Keyesville Recreation Area Dispersed, near Bakersfield, California, is a great spot for those seeking a bit of solitude in nature. This area offers a mix of open spaces for camping, with fire rings scattered throughout, making it easy to enjoy a campfire under the stars.

Visitors have noted the peaceful atmosphere, with many appreciating the proximity to the river and the surrounding trails. One camper mentioned, “We stayed here two nights and felt so peaceful and out of sight!” While the area can get busy on weekends, especially with off-road vehicles, there are plenty of secluded spots to find your own slice of tranquility.

The location is perfect for those who enjoy outdoor activities like biking and hiking, with trails nearby to explore. Facilities include vault toilets and dumpsters, which help keep the area tidy, though some campers have pointed out that litter can be an issue. 

If you're looking for a free camping experience that allows pets and offers a chance to connect with nature, Keyesville is worth considering. Just remember to pack out what you pack in, and you’ll be set for a great time in the great outdoors.

Keysville (formerly Keyesville) is a historic mining area that offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities. Set in rolling terrain amidst a blue oak and foothill pine woodland, Keysville is dissected by the lower Kern River. A little exploration can turn up a wealth of historic resources, including a variety of mining structures and features, a historic fort, and the famous Walker Cabin. Keysville offers commercial and noncommercial white-water rafting opportunities as well as fishing, recreational gold panning, and dispersed camping. A network of over seventy miles of trails provides for mountain biking, equestrian, and motorized recreation use.

Travel Responsibly - on designated roads and trails or in permitted areas

Respect The Rights of Others - including private property owners and all recreational trail users, campers and others to allow them to enjoy their recreational activities undisturbed.
Educate Yourself - by obtaining travel maps and regulations from public agencies, planning for your trip, taking recreation skills classes and knowing how to use and operate your equipment safely.
Avoid Sensitive Areas - such as meadows, lakeshores, wetlands and streams, unless on designated routes.
Do Your Part - by leaving the area better than you found it, properly disposing of waste, minimizing the use of fire, avoiding the spread of invasive species, restoring degraded areas and joining a local enthusiast organization.

https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/documents/files/Keysville%20arch%20E%20low%20res.pdf

Keyesville Recreation Area Dispersed

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dispersed camping along keyesville rd.  big open areas for group or big rig camping, lots of pullouts with fire rings. vault toilets and dumpsters at staging areas. this recreation area has lots of trash,  easily could spend days picking litter. keyesville rd. has plenty of traffic though from 2200hrs til morning is fairly quiet.  it’s a rec area, so with that in mind the weekends are getting busy. a lot of motocross, ohv and atv traffic from late thurs to sunday. other than that it is a wonderful free camping.

Keyesville Recreation Area

You can park RVs right next to the water but it gets very busy, there are more secluded spots accessible to even Class A rigs further down. My Class C was able to make it through a few of the dirt roads no problem. Best part is the nature, trails, river, fire rings almost everywhere you need, dumpster and vault toilet near the main road. Worst part was the dirt bikes passing by my campsite on the weekends but it wasn’t loud honestly. The busiest spot is the one down next to the river , easily 20+ vehicles on an April weekend.

Plenty of sites and beautiful nature

Access to the river is closed as of 26 January, still plenty of dispersed places down the road to camp. Bathrooms and trash dump and lots of trails to ride bikes! Some of the sites are a little rough for trailer access.

Free Camping

Lots of space and lots of ppl with their toys. Pack it in, pack it out! 

Awesome spot!

We pulled in at night time around 10:30PM. I was scared it would be sketchy, but turned out to be a smooth dirt road. We encountered multiple other campers as well before we found a suitable turnout. Loved the accessibility. We woke up to a beautiful little spot near the water; would definitely camp again here

Stayed a night

We stayed here two nights and felt so peaceful and out of sight ! Def recommend 

Perfect to be alone

All the spots at the front were taken here so we had to drive almost all the way to end. Don’t go down the final steep hill, you might not make it up. It’s very tight there and you have to do a 20 point turn to turn back.

We walked down the hill and our friend saw some random guy come out the trees and follow us as we were walking back up. He might be living there because there was so much trash

2 stars because the area itself is nice, there’s the river nearby and internet was good

Guy just sitting in trees near the end

Clean Spots, recommend! 
lot of space and different places. 



Good an Quiet

There was no food locker or bathroom close to where I parked but there are lots of spots, and a great view, it's also very close to grocery stores. Heavy wind and some critters interested in the tent. Very immersive area. I ended up just putting all my food in a cooler in my trunk and it worked.

Wouldn't go down the last steep section, it was wet sand, I decided not to risk it, as it was night too, and parked sideways at the spot overlooking the valley, it was a great view but I couldn't really see where the river was.

Photos of Keyesville Recreation Area Dispersed

Real photos from real campers