Best Tent Camping near Round Mountain, NV

Had this spot marked on my mapping programs for a while. Utilized it one evening while traveling through the state. It was so quiet and peaceful with the creek running through it. It did get a little cold once the sun set behind those mountains in the canyon but I camped in September. So for fall camping I would definitely bring lots of heavy sleeping bags and sleeping materials. I camped in a tent, and I was in a older jeep. While it was overgrown that was back in 2021 but otherwise no one had been down there in a while. Didn't get a chance to check out any of the trails as I was traveling through but I would like to go back and check out the Arc Dome Wilderness Area. There was no cell phone signal and you need to bring in your own water, the bathrooms were decent, like I said no one had been down there in a while probably because of covid. One motorcycle came in in the evening and he was very quiet and camped quite a ways away from me when he saw where I was at.

I really can't see a big camper getting in here there are pretty tight spots although there is a road that goes all the way through you could probably camp down at the end. But these are pretty much tent camping, rooftop tents, motorcycles, small trailers spots.

Great national forest campground way up a long dirt forest road. Elevation like 7,000, so cooler. Various size sites with fire pits and picnic tables. Lots of trees provide privacy and wind screen too. Centrally located pit toilets.

Campground is at the trailhead of a short hike to the Toquima Cave, which is well worth the walk even though the mouth of the cave is fenced off. You can still clearly see the amazing artwork on the cave walls. Beware of rattlesnakes. We ran into one right on the trail near the cave.

Note there are also many free dispersed camping sites on this road up to and after the campground, plus all the dispersed sites at Spencer’s Hot Springs down below near the head of the forest road.

Nice little campground toward the mouth of Big Creek Canyon. The campground is right on the creek. Big Creek Canyon is beautiful about 15 miles from the town of Austin and is full of Aspens. There are probably about 10 sites in the campground with plenty of space between each site. Hunting season gets busy but I have never seen more than one or two groups in the campground at one time if it’s not hunting season. There is not a ton of privacy within the campground but there is plenty of space for each campsite. There are trout in the creek and easily accessible depending on how much snow the mountain range got the winter before. The road that goes through Big Creek Canyon is a decent BLM road that will take you to the summit of the range then down into Kingston which is a fun adventure. If you like camping in Nevada but don’t like dry camping or digging holes to use the bathroom, this place is awesome!

An off the beaten path experience for anyone who loves ghost towns or fossils. The old 1800s ghost town of Berlin, Nevada provides the entrance to this unique camping experience. A short trail from the campground leads up to the fossil house where one can view the remains of the largest collection of Ichthyosaurs (ancient marine mammals) ever found. Most of the camping sites are pull through and there are very clean vault toilets throughout the campground. The only drawback for us is the fact that this campground does not accept reservations. After a long days drive we were lucky to find one of the last two spots, but under other circumstances it would’ve been difficult as there are no other camping areas nearby. Remember to bring cash for the self-serve pay station. $15 per night. Also, if you use a GPS to head toward Tonopah after camping here, be warned that you may end up on primitive roads for many miles. Even though the distance is longer, it would be safer to go back to the highway. Let’s just say we had that primitive road experience, and not in a four-wheel drive vehicle 😬

Elevation 7510 38°47′44″ N 116°50′58″ W Last 2-3 miles in the road is rocky but passable in a car or RV if driven slowly. Campground is in a lovely aspen and birch forest. Most sites are very private with some sites within sight of another site across the roaring creek. New tables, fire pits, grills and two of the three pit toilets are newer. Trail into the wilderness is a lovely canyon walk that is not too strenuous for the first mile to the first major creek crossing.

21 total sites 14 creekside 1 group site creekside 4 pull through. All need leveling 6 walk in

Most of the non creekside sites are on the north half before the bridge and are walk-ins. Some of the walk-ins have a parking space large enough for a 30’ rig but the roads are over grown enough to cause issue for tall rigs

Most spaces only accommodate a car, van or truck. Going in on the north side (straight as you enter the Campground ) there is a turnaround at the pit toilet. Do not go past here with a trailer or large RV without scouting it out first. The larger spaces on that side would accommodate a truck and 25’ trailer or possibly up to 30’ RV, but if the river is high and you cannot make the crossing at the south end of the campground you will have to back all the way out including across the narrow bridge!

No cell reception of any kind. Enjoy being disconnected for a while.

Free when we were there in 2024, but there were signs indicating that there was soon to be a fee.