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There is no "campground here" Please be aware most of the Dog / Sardine Valley is private property and a working ranch. The places near the valley floor with picnic tables - those are sheep camps. The places with firepits, also sheep camps. Please respect private property and make sure you are camping in the BLM / USDA lands that rim the valley. Located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Dog Valley provides excellent viewing of both wildflowers and flowering shrubs. Forest, meadows, and streams make up Dog Valley’s landscape, creating a cool and refreshing retreat for this popular recreation area. Dog Valley is also home to two rare plant species, Dog Valley ivesia and Webber’s ivesia. Dog Valley ivesia can only be found in Dog Valley. Other attractions include wildlife viewing and the Crystal Peak Mine, a popular spot for crystal-hounds. Dog Valley offers a variety of opportunities to view wildflowers in the Jeffery pine forests and meadows. As you enter Dog Valley from Verdi, you will see the recovery from the 1994 Crystal Fire with displays of mahala mat, silvery lupine, and chokecherry. Explore the openings in the forest with extensive displays of mule’s ear, balsamroot, buckwheats, paintbrushes, yampah, bitterbrush, bare-stem desert parsley, and manzanita. Walking around, it is easy to enjoy the smaller, less visible flowers, including collomia, prairie star flower, and blue-eyed Mary. Wetter areas have displays of shooting stars, delphinium, and Rydberg’s penstemon. Best Viewing Times: The best time to visit is June and July. Safety First: Creeks and streams can cross the road. Be careful when crossing water and watch for washed-out portions of the road. The road can be very muddy. California OHV registration is required for all vehicles. Campfire permits are also required in California and can be obtained from the Carson District Office or the campground host.
Please do not try this if you are not in an all wheel drive high clearance vehicle. Not at all recommended for RVs.
Guide
Just off of 80 @ the Mustang exit, east bound side. Industrial area, so trucks going by, mostly during the day, but occasionally throughout the night. Good, clean spot to rest for a night. Adjacent to the river
Guide
So quiet and peaceful. Nobody else was here but me. Barely hear minimal traffic from the road. Sadly an overcast while I stayed one night, but I got to see the last full moon, winter moon, of the year rise from behind the mountain ridge in the north. Looked like the sun rising. I will be returning to star gaze on clear skies. Oh yeah, definitely weird rock formations to check out.
Guide
okay. let’s be real. the road is a beast. I would not drive it with any vehicle other than SUV/Truck. DO NOT bring up an RV/Trailer. you’ll regret it. we stayed and car camped. an awesome view of the lights of Reno. can be very windy but if you get between some of the trees it’s not to bad.
Ranger
The two closest roads coming in from the West are blocked off and labeled no unauthorized vehicles. This is due to the construction of the new neighborhoods and they probably annexed the area. You could probably access it from the East but I have no idea how many miles it would be in from where you would come in.
Ranger
It's sad where we have this public land to camp on and people just dump tons and tons of trash and abandoned cars and demolished cars on the property would not recommend going. There's some more BLM land about 15 to 20 minutes north on Red Rock road.
ScoutNot really sure if we camped in the right spot. It isn’t great, but it got the job done to just crash for a night. Felt like we were in a construction zone
Guide
(September 28th, 2023) Got here after dark and found an empty clearing to park in for the night. The moon and the stars were so bright, it felt like we were on another planet. Got to explore the area in the morning, such a cool spot! Very quiet when we were there.
ScoutTried to go to the school bus thing but road got too technical so camped out near a mine, epic!
ScoutThe road kinda sucks but VC is a good time. It was nice other than the road. Please remember to pack everything out, there was a lot of trash I had to pick up that was left behind by others.
Scout
Site looks beautiful but road turns from pavement to 4x4. Pulled over right after the pavement ended. Lots of mosquitos
TravelerDog Valley is a special place where we come to boondock. It’s quite and has a great creek. People come out here to camp, ride atvs, side by sides, dirt bikes, or off road. People target practice a lot and the ranger is very nice.
Guide
Site had a pre-made fire pit. There’s a few spots here to choose from, although if you’re looking for privacy they are somewhat close together. There were 3 others here when we came. Lots of ATVs here. Overall pretty good for a nights stay, especially if you’re in to history!
ScoutTrash everywhere, homeless camps, didn’t feel safe but I only drove a half mile in and turned around.
ScoutI love the quietness of this spot and the view is wonderful! The only thing I don’t like is that they took the port-a-potty out, quite possibly for the cold season.
GuideI live nearby, so my family and I went for the day. We left just before sunset. It's gorgeous here. The dirt road is pretty good and not difficult for my Jeep Trailhawk 4x4. There were about 3 other groups. We were there on a Thursday. We walked around the whole area where the rocks were. The campsite overlooks a valley where there is an airport. We saw a couple of paragliders. On the way in from Reno, it's very easy to find. I would love to stay here in my travel trailer. There were some huge rigs out there. All of those people had dune buggies, but nobody was driving around on the rocks when we were there. There are no amenities at all. There is just a big clearing for campers. We took our dog. She had fun.
GuideI live 10 minutes away, so I checked it out. It's sketchy driving in with a lot of trailers and cars along the road closer to the main road. There may or may nor have been people in them. We didn't see people walking around except one guy who was walking his dog on the dirt road and another guy nearby with a table next to his car. Maybe he was flying a drone. The dirt road was very rutted in a few areas. No big deal, but I was in my Jeep Trailhawk 4x4. I didn't have my trailer with me. The view of the city is great, but that's it. The area to pull off is not that big, so I think it would be crowded with more than 2 other trailers. It wasn't windy at all when we were there, but I'm sure it could be because it can be very windy in this area. I wouldn't stay here unless I absolutely had to for the night. I did hear gunshots in the distance. We only stayed a few minutes to take a few pictures. No amenities like fire rings or tables.
TravelerI tried driving up the other day, but couldn’t make it due to rocks. The road starts out as a nice, easy fire road, gets a little rocky, and then by mile 6 or 7 it goes full blown rock garden. SxS’s were going through it slowly, if that helps.
Virginia City seems like a fun little town, though. And the area itself is pretty cool, just couldn’t make it all the way.
Guide
The road in is paved until you reach the real spot where you can actually set up camp. It is VERY rocky and looks like it’s pretty beaten up by Off Road Vehicles.
If you have a Trailer or RV this is NOT the place to go. There is another spot down the road that is better.
Forecast said no rain… it rained. Woke up this morning to 4inches of snow! It was majestic.
GuideIt rained when we got here… which over night at some point turned into the first snow!!!
How insanely beautiful!
Highly recommend this spot
TravelerScout camp is on the Carson river and within the tall cottonwoods. Camp in the shade or out in the open if it’s very windy as the trees can shed branches. Garbage collection and pit toilets. Nice trail along the River.
As of October 2023 the access road to scout camp was washed out. But there is dispersed camping on the terrace to the south.
ScoutNot such a good place. Housing construction getting very close. Lots of local foot traffic. Didn't feel comfortable here, almost felt as I was intruding. It does beat driving around aimlessly searching for a spit, plus its rather close to freeway. You have to leave somewhat early. Lots of joggers and mountain bikers. It has been trashed in the past so left lots of bad tastes in folks.
TravelerDid the trick for a night. There was one man with two rv’s there during our visit that gave us pretty bad vibes. Couldn’t go much further up the hill in our 2-wheel drive vehicle. All in all, it’s a gravel lot and road, good views, cool spot.
ScoutHaven't camped yet. Looking forward to camping in the fall. M,
TravelerTucked off, dirt road with enough seclusion and privacy to feel comfortable at night. Be forewarned that the road is super rough and you will definitely need a car with more clearance to get up it. There is a little pull out before you get to where the directions take you that is perfectly cool to camp. I wouldn’t go all the way up that little stretch of road past the water tanks unless you have a 4x4. The pullout also has a portajohn and sink if needed.
One thing to note! There are many joggers and bikers that go up this road pretty much as soon as the sun goes over the hill (about 6 in July) so just be aware of that when camping here. I wasn’t bothered by anyone and I had about 4 people pass by my car this morning.
TravelerNice place to park for the night.
ScoutFeels weird driving in, but there are some pull offs that have good views of the valley. Very open. Lots of trash and casings, but was quiet and felt safe. Good place to pull over if you are in the Reno area and just need to sleep.
LegendThis place is everything we look for when boondocking. It's quiet, open, easy to get to with our class c, flat(ish), cell service, and places to hike/walk around. There was nobody else around when we stayed here for 2 nights in May.
The road is nearby but barely visible and you can hardly hear the cars. The rocks (tufas) are really neat and fun to climb.
There's absolutely no shade so the sun makes it feel hotter than it is. And the wind comes through somewhat unpredictably so we couldn't keep our awning out.
It's surprisingly clean, I mean there's some trash which is to be expected, but not huge amounts of it.
There are a couple of little narrow roads you can take to find a more secluded spot, but I wouldn't attempt it unless your vehicle can handle it. There are a couple of random big dips to get past, and really there aren't very many camping opportunities past the big giant open area by the rocks. The big main area is huge and would easily fit several campers.
Great place to boondock!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Sparks, NV?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Sparks, NV is BLM - Water Tank Road Dispersed with a 2.8-star rating from 5 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 18 dispersed camping locations near Sparks, NV, with real photos and reviews from campers.
