Forest Road 568 - Dispersed Camping, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico, is a fantastic spot for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle. This area offers a rugged, natural experience with plenty of room to find your own slice of wilderness, perfect for pitching a tent or parking your camper.

The location is known for its stunning views and wildlife sightings, with visitors often spotting elk and deer on their way in. Many campers appreciate the quiet atmosphere, especially if you venture further down the road to find a more secluded site. As one camper noted, “I had a handful of others drive by but overall it was quiet,” making it a great choice for those seeking peace and solitude.

While there are no amenities like restrooms or showers, the trade-off is the freedom to enjoy campfires and the great outdoors without the usual campground restrictions. The road can be a bit rough, so a vehicle with some clearance is recommended, but it’s manageable for most. Campers have shared that the area is well-suited for both tent camping and larger rigs, with plenty of fire rings scattered throughout.

If you’re up for some exploration, the nearby Lincoln National Forest offers trails and beautiful scenery. Just a short drive from Cloudcroft, you can easily pop into town for supplies or a meal. Whether you’re a seasoned camper or just looking for a free place to unwind, this location has a lot to offer.

Forest Road 568 - Dispersed Camping

Whether you're a tent camper, an RVer, or just passing through, Cloudcroft, NM has a lot to offer. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in, as well as sights to see and explore. Discover great camping spots near Cloudcroft, reviewed by campers like you.

Cloudcroft

The Best Camping Near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

This is right off of highway 244. From CloudCroft take highway 82 east to highway 244 about half mile past designated campgrounds is a dirt road to the left. There is a large grass/dirt area right off the road on the left and a couple of spots further down. To the right there are a couple of more"secluded" spots though the generator noise and the chainsaws are still loud. One generator ran all night long. The chainsaw eventually stopped after the guy had maybe enough for a log cabin. 

You can continue up the road which is a nice hike and there are a few more pull out site along the road. The road Ys and to the left are more sites that are private but the road is a bit rough. This place is FREE which we usually look for but this is probably one of the loudest we've been to. Both roads at the Y offer a nice hike with minimal traffic, there was only a single vehicle we came upon. Very nice.

Good cell reception AT&amp;T and Verizon. No water, garbage or bathrooms. PACK IN AND OUT! Multiple rock fire rings in random places as this is a dispersed camping area and watch out for the multitude of animal limbs and carcasses laying around from hunters.

Generators and Chainsaws

Great spot! Excellent service. Couldn’t ask for a better spot in the trees :) 

Perfect little spot 

Sleeping surrounded by the trees was awesome. It was so calm. Not a lot of cars drive through the road right beside it, so it’s pretty quiet. 

Super cozy

Cell coverage, good clearings. Fills up fast though!

Awesome dispersed camping

Nice road with not to many bad spots fairly smooth and nice. You can have a fire, lots of fire rings at every turn, also lots of rocks so if your ground tenting it can be an issue. 

USFS RD 568

Arrived around 6 pm on a Tuesday evening. Took a right at the fork (sweet group campsite there but occupied) and stayed the night at a pull off to the left, about halfway up the hill. Road is a little rough but flattens out as you go up the hill. After the fork, sites big enough for a van or larger Class B but that's it. I had AT&amp;T 3-4 bars of signal, enough to work my remote job and stream You-Tube. A very nice group site at the top of the hill, big enough for 2-3 Class Bs. 5 bars of AT&amp;T there. You might get something slightly bigger but not a lot of turnaround space for a bigger rig. No services or toilets. Lots of quiet.

Beautiful area with 8-10 pull off sites.

Great strip of dispersed campsites along the forest road. Very high elevation (8000ft), so it can get colder. Cell service is great. Services are near at cloudcroft. Was rather crowded here in October but still plenty of spot. 

Alpine dispersed camping

Needed a last resort spot to sleep and decided on finding a spot here. Visited in last day in November, so it was a bit cold at night. Since it was so late in the year I ran across 0 other people, and at night it was absolutely silent. You can get as far away from main roads as you need.
There are infinite spots on this road. It’s quite long and the road conditions aren’t all that bad, so anyone can access it. You can tell where other people have been due to campfires. But if you visit anytime in the year I’m sure you’re able to find a spot, as they can extend up to 200ft back into the woods and have lots of area.
About 5 min drive to main road and 8 minutes to cloudcroft. There was no trash, and also no amenities. I highly recommend this spot if you need somewhere free to stay extended or even one night if you’re visiting Lincoln. Coordinates are accurate

Great Stay

04/15/22 service road 568, Lincoln National Forest, NM

Friday night/Good Friday 

I found this camp on a suggestion from a local waitress at Big Daddy’s. It was a short drive off the main road to get to the camp. The spot I found felt pretty secluded despite there being a lot of other campers in the area. There were several rock fire rings so I took my pick based on the direction of the wind. 

It’s a dispersed area, so no bathrooms or showers, but well worth it for the scenery. There was a dry water run off that ran the entire length down the mountain and a tree lined bluff across from there. I bet it’s pretty cool to see the water run when the snow melts. 

There was an occasional OHV that cruised by and people walking their dogs, but everything went calm before sunset. I would have liked to hit some of the trails in the area, but my Jeep was completely overloaded so I decided to come back another time. 

This place would be perfect if there was a place to swim  

We planned on only staying up here a couple days, but plans off the mountain fell through and we stayed for 12. It was gorgeous. Huge forest with lots of exploring to do. We got a nice little private spot under a huge tree. There was lots of really nice people staying at the sites at the entrance, but if you go further you can find some privacy. Less than a 5 minute drive from Cloudcroft. We also found a lot of bones from dead animals which was pretty cool. 

One of my favorite spots so far!

Stayed a couple of nights in different sites.  I would recommend a 4-wheel drive and maybe something with a little clearance.  It's pretty rocky so take your time.  My site was large and I couldn't see or hear any neighboring sites.  I had a handful of others drive by but overall it was quiet.  I would absolutely stay here again if I was in the area.  The nights were gorgeous and quiet.

Great spots and views

If you don't feel like dropping 20 bucks a night or more for a spot to camp, this is a great alternative.  FR 568 is about a mile long and has a ton of all types of dispersed camping on both sides of the road, from little tent sites to pull-throughs for campervans and trailers.

  

Not a terrible road at all.  I drive a little, low-clearance hatchback and was able to make it all the way to the end of the road and back out while scoping out sites.  Go the whole length and see what your options are so you can pick the best one.

Good Intro to Dispersed Camping

Easy to find. A little rough getting in, but we made it in a small SUV. Not sure how well a car will do. 

Lots of wildlife driving in. We saw 6 big elk and several deer. 

Cold at night but it warmed up when the sun came out.

Lots of fire pits, but if you’re in a tent the ground is uneven and rocky. 

Nice and quiet.

We went in mid-march and the road there was decently slick. However, after turning a corner we had to stop because a tree was in the road. We lost our momentum and had to sleep in the truck for the night. I’m sure it’s a nice place but be prepared!

Photos of Forest Road 568 - Dispersed Camping

Real photos from real campers