Best Dispersed Camping near Bowie, AZ

Boondockers paradise. Beautiful views and spacious campsites. USFS Coronado National Forest controlled. Ranger came by a day after we arrived and checked in with us. 14 day limit on staying here and it seems like it is enforced.

Had two Canyon Towhees come visit us every morning.

Some traffic as it is a popular rock climbing area especially on Friday and Saturday. Middlemarch Road is wide but very washboard-y. Took us about 45 minutes to go 10 miles. We found a nice spot on FR 687. We got water at the Stampede RV park in Tombstone. The other RV parks didn't allow us to fill. About 45 minutes to Sierra Vista for supplies. Will definitely stay here again.

This is the first time I've ever stayed on BLM land. I parked at the 3rd spot in midday and stayed all night. I only saw about 6 vehicles go by the entire time I was here, but I couldn't see or hear anyone else aside from that. The view was nice from my spot. Had about 2 bars on average with AT&T

Found a beautiful dispersed camping spot beneath the Aspens and Ponderosas on the north side of FR803 about a mile west of the Riggs Flat Lake Campground. There’s a great overlook to the east looking out toward Pima and Safford.

Wildflowers at their peak. a full on superbloom of California poppies amidst cacti greeted us at this BLM spot just southeast of Mt. Graham. Lots of places to pull over for a night or for a week or two along Tanque Road, and almost no road noise since the highway is far enough away. Tanque Road is dirt but was doable for our vintage trailer for the first mile or so, but we've heard it gets sandy and harder to navigate the further in you get.

Well-positioned in between the Coronado National Forest and the Hot Well Dunes area. No services, no water, no toilets, just beautiful open desert. Come prepared with drinking water and please Leave No Trace.

Closest town is Safford, AZ about 30 minutes away, and has all that you need.

If the campground at the national monument is full, head up Piney Canyon Rd. and you will find a number of free spots for both tent camping and RV’s just off the main road inside the boundary of the national forest.  Most sites are tree covered, but we found one with an open sunny space for our solar panel. Our site was right next to a very clean flowing stream, which provided not only a nice soundtrack but also a filterable water source.  Most of the sites seemed to have established fire pits, with ours being the monster of all fire pits we’ve ever seen. These are dispersed sites, so no potable water, picnic tables, or toilets are available, so come prepared with what you need to be comfortable.  Also note that the road into the forest is not maintained well and is full of washboards for about a mile or so, and many washes cross this road, so pay close attention to rain in the forecast as you could get stuck on the other side of one of these washes for an indefinite period of time.  

The closest grocery store and gas station is in Willcox, which is about 40 minutes away.  There are also a number of wineries in the area, as this is 1 of the 3 Arizona wine regions.

Note:  There is no cell service anywhere along this road, your best bet for an LTE connection is at the top of the monument’s road (Sugarloaf Mountain or Echo Canyon parking lots) or the guest wifi network at the visitor’s center.

Review of RV Boondocking at Cochise Lake Willcox, AZ

Cochise Lake is a fantastic boondocking spot with plenty of space, making it perfect for big rigs. It is easy to access, peaceful, and offers a great place to settle in for a night or more.

The real highlight, though, is the incredible experience with the sandhill cranes. You’re just feet away from hundreds of not thousands of these majestic birds. Watching them take flight at daybreak is absolutely breathtaking. Many return around 1 p.m., and sunset brings another spectacular show.

If you love birdwatching, wide-open spaces, and the beauty of nature, this spot is definitely worth a visit!

The perfect place to boondock, we did just one night but you could easily do a few and have a nice chill quiet time w a great view

Not really much to see here just a horseshoe parking. Didn’t stay since the spot so small right off the road. We are in 40ft Rv it’s just a place to rest your head boondocking

Take Middle March road on left off of highway 80. Campsite is 10 miles on the left. The first .5 miles is paved, the other 9.5 miles is primitive (embedded rock, loose gravel, and about 75%washboard). You’ll cross a few cattle guards and dry river beds. Plenty of camping spots with fire rings.

My favorite camp spots. I’ve visited the monument multiple times and i love this area. Some spots are closer together to allow for bigger groups but most are semi secluded. Never disappoints and have camped here in every weather which the trees protect at least somewhat.

Millions of years ago, volcanic activity in the Southwest create lava rocks and fire agate. Inside the Rockhound area you can walk and collect fire agates right off the surface of the ground. It is the desert equivalent of searching for sea shells at the beach. It makes a fun day trip for families and rock enthusiasts. If rocks aren’t your thing, bring an ATV, 4x4, or dirt bike and enjoy miles of trails and dirt roads.

The Rockhound area can be accessed from the Black Hills Scenic Byway or the main access road. We had no issues finding it using Google Maps. We did take a 4x4 on this trip, but it isn’t necessary. Any vehicle that can handle a few miles of primitive/gravel road should be fine.

If you’re adventurous enough, spend the night in one of the dispersed camping sites. Just be prepared. There are no facilities or water available. The site only has a sign, a log book and a small trash can. The area is very rocky and I don’t recommend tent camping, but it would be feasible with some raking. There were 3 other groups camping while we were there and they were all sleeping in some type of camping vehicle. There aren’t any trees, so we experienced lots of high wind gusts. As a precaution, We took our awning down in the middle of the night, but our roof top tent was fine. Although this area is remote, you can see the lights from Safford,AZ at night. We didn’t have a fire, but they are permitted (as long as there isn’t a fire ban in effect). Some of the sites had camper-made fire rings/pits dug into the ground and surrounded by rocks.

Easy access off 191. Shot gun shells, bullet casings, cigarrette butts, broken bottles, mild trash, wide open desert terrain with panorimic Mountain views. BLM free. No services. If this is your thing, go for it. Spent one night.

A beautiful, serene location not too far from I-10 and Fort Bowie. We arrived at around 10pm in our Sprinter van and found a quiet location. The campsites are far apart and you travel on compacted dirt road to get there. The father you go, the more space you have. It will be quite bumpy if you do not have an AWD or 4x4.

This area has five to ten campsites suitable for small rigs (we pull a 17-ft trailer, wouldn't go much past 20ft).   From the almost-ghost town of Bowie, AZ, take the Apache Pass Rd until you reach the Happy Camp Rd.  This is a good gravel/dirt road that goes up to a public picnic area (no camping).  Here take the turn-off to the right to continue on Happy Camp Road.  Soon you will see turn-offs and side roads.  We didn't explore the side roads but we did see a couple of small rigs a hundred yards or more from the road, so it is possible to find sites there.  As you continue along the road it gets worse and you'll need decent clearance (there are also sites before the road gets a little dicey, closer to the picnic area.  About a mile from the picnic area we backed into a site right below the rocks with a grand view of the plains below.  We camped for two nights, saw no-one.  In late September, 90s during the day and 60s at night.

This site is on the *other* side of the hills from the Chiricahua Monument.  To get to the monument, you can either go back to Bowie, and then to Willcox, and back to the Chiricahuas, or you can take the Apache Pass Road (the one you turned off from to get to the campsite) over the hills, past the ruins of Fort Bowie (you will have to hike 1.5 miles to the actual ruins).   Total time is probably the same either way.

We drove past the campgrounds near Portal AZ as we were exploring.  In late September, they were all full and there were lots of ATVs buzzing around.  Compare and contrast to our empty, quiet campground with neat-looking rocks and a fine view. 

We had two bars of Verizon coverage and it was fast.

This dispersed campground is on the Pinery Scenic Route#42 on an all dirt road just before the incline up the mountain. It is a large campsite that can hold a group if necessary. There are no facilities or drinking water but there was a large fire ring available. You are tucked on the side of a hill and covered by trees for a nice shady spot to camp.

This has been our favorite campsite of our road trip so far. Noteworthy mentions: It is off the beaten path. It’s free. There are free roaming cattle There are endless rocks to explore and climb. It will keep your attention for days. Not many people here. Campfires allowed. Would recommend a 4x4 to get to further sites. Awesome remnants of Native American activity. You’re right next to where you wanna be. Thumbs up.

The campsite is a single fire ring in an unpaved parking lot about 100’ from the road which has moderate traffic. It’s free, and if you’re needing a spot to camp for the night, this might be for you. I visited in August so decided to opt for a motel room instead since the heat was well over 100. The “playa” itself featured a trail, it’s about 2.6 miles to the trail’s end and back