Best Tent Camping near Barstow, CA

If you have to camp near Barstow, this is a good place for a week-day stay. Calico ghost town was a fun spot for our kids, not too busy on a week day in the spring though I’m sure it can be crazy (and hot) at other times. The campsites were hit or miss. We staid in a tent site which was tiny, right next to all the others, with no trees or vegetation for privacy, and no permanent fire ring or picnic bench. We walked around and some of the other RV sites are bigger and nicer. Classic desert views. I give it 4 stars for access to the ghost town and price.

But very rock to tent camp on. A ton of RV’s, so the noise was a premium. Great hiking into the mountain and mines.

tent camped. not many amenities, but we found peace and quiet, across the lake, from big bear. lots of trees! we brought our own grill, but enjoyed the campgrounds fire pit also.

Big government campground. Big spots but it can be difficult to get reservations. Lots of tent sites that cram way too many people in. Close to the lake

The campsite at Calico Ghost Town is nice with hook ups for RV and spaces for tent camping. Our boys scout troop spent a weekend October. The boys and their families enjoy touring the ghost town. We hiked around the area and on hills during the day. The facility has running water, restrooms and showers.

There were no trees at all. We were told to wait for a white truck when we got there. No one came. We called the security number and they told us they would be by. We waited about 20 minutes and ended up leaving. The tent sites were gravel. Overall not impressed.

Traveling in a camper van and needed to pull off to rest on BLM for the night. Right off Rainbow Basin onto Owl Canyon Rd about 1.3 miles away from the campsite we got stuck in sand. The road quickly went from rock hard to sinking sand and it’s impossible to tell the difference with the naked eye (were also driving late at night). We didn’t make it to the campsite so this isn’t really a fair review of the place itself. But please be mindful that the road to get there isn’t paved, it’s all dirt/sand so travel at your own risk. We are currently traveling in late October with crazy weather and wind storms. Hope this helps! Also, we luckily have AAA and they’re sending a flatbed from Barstow Towing # 760-255-4141

Edit: The flatbed couldn’t reach us in this remote location. They sent a 4x4 to our rescue and had us pulled out of this dry quicksand in less than an hour at $200 for their time and efforts. But they did mention that this was their sixth rescue of the day and that if we had stayed straight on Rainbow Basin within the loop we would have been fine. They explained these are basic campsites without hookups (if that’s what you’re looking for) and Owl Canyon Rd is traveled by RVs more which is why that happens frequently. Anyway, again, hope this helps.

My husband and I tent camped here during the week for 2 days. This campground is gorgeous. With how brown and dreary everything always looks at this time of year in this drought ridden state, this campground is so gorgeously green and lush! Most camp sites that I saw are pretty big and all sites have plenty of trees. There’s a good amount of space between the sites with some being more secluded then others. There are both hook up and non hook up sites. There are plenty of clean restrooms throughout the campground as well as showers that are now open again. There’s a really nice, 3 mile loop trail in the campground and another close by as well. We liked the campground so much that we made reservations while we were there for next month.

General: A mix of FHU RV sites tent sites, group sites around Horseshoe Lake and some additional dry camping and equestrian sites around Pelican Lake. There are also four RVs you can “rent” in the Horseshoe Lake area. The sites around Horseshoe Lake are close to an active rail line. And by active, I mean really active – I stopped counting after I counted 24 trains lumbering by during our short overnight stay. 

Site Quality: IMO the waterfront tent sites are the nicest. They are farthest away from the trains (but not far enough!) The other dry sites have paved camper pads; some are “doubles” which would kind of suck if both sites were occupied by people who did not know each other! (Ours was one but fortunately, this was not the case for us on a Sunday in November). 

Bath/Shower House: There were two restrooms about equidistant from our campsite, but both were very basic– no soap, hooks or shelves and no mirrors (it looked like they had been ripped off the wall). The floors were concrete, and the entire appearance was very drab. I did not use the shower. 

This was an overnight stop for us, so we did not take advantage of any of the activities (horseback riding, hiking, disc golf, fishing). There was a very nice playground in the day-use area, a reasonable walking distance from the Horseshoe Lake sites. I had called about a week ahead of time to make a reservation (the online reservation system has been down for quite some time) and was assured would not need a reservation. However, there is a gate that is locked at 4 pm and we knew we would not arrive in time, so we called and were able to make a phone reservation when our site was assigned. We were a little concerned when we saw a security guard making rounds around 10 pm (and this combined with the locked gate), we wondered if we were in a safe environment, although we did not encounter any problems. Make sure you know that the park is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (which seems a bit bizarre) so you will need to know the gate code after 4 pm and on those days (the code seems to change daily). Also, I read that seniors (62 and older), active duty military, and veterans receive a $5 discount Sundays through Thursdays but you have to go to the office and show proof and then you will receive a “rebate” a few days later (which we did). This was just an overnight for us as we worked our way back home but we would likely not stay here again.

Traveling while pulling my utility trailer along makes slow going. And pulling up a long, long, long desert mountain grade can be downright exhausting.

So this is a mighty grateful thumbs up review. Robert made my day when I phoned up in the late afternoon and offered me a limited use rate on one their full hookup sites.

And of course, I got in real late, just after late closing hours–10 pm!

I got the last pull through site at the end of the lane. It was a breeze to pull in, get my deep cycle battery charging. 30 Amp with an adapter is all I need.

Shady Lane is mostly populated by real big rigs. So a 50amp socket is also on the post.

The park is a little distance from the highway, so it's blessedly quiet overall. After a grueling pull from Las Vegas, it was a wonderful blessing to crawl into my tent with my feline road companion, Missy. She just loves tent camping the very best. It was down in the 40s last night, but our traveling bed is a cushy cloud ☁️ from Heaven 🌠🌌✨ Just me and Missy and all those stars on that dark desert night.

Just woke to a lovely quiet morning here at Shady Lane. Fully renewed, to make my long drive down towards San Diego.

Looks they offer all the basics, showers, laumdry, and the same wifi network is offered all over these desert parts.. So once signed up, its the same login wherever you go on this network.. That's handy. Great wifi signal all the way down at the end of the lane, too.

Most importantly, Shady Lane offers tent spots and doesn't get snooty about whether you're pulling a utility trailer, or a spit shined mega-rig. On the phone, when I spoke with Robert, told him what I'm pulling along, he was as nice as can be.

I'm glad I found this quiet little desert overnighter. 🏜 Just right for Missy and me.

We stayed here for four nights and actually enjoyed it in spite of the heat during the afternoon hours.  Our space was on the end so we had a lot of privacy but near the I-40.  That didn't bother us but it might bother those who are looking for total quiet.  The nights were fantastic!!  The lakes here give it a nice feel since it's in the Mojave desert between Barstow and Ludlow California.  The staff was VERY friendly and helpful.  The best part for me was the pool which was clean and cool.

It is shady with large trees. Opened in 1948, same as the office trailer! Very quite… very low train noise! If you know Barstow, you know the trains never stop!

The road in is washboard bumpy, but I did fine with my Golf! The site itself is beautiful. There were a few other visitors, but everyone was quiet and respectful. A fantastic stop near Barstow.

The rock formations, combined with the desert view are astonishing!

We found a perfect spot by the entrance, was very close to one of the popular climbing spots, but wasn’t an issue at all.
30min drive to dump/water/propane & FlyingJ in Barstow. 5 min drive to a cool eatery…will be back for more. Loved this place!

A little ran down but everything you can need. Laundry, hook ups and a pay phone. When you first pull in you see all these dope mad Maxx cars... something super cool and they have a drive I’m down the street. I mean how cool! Barstow is nothing lavish but they do have a few rv areas that are ran down but still there if you need them.

I love places that are child friendly because it shows when people truly care for others and this place sure does! Yes, it's a hole in the wall but what did you expect Barstow to be>??? This RV spot however is a KAO and has tons of family-friendly things to do so no one will be bored. Yes it's parallel to the major free way but I mean it's well kept and plenty of things to do. For sure a Good Spot for a day or two

I had to change my reservation three times, and the staff was incredibly helpful. They went above and beyond to give us the easiest possible stay. The campground itself was reasonably clean with a gorgeous view of the desert and mountains. Sites laid out well and most are pull through and accommodate big rigs. Pool, laundry, general store, showers and lavatories. They did not however have the shuttle to the silver mine as advertised (ended with Covid) and the Enterprise rental in Barstow does not “pick you up“ and were rude besides.

This campground in Barstow has many things to do. Campground has full hookups first off. Next, they have a separate campground area for OHV campers and vehicles. Plenty of trails and some famous rock climbing just behind the hill. The ghost town is awesome to check out, kids love it. Pan for silver, train rides and explore the mines. Even grab a bite to eat with a beer at the saloon. Gets hot in the summer but fall and winter good times to go. This place even has cabin rentals too.