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Dispersed camping near Why, AZ in the Sonoran Desert.
Legend
Primitive and far from civilization. Right next to highway 85, so there is a lot of traffic noise. Since this is dispersed there are not any facilities, but surprisingly there is little privacy. Several RVs,but no hook ups. Very close to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
LegendThis is a very nice place for FREE camping on BLM land. Lots of room and it does go farther back from the highway. Just be careful of some areas may wash out when it rains. A little difficult to find, but look at your odometer when leaving Aho, it will be 13 miles on your right going south. A few miles further you will be at the Organ Pipe National Park. Some very nice scenic drives there.
TravelerConvenient spot close to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. I got a little confused trying to find this spot at night, but once you find where the dirt road passes through the gate there are plenty of places to camp right there. There was only one other group there in October, but I would assume it gets more crowded during the winter months. It's a little close to the highway, so you will hear some cars passing by, but it's not too bad.
LegendI have found that this is a nice location. If you want to visit in this area, it is very conveniently located about three miles from the Organ Pipe National Park. There is a campground in the park. It offers paved parking and barbecue grills, but it still dry camping. Since this is free I find it a lot better for dry camping. It is close to a town called Why, that has gas, and a restaurant called Grannies that has the best burritos this area has to offer. Can also get ice and propane at the gas station there. I chose to Camp close to the road, because I don't mind the noise from traffic, I feel it is a little soothing at times personally. The BLM area goes back several miles and if you don't mind driving in a little farther in, it is much quieter. I really like this area BLM land and I'm sure to come here again and again.
LegendFree BLM dispersed camping between Why AZ and Organ Pipe Nat Monument. Turnoff is just past mp #55 heading south from Why, right turn off hwy just past the concrete bridge over gunsight wash. Entrance is a bit back to right over a cattleguard. Hwy road noise can be an issue so the farther west into the area the less road noise. Cell service for Verizon and Tmobile was 4 bars lte..however ATT was nothing. Why AZ has gas, ice, restrooms. Filtered water is across hwy at community center kiosk..five gals $1. Note that the Border Patrol has a checkpoint at mp 57.5 just before Organ Pipe boundary.
LegendWithin just 20 miles of the Organ Pipe National Monument, Gunsight Wash allows dispersed camping up to 14 days. There are enough flat parking areas scattered throughout the BLM area to accommodate hundreds of rigs. You should be able to find a quiet spot, though it's unlikely that you'll have the place all to yourself.
As with most dispersed camping areas managed by the BLM, there are no services for bathroom, water, or trash. There is a day-use rest area across the highway, but please do not dump your trash there (AZDOT will charge the BLM to dispose of this trash, and that will mean that the BLM will have to start charging us -- so be a good neighbor and dispose of your stuff in the nearby town of Why).
The main road between Why and Sonoyta (Mexico) is very busy during the days.
However, the border crossing is closed at night so being parked near the pavement isn't going to keep you awake all night. However, we found that getting further away made the hanging out around camp more pleasant.
There are many hiking and biking opportunities available just a short drive away into the National Monument. The Visitor's Center is also worth a visit, and the NPS campground is super cute and offers all the usual amenities of developed campground in the NPS. The town of Why is within 2 miles of the Gunsight Wash turn off, which offers a gas station and convenience store. Further up the road lies Ajo, AZ, which has more in the way of restaurants and grocery stores.
Traveler
Fairly easy approach with my overcab camper setup, and family of 4. beautiful saguaro and ocotillo country, yotes yipping at night, owls, wrens and a ton of wildlife. Maybe be careful of pckrats and leave your hood propped up with a light. Otherwise one of our favorite dispersed camp sites ever!! LOTS of space to explore. 
LegendIt is absolutely amazing here. Plenty of space for disperse, primitive camping. This seems like a popular place for primitive camping, but it is so easy to find a quiet private spot. The Ajo MTB trails are here and there is OHV.
Traveler
Great dispersed camping 🏕. The farther from the highway, the better it gets.
LegendThis is a dispersed BLM area behind the old copper mine tailings and a wide washboard dusty road goes back into the area. Scenic Sonoran desert vegetation due to the cactus diversity but some areas have been trashed by past use during the mining days. Cell signal was mixed to poor, only TMobile worked barely for me. Close to Ajo but no water, trash, or tables. Access road can be dusty and washboard.
TravelerDarby wells Rd. Has some good dispersed campsites right off the road. With flat cleared out areas. There isn’t a lot of traffic along the road either. So I would recommend this for an overnight.
ScoutStayed here for three nights with the wife and kids in a tear drop type camper. It has a good amount of spots that are flat. We have never camped in the desert before, but it is still too cold for the woods. We enjoyed it and it really piqued our interest in desert camping. We did a short overland hike with no trail. We didn't see any hiking trails, so be careful you don't get lost. Ajo is real close and it has a couple little stores, gas stations, and like two restaurants. It does have a museum that was closed citing Covid. The mine museum was still open and very interesting. It even interested the three kids (6, 8, 11 years old).
On our last night I saw bombing practice at the Goldwater bombing range. Just aerial flares and flashes from FAR away. I was surprised by it. It was NOT detrimental to our stay.
May be our fall/spring camping spot.
LegendManaged by Lower Sonoran BLM Field Office
Very quiet so much glass and old rusted tin cans, possibly from when mining was active here. Lots and lots of shards of broken glass, it’s part of the landscape almost. There are open mine pits, some fenced off, some not so be careful especially if you let your pets run free. Constant sound of planes overhead from the nearby AFB, with occasional low flying jets. Overall a nice place if you can get past all the broken glass, some areas worse than others.
Not too many chollas but there are some road in. Alley Rd was flat and level, some washboarding, ok for any rig just take it slow. Coming off of Alley Rd to pull out spots could be tricky for bigger rigs. There were a few nice looking spots that we didn’t attempt in our 26ft Class C because the road up was too steep. Deep dip on Alley Rd coming in, about 1.8 miles from where the paved road ends, we scraped our bike hitch both coming and going. At around 32.355867,-112.884902. Any rigs longer than about 26ft probably can’t make it further in than this spot if coming in from the north, or you can enter from the other side of the loop and come in that way.
Good verizon 4bars on 4GLTE, ATT had 2-3 bars on 3G, very slow.
Legend
This camping area is next to the County roping arena. There was some kind of grid RV area in distant past but now the entire area is neglected and rundown. There are a couple derelict RV trailer camps and some trashy campers that need to be booted out. This is a free 14d area and seems the County will come by and issue you a free permit. Cell signal is very good but no water, no trash, no tables and the old toilet by the arena is locked. Overall just a neglected Pima County park resource.
ScoutClean and quiet camping area Plenty of room
TravelerArrived an hour before sunset. Far enough from the road to be nice and quiet. Plenty of company but very spread out. Clear night and the stars were awesome.
LegendBig open area with some shrubs, cacti and washes. There is LOTS is space here so plenty of room to spread out but bc of the low nature of most of the plants there isn’t a ton of privacy. You prob won’t be alone but you won’t need to be right next to someone either.
Mostly level area, great roads. Everyone around was quiet and respectful. Saw a few coyotes while we were here and heard them yipping throughout the night. Very peaceful and close to Organ Pipe National Monument.
LegendStayed here for a night in mid April 2022. I arrived around 5:30 PM and was able to get set up and collect enough wood for a fire. I found a level spot with an existing fire ring. There were a few other campers around but this place has a lot of space so I didn’t notice the neighbors. It was cloudy and a full moon but I could imagine the skies get super dark here. I would stay here again.
GuideSpacious galore! Wonderful! Easy to find, and can park right off the road if desired! Lovely cactus… all around! What a blessing!
RangerQuiet besides the main highway traffic. You can go further back away from the road. Would come back.
TravelerBeautiful area, great spot to enjoy the desert.
Anyone looking for a drone?
ScoutAstonishing place in magnificent landscape! Plenty of sites, spacious and large distance to neighbors. Only a handful of other campers. Absolutely clean and easy to access with and car/van
ScoutNice place, plenty of Sitzes, yet only few neighbors. Getting there is bumpy (unpaved road) but with any passenger car doable.
ScoutFirst time camping near Ajo. We turned onto the scenic loop drive off Darby Wells Road and quickly found a large flat spot down off the road. Very little traffic and no neighbors. A new favorite!
GuideNice area with room between campers yet still opportunity to say hi and wave as you walk by. Some noisy atvs but not overwhelming. Close proximity to Ajo with plenty to do there. We will come back. The further back you go, you will loose cell signal completely.
RangerWould stay again. Watch out for the broken glass and old rusty metal.
RangerWe were on a transit from Phoenix to northern Nevada and decided a little detour through Ajo would be nice. In spite of the warnings about sketchy activity at Darby Well, we gave it a go. We had to go farther down the road than we planned to find a site that we felt we could navigate in our rig. The roadside berms closer in were bigger than we wanted to attempt.
We found a good, level spot with neighbors reasonably spread out and walking distance to the well so we decided to stay a couple of nights instead of our original plan of just one since we had enough cell signal to get some work done, the area was quiet, and the neighbors respectful.
The wind the first night was hefty and kept us huddled inside. Picture two adults, large dog, and a motorcycle in a tiny toy hauler! But by morning it easy to enjoy working and exploring outside. And, obviously, being a desert with no large trees around and lots of sun, we were able to keep our action up and running with solar power.
While there, we did see a huge caravan of border patrol vehicles come and go but we had no issues or negative encounters at all. We did, however, have a Colorado Cane Toad hop through our site. Imagine our surprise when my partner said“That rock just jumped!” I was able to break out my biggie zoom lens and get some shots without disturbing it.
[Side note: On our way into town, we did the walking tour which is very engaging if you’re into history and understanding the places you travel through. There is RV parking in town behind the main square but you’ll have to watch your clearance if you want to pull out through the square. We were too tall so we had to maneuver around a bit to get back out.]
Dispersed camping near Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the stunning desert landscape while enjoying the freedom of primitive camping. With various options available, campers can find solitude and adventure in this beautiful region of Arizona.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is Gunsight Wash BLM Dispersed camping area with a 4.3-star rating from 15 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 5 dispersed camping locations near Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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