Best Equestrian Camping near Sierra City, CA

Officially this is listed as an equestrian campground. We were there during the off season so no one else was around. The campground was quiet and peaceful. Website stated that fees are not collected at this time. There are only 6 sites here and it is a compact little campground. The sites are a good size but the loop is tight and it took some creative maneuvering to back into our site. 

The road in was fairly smooth with some areas of washboard, managed fine in our 26’ Class C. Water is available from an hand pumped spigot at the entrance of the campground, website states non potable but we drank it and it was fine and in fact tasted really fresh. There is no garbage so pack in and pack out. 

The bathrooms were open. Each space has a bear box, fire pit and picnic table all in good condition. Sites were relatively flat and a mix of sun and shade. 

There is hiking and biking on the main dirt road and on the multiple side roads. There was a few vehicles coming and going but not so busy as to be annoying. 

The view of the huge meadow was nice and just before you reach the campground there are a few buildings that are open and some horse corrals. 

Zero cell service from AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile.

THE CAMPGROUND

The campground is great. Many sites have lots of space between them, while a few are side-by-side with just a vehicle parking space separating them. Each has a level, wood-bordered dirt/gravel pad set up for a tent - usually placed in as quiet/remote corner of the site as possible. Each has a picnic table, some type of fire pit (some have a metal ring with nice flipping grate, some are just a circle of large stones), and some type of cooking setup (some have a standard campsite charcoal "grill" while others have a metal table to set your cooktop on.

Very quite. Only noise is campground noise and one infrequently trafficked dirt road nearby (see below).

Campfires are allowed. If you drive in from the south (via Verdi), there is currently a designated area to collect firewood - it is scheduled for a prescription burn and you can pick up any wood from the forest floor - bring an axe and saw.

I visited mid-week during peak July season - there were two other campsites occupied (out of 20 total).

The campsite is in the middle of Dog Valley. The area is used for off-road recreation, so you may run into a few off-road buggies or trucks, and some may stay at the campground. But most stay in other "dispersed" camping, and there aren't nearly as many vehicles as you might see, for example, in a Nevada dunes off-road park.

The Crystal Mine is nearby… quick drive, bit longer walk. I didn't find many walking trails in the area, but may have missed them.

Verizon cell service picked up one bar, intermittently. Enough to get out occasional status update texts and check the weather, but not enough to be able to read stuff off the internet unless… you…. are…. really…. really… really… patient. If you hike up the hill at the nearby Crystal Mine, Verizon gave 2 bars and 5G… you are line of sight to Cold Springs. 

There is basically no radio reception at the campground, but one AM station came in during the drive.

There are two 'vault' toilets, both of which were clean and well maintained… no real odor, no spiders, etc. I saw one water spigot but it required a keyed handle to open so it was inaccessible … no other sources of water (potable or otherwise) at the site.

Trash cans are provide. No food/bear lockers provided (bear-safe food storage not required … but always a good precautionary measure).

I give it four stars because it is a good campground, and may be a good base for off-roading or mountain biking, but doesn't have many major sites nearby (hiking trails, rivers, lookout points, etc.) and I didn't find a variety of hiking trails nearby (a major one does run through the general area). Would be tough to keep kids busy, but great for a 2 day getaway for a couple.

Ok… let's talk THE ROAD….

The road is one of the reasons this site generally isn't too packed. There are two main ways in…

From The South (Verdi)

This is the roughest path. It has a fairly good incline and then decline into the valley, so I can only speak to my summer experience, but I suspect this may present a challenge for winter/wet driving.

For this route, you will spend 8.5 miles on a dirt road. I'd estimate this road is 10% "standard country dirt road, flat, fairly level, no major ruts, drivable by any vehicle at 25-30MPH." About 75% of the road is "unmaintained hill road, where you have to hug one side or another to avoid 6-inch+ ruts, loose rocks up to 5" in diameter, passable by a 2-wheel drive vehicle with reasonable ground clearance and not concerned about rocks on the paint, driving 10-15 MPH." The remaining 15% still probably doesn't require 4-wheel drive, but could benefit from it, involves going 5MPH to navigate deeper ruts or 'potholes'. The entire route is totally 100% passable by any truck/Jeep, even 2-wheel drive, driven slowly and carefully at times. Subarus would be fine. I *think* a standard sedan could make it, but you run a very good chance of bashing in the underside of your car… it is doable and I saw a little hatchback do it, but I personally wouldn't recommend.

From the North (Cold Springs)

For this route, you will spend 10 miles on a dirt road.

The first 3.3 miles (about 33%) is "standard country dirt road, flat, fairly level, no major ruts, drivable by any vehicle at 25-30MPH." Very easy driving. About 65% is "unmaintained hill road, where you have to hug one side or another to avoid 6-inch+ ruts, loose rocks up to 5" in diameter, passable by a 2-wheel drive vehicle with reasonable ground clearance and not concerned about rocks on the paint, driving 15 MPH." The remaining 2% is the harder road, as described above… just a few specific spots/turns, not long sections.

This north route is easier, but either way you go, there will be tougher sections.

To be fair - this isn't "off-roading." There are no boulders or 'technical' challenges. It is just an unmaintained (or rarely maintained) dirt road that has ruts, especially in uphill/downhill areas where the water runs across the road. Definitely not just a 'country dirt road', but a more typical mountain backroad.

Pictures below show the most common sections - 75% of the south path and 66% of the north path look like that or a little bit worse. The pictures aren't the worst sections - just more of the 'typical' road you can expect for most of the way.

Final comment: All of the above is about dry, summer driving. After rains, when the ground is wet, or in the winter - could be a very different experience.

This is a great small campground with walking access to the Mumford Bar Trail hike down to the American River.

One vault toilet. No water spigot. Pack it in, PACK IT OUT.

Excellent spot if ya wanna get away from crowds and don’t mind less amenities. If the local backcountry is posted no fires, usually can still burn in designated pits at this camp.

OHV and backcountry camping options abound in this area.

The hike down to the American via Mumford Trail is NOT a leisurely stroll. Pack plenty of water and be prepared to spend the night down at the river if you head out late. There is a camp space down there once you reach the river and pass through the thickets.