Best Dispersed Camping near Monroe, NH

Dispersed Camping Reviews near Monroe, NH

86 Reviews of 21 Monroe Campgrounds

• 

  Miccal M.

  Legend

  Sep. 24, 2024

  Patterson Brookside camp on West Hill Road

  This is a wonderful place to camp

  There are a handful of sites to camp at along the river here, each offering a slightly different experience.  The dirt road along the river is an easy drive, though it is single lane in a few locations, so be aware of oncoming traffic.  Some of the sites are drive in, some are walk in, but all are primitive. 

  There is no electricity, no cell coverage, not outhouses in this area.  Be prepared to pack out everything you bring in.

  This area is being heavily use and some spots are being shut down from abuse, please be aware that you have a lot of impact, and that impact can be positive or negative. Choose Positive!

  This area is closed in the winter due to snow, by the GMNF

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• 

  Jean C.

  Legend

  Jul. 17, 2019

  Tripoli Road

  Dispersed camping, be bear aware!

  Tripoli Road is a seasonal road, opening in late May most years and closing in autumn. Check the White Mountain National Forest Facebook page for up to date road closures/status. The section before Russell Pond often opens before the rest of it, which is graded, not paved. The road runs between the Waterville Valley area and I-93 exit 31. This is roadside camping, no frills, first come, first served. You must stay at a site with a fire ring, but sites are not numbered. Road signs demarcate no camping zones; some areas look like they could be campsites, but will also be marked with no camping signs. 

  You must register at the ranger station on the western end of the road, shortly past the entrance to the Russell Pond campground. Rates are a flat rate set per car and per weekends or weekday period. In other words, you pay one rate for 1-5 weekdays ($20 in 2019) and another fee for a weekend($25-30 - holidays). It’s self service most of the time, with the ranger available Friday and Saturday evenings. 

  The sites vary from sites near and level with the road to ones set above or well below the road. Some are near a river, most are wooded. Some are isolated, others are close together. There are no reservations, so you'll be choosing your own when you arrive. Downhill sites closest to the Russell Pond area seem to be most popular. Most of these were occupied on a late June weekend, while those farther down the road remained empty.

  There are port-a-potties near the western entrance, but otherwise you’re on your own with cat holes or portable toilet solutions. Nearest showers are at Russell Pond. Please keep it clean and protect the area. I’ve passed through several times while hiking My Osceola and have observed that these sites are often filled with groups or families with multiple tents. On a late June weekend there are numerous empty sites, so they seem to be more available than the dispersed sites along Gale River Rd and Haystack Rd (farther north in Twin Mountain). Excessive drinking and noise can be an issue. 

  You need to be aware that bears are in the area. Following the July 4, 2019 holiday, the camping area was closed after bears visited campsites and got into food that was left in the open and not secured in vehicles or bear canisters. The camping area re-opened July 19, but check the White Mountain National Forest FB page before heading up there. If the issue recurs, I wouldn't be surprised if they close it again.

  Hiking in the region include the Osceolas (moderate hike with beautiful views, exceedingly popular and crowded on autumn weekends - get there early!), Tripyramid, and Tecumseh. Shorter treks include Welch-Dickey (great open ledges) and Snow's Mountain (along a river with falls). Nearby Russell Pond offers ranger programs, fishing, and you can put a kayak or canoe in. The Pemigewassett offers tubing and kayaking put ins. Outfitters one exit south can provide you with transportation and rentals. Exit 32 for Lincoln, Woodstock, and the Kanc is less than 5 miles north.

  Cell service is decent at nearby Russell Pond (Verizon seemed to offer better service than AT&T).

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• 

  Kevin C.

  Ranger

  Sep. 19, 2024

  Cherry Mountain Road Dispersed

  Super quiet and lots of privacy

  Came into the area after 7 PM on a Tuesday and found several open sites. We stayed one night in campsite 9. This site is about 90 yards from the fire tower trailhead.

  Site #9 goes back about 70 to 80 feet back off the road. There appears to have been a longer site, but the Forest Service placed boulders blacking vehicles from going further. Just past the boulders is a large fire circle with room for 6 to 8 campers to sit around the fire.

  We were able to collect sunlight onto our solar panel from the site.

  The camp site are all disbursed enough that we did not hear any other camping sounds at all. It was so quiet I could hear the sound of crow wings flapping as they flew by.

  We enjoyed a spectacular view of the Blood Super Moon from the campsite. Overall the site was open to the sky nea3 the road yet protected from the wind.

  The only downside was the lack of any other amenities. As far as disbursed camping in the national forest, this place is not a decent unpaved road and our campsite was only about 3 miles from the highway.

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• T

  Tim M.

  Guide

  Jun. 26, 2023

  Green Mountain National Forest FR207

  NFR 207 Meadows, with great views!

  In the first large meadow, multiple fire rings / sites. Able to see sunrise/sunset/moonrise over the surrounding rolling hills and crests. 

  Upper meadows accessible with 4WD / high clearance vehicles.
  Nearby Clark Brook Trail is a 3 mile hike connecting with the AT/LT.
  2 bars USCellular LTE.

• G

  Greg L.

  Scout

  Apr. 14, 2020

  Haystack Road

  Secluded, yet centrally located.

  These are my go to sites when I am in the Franconia Notch area. They have a fire pit, plenty of woods around, and are free. The North Twin Trailhead is at the end of Haystack Rd., these trails connect to the Twin Mountain peaks and the Pemigewasset Wilderness area. Its is a great staging ground for weeks worth of adventures, and you're allowed to stay for two weeks. They do get crowded during the season, so you'll have better luck showing up mid-week. Leave your tent set up, or your site could be taken when you get back. There is cell reception at most of the sites. Do not rely on cell phone trail maps, there is little to no reception trail on the trails. Use a downloadable GPS map like a Gaia GPS, or a Garmin type device. Also, wildlife like bear and moose will visit you at night. it's almost a certainty, keep your food locked in a bear tight container. *** The first few sites on the left have a small stream behind them, it'll make your stay a little easier. Bathing, dishes, etc.***

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• 

  Laura M.

  Legend

  Dec. 28, 2023

  Town Hall Road Dispersed

  Awesome Boondocking

  Awesome boondocking in New Hampshire, what a treat in the east coast! Just beautiful scenery, with trees, rivers, creeks, hiking trails with a pond- we absolutely loved our time here. 

  Town Hall Rd is a long road with many designated dispersed sites, all far apart from each other and all varying in levelness and size. We got lucky and snagged a perfect spot 2 miles in from the entrance sign- completely level (didn’t even need our leveling blocks) and big enough for our 26ft class c. Each site is different, but there were plenty that could fit a medium sized RV like ours. I wouldn’t recommend a giant 5th wheel or class A to come here looking for a spot. The road is dirt, but it’s hard packed and smooth, with a few dips and holes here and there. A little narrow but it’s manageable. The downside of a great road is the speeding cars and trucks- very annoying but thankfully there wasn’t much traffic in early October. I’d say more than half the sites were open when we stayed there mid-week. 

   No amenities here, just a rock fire pit to designate that it’s a spot. Please pack out your trash. Zero cell service in this whole area, but some messages popped through while we were hiking. weBoost did not help. Heavily wooded area, so it’s not so great for solar panels and probably not starlink either (we don’t have starlink so I can’t report on that).

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• 

  Thomas and James S.

  Guide

  Jun. 18, 2024

  Austin Brook

  Nice sites

  Smaller area roughly 1-6 sites. When driving in on the right there’s a culdesac type set up of sites. Pretty sure these sites all have river access. Road is short dead ends with a decent amount of turn around space.

• 

  Raj T.

  Guide

  Jun. 28, 2021

  Guyot Shelter - Dispersed Camping

  Gayut Tentsite

  Sufficient amount of platform, water source, bear proof Joe box, pivy and springs all at one spot

• 

  Atlas W.

  Guide

  Jul. 30, 2023

  Town Hall Road Dispersed

  SO AMAZING!!

  My first ever dispersed camping experience. So freaking amazing and unbelievable. It was pouring rain when we came to NH so we tried to wait out the rain, but it was getting dark. We followed the directions given by previous reviews. Turn onto town hall rd. and keep going past the residential area until you get to gravel road. keep going straight until you see the national forest sign. about a mile later us when campsites started popping up. the first few were full since it was 7pm but we came across one right around where the pin is dropped for this location. the cliff wasn’t too steep here (i passed up a campsite before this one bc it seemed too steep for my liking) and pretty large. beautiful view of the water and even a path down to swim. 10/10 experience and i cant wait to go back.

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