Looking for the best tent campgrounds near Timberon? Finding a place to camp in New Mexico with your tent has never been easier. Each tent campsite offers quick access to one or more of Timberon's most popular destinations.
Due to rehabilitation of camping sites, backcountry camping is closed.
Lower Karr Canyon Campground has undeveloped campsites scattered above and below the Karr Canyon Picnic Area. Forest Road 63 is gravel and can be rough. Fire rings are available. Tent camping is allowed here and there are a number of lovely spots for you to choose from, all of which are accessible by walking in to the site from the parking area.
James Canyon Campground offer 5 sites along US82 just west of Mayhill, NM. The lower elevation of 6,800' means this small site is usable longer than most Sacramento Mountain area campgrounds when the snows begin. Picnic tables, grills, and one group ramada among scattered pine trees. 16' RV limit. James Canyon Campground - General Area
Ranger
Local to everything in Alamogordo. Propane available, laundry, cabins, hot as hell showers, water pressure is really high at around 155 psi. So definitely bring a regulator. Two KOA cats that are friendly so FYI
TravelerEveryone was super nice! Place was well kept and clean. Note: there is lots of railroad train coming by throughout the evening WiFi could be better. White Sands National Park is very close.
Ranger
Beautiful location for sunsets. Sites are spread out, private, and a bargain at $10 ($14 for electric/water). Clean bathrooms. One very strenuous hike from the campground. We only went up 1/4 mile. The footing was challenging (along with the elevation gain). Good overnight. Quiet at night.
Guide
Campsites are to close, Camp host DO NOT keep the quite hours. Parties destroy the quite. Parties going until 2AM.
Actually not really sure what the camp host does, they started a leaf blower during morning quit hours ( I could stay home for that).
Saddle and Apache are nice with campsites further apart....but stay away from silver.
On a good note, if you are in Cloudcroft go to Mad Jacks BBQ.....the Beef Ribs are AWESOME, it is REAL TEXAS bbq.
TravelerCar camped in a tent site for just a night after visiting WSNP. Non-flush toilets without sinks near tent sites and the full bathhouse is a bit of a walk away. Worth it, though, with spacious shower stalls and well-kept buildings. Sweet views of the valley and mountains and far off the highway.
Guide
This was a beautiful location, near the town of Cloudcroft. We enjoyed the cooler weather up in the mountains. It was peaceful and quite. There were not very many spaces available. We should have have just stayed in the first location we found though. We went to the end of the road to find out that there was no way to turn our 29 ft trailer. We had to go in reverse about 1/4 mile to find a place to turn around.
TravelerStayed here while visiting White Sands National Park for 2 nights. Its a well kept fairly small campground. Everything worked as advertised. Highly recommend this place. Some nice hikes from the park with amazing views.
Guide
Many great spots available and easily accessible by low clearance vehicles (we have a camper class B van). Very close (less than a mile?) to the state park, and about 30 minutes from white sands NM. Very quiet. Cell signal. Dog friendly.
Guide
We have a 30 foot motor home and were so glad to find a dispersed spot in the mountains we could fit!
Rim Trails and Alamo Peak Trails in walking distance. There were other campers nearby but it was quiet and beautiful.
No cell service except for a few bars down the road toward Alamo Peak.
Elk, hummingbirds, all tucked away in aspen grove. This is a special spot.
GuideA really great place to hang out for a few days and just enjoy life. Beautiful cliffs to the east towering over the sites, and the wide expanse of the valley to the east. Wonderful view of the starry night sky as well. Facilities were acceptable, nothing to complain about. Good cell service for both Verizon and T-mobile. Close for a day trip into the mountains or White Sands. Perfectly open to the sky for great solar.
Guide
This was a decision while we were in Alamogordo trying to find an RV place in Ruidoso. What sold us to be there was the 5 star review. We knew the spaces were tight and it was in a commercial area but we were curious what it was about.
We were very happy with the two nights we spent here. I think the ease of picking a spot that worked for our situation, the clean park and bathrooms and friendly staff and neighbors made it surprisingly one of the best RV experiences we’ve had.
The high was 75 and the low was 45. It rained the first morning for about an hour. The main road is noisy, but we knew what we were getting into so it didn’t bother us.
The best part about this place was how close it was to stores, food, and gas. It’s really opened my eyes to how we can RV parks as a pass through in our journey to take advantage of electric and water and experience the local food and shops.
Ruidoso alone is a quintessential mountain town and it’s a must see visit in Lincoln National Forrest.
TravelerPros - gorgeous 360 views, quiet spot, clean pit toilets, water available throughout grounds
Cons - zero shade so it is HOT especially if you're tent camping, nothing to "do" at the campground but plenty activities in a reasonable drive
ScoutFirst time ever I’m going to Ruidoso me and my wife didn’t really have a plan one night after sleeping in the Walmart parking lot we were driving down and saw midtown and asked if they do one night rentals at a time teepee site wasn’t fully done, but they allowed us to stay in there for a great price and helped us out when we had no idea what we were doing. I want to thank Midtown campground & RV park for the amazing time we had there
LegendOliver Lee Memorial, NM: We stayed in Loop B, non-electric. I did not evaluate Loop A. Good location for visiting White Sands (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good
(71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)
Overall Rating: 4.5 Great campground layout. Well designed. Sites are staggered giving view grand view for all sites
Security: Desert vegetation does not offer privacy
Site Spacing: Great .
Toilets and Showers :There is a dispersed camping area nearby, therefore, showers/flush toilet building is shut down at night to avoid their unauthorized usage of facilities during the night. Scattered pit toilets are always available.
Usage during visit: 95% full
Site Privacy: No
Site Spacing: GREAT
Reservations: Yes
Campground Noise: Quiet
Outside Road Noise: This campground is at the end of the access road.
Through Traffic in campground: No
Electric Hookup: Loop A
Sewer Hookup: No
Dump Station: Yes. Open from about dawn to nighttime to avoid unlawful use.
Potable Water Available: Scattered spigots in Loop B.
Bathroom: Pit toilets and one nice shower/flush toilet facility.
Showers: Private stalls.
Pull Throughs: Some
Cell Service (AT&T): Good service from our site.
Setting: Nestled close to the mountain range with nice views of the desert below.
Recent Weather: Sunny. 60s to 30s
Solar: GREAT
Insects:None
Host: Great hosts
Rig Size:Large rigs
Sites: best sunsets sites.:42, 43, 44(however, you can see the sunset from most sites.). Nice view sides: 41, 40, 39, 38, 32, 33, (35, 36, 37, great views just close to the bathroom). Every site here has an extraordinary view. These are just a little bit better, in my opinion.
Legend
James Canyon, NM: This is right off the highway, so easy access. There are only two sides when you can accommodate an RV.. A couple folks parked in the parking lot overnight. Ad jacent highway noise is very noticeable, however, traffic is pretty light and very late at night time. (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good
(71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)
Overall Rating: For a stop over: 4.
Price 2024: Free
Security: no
Usage during visit: two RV sites filled up. Ted sites for him to. Room in the parking lot. Small Riggs only
Site Privacy: no
Site Spacing: good
Pad surface: RV sites
Reservations: no
Campground Noise: no, no
Outside Road Noise: noticeable
Through Traffic in campground: no, except for stopping to use the bathrooms
Electric Hookup: no
Sewer Hookup: no, no
Dump Station: no
Potable Water Available: No
Generators: allowed
Bathroom: very clean pit toilets
Showers: no
Pull Throughs: both RV sites are back in. A little bit of extra work is required to back the trailer down to go to one of the two site.
Cell Service (AT&T): no
Setting: just off the highway
Recent Weather: cool nights
Solar: some
Insects: none
Host: no
Rig Size: much over 22’ would be difficult
Guide
We got lured in with a super reasonable monthly price so decided to book despite seeing it was close to a major street. It was ok to stay as we enjoyed exploring the surrounding mountains and of course white sands but the campground itself is nothing to brag about. Very noisy at night with lots of ambulances driving by but worst of all the electricity charge they presented us at the end of the stay was unbelievable high. We didn't even use air conditioning and they refused to show us proof of our usage. It is what it is but I wouldn't go back.
TravelerStayed for 3 days and only saw a few cars pass by that whole time. Felt very private and had plenty of space. Lots of beautiful birds and some bats flying around at dusk! Tmobile service was pretty good, mostly had 5G but did lose 5g service a couple of times. Starting to get hot in April!
RangerI messed up thinking I had booked this campground - I hadn’t. It was five minutes to seven pm and the staff called me back and got me a site for less than $50 for the night. It was a nice, level pull through site with water/sewer/cable/electric. I was pretty relieved that we would have somewhere to camp - no one else picked up their phones.
We didn’t arrive until nearly nine and the same staff person was still working - helping someone back into their site. She was very kind and welcoming.
The next morning I checked out the campground. The area was pretty industrial, but less than two minutes to the science museum and zoo. Individual spaces were generous (especially the tent sites - they would fit any tent size) and I liked the little patio we had. The playground was newish, the pool looked like it would be nice when filled, the laundry room looked great (but cash only - I prefer the card ones) and there was a lovely store and rec room. There were also showers and a small dog run.
This KOA had everything you could need - including excellent customer service.
20-25 minutes to White Sands National Monument.
LegendWe stopped here for one night after visiting White Sands National Monument. The sites are very close together. The side of our camper almost touched the slide out of the RV next to us. Water, sewer & electricity. They have bright lights st the sites which is annoying. There is a duck pond. Bathrooms and showers were adequate. About 5 miles from Alamogordo and 20 miles from White Sands.
RangerEasy to access, plenty of spots along the main road and other spurs going off from it. Drove the whole way until it dead ends into State Park land (fenced) then turned around and went down a spur on the left to a great spot. Verizon service, starry skies.
Ranger
Sunspot Hwy to Rio Peñasco Rd., past the pavement onto dirt road for about 2 miles before coming to the trailhead/bathrooms on your right. No overnight camping at the trailhead but overnight camping is allowed beyond that point, along the creek. Very quiet and private, a bit of snow was still down at the end of March, no other campers. Very windy, so campfires are allowed but need to be well controlled. Great spot all-around. There is NO Verizon service there or on the way in, pretty much since you pass Haynes Canyon on Sunspot.
Guide
Not a bad dispersed site but not a great maintained road. Our rig is 35ish feet and we were okay getting off the road to find a spot, but the road is a little washed out and tight in places. You don’t get much privacy either. But pros are the pretty lake (don’t swim in it!) and that it’s 5 minutes from white sands.
LegendGreat state park. Clean and well thought out camping sites. Not much shade but some sites have shelters over picnic tables. Stayed at dry site (no water or electric) but water is available around campground.
TravelerDespite the warning that it's closed for the season there were plenty of other folks spending the night here. A bit busy but spots are well spread out and the view over the lake is worth it! Minutes from white sands np and just what I needed for a nice overnight on my way west.
Guide
First off, this was a luxury free campsite! Paved road, and picnic tables right next to the parking area! It was packed on Easter Sunday; an RV with many loud children was parked across the way, presumably for the long weekend, but, once they left, peace and quiet. The trail (or many meadows that were connected, more like) was very nice and serene, I saw not another person. There is no cell signal to be had here at all (Verizon), I had to go to the overlook point closer to the Village to even get a single bar, but you can get pretty good signal with a transistor radio, and many nearby stations, NOAA weather comes in very clear. Speaking of that, while watching the sunset there, I was attempted to be followed by what seemed like another onlooker once it got dark. I let them know very quickly I knew what they were up to, and they went on their way. I still would stay again, but, if that makes you nervous, I'd avoid.
Guide
The camping is great and the views are amazing. However, the trail up to the camping spots is steep, washed out, and tight. Can be navigated with a stock 4x4 pick up. Also, there is a gun range at the bottom, so you'll hear gun shots til sundown. Also, a little highway noise is present in the distance.
Guide
Very remote and quiet. We didn’t go too far in but plenty of sites available and didn’t see a single other soul. Easily accessible and had vaulted toilets available. Saw plenty of wildlife including elk, wild turkey, and mule deer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Timberon, NM?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Timberon, NM is Backcountry Primitive Sites — White Sands National Park with a 4.7-star rating from 23 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Timberon, NM?
TheDyrt.com has all 7 tent camping locations near Timberon, NM, with real photos and reviews from campers.
