Best Campgrounds near Farmington, NM
Farmington, New Mexico serves as a hub for diverse camping opportunities across northwestern New Mexico. Brown Springs Campground, managed by the BLM, provides tent and RV sites with covered picnic tables and fire rings approximately 10 miles north of Farmington. Lake Farmington offers lakeside camping with basic amenities, while established RV parks like Moore's RV Park & Campground include cabin options. The region features a mix of developed state park campgrounds at Navajo Lake State Park and primitive sites in the surrounding high desert landscape, accommodating both tent campers and RVs of various sizes.
Road conditions vary significantly throughout the area, with some campgrounds accessible via well-maintained roads while others require driving on rough dirt roads. "We drove up Hwy 491 from I40 and were surprised there were no sites all the way up to Farmington or Shiprock. We chose this site but got there when it was already dark. It's about 3 miles on a long dirt road," noted one camper about Brown Springs Campground. Summer temperatures frequently exceed 90°F during peak season, making spring and fall more comfortable for camping. Many developed campgrounds offer water and electric hookups, though primitive sites typically have vault toilets but no running water. Cell service is generally available near Farmington but becomes spotty in more remote camping areas, particularly in canyon regions and toward the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness.
Scenic views represent a major draw for campers visiting the Farmington area. Angel Peak Scenic View Campground provides dramatic overlooks of New Mexico's badlands landscape with sites positioned along canyon rims. As one visitor described, "It looks like a miniature Grand Canyon. Striations in the rock show its sedimentary origin, and the erosion reveals voids under the layers." Campers seeking water recreation gravitate toward Navajo Lake State Park, which features multiple campgrounds with varying levels of amenities. Sites with shade trees are highly valued in this high desert region, with Moore's RV Park receiving praise for its "very nice shade trees" in an area where "a lot of rv parks in the southwest there is zero shade." Proximity to archaeological sites, including ancient ruins, adds cultural interest for campers exploring beyond their campsites.
