Best Tent Camping near Red Mountain, CA

General: Smallish (approx. 50-site) campground that does not take reservations. No hookups, one walk-in tent site, and the others are either back-in or pull-through. Some are “double” sites that would be ideal for sharing. 

Site Quality: Varies. All sites (except four, three of which are designated handicap sites) are a mixture of sand/gravel. Not all are completely level, and some accommodate larger vehicles than others. 

Bathhouse: Pit toilets only. Some are open air and some are enclosed; the one closest to our site was clean. 

Activities: hiking, photography. Good night sky area. The nature trail is accessible directly from the campground and the Hagen Canyon trail is ¾ mile from the campground. Red Cliffs is another short trail across the highway; these are the most popular (and short) hikes in the park but there are others. The views are jaw-dropping and well worth exploring. 

Note that although there is a dump station, there is a $20 charge to use it. 

We arrived around 1 pm on a Sunday in late March and had our pick of sites, however, the campground filled in to about ¾ full by the end of the day.

Kern River is a great place in the hot California Desert. This place has everything to make you feel at home. Several large sites for tents or RV's , bathrooms with full showers, a pool, splashpad and water play area. They have these weird Banana bikes which were fun. I was in complete heaven when I saw the coffee bar! There is a big pavilion with cooking areas for everyone!

This is close to several nearby attractions. They offer great wifi services. Great places if you have little ones. so much to do and all of the staff was wonderful.

They have Cabins too! I didnt stay in them but they are pretty cute.

Nearly all these campsites butt up against the Badlands-esque rock formations with mini slot canyons to explore right at your campsite. My son absolutely loved this place. I loved it. We had a great time!

It costs $25 per night and has zero amenities but the landscape makes up for it. Joshua trees and amazing rock formations, Jack rabbits and desert squirrels... it’s just great.

1 bar AT&T if you’re lucky. No water, no electricity, but there’s a dump station near the visitor center. No electric car charging. Lots of tents and small rigs, nothing big. Campground uses narrow one-way dirt road. There are about 50 campsites with a picnic table, fire ring, rocky tent pad and fairly level gravel parking spot. At least 2 spots are ADA with concrete parking spots and nearby restroom.

Now during COVID time it’s self registration, not sure about other times. We stayed one night and never saw a ranger. The campground was about half full and didn’t fill up while we were there.

Forest Fire 2 years ago did some damage resulting in the water spigot being intermittently operating, boiling or filter a must. Spacious, sparsely used, remote tent or car camping, some space for RV but NO hookups. 20 mile dirt road for access. Fire restrictions usually "extreme" so probably not a spot for a campfire. Rattlesnakes common, use caution with kids and pets.

Kind of like a mini Joshua tree, can be really windy. there are wind blocks at most of the campsites. Really close to the California Poppy preserve. Good times, clear skies.

We found Owl Canyon a few years back and became enchanted with this place. About three miles of washboarded (but maintained) gravel road leads to a small campgroundwith exquisite rock formations and plenty of hiking trails leading off in all directions. The first time we were here, we were the only campers other than the adorable camp hosts who had taken the trouble to put small solar lights on the vault toilets and soap on a rope hanging from the water faucets. Unfortunately, they are no longer there and neither is the solitude. The camp had a wide range of campers from Coleman pup tents to Land Yachts. UCSB has a large research station where students come out and study geology and mapping. It was fun to chat with them and get infected with their enthusiasm. The weather was mild enough to sleep out under the stars. The night sky is stunning! Wind can be an issue as it was this last visit. Tents were challenged and I was woken up in the middle of the night by a levitated camp chair landing on me. i will guess if you go sometime after spring break and mid-week, the campground won't be as crowded. Toilets are clean, water is limited and the price is right. Make sure to take extra tarps and rope to rig up a wind break or two and you are sure to have a nice stay. .

Variety of sites for tents, rv's, vans. Lots of trails to enjoy graded by degrees of difficulty. Bring bicycles, scooters and skateboards to explore various trails to have fun on.

Keep food and toiletries in tight containers the squirrels will get into items or keep locked in car. Great area to have day trips in explore and get some eats out. Bring wood for night firepits otherwise you will buy at host site for $10 bundle. Bring pop up awning because some sites don't have shade and it's hot.

My husband and I camped here for a few nights during Thanksgiving with our 2 dogs.  Such a beautiful campground! We arrived on Wednesday afternoon, and it was about half full, but looked mostly full by the time we left on Saturday.  It is first come first served.

It was definitely cold at night, which we were prepared for, though not prepared for a very windy day that happened while there.  Lots of blowing sand, even got in our tent.  We luckily got a site away from the road, so less blowing sand from people driving by.

We were right next to the nature trail, which was great to have to get some exercise and nice views.  

Lots of off roading trails in this park, so would be paradise with anyone coming to do that!

Decided to go camp here for a day because it’s omly a 3 hr drive from my home, but it was too windy. Sand/dirt and wind are a terrible combo for camping. Got in the tent, in our food, in our eyes. We went on a Wednesday which was nice because there were so many open spots. You can see the highway from the park which is kind of a bummer, but the canyons are pretty cool to walk around the rim up top. It’s also pet friendly and the dogs loved all the open space however it could get a litttle dangerous if you let them off leash. This campsite particularly was our favorite because it’s the very last one and nobody drives down there unless they’re camping next door. Most private.

The only thing more desolate than this campground is the landscape, but perhaps that's your thing. I'm the only one here on a Sunday night in May. A couple pulled in before me, but after a once-around, they left. Each campsite is well sheltered from the sun and wind -- 8' tall plywood windbreak wall plus lattice ceiling with room under it for two picnic tables and your tent. Too much noise from the nearby highway. By the way, if Google maps leads you to the closed picnic area, don't worry, there's a separate campground entrance south of it on the connecting street.

I'm quite certain the hiking here is very nice, but I wouldn't know as I was traveling with my dog and unfortunately the California State Park system hates dogs and doesn't allow them on trails.  The campground is serviceable, nothing super special, but nice sunsets, Mojave Desert scenery, etc. Some road noise and camper noise. A Boy Scout troop was encamped there when I was there, fortunately their adult leaders had them under control for the most part. (Not all do).  A few of the available sites are well spaced apart. I think I was in #1. It was badly infested with fire ants but fortunately large enough that I was able to move my camper to the far end of the site and avoid them.  None of the bathrooms had functional locks or latches. This was bizarre. Some restrooms were not functional.

[ PROS ]

• Each site comes with a shade shelter, BBQ grill, and fire pit (max 8 to a site)
• Great for solitude! It’s pretty quiet and empty, and there was only two other groups at the campsite so finding a place to set up was not a problem.
• Sites have a good amount of distance from other sites. Not much privacy in terms of bushes/trees (it’s a desert!) but they are well spaced and the campgrounds is relatively empty so you can pick and choose where to pitch your tent.
• First come first serve, cash only. Sites are by self-registration so it’s the honor system. You fill out the form and place $20 fee into an envelope and deposit into the drop box. Don’t forget to take your stub to show proof of payment in case someone comes around to verify.
• You can hike the Dowen Nature Trail or the Little Butte Trail. Both are easy walks with flat/wide trails. Great for kids and elderly (wheelchair accessible)! Just make sure you wear sunscreen, good shoes, and drink lots of water.
• Lots of flora and fauna to see! From rabbits and rattlesnakes, to Joshua Trees and wildflowers. You can also see one of the oldest living plants on earth, the creosote bush, and they can live over 10,000 years! It’s pretty awesome!
• You can see granite buttes all around, which is one of the natural characteristics of Antelope Valley. If you want to hike up the buttes it’s a little steep so be prepared.
• Evenings here are SPECTACULAR. The sky lights up with endless stars and you can see the milky way very clearly. Also, you can watch shooting stars ALL NIGHT. Absolutely magical.
• Updated restroom facilities with nice flush toilets and sinks. They are relatively clean and well kept.

[ CONS ]

• No fires allowed! Which is weird because each campsite comes with a fire ring.
• Lack of ranger presence, which is a pro or con depending on how you look at it. In some ways it’s nice feeling off the grid and removed, but the lack of ranger presence means that neighbors don’t always follow the campground rules and it feels a little sketch. Camp Host here is awesome though!
• Really dusty and windy with constant 20mph winds. Our stuff was flying away constantly so we had to take the time to have everything tucked, staked, and held down securely. The inside of our tent was constantly covered in a fine layer of dust, even with the rainfly on. It was hard to sleep at night because our tent was rattling and flapping all night and dust was flying in.
• SCORCHING HOT during the day and frigid cold at night. Just like you’d imagine a desert to be. If you come prepared, you’ll be fine :)
• No showers here but there are water faucets if you need to splash some water on your face to cool down.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - this weekend I tested Snapbuds. Snapbuds is an earbud detangling system which keeps your earbuds from ever getting getting jumbled up into one of those hair-pulling knots. I love that they found such a simple solution to a problem that is VERY REAL. If you’ve ever spent time untangling earbuds than you understand the frustration.

When I received the product it seemed simple enough, but I was a little overwhelmed with how much instructions came with the product. There are 2 ways - original and bolo - that you can set up your snapbuds, and I went with the original. Just be careful when setting up because they are permanently affixed. I screwed that up the first time opening the package because I got excited to snap them together without reading directions and ended up having one less snap.

Once you have your snapbuds in place, it’s really simple and easy to use. They look a little funny on the ear buds at first, but they are pretty small and light so they don’t affect the function or design. I crumbled my earbuds and shoved them into my pocket to try to tangle it naturally a couple times and they never tangled! The magnet placements really make them hassle free. Snapbuds are one of those products that you never realized you needed until you own it! It’s great for travel and people on-the-go, which makes it great for camping/backpacking. It’s nice to be able to pack your headphones away into a stuff sack or pocket, and easily pull them pull them out without having to deal with the nightmare of untangling them.

My family would camp here once a year for 4-5 days.  It is dispersed camping, so there are no hookups or designated sites.  It is primarily for off road enthusiasts, however, we just came out here to enjoy the desert and go for walks.  We would usually go toward the end of the year when it is not so hot (Oct-Dec) and have had a variety of weather over the years.  From beautiful skies, to wind, rain and snow.  The wind always picked up in the evening, so don't forget to roll up your awning.  Our rig is a 30' bunkhouse trailer being pulled by a full size 4x4 truck.  Although you don't need 4x4 and probably any car can make it out there.  You just might have to drive slow as some of the road are pretty tore up.  The camping is all over the valley and I can't see ever showing up and not being able to find a good spot (for what it is).  There will be dust and some dirt bikes, trucks and OHV's rolling around.  You will probably hear some of them long into the night.  But I think there are areas you can go to get away from a lot of it and enjoy the stars and solitude of the desert.  As you drive in you pass a ranger station.  $10 gets you water to fill up your tanks and a pass to use their dump station.

This is more an rc park for people who actually stay and live there.

Such an amazing spot! It was crowded on a holiday/lunar eclipse weekend. The red rock canyons surrounding the campground are reminiscent of Arizona or Utah desert. Great for hiking, photography, star gazing, climbing and off roading. Dog friendly. I'm not a huge fan of being close to fellow campers but some spots are tucked deep enough against the rocks it feels more private. There is a visitor center with Wi-Fi, had limited service from my spot. Safe, clean and really beautiful!

What an epic place to camp against the cliffs! Nice smooth unpaved road in and places to back in with a few setup for trailers to swing in. Pit toilets and water nearby. Ranger station has WiFi. No cellular.