Best Equestrian Camping near Kingman, AZ

I had been camping in August by the Colorado River in Arizona, a mistake that time of year. About midnight I was too hot to sleep, and the mosquitos were eating me alive. I decided to move, and an hour later I rolled into Kingman, Ariz. to get gas. I saw a sign for Hualapai Mountain Park, and, knowing nothing about it, I took a chance. Within a couple of miles, the temperature had dropped and the air was fresh. I rolled into the park about midnight, somehow found a camping spot amid the towering Ponderosas and slipped into a deep sleep in the cool air. In the morning a friendly ranger reminded me to pay, nodding in understanding at the story of my escape from the desert. The campground itself was beautiful. The big Ponderosas kept the site cool well into the day--it is almost at 8,000 feet! Better yet was the short hiking trail I took the next day to a promontory on Aspen Peak with a stunning view east across Arizona. A memorable stay.

I wanted to find a place that was close to Oatman so I could make a daycation away from the house in Vegas. Everything I saw implied this one was the most reliable and closest to the site. I did see along the path however a few others, but my reservation had already been made and for $30 nonrefundable that meant I was keeping my claim on my site.

The site was not a deluxe site like some KOA's have but it was a non-primitive site and I had hook ups so I was excited to see what it was this campground had to offer.

I was staying during offseason so I knew I wouldn't have access to the pool or hot tub, the hot tub would have been nice however. I was expecting to maybe play some mini golf but the course looked unmaintainted like it too was in the off season, a little disappointing.

Since there wasn't anything to do really at camp I went and explore the Historic Route 66 in Kingman to follow up my fun in Oatman on the same journey. it was quirky and bold and had some really nice stops. I was very happy with having proximity to the options I got to see so it made the campground worth it. I was given a few tips from the office as to the must see locations and I managed to check them out before it got dark. (pictured)

All in all, I wouldn't say I wouldn't give this place a shot again during a different time of year, but during the early months of the year it wasn't all I was wanting it to be and more.

I enjoyed my stay here. The terrain is steep, with mountain pines and boulders. This was a welcome change from the surrounding country, as was the lower temperature that comes with higher elevation. It was about 10 °F cooler here than in Kingman when I visited in June. Tent camping is first come first served. I had no problem finding a good spot on a Friday night.

There are two areas to the campground. The front section has paved roads and is mostly cabins with some tent sites mixed in. There are real bathrooms here, though they were in need of a cleaning when I visited. The back section has dirt roads and all tent sites, with a few porta potties. The roads are steep in places, but nicely graded. My front wheel drive passenger car traversed them without difficulty.

It is very quiet and dark here at night. Flashlights are a must, as are water vessels: there are no water spigots in the back section. I also saw what I am 80% sure was a mountain lion crossing the road at night when I was walking to one of the porta potties.

The only real downside I noticed here was the flies. They don't bite, but they buzz around you constantly and can get pretty annoying.

We spent a week at Blake Ranch RV Park and enjoyed it a lot. We arrived after hours, but our check in papers and map of the park were easily located at the office. We met the staff the next morning and they were all really friendly, and suggested some sites we see while we were in the area. The RV spots were large, flat and easy to get into with enough room to park our truck after we unhooked. The park was within 1/4 mile of a travel center with easy interstate access. During our stay at Blake Ranch we took advantage of the little store, propane fill up and laundry facilities. The park was well kept, clean, and quiet. If you're going to be staying near Kingman I highly recommend this RV Park.

This is a Mohave County park near Kingman AZ. We had a rough start, but it ended up being a reasonable place to stay. And the hiking was excellent.

A couple days before we arrived, someone called to tell us our site was not going to be ready. The caller wanted to move us across the road to their RV park. We explained we had a teardrop trailer, and they moved our reservation. When we arrived, we realized the RV park was a big parking lot (albeit with a nice view) but there were no bathrooms. It is, however, a full hookup park. If you don't mind camping within a few feet of your neighbors and have a bathroom with your unit, this is a good option. That doesn't work for a teardrop with a living compartment with a futon that folds down into a bed plus a kitchen on the back. A trip back to the office led us to a site across from group camping with a nearby bathroom. (There were two other group sites deeper in the park. All group areas looked nice and were appropriate for large groups.)

Showers were up above where we camped, but we quickly found out these were locked units that were only for people in some of the cabins that didn't have showers. Oh well, there was a wellness center in Kingman with a gym/shower. That's a good option for occasional showers because we planned to stay multiple nights. Cabins looked nice from the outside, but we didn't see the inside.

There were a couple camping areas that had nice sites but the road to get to one area was steep and deeply pitted. We would not have wanted to take our trailer too far into those areas. Tent campers, campervans and truck campers would be okay. I don't think they intend for people to tow anything to those spots, but they were very rough (even for a car).

But....we found an excellent hiking loop and were able to do a 7 to 8 mile hike in varied mountain terrain. There is a good map online that shows all the hiking options. On our way to the trailhead, we passed the area where we had made our reservation. I'm not sure why they waited to call us until a couple days before our stay because this area was not even close to ready for camping. Not sure if it is new or just being redone.

Wildlife in the area - deer and elk. I was running on the road in one direction while an elk was headed for the campground in the other direction.