FR 9710 Dispersed Roadside Camping

This was a good spot, I passed one person coming in, and unfortunately, the road is blocked off about a quarter mile in, so there’s not a lot of spots here. There is a bit of road noise, mostly from cars hitting the rumble strips or trucks Jake breaking. But the wind wishing through the Ponderosa Pines masks a lot of of the regular car noise from 97. The ground is very soft and dusty, but my 3500 RWD van made it to the end with no worries. The road does continue on a ways, and it was OK to walk on, but my shoes were caked in a fine powdery dust, not the best. There was a break in the trees, so I was able to use my Starlink for Internet.

This site is right by Newberry Volcanic National Monument, South of Bend . It is easily accessed from northbound 97. If you are southbound, you’ll have to double back. It is a pine-wooded area with lots of pretty level sites. Dirt road is in relatively good shape.

Not overcrowded, I was alone almost the whole week. However it’s not as clean as some reviews say. Seems to be a bit of a dumping ground. I had to clean up my campsite from previous campers.

This is a GREAT spot for small and large rigs looking for a boondocking spot near Bend, OR. Big open areas spot semi shade and campfires. Easy access from main road. Will say you can hear the road unless you go back further. Easy 10 min drive to downtown. Decent cell service as well. A few other campers but spread out and minimal trash. Would stay here again

It was close to the highway but no one was there, trash seemed a little problem but besides that, it's good

Just me, not far from the highway though can hear traffic, and alot of left over trash. But other than that safe and chill. No water or amenities.

Plenty of spots on this road. Saw a few other campers (a 25ft trailer and a 35ft class A) but it was very quiet and dispersed. My 24ft class C did fine and dirt roads were in good condition.

Not too hard to find, just turn where the map app tells you onto this gravel road, it turns into dirt and looks a bit tweakerish at the beginning but it's alright. Not a ton of big RV pulloffs but the side of the road is pretty clear and you could pull a car onto it wherever you want no problem.

If you are going south from Bend, you have to turn around at exit 151 due to center barrier now constructed

There are a few campsites and some are obviously used frequently. You will encounter some road noise from hwy 97 but otherwise peaceful; at least early in the season

Clean quiet … can’t get much better for free. I experienced what previous reviewer warned and missed the turn when wasn’t even dark.

Awesome spots, 4WD required

Decent camping if you just need somewhere to stay for the night. I don’t think it was anything to write home about, but it wasn’t bad by any means. As others have said, the turn is very easy to miss (there isn’t a turning lane), and if you miss the turn then you will have to take another 10ish minutes to u-turn and try again. I’d recommend having the map from this app open and driving super slow as you approach if you’re arriving at night. I looked for fire rings and didn’t see too many, but there are tons of pull-offs. Not very busy when I visited in June. I felt good being close to a main road, but wasn’t disturbed from the noise of it.

Probably some more further in, on dirt trails too. Only saw one tent set up.

This is just a forest road off of the highway. It’s very easy to miss the turn- and then it takes 20 minutes to get back to the turn. The road was icy and difficult to drive on in mid-March.

The spots are a little hard to find when its snowy. If you stay closer to the front, there’s less snow. Just look for established fire rings to find a spot. The only sign I saw that indicated you are allowed to camp here was one about putting out your fire. There’s okay cell service. Pack out your waste.

There were very rarely any cars driving on the road and only one other group stayed here the night I did. Overall, I felt mostly safe but a little weary. This is fine for a one night stop on a longer trip.

Pull offs large enough for rvs & tents. It can get super dusty with folks driving back and forth depending on the season, but it is really convenient to Newberry Volcanic Monument. Not a super great place to camp, but it’s free & in a good location.