Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Alpine, AZ

I have been coming up to the White Mountains since I was a kid. Rainbow campground has been our go-to spot for camping. There are 3 loops that are FCFS. The rest of the sites are reservations. The sites all have picnic tables and fire rings. There are full bathrooms throughout the area and pay showers when is not covid. Big lake is a short drive from the campground, where you can rent a boat, fish from shore and a small store with supplies. There is always wildlife around, especially skunks, so watch your pets. The sites are laid at where you don't feel like you are right on top of your neighbor. None of the sites in Rainbow have hook-ups, bit there is a dump station down the road. There is another campground for full hook-ups down the way.

I was originally going to camp at raccoon camp about a half mile north of here but upon my arrival there were waaaaay too many tiny human darting about for my liking so I kept moving. Next was horse springs. This was prefect little spot. It was set back off the road (unlike all of the sites north of there) and had 16 well spaced out spots (27 when you count the ramada and the other ten spots a bit down the road) and only 3 other campers. I was home. I picked a spot back away from the road and up against the river that already had a pile of firewood laying about. When the camp host John and his pup Carver returned from his trip to town Buddy (my dog) and I went to say hi, pay our fees and chat. John was a great host. He was happy to chat, and even dug out an old alpine ranger district hiking guide for me to peruse. The bathrooms were spotless, tha is John, and the camp was super clean. I definately recommend this spot.

I spent 2 nights on my rode trip from El Paso to Provo. I reserved site 9 on Recreation.gov. The host expected me. The site was shaded encircled by pine trees and it was cool in late August. The squirrels are voracious and chewed through my stuff sack with sealed food that I left on the picnic table when I went for a bike ride around the lake.

NF Big Lake Rec Area is developed around Big Lake, which isn’t big. I asked the tackle shop clerk about swimming and he warned of hooks and lures. He said the water was fine except for a film of algae. I didn’t swim. The campground seemed used by anglers and off-roaders.

I found the first non-motorized trail off the gravel Forest Service road by the lake. It wasn’t walking distance from the campground. The forest had burned in 2011 according to warning signs, but by 2020 there was new growth and plenty of trees survived. The trail teamed with wildlife. There were squirrels and chipmunks everywhere. I spotted a group of elk cows and later mule deer bucks. I observed at least 5 species of birds. The forest was alive with activity. I didn’t see any people on the trail.

There were many dispersed camping spots throughout the forest and several campgrounds along black river.

I had a big juicy burger at the Alpine Grill and Still, whose bar area was open for dine in despite the coronavirus.

Despite the development, I recommend it.

We spent 8-nights here (June 7-15, 2022). CTRV is a quiet, adult oriented, RV park in the pines of Alpine. This is a very nice, easy access CG with level back-in gravel sites. It is a great base camp to visit the area. There are plenty local attractions: lakes, rivers and streams, wilderness and national forests. Activities include: fishing, biking (wish I brought my mtn bike), hiking/walking and ATV trails. The elk herds out number the cattle– a morning and evening spectacle! We did not make use of the laundry, bathrooms or showers. The WiFi was good as was cell phone reception (we lost both for 2-1/2 days due to a fiber optic cable break near Show Low/Springerville).

The owners, Sherrie and Paul, are awesome! We would definitely stay here again.

(Side note: Coronado Trails Cabins is NOT affiliated with CTRV)

My family usually camps the West Fork of Black River but it was closed so we end up on the East Fork. Due to Covid 19 they are not only limiting cars to 2 but they are limiting number of campers to 8. That being said, I'm just glad the Campground was open.

They stock the river with trout every week which makes it fun. The fish were biting Panther Martin, power bait and night crawlers. Big Lake was a short drive and provides more opportunity to fish. We were also able to see deer, elk and osprey. Bear scat was found in the area but they are not overly common.

Dogs are allowed but must remain on leashes. Bathrooms are fairly clean and dumpsters are emptied every week. Wifi can be found at Big Lake or out towards Alpine.

Campsites are first come first serve and you are not able to save sites for people coming later. My suggestion is to go up early in the week and early in the day. Pay $14 a night to the camp host. Have to leave the site by 1pm to avoid paying for that night.

If you can't find a spot at Horse Spring there are other spots like Buffalo Crossing and Raccoon. Some sites are right on the river and some on the other side of the road. Driving in from the West side because the road is smoother. Diamond Rock rd 276 will rattle your teeth out.