Forks Campground

Short drive from Gila Cliff Dwellings. No running water, no cell service, no WiFi and they have vault toilets. If you need those amenities then this is not the campsite for you. There was no crowd mid week during the end of February. The day warmed up nicely and the night was cold, just bring the right gear.

We spent three nights at the Forks campground with our 38 ft. 5th wheel toy hauler.

I don't recommend towing something this big to this area, but it can be done safely - would definitely not do it if snow is forecast.

There was one other camper there.  It was quite cold at night 20 - 23 degrees but warmed up nicely during the day.  

Unfortunately the General Store in Gila Hot Springs was closed for renovations and there is no cell phone coverage anywhere near this area.

The place itself is very nicely located close to a river access, the river area is beautiful and the water is clean and cool. Nothing about this place is bad, it's actually beautiful, but unfortunately some of the folks that frequent it aren't very nice and here is why I give it 3 stars. The campground is not very big with about 7 or so actual camp sites. I've been here a few times and observed the same problems continuously so I will begin to describe why I only give it 3 stars. The problem is people show up at night and set up in places that aren't designated to camp in or rudely set up inside your camp area. On top of that those same types of people stay up very late at night partying and unfortunately there is an echo effect in the area. Keeping along the same topic of rude folks, the vault restrooms on site were initially clean until the masses show up and make it extremely filthy in there, to the point where you'd rather find a bush for #1 or #2 because of the stomach turning scene and smell. Maybe I just have bad luck who knows? It's a shame because it's a beautiful place but the beautiful experience could potentially be ruined by some rude people. However, I still had a good time putting all that aside.

Forks Campground is at the top of a cliff. It has a phenomenal view of the river, is an excellent location for stargazing, and has a fantastic swimming hole a short hike down the hill. HOWEVER, these wonderful features make it a bit of a destination. There was a good amount of thru traffic during my stay, the worst of which were some drunk guys blasting music til midnight my last night. I found that to be unfortunate, as my favorite thing about camping in the forest is falling asleep to forest sounds. There is no cell service here or pretty much anywhere in the forest. There is a general store up the road (closed Wednesdays) that will let you use WiFi to let loved ones know you’re ok, but otherwise it’s entirely off the grid. I was there Tuesday afternoon thru Friday morning in mid August 2020. Pros -great view -swimming hole -clean camp sites -short drive to dwellings and multiple trailheads Cons -thru traffic, sometimes very loud and/or late at night -some campsites do not have much shade

Good spacious camp sites but lack of shade in some areas, great views.