Ricardo Campground — Red Rock Canyon State Park

If you are coming from the Bay Area, and traveling anywhere in the southwest or eastern Sierras, this is a great spot to stop for a night or two. The campsites are fairly spread apart, clean, mostly flat. The natural beauty of camping against the rock cliffs, watching the swallows fly in and out all day can't be beat. There is a large meadow with Joshua trees and, in the right season, wildflowers. 

Some of the pit-toilet houses are pretty beat up, have wasp nests. But it seems they are rebuilding them one by one. And the newer ones are as good as an outhouse gets: clean, sturdy, bug-free. There is potable water. There is dump station, but they charge for it, and it is a pain to get it unlocked. Don't count on it.

We have stopped here ~4 times in the spring, came in in daylight, and have always found a spot.

Nice views backing up to scenic rock cliffs. Clean pit toilets. Most sights have a little slope... used a few leveling blocks. Quiet... First come... first served... Compacted dirt gravel road in good condition $25 standard... $23 seniors.

The views from this campground are absolute stellar. The sites and pit toilets are clean and plenty of spaces were available. It was all first come, first served and self-pay when we arrived. Drive the loop and find your spot, then return the payment in the envelope provided to the pay station. I’m sure it’s a busy place on the weekends. It’s in an OHV area, so off road vehicle noise is to be expected, but it was minimal. The road in is smooth, sites are easy to access (with a few pull-through sites) and there are a few paved ADA specific sites as well. The sites up by the cliffs are offer the best views but many may be difficult to get level in if you have a motorhome or travel trailer.

Beautiful area with nice shady rock overhangs to stay cool during the day. No AT&T signal. No tesla signal. There was poor WiFi at the visitor center but at least you could send an email or message. The desert was alive in April! I got #8 which had a nice view. Not too crowded at 1 pm on a Saturday where I got to choose from a dozen open sites. So much better than the Alabama Hills area which was completely packed.

Enough space for our 29” RV, pavement was really ok for desert, water, toilets in the morning full of insects, but that’s desert. You also have Wi-Fi at the Visitors Center which we really loved. Our spot had view to both sites of the rocks.

I only spent 1 night there but it was lovely and has the basic amenities. Gorgeous vistas and the weather was decent.

We LOVE Red Rock (Ricardo)!! Other than it being an official campground its 'close' to dry camping. Definitely prefer its view and background over Jawbone (nearby...but Jawbone is still also great). If you are camping to chill, Red Rock...if you are there to shoot and ride, Jawbone. The best part is the BEAUTIFUL cliffs boarding the sites. Definitely follow the nature trail up onto the butte/mesa/cliff. (that's also the only place for cell signal :-P

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.

Really cool campsite with spectacular rock cliff views. Looked like something from another planet. The night we stayed in April was very windy, which made it a little hard to sleep, but the next day dawned bright and clear and calm, and we had a great little desert hike exploring the clifftops.

Enough space for our 29” RV, pavement was really ok for desert, water, toilets in the morning full of insects, but that’s desert. You also have Wi-Fi at the Visitors Center which we really loved. Our spot had view to both sites of the rocks.

Nice clean campground plenty of space for everyone we have all toilets and they do have a ranger station with a major museum if you sell firewood and cold drinks

We dry camped here for just 3 nights but of the 50 sites there were only about 10 occupied. The campsites back up next to vertical reck formations and face a wide desert valley. Hiking trails and scenic views abound.

We did not stay at the campground. It was a quick stop to dump. The Dump Station Is very convenient on the left past the entrance (20 USD). Scenery is beautiful and we took the opportunity to hike the red rock!

Saw this place on Google maps and decided to check it out. There are many sites to choose from and they’re nicely spaced! If you wanna be right against the rocks, I recommend sites 15~28. Bathrooms were super clean and I will definitely return here.

This was one of our pit stops coming from San Francisco through Utah and to Arizona. This is a great site with great bathrooms and water fill ups. Area is super clean and great for photos. Highly recommended!

We enjoyed the 3 days we stayed here in January.   it was cool at night but warmed up in the day.  The kids loved to explore and climb the rocks.  It is dog friendly and sites are spaced out pretty well so you have plenty of space around your camper.   Overall, worth a 1 or 2 day stop as your passing through the area.

I photographed the Milky Way and the comet and camped in the wind. Yes wind. Yes warm. Yes solitude rad rocks! Loud campers. First come first served. Great bathrooms. The bathroom by the visitors center is open air, poo under the stars.

We planned a one night stay in late May. We arrived on Sunday about 3 pm which was great because the campground was practically empty. This is the perfect place to experience desert camping. It was quiet and serene. The desert sunset was beautiful. More than I expected. The sunrise was perfect. The rock formations were picturesque each one with its own story. You could easily walk into some of the little caves & crevasses and there were quite a few paths to climb up the rocks. We enjoyed seeing the coyotes and chipmunks. It had vault toilets with no roofs which was kind of cool. There was a water spigot and dumpster by the the bathrooms. Each site has a fire ring and table.

We got a spot right up against the canyon wall. I definitely recommend that since it give you shade earlier than the other spots. We went in the middle of the week so it was nice and quiet. Also on a full moon so the crevasses were lit up through the night. Absolutely beautiful place to stop in. Pit toilets were available. We couldn’t find fire wood to purchase though.

We came through RRC in early May, 2021. Weather can be unpredictable but it was super hot and very windy.

FYI - Google maps tried to bring us to a non-spot a few miles southwest of the actual site.

RRC is an interesting spot - fairly well spread out along a single road which was fairly busy and dusty. Lots of clean toilets. Single road through campsite so it We stayed in 36 which was right across from one and was the most private of the sites, perfect for our Sprinter.

Some decent hiking around the Red Rocks, and looks like a great place for 4-wheeling and dirt bike riding which a lot of folks were doing.

Just stayed at this location last weekend. Stunning sites in pocket canyon with soaring rock formations abutting camping area. Staffed midday only due to COVID. Primitive bathrooms and no showers or running water. Quiet and simple.

Showed up on March 4th, Thursday. Was easy to find a great spot to camp. The Milky Way was out at night. The trails are stunning.

Pros: showers, vault toilets, quiet, secluded, fire pits .

Cons: expensive, the trails are kind of far away from the campsites.

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!

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.

This is one of the most beautiful campgrounds I have ever stayed. I stayed here last November for my birthday and it was amazing. Looking at the cliffs I was thinking of Petra in Jordan. In the day it was quite warm and got pretty chilly at night, perfect for hoodies and campfires. There are restrooms though no showers. The site in the southwest(?) corner gives you a bird’s eye view of the entire campground and is probably the largest. First come, first serve. The morning view is amazing. You will not regret staying here.

This is a beautiful campground. We spent time in early July, so the daytime was very hot and shade is very necessary, but it was gorgeous. That time of year is off season, so it was very quiet, and we felt very peaceful. The bathrooms were clean and there are water spigots throughout the grounds. The loop is quite large and there are plenty of sites to choose from. Rangers drove through every so often, and are helpful if you have any questions. This is a dark sky site so you will see some absolutely stunning stars at night. Very worth it!

Most people drive right though this state park, but spend a night here and you'll feel like you are days away from urban life, even though its just a short 2 hours drive from LA. Lots of nice campsites that nest right up against towering rock cliffs. Gets busy during the weekend. Come early as sites are first come first served. Nice trails behind the campground to meander to the top of the cliffs. Nearby many dirtbike/ ATV trails.

It's super dusty, not too much shade until the sun goes behind the hills but we have camped here in our RV twice because it's so unusual. As the sun comes up the light changes on the rocks and makes for stunning pics. Lots of birds feeding at dusk, very quiet unless you have noisy neighbors. Camp sites are nicely spread out but you must drive very slowly as there is so much dust. Great hike up the ridge and a small nature trail that's easy walked.

This was such a nice surprise to finally get to stop by. I’ve just never seen anything like this place. The campground is so well kept but the views are just spectacular! The campground is complete with a seasonal visitors center (with firewood), a general picnic area, restrooms, designated dumpster areas and developed campsites with fire pits. This is for the rugged campers at heart, as this can be a tough and hot place to camp in Summer months. This is an OHV haven but the rates are so high, folks stopping in tend to have more respect for their neighbors and class, as a result. Lots of trails here and from what we were told... fossils! So much history and worth the stop, if the desert sits well with you. Rates are $25 a night with some discounts for seniors but there’s also options to just stop in as well and utilize the picnic area. Again, just stunning.... this is a must see for those that are in wonder of nature!