Best Dispersed Camping near Stanislaus National Forest, CA

I loved camping here. There’s a few spots off the road that leads into the hot springs, before you hit the sign that says no camping. Just pull onto one of the dirt roads on the left and find a spot! Any car or smaller RV could easily drive the road.

There was no one else there when I was camped there, and as a solo female traveler I felt extremely safe. It was quiet and secluded, beautiful, yet only 10 minutes off of 395, less than a mile from the hot spring, and I had full LTE cell reception (verizon).

There are rock fire rings that previous campers have made if you’re going to be here when camp fires are allowed. There’s no other amenities such as picnic tables or a bathroom, water, or garbage collection - this is free dispersed camping, so be prepared to be self-sufficient: pack out what you bring in and leave no trace!

Standard dispersed camping on national forest land. Paved main road with dirt roads and areas for camping branching off. Plenty of room. Some areas have beautiful views of strawberry valley!

It’s just the boat launch. Perhaps u can get away with hanging out, not sure. The access to the dispersed camping, in the hill overlooking the water, is gated and locked.

There seem to be plenty of spots to use enroute to the water, just not at the location.

No camping is allowed at the hot springs themselves, but outside of the hot springs there are a few cleared out spots with fire rings where you can camp.  There is a cluster of about 6 spots fairly close together, as well as a few more isolated spots if you're lucky enough to get one. From here it is about a .5 mile walk to the springs. 

So many cars zip in and out on the dirt road leading to the hot springs, from early in the morning to pretty late at night. The dust hasn't been too much of a problem but some people do drive rather quickly so watch out for your loose dogs and kids. It was also intermittently very windy.

No services or amenities here, but it is really close to the town of Bridgeport for supplies, so pack in and pack out your garbage(and maybe a little extra) and bring water.

The hot springs are amazing and we got a nice long soak by ourselves in the morning until around 11am when is starts to get busier. Clothing is optional at these hot springs but almost everyone was wearing something. Come sit in a hot spring and enjoy the free camping and extraordinary panoramic views.

The road in is pretty washboarded and rutty in parts, so go slowly.

You can hear road noise and hourly church bells :)

Good Verizon, ATT, and T-Mobile reception.

** Gas here in Bridgeport is very expensive (currently $5.15/gal) so fuel up before you get here.

Dispersed camping not far from Lake Tahoe. Easy to drive into just be careful of potholes and large puddles from rain, even in summer. No amenities, but it’s a very beautiful area. There are herds of cows that will make their way through the area, please be respectful of them! Scott’s lake is just up through this area if you have 4x4 capability.

We are new to dispersed camping and have a 40 ft 5th wheel as well as a GMC Denali 350 dually. We need a large space to fit into. We arrived on a Monday at noon and found that the large area about 1/4 mile in was not at all crowded. We had our choice of several places to set up. It is very quiet here, not hearing any road noise. A forest ranger told us there were more spaces up near the lake, but we didn’t venture up there.

You follow a dirt road and have camping spots along the road. When I was here it was jammed packed RV, vans and tents all set up along the road. To me it was good for a an overnight stay. No At&t service what so ever. Little highway noise.

This was my first stop after leaving Truckee and heading south.

I rolled in later in the evening and found the many springs already quite full. Seeking some solitude, I opted to backtrack and find a camp spot on the road leading to the springs.

From what I could tell, there were at least three springs and there could've been others hidden a bit down the hill.

There's no camping right at the springs, but several pull-outs on the road in.

I found a spot on the hill with a great view of the valley and Sierras to the east.

Also wound up sharing a spot with two gentlemen who gave me some great recommendations for Death Valley.

Woke up early for a solo sunrise soak in the main pool and had it all to myself!

This road follows power lines pretty much for the entire length of the road. It would be a really nice area to disperse if they weren't there as the area is beautiful. That said, you don't need 4x4 but you definitely will need a vehicle with some decent clearance. There are some weirdly purposefully placed speed bumps? on the west end of the road approaching 4N01 and Spring Gap Rd that will let you know if you have enough clearance pretty quickly. Overall not a super terrible road to disperse off of. There are a lot more and a lot better spots nearby and it's not too far from Beardsley Lake which can get pretty busy.

This place is really cool and easy to find! Great views

Weather isn’t to hot and very secluded.

Super fun spot went in September. Dirt road to get to spot is pretty rough but my Taurus wagon did just fine. There are a few people on dirt bikes ripping around trails so not fully secluded but still a good spot.

My 9 yr old son wanted to try camping in or near the snow, and the weather was favorable on this December weekend (high 56, low 39). We are pretty new to camping and not hardcore, but this was very easy and comfortable. We camped right at the entrance because nobody was there and there was plenty of flat area. Easily accessible on paved roads. Spotted a rock climber on the nearby rock face when we arrived, who later came by to pick up his car he had parked there.

Caldor Fire damage was evident everywhere, but this made it easy for my son to chop down a small dead tree that we used for firewood. It was breezy, which made it chillier than the temps indicated, but we were fine and very toasty once in our tent cots.

We found a few beer bottles around (which we took home to recycle), and small amounts of building waste such as concrete. But overall the setting was peaceful and beautiful. Amazing to have a resource like this that's free. We brought a privacy shelter and portable camp toilet, and our own water. Those are really the only things you need that would normally be provided by a paid campsite.

Pretty easy to get to and lots of spaces for dispersed sites. There was trash EVERYWHERE. Broken glass, toilet trash, bottles and cans, we were really disappointed. We found a spot pretty hidden which was rad but someone was shooting litteraly all night long which was frustrating. We probably won’t come back.

Camp just a small walk to the hot springs. Got crowed at the camp site toward the end of the day. Was still a relaxing spot.

Easy to see right off the road with plenty of campsites down either side of a nice dirt road. Rocky and steep road access to Scott’s lake, but easy camping on the edge of the valley.

Booked a last minute permit for the Pohono trail on a recent trip and had Dewey Point as one of my camp sites! Beautiful views of el cap and the valley made for an iconic back country spot !