Best Tent Camping near Santee, CA

Tamarisk Grove Campground is about 20 minutes south of Borrego Springs. It sits next to the highway but there’s minimal traffic so it isn’t terribly loud. There are tent sites as well as primitive cabins. Each site has a fire ring and table. There are also flush toilets and paid showers. There is no potable water at this campground - be sure to bring your own. The cabins are simple structures with platforms for sleeping. There are no amenities in the cabins - no electric, no water, no mattress, no linens, etc.

The campground is across the street from both the Cactus Loop and Yaqui Well trail heads. We recommend the short Cactus Loop hike over the Yaqui Well hike. Go at sunset to catch the cholla cacti backlit by the sunset.

We went to Culp Valley in April just in time to explore the Anza-Borrego State Park during an especially rainy desert season. There were wildflowers everywhere and despite high heat during the day it was so bad you felt like you were in the desert. It's a beautiful time to explore. There is a small city just outside the park where you can get any need supplies, lunch or do some antique/thrifting.

The campground is just West of the state park and at a higher elevation. The sites are first come first serve, and best of all they are FREE! The ground is sand and rock, and outside of clean vault toilets there are no amenities. We had a decent spot with three tents set up and brought our own fire ring. No fires allowed outside a fire ring/pit you bring along. It's a smaller campground and is well known in SoCal but if you arrive before afternoon you'll usually find a spot.

Because of it's location on hill it is subject to gusty winds. Keep that in mind. You will get dusty and check the weather so you set up camp facing away from the wind or you'll get a full tent of sand. The night we were there most recently they broke wind gust records which was unexpected. It was a long night of whooshing wind coming up and over the desert hills before slamming into our tent at speeds nearing tornado strength. That sucked but that was more our fault than the campgrounds.

It's less of a leisure camping spot and there were no big RVs the times we visited. There is a reservable state park campsite nearby if you need more amenities.

This area is know for it's stargazing and the night sky in the desert is incredible. The lights from the nearest town are blocked by the rock.

La Jolla Indian Reservation Campground is located 30 mins south of the Observatory on Palomar Mtn, and 60 mins north of San Diego. There are ~38 reservable RV sites with hook-ups. Half of them are along the river front. There are multiple group tent sites and even more first come first serve, get in where u fit in, no hookup RV and tent sites. There is a gas station/convenience store just before the entrance, where a 20lb bag of ice is $4. Load up, you’ll need it. There are very few campgrounds that are near the water AND you’re allowed to play in the water. There are only two in SoCal, that I know of, the other is Yucapai.

We reserved RV space 10, for our tent trailer. The 30’ site was a tight fit for out 22’ trailer and two cars. But we’re able to put up out shade tent, tarp, and seating.

The good… RV Park area had a lot of trees that provided shade in the 100 degree heat. The hookups were easy and we had no problems with neighbors. The river cooled things down once it got going, you can rent or bring your own tube/river rat to ride down the river, at your own risk! Bring water shoes. Kids loved swinging on the make shift swings along the water. Propane grills recommended, not every site has a charcoal grill and depending on weather and fire conditions will determine if fire pits will be allowed.

The bad… the river only runs Friday to Sunday. However, Lake Henshaw turns the water on Friday at 7:30 am and it doesn’t make it down to the res until 4:30 pm. It was a long hot wait for water. Saving grace was the hose we brought to water down the dirt. Only one bathroom and multiple port-o-potties (sp?) and I don’t recommend those. Bring TP. The lines are long in the morning. There’s no grey water disposal. Keep track of your valuables. The first come first serve camp area tents to be more rowdy than the RV area, though both are loud (music & kids).

Free camping! Located off the S22, border of Anza Borrego,just 3.5 miles past the town of Ranchita. If you keep going down the hill you'll hit Borrego Springs. Keep an eye out for the Culp Valley Camp sign because otherwise there isn't much indication. Barely any service so make sure you prepare well for an extended stay. It does extremely windy here, especially in early fall with the Santa Ana winds. Hot during day, frigid at night. It's primitively camping so No water, picnics tables, fire rings, and charcoal grills, but vault toilets and ground to put a tent on are available. In Culp Valley there is TONS of boulders to climb; varying from beginner v0's to advanced bouldering. Check out mountain project to check out some routes or just go spot out some of your own! This is place is definetly worth a weekend trip, but Shhh try to keep it a secret. ;) 

Campground coordinates: 33.220541, -116.458858 (33° 13′ 13.94″N 116° 27′ 31.88″W)

68-year old, still tenderfoot tent camper. This was my first experience in California after three prior stays in Texas and Arizona. The San Diego County system centrally handles reservations of its campgrounds, which was fortunate for me. I mistakenly reserved one campground thinking it was another (my preferred, Potrero), but it was 30 miles away. Even though I paid for two nights in advance, their phone reservations help was superb and got me transferred without any hiccups. Big shout-out to the ranger at Potrero for suggesting. I interacted with several and they were all professional, friendly and helpful.

There's one central plumbed restroom and shower facility. Further out along the tent sites there was a hand portapotty. When you first drive in you'll go past a very large day-use area with its own facilities before you get to the overnight camping sites. Alcohol is permitted if alcohol content < 20%.

My site #7 was the last in the row of tent-only sites and appeared to be the largest with plenty of shade and flat pad site. Without seeing other tents it's a little hard to gauge size, but I'd guess walking by the other sites that there's probably at least 80-100 feet between tent pads, or even more. Lots of open spaces. The seven tent sites shared a couple (maybe more) of water spigots.

The primary annoyance was with the park's neighbors who seemingly had a whole pound of dogs who barked loudly through the nights. Given how otherwise silent it was, it was the barking was noticeable and to be distinguished from the coyotes, birds and owls. I think I also heard roosters crowing each morning as early as 3am.

The major event of my stay was the arrival of, as Steely Dan sang, "Here come those Santa Ana winds again …" At 5 a.m. the first morning, it was still and quiet as can be (sans the neighborhood dogs). A few minutes later, the winds hit. For the next 11 hours, surviving the wind 30-40 mph sustained winds, gusts over 50 was the only concern – both for my little tent and my car and myself due to the wind effects on the large trees surrounding us. In the end, there was no noticeable damage but seldom have I spent a full day out in the weather like that.

All in all, I'm not sure you could ask for more at about $25/night. Although I would've paid double if there were a no-wind option. I also had two great tent parties my second night, a couple about my age who were returning to California after summering in Baja, and a young woman from Germany traveling by herself around the world. Interesting neighbors to say the least.

At site #7 I had zero T-Mobile signal. Outside the Ranger Station I could get at most, 2 bars LTE.

Sweet Oaks winery campgrounds has 16 sites available for both tent camping and RV’s (no hook-ups). It’s pretty close to grocery stores and big box stores just in case you forgot some gear/supplies. They have a beautiful well-kept property with super-clean restrooms (no showers). They do have a water hose for you to fill up your tanks or Jerry cans. They didn’t allow campfires due to high fire danger though. You’ll have to bring your own fire pit setup if they ever allow them in the future. It was a beautiful walk around the vineyards but there are also hiking trails nearby. It’s off a road suitable for road bikes but there are also mountain bike trails nearby. They have equestrian activities also available for guests. We were able to get our tin top Eurovan to fit on one of their tent sites which offered a beautiful view of Temecula valley. The wine tasting room was closed due to the pandemic but you can order wine online and they will deliver to your site. One more thing, we counted about 8 hot air balloons as we had breakfast!