive camping experience. Whether you're here for a quick getaway or a longer stay, Kingman Wash offers a beautiful backdrop for your outdoor adventures.

Kingman Wash — Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Are you in need of a campground near Lake Mead National Recreation Area, NV? Lake Mead National Recreation Area is filled with the activities, sights, and experiences to make everyone in your crew a happy camper. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

The Best Camping Near Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada

We stayed here on our way to the Hoover Dam and had a fine time. Nothing fancy, super basic free camping on public lands. Highlight was our visit to the dam itself

Basic but lovely proximity to the Hoover Dam

This place has a good trail of you’re arriving on a vehicle. 4x4 is not needed but it is recommended. It’s almost 3 miles of dirt road with a couple of hills. You can boat to this location, hike or driver. When you finally make it you will see that it is worth it. A lot of space for multiple people. It’s usually empty when I go on weekdays. You can take your jet skis and other toys. Fishing is good and camping is awesome. A lot of start in the sky and it’s a good time with friends. Highly recommended.

Fun and peaceful 


Went on Wednesday September 16 2020 to escape the wildfire smoke in Los Angeles. The 3 mile dirt road in a Prius was not optimal but it happened. One or two hills on the way back were tough. There were several groups around swimming when we arrived, most of them left, a few camped overnight. There is a main beach, but we took a left up over the hill to a more secluded area and camped on a rather rocky surface overlooking the water. It was beautiful, we heard coyotes in the morning, some little animals rustling at night, and the swimming was lovely. Rockier than we would like even with thick camping mats though. There are a lot of prickly plants in the rocks that will cling to your skin and clothing and are painful and difficult to remove. Watch out for those fking bastards.

Lovely for a night of dispersed camping

Just stayed 1night, wide open area with 10-15 rock fire rings, there were a few other campers  but everyone spread out nicely, there was a toilet 1/4 mile up the hill from camp spots(we just dig holes) beautiful scenery, gravel road 3.5 miles to lake, rutted in a few spots but we made it just fine in 2wheel drive!:)

Primitive, lake access

Wear water shoes or some old shoes that fit good because the ground is rocky. One of the many little coves in Lake Mead that has access from the main freeway. This is Arizona side but us living in Las Vegas it was only a short hour - two-hour drive,  Pretty clean-cut road, and easy access for small or big vehicles, 4wd, and anything in between. The water temp is lovely and it's not over crowded. Good place if you and a lot of your friends or family are planning to come and camp for the weekend together because you're likely to get a waterfront spot. We saw RVs that stayed a little further up from the water who also were camping and they just had a little pop up near the water for during the day use. If you have 4wd you have the ability to make it up a little higher and a little deeper to a little more secluded areas. Most of us have rafts and kayaks which are enjoyable to get in and explore outside of the cove. Good spots for fishing too. Near the water, it's VERY rocky like I first mentioned so be careful if you plan to have the back end of your vehicle near the water to make sure you have the ability to get out.

Water shoes a must

Great drive in camp site with dispersed camping  bring your own wood for fires as wood is scarce. Careful driving in, the last 3 miles off of Exit 2 is a dirt road with no where to turn around on big rigs with a few tight turns. Saw an RV get stuck. There is quite a bit of trash and glass here and there so make airs to wear shoes and be cautious at the shore. 

Great place to disperse Dry camp.
Spots are scattered along the main road. 
You can camp close to the interstate or 3 miles away at the lake. The lake shore gets crowded. 
The road is bumpy but we saw cars all the way down to the lake. 
The sign recommends 4x4 high clearance vehicles. 
The mine road offers good views and a few camp spots. 4x4 is definitely recommended for this road. 
There is no garbage collection so pack it out. 
One vault toilet near the lake. 
Bring your own firewood. No trees for wood in this area. 
Wood can be purchased at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area Campground Store.
We spoted motor homers near the interstate, ground tenters, rooftop tenters, van campers and pull behind campers at the lake.
We camped up the N Mine Road with our RTT trailer. 

Dispersed Camping 

4 wheel drive is definitely needed if you want to get to the lake.  The spots that are motorhome accessible are right on the road which was very dusty and very busy on a Friday night.  It made a great one night stopover after visiting Hoover dam, but I wouldn't want to stay there any longer.

4x4 needed, otherwise OK for a one night stopover

Went down a long dirt road at night and woke up to this! Truly amazing out here

Amazing!

We found this place on accident on our first overlanding trip.  It was a bit difficult to find, but once we got there...plenty of places to park, right on the water even!   Relatively clean, however people burn pallets so watch for nails!  PLEASE DO NOT BURN PALLETS AT SITES LIKE THIS.  As always "pack it in, pack it out" and even take alittle extra with you!  


There is a pit toilet 1/2 mile from the water. 

Our 2nd time here!  Great SIMPLE place.


Found this jewel when need a spot close to the dam. We were going kayaking on the Colorado down Black Canyon and had to be there at 0730 hours. Kingman Wash is down a long gravel washboard rutted road. We were towing a small cabin and it wasn’t bad. When we got to the end of the road there is a pit toilet but no other services. Several fire rings no designated spots several right on the water. People please police up behind yourselves. Our fire ring had trash in it. That is not fair to leave your trash for someone else to burn or remove. PACK IT IN PACK IT OUT. 

Best kept secret ever

Took my 2wd on the road there a couple times, ok if youre an experienced driver but still rough on suspension...Was able to get a shady in AM spot off the shore of the lake, away from the hustle and bustle of the late nighters, which there seems to be every night, so had 2 firepits and decent privacy. Otherwise youre just parked anywhere you can out in the open with dozens of other neighbors. Having the water so closeby was definitely a major plus! Stayed up north at Government Wash and it is MUCH cleaner, doesnt SMELL OF ROT, and stays much cooler in the day, although if you can stand the smell and the bugs, Government Wash is better for privacy and space. Gets pretty windy but all the spots do around here for the most part.
Also, we took a hike exploring the area theres lots of cool little coves off the grid you can hike to, cool rock/partial caves etc.

Rough road popular spot

Drove through here looking for dispersed camping and saw a few sites but even better was the lake. The campsites themselves were gravel and pretty uneven but we expected as much. No coverage and little privacy for dispersed camping as all sites are right off the main gravel road. We swam for an hour and then departed to next campsite for more coverage as it’s 100+ degrees today.

Awesome place for swimming

I think about this campsite so often that I had to come back and write a review for it. I was able to manage my Ford Fiesta all the way down and up with no problems... just take it super slow. My dog and I had so much fun waking up to the lake view, sitting in the sun, and continuously swimming. I even pushed back my plans so I could stay here an extra day. I will most definitely be back! 

Absolutely. Incredible.

This was our last stop before Vegas and we had a lot of fun, the was really nice, the spot was not crowded at all, the only thing negative I can say is there were a lot of bugs but what do you expect when camping lol. Would definitely go back!

Nice spot

The road in is wash board narrow in spots, you do not need a 4x4, but just go slow and be patient and the destination is well worth it. The camp sites are 1st come, there is a pit toilet about 3/4 of the way down. We stayed at a spot just up from the lake and the view with campfire was spectacular. You can hike around here and the views are beautiful. 

Wild camping

About 4 miles of washboard road but then an amazing lake stay. Room for dozens of campsites right on the water

Hidden gem

Just incredible! A fairly rough road but if it were easy everyone would be here. 
4 WD not necessary. When I got here + - 5:30 there were 4 or 5 families here enjoying the lake. At sundown they left. Maybe 6 camping folks but absolutely quite. Sunset was outrageous. 
If you zoom in on the satellite and see my blue dot… my rig should be in about 10 ft of water. Gives another perspective on the water crunch. Wondering how long ago the pic was shot. 

Just incredible !

This is a really awesome place that’s super close to Vegas and just 4 miles off the highway. 

You can get down in a 2wd car but I wouldn’t recommend it. 

This spot is popular for fishing, Scuba Diving and Day use as well as Camping. It gets really crowded on the weekends but is still a beautiful spot to go to 

Crowded but Awesome 

I pulled in a little trailer and learned the hard way how imperative it is to go SLOW on the access road, disaster averted, but my hitch did pop off my ball without damaging anything thank god. A few choice folks daytripped, but the campers were all chill. Vault toilets were clean, donkeys were adorable, and coyotes were plentiful and bold-watch smaller pets close after dusk. Chose this spot for nearby hike to Arizona Hot Sorings, which was INCREDIBLE. 

Rugged beautiful free site

Great dispersed spot. Other campers were respectful and the coyotes wandered free, except when harassing the donkeys. Amazing hiking around and the lake is fun to swim in.

Good hiking, loud donkeys

Highly recommend keeping your sedans and low riders at home, watched a Honda Civic struggle to get out and since the road is one way in and out, could have caused some major problems. 

Coyotes were out and all campers were peaceful.  Scuba divers showed up in the morning to get some practice in which is around the time we headed out. 

Great place on the water

This is a great spot to swim or boat.  Very pretty. Not super busy during the week. Lots of room to park. Not very level. Vault toilet. Road coming in is 3 1/2 miles of washboard and ruts. Some bad hills with ruts.  4x4 if pulling a trailer is needed. You should see some wild burros and coyotes. 

Great location by water

Decent spot to stay for a while. Made it to the water with my 20” travel trailer without an issue. I was a little worried about getting it back out since part of the road was very rough. Fortunately they graded the road while I’m here so it shouldn’t be a problem. Great AT&amp;T service. T-Mobile service is meh. A few nights got extremely windy.

Not the best, but would stay again

Went in November with rented RV (25ft 2WD) some bits of the road where very steep and bumpy, but we did make it.(even in the dark) Nice to wake up on this spot. Whould not go with this RV when road is wet. I think with AWD it is no problem.

Great spot

This was an amazing campsite. The drive there was a bit choppy especially towards the end, but the view of the lake was worth it. There were wild donkeys that were friendly and a beautiful view of the lake. The weather was very nice too.

Amazing

The location was nice, quick drive In. Directly in the flight path for Vegas. 
Light pollution from the city

Beautiful location 

There’s a lake at the end of the sketchy road that makes it all worth while especially in the heat. Water is clear and plenty of space to park if you’re just there to visit. May feel too crammed if you have a camper though. I thoroughly enjoyed staying here for 2 nights. 

A Little Oasis in the Desert

Excelent 

Very close to the water. Very few people. Gorgeous scenery!. The road is a little rough getting a camper down there but they do have volted toilets.

Nice camp area

This area is amazing
 Between the rocks, the lake, the burros, the vault toilets, and the open space it’s beautiful!!! The burros are NOT wild 😂 &amp; they get into everything. But we loved it. It definitely is a bumpy drive and I would not recommend trying to take a large rv down the wash road. I brought my 5x8 converted cargo trailer down and would do it again, but it was rough. 

Beautiful area

Access to lake mead, plenty of little pull offs scattered throughout a small valley to set up camp in, a vault toilet, and a herd of Burros roaming around. Incredible views of lake mead and the surrounding elevation! Road was gravel and decently accessible for my van!

Great views!

I spent 3 days and nights here at Kingman Wash in August and was nude the entire time.  There were several other people camping there who were nude as well, and any neighbors nearby weren't really all that near at all and they didn't seem to mind.  I did some nude hiking and spent most of the time just enjoying the area.  It was hot here, but it was not uncomfortable when nude. ;)  I love the Lake Mead area and I love the fact that nudity seems to be fairly common and accepted on the lake and the surrounding area.  The burrows were a very welcome plus that added to the enjoyment of the trip.  I'll definitely be back.

3 wonderful days and nights nude at Kingman Wash

Beautiful scenery but under flight path for airport and motorcycles up early on weekend. 

Photos of Kingman Wash — Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Real photos from real campers