Best Dispersed Camping near Lakeport, CA

Recent Dispersed Reviews in Lakeport

26 Reviews of 10 Lakeport Campgrounds

• 

  Natalie T.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 20, 2024

  Cowboy Camp

  Camp closed

  Visit was for 11/19/2024 found the gates locked, no entry. Seasonal? No signage to tell.

• 

  don L.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 23, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  still nice..

  we used to go hunting up there in the 8os, you should have seen the campground then. really nice, had picnic tables fire pits great place to camp. i was up there a few years ago still looks kind of the same but they took all that out of the campground years ago.. road going in still looks the same..there is an old tree in the campground, people who have neen there will know the tree i mean, looks old low hangin branches, thats where we used to camp..more trash atound now. in 1987 it was clean.. still nice place

• 

  Catherine L.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 15, 2024

  Cowboy Camp

  Quiet

  Quiet stop, but I wouldn't call it the most beautiful stop I've ever stayed. Camping spots are to the left and the right I'd the day use. Pit toilets. No garbage.

• 

  Jaye S.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 1, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  Decent dispersed site

  Drive up to the site all incline dirt road ~6 miles - we made it up without 4 wheel drive but some areas were a little sketchy. Overall pretty dusty too. Sites themselves were decently maintained, some trash from previous campers but nothing major. This area is a popular for target practice so if the sounds of gunshots throughout the day isn’t your vibe, then this spot might not be suitable. Overall beautiful sunrises and sunsets and starry night sky

• 

  Steve M.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 27, 2024

  Clear Lake View Point Dispersed

  Absolutely not! Nowhere to camp and a terrible road

  As soon as I started going up an extremely steep hill and saw a sign that said not a through street, I should have turned around but it was impossible with my 30-foot car and trailer. I am Bart Upon A frightening , rutted, unmaintained road that is only suitable for off-road vehicles for sick four wheel drives . Barely made it out of there with everything working as it should on car and trailer and actually got stuck at one point and had to use logs to get myself traction. Do not try this and there is nowhere to stop and set up a ten , at all!

• 

  Robert H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 30, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  High Above Clear Lake

  Beautiful spot with some views of the lake. No services, but had cell service (CC). I drove in from the south access to High Valley rd. The road was challenging. It was steep with loose dirt in spots. It was an adventure. I am going to try north access into Lucerne later. (See Google for more info)

• E

  Eli F.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 24, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  Beautiful

  Beautiful spot, was able to get a lake view. Easy to get to and relatively clean

• 

  Stacy L.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 10, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  Awesome dispersed spot

  Super easy to find coming up from the lake. A lot of spots to choose from. There were around 4 or 5 people here already but we were able to find a secluded spot that overlooks the lake. Very peaceful but some traffic sounds at night from the lake towns.

• M

  Mo H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 3, 2024

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  Nice spot

  The gravel roads here are open again and easy to drive on! We drove here from the north. All wheel drive ist helpfull, but we saw some people with a prius up there.

  Small individual places with self-built fireplaces. It was windy in the evening, but that died down during the night and in the morning we had breakfast in the sun in a clearing.

• 

  iliana A.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 14, 2024

  BLM Sheldon Creek

  Good Free Spot!

  There are 3 sites. Used the trees to help set up a tarp to keep us and our stuff from the rain. Camped in our car. A little muddy but not too bad for our 4Runner. There was a nice little creek and a fire pit. Had the area to ourselves likely due to the rain.

  You might want to be prepared to dig your own toilet though as the toilet set up was completely infested with spiders.

• D

  Derek D.

  Scout

  

  Feb. 10, 2024

  Cowboy Camp

  2/9/2024 —- closed

  The camp area is closed, as of 2/9/2024. No indication of that on the BLM website.

• 

  Jorg F.

  Traveler

  

  Nov. 17, 2023

  Cowboy Camp

  Cowboy Camp

  Great free campground! We've stayed here many times. It's open, grassy level and quiet. Next to a stream and surrounded by hills. The only tough part is getting across the stream to some of the hikes. It's a hot spot for horses which of course have no stream problems, so the only negative is fly's sometimes. But just keep your screen door closed (& fly swatter handy). We always manage to level out in our 23" Winnebago View. There is lots of open space so no crowding. There is a rural road near by but traffic noise isn't a problem. Perhaps I should say it's awful so fewer people come and it's not discovered.

• 

  Patricia Y.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 14, 2023

  Cowboy Camp

  FLIES!

  No trees just dry open land inhabited by an unusual amount of flies. It was crazy how thick they were. An almost dry creek runs alongside the open field of camping pads. To close to the road and way to exposed to feel comfortable to stay. If I needed a place to get some shut eye before heading onward, then maybe. I had a car full of flies that went to the coast with us. It was crazy.

• 

  Patricia Y.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 14, 2023

  BLM Sheldon Creek

  Peaceful

  It's not too bad of a road up there. Had deer, butterflies, and humming birds all around us. Babbling brook, cool and comfortable in mid-October. Looking forward to a springtime visit.

• 

  Patricia Y.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 14, 2023

  Mayacmas Campground

  Very steep

  The ride up was rough. The views made it all worth it. The camp site was not an option for me. I need something semi level to navigate.

• k

  kenny T.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 9, 2023

  BLM Sheldon Creek

  FREE BLM campground - travel trailers not advised

  Tow behinds/trailers not recommended; rough roads and can’t turn back once on the path.

  Otherwise 10/10 for our truck camper, had the place to ourselves for the 4th of July weekend, beautiful fresh water creek running through, great toilet & even a fire pit with abundance of wood around.

  There are about 4/5 sites, only 2 with actual fire pits.

  Please keep it amazing by keeping it clean.

  FREE

• 

  Raven P.

  Guide

  

  Nov. 30, 2022

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  NO ACCESS! DON'T COME HERE

  Absolutely no access!! Gate shut and locked, camping area inaccessible due to fire damage! Road not maintained.

• T

  Tracy B.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 24, 2022

  Pt Arena Lighthouse BLM - CLOSED

  No camping allowed

  We drove 5 hours to get to this what we thought would be a beautiful ocean view site only to find NO CAMPING signs all over the place. Do not come here and expect to camp

• C

  Carl L.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 9, 2022

  BLM Sheldon Creek

  Pleasant BLM camping, hot in the summer.

  A decent drive off the highway, but a good one. A few nice views. Google maps will not get you there, we followed the directions on this page.

  Only 2 spots up here, maybe 3. But we had it to ourselves on a weeknight. The Bathroom (vault toilet) had toilet paper. There was some water in the creek, but it wasn’t super easy to access. 

  The site itself is nothing special, just a couple of pullouts in the woods. Probably very hot during the day since you’re up on a ridge. Can’t beat free though.

• 

  allison W.

  Legend

  

  Aug. 6, 2022

  Pt Arena Lighthouse BLM - CLOSED

  Special place in California

  I love Pt Arena. The lighthouse is historic and has an incredible past; if you are anywhere near here I absolutely recommend stopping by and taking a tour (get ready for stairs). It’s only $5 a person, dogs are welcome on the premises if not inside the actual lighthouse, and there’s a great gift shop. You can also rent the lighthouse keepers quarters, which I’ve never done but seems like it would be a unique experience. I wish I had factored this into my trip, but of course you need to book them way in advance.

  In Pt Arena, you are far from major towns but you have conveniences close at hand and a choice of directions to go, whether it’s down toward Sonoma Valley and the wine country, Point Reyes, or into Anderson Valley (underrated!).

  Camping in this area gives you a special place to kick off into areas that most tourists don’t even know about, or don’t get to see through your eyes because they’re tucked away into posh $500/night B&B accommodations. I woke up early because I had to get back to San Francisco and I had Highway 1 almost all to myself. It was one of the most gorgeous, amazing parts of my entire drive.

• 

  Summer A.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 17, 2022

  BLM Sheldon Creek

  Perfect Spot!

  Sheldon Creek is a BLM campsite up a winding dirt/gravel road. We drove a 4WD vehicle, but most cars should be able to handle the journey up. Signs will direct you in the right direction, and lead you to a campground with spots to pitch tents or park/hangout. There are even picnic tables, fire pits, and bathrooms. I didn’t get a chance to check out the bathrooms, but they looked decent. We only had one neighbor who seemed pretty friendly, which was a relief as you’re pretty far out in a remote area. Overall this is a beautiful spot where we felt safe. Would definitely recommend!

• 

  Aliza N.

  Legend

  

  Jan. 22, 2022

  Lakeview Dispersed Campground

  Sooooo windy

  Lovely views of Clear Lake from a clearing on 220 that appears to be an established site. Right at the intersections of 16 N 22 road. Nice big clear, open area. Really….views of the lake and stars are unreal here. BUT….it was so so windy. We camp in a Chevy high top van and the wind was go fierce it was shaking us all over the place in the night. Finally had to move to another spot (that isn’t really a spot) down the road around 4am bc the wind was just too much for us. Also 220 was blocked just after the 16 N 22 road cuts off (heading east) so we had to head back the way we came (on 220 in Nice). Road was dry and packed and clear other than the tree blocking the road. Old burn area so lots of downs and such.

• 

  Lori A.

  Traveler

  

  Jan. 5, 2022

  Cow Mountain Rec Area Dispersed

  Dispersed

  As long as you have a capable vehicle and are prepared to provide for your own needs, you'll be ready for Cow.

• J

  Joe V.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 9, 2021

  Grizzly Flat Dispersed Campground

  True Dispersed Camping

  My wife and I were going to camp here but she was a little spooked by the amount of bears we saw on the trail to the campsite. This area was also decimated by wild fire recently and a large percentage of the forest is charred. We ended up passing this site up, but it looks like it is a cool spot. FYI the areas surrounding this site are not too suitable if looking for a hotel. We ended up driving a considerable distance down to Sonoma and continued on our honeymoon with wine tasting.

• J

  Jeanette C.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 12, 2016

  Cow Mountain Rec Area Dispersed

  Cow Crawlin

  Always fun. Love going to the tech course with our off road buggy. Crawled all over that hill.

• J

  Jeanette C.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 10, 2016

  Cow Mountain Rec Area Dispersed

  Cow

  Love taking our Rock crawler up to cow. Lots of obstacles. Camping is awesome. Few sites and vault restrooms. Still a good time.