Best Equestrian Camping near Guadalupe Mountains National Park

Dog Canyon is located on the north end of Guadalupe Mountains National Park aka the highest point in Texas. Though secluded, Dog Canyon fills up fast so arrive early or plan in advance to claim your spot.

Due to the elevation, this campground is cooler and has more shelter than the Pine Springs campground.  Dog Canyon has excellent trail access with options of one-day or shorter day hikes.

Ranger recommendations:

• Have a full tank of gas
• Bring your propane stove - fires are not allowed in any of the campgrounds.

Dog Canyon RV area: (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good

(71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)

Overall Rating: 3.5 Price 2024: $ 10 winteragency pass Security: No Usage during visit: 50 to 100%, however there are more no shows than usually experienced elsewhere. Site Privacy: No Site Spacing: Close Pad surface: Gravel Reservations: Yes Campground Noise: Quiet Outside Road Noise: This campground is the end of the road. Through Traffic in campground: Hiker parking area across from the RV sites Electric Hookup: No Sewer Hookup: No Dump Station: No Potable Water Available: Yes. I didn’t notice the hand pump to the left of the trailhead the first couple days here. Generators: Allowed Bathroom: Flush toilets are a short walk, located in the tent camping area. There is also a heated bathroom at the visitor center which is a short distance further.
Showers: No Pull Throughs: All 4 sites are back in Cell Service (AT&T): No bars. There is WiFi at the visitor center. We were able to periodically pick up WiFi at our campsite, RV- D. Setting: Surrounded by ridges. Recent Weather: Very windy and cold nights.
Solar: Excellent.
Insects: None Host: Not filled.
Rig Size: i cannot imagine that these sites will accommodate rigs over 25’. Sites: RV-A, and RV-D are on the ends. These are the best sites. RV-A door faces horse trailer parking area. No horse there trailers during our stay. RV- D is the best site if you can park your RV nose first. This makes sitting area more private . In RV- D and RV-A sites the occupant can spread out more.

General: small campground (four “RV” sites and nine tent sites (plus one group tent site). Access is remote (only one 60-mile paved option and one 30-mile dirt road alternative) so you need to make sure you have filled up with gas in Carlsbad as there are no services within many miles of the campground. No cell reception at all (not unexpected). Be aware that the park is on mountain time but close enough to the central time zone border that your smartphone/watch may not display the correct time!

Site Quality: The “RV” sites are just a gravel parking lot. Each site has a picnic table and while the sites are spaced a decent amount of distance apart, there is no physical separation between the sites. No hookups. The tent sites are walk-in. 

Bathhouse: We were expecting a pit toilet in such a remote location but there is one men’s and one women’s bathroom with a flush toilet and sink. They were very clean. Soap dispensers but no paper towels. Although there was no hot water, the restrooms were heated, which was a nice bonus. 

Activities: There is a .6-mile nature trail and several more challenging hiking trails. There was a horse corral behind the RV sites, but we did not see any horses while there. About 25 miles away is Sitting Bull Falls, a spring-fed waterfall that is a nice side trip. 

We camped here because we were not able to get reservations in the other more popular campground in Guadalupe Mountains NP. Access between the two sides of the park is long (about 60 miles) so while this was a nice, comfortable campground, it is not easy to get to.

This was our first time visiting and it was absolutely amazing!!!! I will absolutely plan another trip back. The park Ranger (I can’t remember her name but I want to say it was Bev) was awesome. She was so kind and helpful and kept the park looking crisp and clean. We went the last week of February and stayed on a Sunday night. We were the only people in the park, including RVs and day-use. That creeped us out a bit since it’s so secluded and you don’t have cell service whatsoever, but the Ranger made us feel comfortable and like we had a friend there. I don’t know what it would be like during the busy season when it’s crowded because the campsites felt like they were on top of each other (like if you went camping with a group of people and you wanted to be close) but we didn’t have to worry about it since we were the only ones. My only complaint (and I didn’t dock a star on my review because it could’ve been that my fiancé and I just poorly planned and we also didn’t ask for help or clarification) was that the trails were not well marked. We hiked but we had no idea how far we went or what trail we were on, we just walked. That was frustrating because I wanted to keep going but I didn’t want to get lost, but the hiking was still gorgeous and enjoyable so I would still do it again.

The mountains are stunning but what keeps replaying over in my mind is the stargazing. I’m an amateur stargazer and I brought my telescope to check it out but unfortunately it was so cold and windy I couldn’t set it up long enough to use it. However, the stars were so bright and so vivid I couldn’t take my eyes off of the sky. And the moon came out over the mountains (which was almost a full moon) and it was like someone turned on a spot light on the campground. It was breathtaking.

We didn’t really get a pleasurable experience outside of that because it got so cold overnight (earlier that day the ranger warned us that it was supposed to be one of the coldest nights) and we weren’t really as prepared as we could’ve been so we ended up sleeping in the car with the heat on and leaving at first light but we are dying to go back again when it’s warmer. It also snowed incredibly heavily leaving the next day on our way out so the roads got pretty dangerous. Overall, still completely worth it!!!

If you go, at least take some binoculars for stargazing. You will absolutely not regret it!

This campsite is very remote, but it is gorgeous. It’s quite small, with only 4 RV spots and several tent spots. There is no cell phone service, but there is free Wi-Fi available. There are bathrooms, but no showers. It’s about 1.5 hours from the closest gas station so make sure to fill up before heading in. Dogs are allowed at the campsite, but not on any of the trails. I definitely recommend this site if you are going to be hiking around the national parks (Guadalupe Mountain and Carlsbad Caverns). It was also very windy when we were there in December, so bring warm clothes!

We first pulled up to the main campground and ranger station. The bathrooms were very dirty and not well kept. The campground for rv’s was just a parking lot. I held out hope for this campground and after a 2hr drive it was another parking lot for rv’s. Right next to each other. Luckily after the first night everyone else left and we were there all by ourselves until that night. Tent camping looked nicer.

This place is REMOTE! Like 1.5 hours away from any gas station remote. First and foremost make sure you fill up before you get off that highway. Whites City by Carlsbad is not to far. If youre coming that direction fill up before you go out there.

This campground does not have a lot of amenities. It has trash cans, a toilet, and some drinking fountains.. and the rest is nature. I really liked this place.

Dog Canyon is one of those places where the pictures just wont do it justice. Its big, youre little.

We spent 5 days @25$ a day

BATHROOOM SCORE: 3/5 # LEAKING TOILETS, LOW ON TOILET PAPER

STARLINK SCORE: 5/5

SOLAR SCORE:5/5

REMOTE WORKERS SCORE: 4/5

PS: the guys with the big trailers were not happy with the site... they are a little tight

Short walk to the campsites from the parking lot. The campground is extremely quiet and peaceful.

Great sites! Highly recommended!!

Though it is located in the desert in the middle of December it was still pretty warm. There were a total of 9 sites but only two were occupied. The sites were fairly huge. The only down side was that there were no campfires allowed. We did bring our stoves and managed to stay warm in the 40s at night. I stayed there for 2 nights. There was a fountain for water and restrooms. We got the chance to hike the mejas trail which took up half the day. Absolutely one of the better camp spots

Have visited several times over the years. Pretty cool even in the hottest of summers, yet warm during the winter months. Great spot to base camp for hikes into the Guadalupe Mountains! Flush toilets but no showers. Tent pads and fresh water nearby. Love to watch the hummingbirds at the headquarters porch fighting over the feeders. No cell phones to bother you here, just peace and quiet. A bit off the beaten path, but well worth the trip.

We arrived in the evening, and the place was full-up. Someone had taken a group site and had no use for the extra tent pad and shared it with us. Really pretty area, and a National Park that deserves more attention.

I really enjoyed this camp site and being in the park and so close to the mountains and trails. The views and sunset and sunrise were beautiful. The trails were easy access, especially the trail to the peak. Water, bathrooms, and sinks for washing dishes were also really close to the site. Lots of parking as well.

Visiting Guadalupe national park was very surprising, after finding out that no reservations are required to camp I was a little worried that the location was going to packed but going in the middle of February it was just right. The tent camping side has a total of 19 tent sites which have benches as well as a prepared area for your tent which was nice the site had a bathroom nearby and trash cans very close to every site. The rv side had multiple spots for rvs (didn't count the spaces) but outside of the parking lot were flush toilets and a dish washing station, the trail heads were right by the parking lot so very convenient.

The trail the main trail guadalupe peak was breath taking (literally) the climb up takes about a 2 and half hours but the view up top is amazing! My only complaint of this place is that the amount of trails is lacking (only about 5) and after a day or two your pretty much done but if your in the are the hike up top is unbeatable.

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Beautifully located in a tranquil setting. Camprgrounds are clean. Very quiet

Once you have your permit, you can embark on your backpacking adventure to Pine Top. The 4.2-mile hike from Pine Springs to the campground will take you through diverse landscapes, including forests, meadows, uno online, and possibly even some stunning vistas. As you make your way to Pine Top, keep an eye out for wildlife and take in the natural beauty surrounding you.

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You must carry your own water in. These are primitive desert backpacking sites. Since it is the first camp at the end of a fairly tough hike,it is often full. You must get a permit from the rangers to camp here. Fairly rocky, if you are lucky you will see elk. Beautiful night sky’s. The winds can be very brutal. (50 mph plus)

We’ve stayed here twice now in the past year, and both times the service and the sites were great. There aren’t a whole lot of other options close to the Caverns - there’s a fairly new KOA and a state park campground, but they are very far to the north, almost another 45 min drive, so if you’re planning a visit to the caverns this place is a great bet. Appreciated the carded gate access after hours for added security.