Best Dispersed Camping near Piñon Hills, CA

Great free camping when campgrounds are booked. Easy to navigate with GPS. Many large and small sites along the road. Some spots more secluded than others.  Smaller rigs, medium clearance and lite off-road capabilities recommended. Good cellular reception in my particular location.

First come first served dispersed camping just outside Big Bear. Near bike trails. Was not crowded mid week, but spots were filling up closer to the weekend. There are a lot of flat spots to choose from.

Specs if this campground are wrong, no toilets/water/etc.

Great for campers that meet 2 criteria 1) You have a Jeep, Truck it similar vehicle that can go off-road. 2) You enjoy dispersed camping (no water/restrooms etc)

If both are yes, this place is amazing.

Deep in nature, beautiful area, no cost and you can almost always find a spot, even on a Saturday in summer.

If you go the the end of 3N06 (main off-road path) there is a good hike that you can take for several hours.

My husband and I were looking for good boondocking spots yesterday and we decided to check out this spot, after finding it on The Dyrt and a few other sites. It's definitely a beautiful place, and most of the road to the site is paved, but the road up to the actual spot is gravel, with lots of potholes and washboard areas, which would make it difficult for an RV. But the biggest issue for RVs is an area of the road that is very steep and immediately turns into a hairpin turn that we didn't even want to try in our 4x4, since the road is very thin and our SUV (a 2009 Nissan Pathfinder) is kind of thick. I'm sure it's probably nothing for people who are used to using their 4x4 for more than regular driving in the snow, etc., but it was too dodgy for us. There is no way that even a Class C rig would be able to take that steep incline and immediately do that sharp turn. And since there's nowhere to turn around in that spot, you'd have to back your rig down the incline and then quite a ways down the pitted, gravel road to get out of it. 

It's full of trees and seems fairly remote, but we had 5 cars pass us as we were backing away from the incline, so it's obviously a busy spot - you wouldn't be there alone, and this was on a Thursday.

If you’re into panning for gold you just might find some along Holcomb Creek. There are active claims in the area so be respectful. Once you leave the pavement the going gets slower along the trails. You definitely need a high clearance vehicle. There are campgrounds in the area and also yellow post campsites. There wasn’t many other vehicles around the times I’ve been out there. Nice scenery and peaceful.

It is a free campground, first come first serve. There are no developed facilities (i.e., no firepits, outhouses, etc.) but it is beautiful and there are plenty of flat places to set up a tent. This area is used almost exclusively by rock climbers, but anyone is welcomed. As long as you follow the guidelines for the area, you can set up your tent anywhere you see a spot.

First time headed out here and it was a great spot for a disconnected weekend. Trail was fun (definitely needed 4x4) and the sites around has good shade and good size open spots. Best to get there early as possible to secure a spot.

The trail was closed as of May 7, 2023, No idea when it will be open.

The turn is not marked well, in fact the coordinates are a little bit off. If you miss the turn like we did you have to go 5 miles or more to get a turnabout big enough to turn around. You climb a big steep hill to get to the turn in. On the way back down from the turnaround we almost burned out or brakes. We decided not to go to the site because it looked like a one lane road and too tight for our 35 ft bumper pull. Disappointed because pictures from others looked great and it is a beautiful area. We found a spot near the road that I’ll post for others.

By Rim of the world scenic byway and mormon rocks. Easy in and out but next to train tracks. Quick stop friendly ;)

It is not a real campground, just a the parking area of a view point. So the view was great. I parked at one end of the area but in the evening lots of couples and teenagers came and the parking area was well used. Some people stood silently admiring the view, while others played loud music. There were also tire tracks on the ground that suggested to me, some young people come here to test their driving skills. I spent the night and no-one took really notice of me. 

There are no toilets, campfire sites or shade but good cell service.

I did the best I could with finding the exact location on the map using The Dyrt's current capabilities to add a new location.  This site is located at 34.684300,-116.960600, across the 247 road from Sawtooth Canyon Campground / New Jack City rock climbing area. Hopefully someone can go in at some point and fix the location to be more precise.

We checked this place out but didn’t stay. We liked the beautiful wide open surroundings, the good cell reception, and the easy access from the main road, but it seemed like this is a place better suited for bigger groups, especially those who will be riding ATVs or dirt bikes around. So, if you’re looking for a big open space to hang out with a big group where you can be loud and not disturb anyone, this would be a good place for it. We also heard gun shots nearby so further down the road is probably a good shooting area. 

Obviously no amenities so please pack in/ pack out. It was surprisingly not too trashed so that was nice. We made it down the dirt road fine in our 26 ft class c. Proceed at your own comfort level, but it seems like a road that would be ok for any rig (maybe not a class A?) if you go slow and watch for dips and bumps.

A large spot big enough for a small group. However, limited flat terrain for tent/ vehicle. A creek runs by with some access to some good hammocking trees.

A weird little shrine to Winnie the Pooh is behind the spot. Don’t know what to make of that.