Best Dispersed Camping near Pixley, CA

We stopped here after we found that all the sites along the Kern were full. It is just North of Johnsondale and just South of the National Forest. Easy driving access to Trail of a Thousand Giants, Moro Rock, and views of the Needles. 

We camped out under the stars just after sundown and got up right after Sunrise. No one else camp out near our spot. The road is littered with turn offs for easy and free dispersed camping.

Closest bathrooms are either on the Trail of a Hundred Giants (there is a campground there too but it is closed in Winter) or down in Johnsondale.

My wife and I love this location and definitely will come back. There was only one other camper and they were 50 yards away. Relaxing creek runs through the campsite, allowing access to a fresh water source. On the other side of the creek there is a gorgeous clearing that opens up to a blue sky with wispy clouds. You will be at 7000ft elevation so dress warm. Only issue we ran into was in order to get to the camp spots you have to squeeze your vehicle through two trees because a large fallen tree has blocked the original entrance path. Hopefully the forestry is able to remove it. No worries tho, my full size truck was able to get through it so you shouldn't have any problems. A wonderful spot for small and large camping groups. Also there is a hot springs store on the way up there. Recommend stopping there for any last minute supplies. They have everything you need for disperse camping.

Directions didn’t lead me to any dispersed camping but I did find just an ok spot along the road. Don’t know if where I camped was allowed but I did anyway

We have always been avid tent campers. Fall of 2019 we decided to purchase a trailer. Don't get me wrong. We love every amenity it brings but we have been missing something. I decided even with this whole Covid 19 pandemic I would take the family on a quick outing. Away from everyone. To unplug. We decided no trailer. Let's go explore. That is what we did. We finally came upon Upper Peppermint Dispersed camping and said this was it. Very spacious campsite next to the stream. Only one family when we arrived Friday mid day. When we left Sunday morning there might have been 2 more sites being used. If you want to go off grid but be close to a few cool spots this is the place. Dome Rock is minutes away. Trail of a hundred Giants is about 30 minutes south. Only reason I put 4 stars is because the fire regulations at these times. Sheriff told us fires aren't really allowed. There were also signs posted. That's what we planned to cook on so we took our chances.

Please please respect the camp if you stay here, leave it better than you found it. (The litter gets bad in the summer.) It's absolutely gorgeous here. There's great access to the national forest and the little town of Kernville is so cute and friendly.

Nice quiet boondocking area downhill off the road. It’s all dust roads so AWD would be best, but we did make it in our van. Slid backwards down the hill kicking up dust a couple of times trying to get out the next day, but we made it! Would have been another story if it had rained. Regardless they were gorgeous tucked in spots among the trees. Woke up to cattle walking through the meadow we parked next to. About a mile or two from the Trail of 100 Giants Sequoia trailhead so that was really nice beating the crowds there in the AM. Brisk at night even in the summer.

We stopped here on our way through Sequoia Nat’l Forest and loved it. The water is super clear and nice! We were the only ones staying here, so it was very quiet and calming. A handful of camping spots around this area, well worth the stay!

Not for big rigs! A very primitive but beautiful area. Tons of winding roads with lots of S curves Leading up to 9000 feet. Many great camping spots including close to Peppermint Creek. Completely dry area so no campfires until November. No services and no reception so pack it in and pack it out!

This camping site is a nice free area super close to the Giants Trail entrance (5 minute drive). As you head in you go thru a little dirt road and at the end you see an opening for this site. There is one site located right at the start of the access road but with no views. The main area is cleared to pitch your camping tent. There are no trash cans around or toilets (closest is entrance of Giants trail) but trash may be near at the other camp sites. I did have to put my trash in the tree with a rope about 20-50ft away just for safety. Make sure you don’t keep anything smelly in your tent or around your truck because there is a local bear that comes by in the middle of the night when everyone’s sleeping. The Bear didn’t tamper with my ground tent but I ended up sleeping in my camper due to it being too cold. Although, I did hear the next campers yell out bear for safety. But nothing to worry about if you pack in and pack out and are respectful. The stream and meadow is beautiful. I would recommend this to anyone looking to have a secluded quite area that some ppl may not come to due to the friendly bear wink.

Chico Flat Dispersed Campsite offers many areas with flat ground to tent upon, as well as a large parking lot to car camp if that’s your thing. However there aren’t loads of trees to hammock camp on. You cannot build a campfire here. There is a pit toilet. There is river access right next to the campsite. There is also spotty cell reception if you want that.

Let it be known, this campsite is not clean. The previous campers that came long before me left two things: trash, and a message. There was a menagerie of bottle caps and broken glass strewn practically everywhere for me to pick up. This can be said for dare I say everywhere in this whole campsite. Additionally, this trash acted as a proverbial “go ahead” for other people to litter and make the litter situation worse; not cool.

If you want to really get away from people, don’t come here. When I went people brought the whole kit-and-kaboodle: a suburb of tents, gas generators, bright lights, loud music, etcetera.

Perhaps this isn’t how this site always is, but man it got crowded, noisy, and annoying. I’ll spare you from the whole story.

If you’re looking for a quick spot to crash, look no further. If you’re intent on bringing generators, lights, dogs and speakers, this is unfortunately for you. If you’re looking to get away and spend time in nature like myself, this isn’t for you.

First off this place is a bit hard to find, but there is a sign on the right and if you miss that sign then you probably won’t find this spot. Overall I recommend going super early because there is always neighbors around and the best spot is next to the big rocks which is a bit secluded from the other campgrounds. There is plenty of shade there unlike the other spots. I like camping here because you can just walk down to the river which is always enjoyable. We always catch great fish here trout, catfish, bass.

-Open year round.

-Reservations: First come first served. Free of charge.

-Permit Info: Campfire Permits required for campfires, barbeques, and camp stoves.

Best Season: Summer Busiest Season: Summer

Restrictions: Camping is permitted 25 feet away from waters edge.

Water: No Restroom: Portable Toilets

No garbage service so pack all your trash out.

I provided a photo of a camper who left all there trash there. If you see that make sure to take pics of their license plates.

I was surprised how vacant this location was. It was absolutely gorgeous and the stars were unreal! There seemed to be a lot of campsites very far from each other. We only saw one other person

We found this place after not being able to find our resent campground and I’m glad we found it. It is secluded from other campgrounds. If you keep going on the road to your right once you enter you will come across more campgrounds. There is lots of room there. There were other campers there so we decided to stay here.

You can hike down couple feet and you will come across the running creek. We had couple visitors stop by at night ( yes they were animals) 😁 we saw a bear and a possum so make sure you store your trash just above a tree. Don’t get scared because you are in their territory. Anyways I really enjoyed being in this camp. It does get cold here because of the elevation but once the sun comes out it’s nice and warm.

I've camped here since I was a kid really get great place for large groups. We usually pick up a lot of trash and glass from this site from careless campers so wear shoes in the sand. Use caution in early spring and summer months the river is very fast and DANGEROUS! Really great. Be ready for a hike from the car to the site, it's down a decent hill to the campsite. Watch out for snakes!!!!

This place is amazing, we went on a Thursday night and left on a Sunday afternoon. The area is secluded and away from kern campgrounds where you will see a lot of people. You will have some people checking out the area or driving in but for us they all left. We had this huge place for ourselves for 3 days which was amazing. It is a huge area enough for other campgrounds but during this pandemic you definitely want to be away from people. Anyways, I really enjoyed this camp because you have a running creek and a beautiful meadow which you will have some cows visiting every morning. This place has lots of trees great to hang a hammock like I did. What I like is that all you hear is the birds singing and the creek running, it is so relaxing. You will come across some wildlife, this is the path of a bear and a mountain lion so be careful. You will see many tracks of them and also deer. But they never bothered us and also what do you expect you are in the middle of no where.

There is a market in johnsondale about 10-15 minutes Incase you forgot something but it is very pricey.

02NOV2020 - As others have mentioned, portable toilets and dumpster available. It’s not far from town as the description indicates, about 6 miles. With that said, however, there is little cell service. You might get 1 bar for a minute and it’s gone the next. There are about 6 spots or so along Kern River but this is a place people like to drop in for tubing. Each site is private-ish and they won’t be walking through your site to drop in, you’ll just see groups of people float by your area, once they drop in close to the first site on the north end. There is a review on here indicating the parking lot was full, but that likely was just people tubing. It is pretty large lot. Also, there is really only one way down to get to the campsites, at least to see what’s available. Just note, you’ll have to walk through other people’s occupied sites and walk along the river to see what is available. Once you find one, you can rough hike from that spot, directly up to the parking lot. You can then move your vehicle closer to the site you found along the river. I ended up just climbing the rocks and rough paths so I didn’t disturb my neighbors. Most people did it this way to respect each other’s privacy. Once you’re established along the river, there won’t be much road noise, but if you car camp in the lot, there will be plenty of road noise, depending on season. The river is nice to fall asleep to, and some sites have a lot of shade, where others do not. Plenty of trees along the river to set up a hammock. Store at the edge of town for any essentials you need, restaurants, laundry, and Kern River Brewery. Stars are bright, and little to no light pollution. You can see the Milky Way faintly, if the moon isn’t out. Oh, and no official RV sites with hookups, but plenty of room to park one and use the generator.

I like to camp near waterfalls

It’s a really nice spot. The meadow is nice but you need to hike in. We saw two bears every night so take precaution. They were Cubs, they’re not scared of you but also won’t mess with you if you lock up all your food.

Parked next to the road (didn’t want to mess with any critters) and barely noticed any road the whole night. Stayed from 5 until around 7 the next day.

Does take about 45 mins to wind up there and i got there at 1:15am. Didn't find the campgrounds but had large side areas with forest machinery. Next to stream. Then if you continue on you will hit a 4 mile off road (my Corolla/any sedan OK) and see great views and waterfall! Nice!