Best Dispersed Camping near Santee, CA

For being a dispersed camping spot I am always impressed when there’s a bathroom! Definitely loved this spot. Stars for days! Coyotes came right by the van in the night though so watch your pets if you’re camping with them! Follow the road all the way back for two great hiking trails. One has petroglyphs and the other is an old homestead. I also make it a point to visit the slot canyon on the way in our out of this area!

The best feature of this free camping area is the awesome metal sculptures right near this campground. 

Near the cute town of Borrego Springs, just a little off Borrego Springs road. Not secluded by any means. Please use existing pull outs. Keep it clean so we can continue to enjoy this free spot. 

It's one road in. The further back you go, the more privacy. I stayed fairly close to the front as I was only there one night.

Grateful for free camping sites. Just outside of Julian which is a charming little town.

Decent for some seclusion/isloation as the road through is winding.

When in early January. 65-70 during the day. ~45 at night.

The quiet was my favorite part.

What a great spot for some dispersed camping. There are sites all over the place. However, on the weekend it can get pretty busy. Fortunately, I was able to find a spot with not many people around at all. Where I was, I had zero Verizon signal.

On the outer southern edge of Borrego Springs is this private yet free camp area.

A few dozen sites exist, each some five hundred feet or more apart. All have views of the surrounding mountains, and the wide open skies.

Borrego Springs is a dark sky community, which means lights are kept to a minimum, thus enabling great star viewing.

The area is renowned for its hiking and other outdoor activities. It is also known for its iron sculptures, which many exist within this camp area.

Here on the Great Southern Overland Stage Route well off the beaten path is a dispersed camping area that allows you to enjoy the solitude and explore a bit. Ochre petroglyphs, fantastic night sky views, a variety of flora and fauna, hiking, and some challenging 4x4 lines await you here. Access is not always assured, check the local park conditions as well as the weather report. Washboard, softer sandy sections, and flash flooding may make the area difficult or ill advised to travel to. There are some public restrooms at the entrance, and some cell service, but not much else in the way of infrastructure at first glance. Yet the land was inhabited for thousands of years by the Kumeyaay “Those who face the water from a cliff”, Ipai, Kamia, and Tipai people. In the surrounding rock formations you may find morteros and metates used to process piñon, chia, and acorns that served in making dietary staples like shawii, known elsewhere as wiiwish. In addition to hunting and gathering, complex agricultural projects to cultivate maize, teparies, and beans.

Spent 4 nights here in February. A good amount of other campers, but not too crowded. I found the perfect spot tucked up against the rocks. I had my own private rock garden with so many variety of cacti and lots of birds. So peaceful.  I would definitely come back here again. 

No cell signal, but plenty of solar. Primitive camping--no amenities.

Anza borrego state park has a lot of room to explore. The park has campgrounds near borrego springs that are easily accessible. Visiting the mud caves you’ll need 4x4 or an AWD car with high clearance. Anza borrego has been my wife & I go to camping area for over 5 years. Camping is allowed away from main trails and we typically sleep near the mud caves or within the slot canyons. Perfect place to star gave and wander around & explore. Bring plenty of water/ off road safety (enough fuel/ shovel/ traction boards) as towing out of this area is extremely expensive. (Pictures are from fonts point/ random hikes near camping spots).

Blair Valley is at the base of Julian... no not Ramona the other direction. I needed to take a break from reality over Fourth of July weekend and was afraid of the busy paid camping spots up the mountain in Laguna.

I decided to roll the dice and head somewhere different since it was only myself. Coastal north county to Blair valley it was not a bad drive. Once I arrived in Blair valley it was around 9am. It was hot and from the look of the dried up creek bed it was going to be difficult to find some shade. I took some time driving around the grounds trying to find the right spot. Finally I came up to a 8-9 ft tree with plenty of branches and leaves to cover me most of the day. Will go again!

All and all, hope for clouds during summer or take the time and drive around to find a perfect spot. Not many people out there.

The pictographs were awesome to see and the hikes up the mountain to watch sunrise/sunset were perfect for those desert views.

Drink plenty of water!

Favorite free campsite so far. Free for 30 days, pack in pack out, there are pit toilets near the entrance, no liter removal or water. Horses and dogs allowed. Beautiful views and trails. There are quite a few bees though, other than that, loved it.

There are a bunch of campsites along a service road that is parallel to a main road, several hundred feet away. This whole area is essentially within one valley, so you have mountains on both sides. It is well vegetated and allows for fairly easy hikes up the soft slopes.

The parking spots are right alongside the road, so for van camping is not so great, but tents can be put away from the road and therefore it's much more suitable for tenting.

The stretch of dirt road closest to the main road is Sandy, but manageable bull in a two wheel drive. This is where most of the campsites are. Further along the road, there are fewer camp sites, so they are more dispersed, however the road becomes more rocky and jutted, but for those wanting a bit more privacy, this is the spot to be.

I would like to come back in camp in this location. So i'm going to mark it to return another time.

one of my favorite primitave sites. there is one bathroom at the beginning but we typically go much further to find isolation. it's never busy and you can and will find the perfect spot. the further you go towards the pictograph trails, the more cholla so if you have kids, stay towards the first mile. any vehicle can make it on the dirt roads with no issue.

This is one of my favorite free campsites! I’ve camped here twice, once on a full moon and again on a new moon. The full moon night was so bright you could see everything with no lights! It was the first time I truly experienced the brightness of moonlight and it was magical. The second time was on a moonless night and the STARS were just ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS! This site is located in anza borrego, the only dark sky community in California, so you will see more stars here than anywhere else in California (unless there’s a full moon then there won’t be stars). The site is big enough that you would have plenty of privacy from other campers. Both times I went, there was hardly anyone around. There are vault toilets. No showers/tables/grills. Just a wide open space. Definitely not for glampers (unless you have an RV), but it is one of the best for stargazers!

Tons of dispersed spots down the road.

Pretty trails. On weekdays it feels very secluded. Airplane noise does get a little out of hand. Trails, pit toilets, some rock fire pits, bring your metal one.

Peaceful dispersed campground. Wide open great views. Didn’t even know I had neighbors until I walked around in the morning and saw neighboring campers over the hill. Clear skies when I went back in November, could get pretty windy. Saw some coyotes pass by my camp.

Easy access to most designated campsites. Enjoy the changing colors at dusk. My area had 2 bars of verizion service.

This place is nice and quiet. A great getaway if you need time to think. The drawback is that as a desert campsite you need to be prepared for winds. They kick up pretty good. Tents hold but will sway something fierce. Best to be in an RV.

Always check for updates.

Scenic but not free. Now costs$10 per night

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page\_id=638

The most remote sites are located near Little Blair Valley. Lots of cool short hiking trails nearby. Best part is that it’s free! No ground fires allowed, pack it in pack it out

We stopped and setup tents a little before little Blair valley. Night sky was alright, but couldn’t see the Milky Way, so not dark enough for that. Probably a Bortle 5. Got up in the morning and went all the way until the end of the road on maps (Apple or Google) on our 2WD, was doable. 4 bars T Mobile LTE where we were.

Campsite itself was very nice. The place we found had a man made but multiple time used fire pit. Great sunset and sunrise, you have the chance to have as much or as little company around you. Little bit of trash at our site that we picked up.

Leave no trace!

Came here to have a place for my popup camper while we checked out the flowers blooming 40 minutes away in Borrego Springs and it was perfect. There's no amenities except for a pit toilet, but the cell service here was better than anywhere in the area. I had better signal at this campsite than I did in Park Circle at the heart of Borrego Springs. Lots of people set up near the entrance, but if you drive a little back you can get some privacy. Also be slow and cautious when driving on these dirt roads after a rainstorm; we saw two different trucks get stuck in the mud. Luckily some people with a winch were able to get them both out. Also we were here in March so the nights were cold and windy so make sure you're prepared.

I will definitely be here again! We camped as a group in the more remote part, towards Little Blair Valley. We came in March during the super bloom and it was still very cold at night. We did have a huge gust of wind pick up around 3am and took one of our tents out, but a little adjustment and new placement the next day and it didn’t happen again. It was pet friendly, we had 2 little dogs that loved their stay as much as we did. No running water, or bathrooms (except for a 10 min drive back to the entrance), we were allowed a ground fire at the time. Campsite itself was really great, boy, could you see some stars! Found a trail at some point that led to a rock with petroglyphs and i hope I can find that trail again! Forever in love with Anza!

Free. 30 day limit. Pit toilet. Pack it out - no trash service. No water. If you go left as you come in you can camp along a rock wall filled with agave, cholla and other plants. A large area for big rvs right at the front left. To the right there were lots of pull offs and I found it easier to navigate in my station wagon road-wise. Lots of space. Some areas say not to walk there/ keep dogs out to protect plants and wildlife. I felt safe solo camping - there were a few other van and rv campers. Recommend visiting the sweet desert botanical garden in nearby Borrego Springs.