Top Tent Camping near Sterling, UT

Recent Tent Reviews In Sterling

322 Reviews of 31 Sterling Campgrounds

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Mackinaw Campground

  Good high elevation CG at Fishlake

  Large campgrounds in area including this one. Camped in September (Doctor Creek CG up road was closed). Quiet, clean. End of tourist season and so couple of nearby stores were selling out their ice cream--Got giant couple of scoops in a bowl. For water/boaters & fishing, mainly, typically sold out during summer. Sites go in rows inching up-slope and some have nice views of lake.

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Flat Canyon

  Nice little campground near lakes

  Smallish beautiful campground. Site 9 but sites 4, 5, 12 good too. 1 is private but away from toilets. Nice view down the valley to Electric Lake. Decent distance to Scofield. Relatively quiet but sites are fairly close together. 

  Food aside: Ate Knorr rice with chicken, spiced it up, and Hatch tortillas for dinner. Also Sprouts Hatch M&C with Wal Mart chicken packet and Old El Paso ranch sauce, both good.

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Maple Grove

  Little out of the way gem

  Stayed 6/1-4 in space 9. Very shady campground and campsite. Creek runs thru but not by this site. Only 1 vault toilet for the family campground, so walked over to Group site toilets which were cleaner. One trail out of camp to Rock Canyon but it was fairly steep and rocky so didn't do much of it. Did walk up and down paved road into camp and then on dirt roads off main road that had a few FCFS dry camp pull out areas along the creek. Campsites well spaced many with good views of valley or the red rock cliffs. No ATVs allowed in campground. Spaces 15 and 20 were also good, 10 is double size but same price with large drive and nice views to red cliffs. Camp host unobtrusive.

  Would be great during fall colors. Saw some bear scat on trail closer to I-70

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Maple Canyon

  NIce little place

  Dirt road in, off the hwy, was a bit rutted, but we made it okay in van. Took our chances on a FCFS spot, #8 which looked fairly level but was not. There were 2 bathrooms we saw and the site was mostly equidistant from both, and a bit of distance away. Beautiful canyon with walls rising up both sides but were just passing thru so didn't get to see much and didn't stay but basically overnight. Seems like some interesting pull out boon-docking sites on way in but bathroom in day use parking was locked in the am when we left.

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Old Folks Flat

  High altitude campground, lots of families but friendly/safe (crowded)

  Stayed in site 8, which has a shallow and uneven driveway. We used several leveling blocks which helped. Site 6 is ideal in terms of proximity to toilets and relatively level site with trees and a water tap just adjacent. There are 9 total sites, 5 are group sites so tend to be LOTS of people around. Group sites are large and are only$20/night and site 9 is roomy, relatively private and has vault toilets adjacent. Walking trails in/around campground.

  Lots of families. Safe. Rather enjoyed a sing-along one night with LOTS of kids.

  2nd stay (June): Stayed again for 2 nights, this time in spot 6 which is roomier than 8 and one of only a few single family campsites. Renovation installed a new picnic table and fire pit but removed the tent pad. Water tap still adjacent. 

  Big family gatherings due to large family spots, across were 6 RVs in one spot and trucks parked everywhere including on the grass. Fairly quiet and respectful but dogs were allowed to run loose and while seemingly friendly, they were not supervised for pooping. This also means bathrooms were under serious strain esp re: available toilet paper.

  Nearby: On Hwy 31, appear to be a variety of dispersed camping spots, most are not well marked. Some appear to have names, but not sure if they are reservable. Most are for "groups" but are typically only $20/night, some smaller group sites are only$10/night. Seem to be largely FCFS. Several have vault toilets adjacent.

  Visited nearby Huntington Lake State Park, which is relatively modest in terms of facilities, basically a lake and a campground (no shade). The sites adjacent to the lake look nice (~sites 1-5) and have partial hookups but the trees are sparse. There is a trail around the lake, but it appears mainly to be a gravel road with some benches here/there.

  Food aside (freeze dried packs with our own add-ons): Had Peak beef pasta marinara with italian and garlic seasoning. FQ (fart quotient) is low. Had garlic mashed and Hatch green chile mac (from Sprouts). Added pepper jerky to the mashed before water and the cheese (Mexican blend) and one packet of fajita chicken (Wal Mart, about $1.25) and some Kinder's smoked garlic into the mac when it was ready. Also crumbled some 4 cheese Triscuits on top. 

  Had Mountain House freeze-dried scrambled eggs in wheat tortillas with cheese, bacon (in at finish), and pepper jerky (in with water). Two servings would have made~4 burritos. Also recommend cutting back on the water to ~2/3-3/4c. Added pepper, garlic powder to eggs. 

  Had Mountain House pad thai with chicken for dinner. Didn't add sriracha seasoning but put our own smoked garlic, Wal Mart applewood smoked chicken packet and the supplied lime, peanut butter, and nuts (supplemented the nuts with our own).

• 

  Laurie H.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 10, 2024

  Fish Lake National Forest

  Fish Lake National Forest

  Just needed to find a place for the night and this was perfect! No one around, huge site, beautiful views and free! Cows meander around the campsite..didn't bother us. If you go past where the directions take you, there are 3 or 4 spots that are also nice. Road is easy to travel.

• Y

  YLVA M.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 24, 2024

  Mystic Hot Springs

  Over priced

  The camping is funky but functional. And overpriced. You pay per person not per vehicle.

• R

  Rebecca L.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 7, 2024

  Goshen Road Dispersed Camping

  Goshen Rd free campsites

  There is one campsite with a sign that says 3 day public camping. It is a huge dirt lot with a few shade trees and creek. About 1/4 mile after this location are 5 more Creekside campsites on the left side of the road ( if coming from Goshen ) they are unmarked. All campsites in this area are on BLM or state land. Please do not overstay your welcome. They have discussed blocking them off due to people staying for way to long and leaving trash.

• 

  DL M.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 7, 2024

  Maple Canyon

  Great conglomerate rock climbing

  Forested campsites in a narrow canyon. Busy on weekends. Got the last first served sit at 3pm Friday. Sites next to the main road. Traffic peering into the campsite. Young fit crowd. Weak cell reception.

• 

  Azaali J.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 30, 2024

  The Bend Gem

  Great camping spot

  We spent 3 nights here right along the reservoir and it was great. Although it was “busy” there was plenty of space between us an our neighbours.

  We rock a rooftop tent so it was easy to level. Bugs were minimal during the day. Mosquitos ramp up at night but they didn’t seem to want anything to do with us.

  Saw plenty of people fishing during the day.

  There are washrooms nearby but they aren’t super close to all camping areas.

• 

  Mike S.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 20, 2024

  Dispersed Site - Last Chance Rd

  unbearable mosquitos

  Arrived 3Jul24 at dusk.  There is standing water marsh with a frac tank, possibly for water for the quarry above.  Got out of the car to give dog a break and within one minute was scrambling back in.  Drove up hill to the quarry and got out with dog....still very bad mosquitos but some breeze.  Hid in the car while dog was out on a long rope for a while, covered with mosquitos.  After 10 minutes I had killed most that were in the car and the ones waiting at the doors and windows were gone.  I cracked the door and began pulling dog rope to get slack in and then had dog climb over me into back seat.

  We drove east one Dyrt to Miller Canyon and it was AWESOME.  I remember maybe 3 mosquitos there.

  There are only two things I can compare this savagery to (and I am in my late 50s):

  Alaska (Last Chance Rd dispersed is WORSE--However, note that when I was in AK I wasn't asking for trouble--I was indoors during  mosquito hours--I am sure AK has mosquitos as bad as Last Chance if you go looking)

  Canada Boundary Waters Boy Scout Canoe Base (about the same at dusk--only fools wouldn't have camp totally ready to be inside tents before mosquito hours.  Mornings were fine.

• J

  Jason C.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 18, 2024

  Fish Lake National Forest Campsite

  Pit stop

  Perfect place to stop for the night. Road is fine. A few ruts. Super quiet.

• 

  Megan W.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 10, 2024

  Fish Lake National Forest Campsite

  Easy to find, small spaces, empty on a weekday

  We pulled in after sunset to stop before going all the way north to SLC. The road was pretty doable in our truck, but it think it would be easy in a sedan too. There was a roundabout at the coordinates and another van was there, but there looked to be 3-4 more small spots for tents or vans. Not sure how many could accommodate a bigger rig. Lots of bugs, none biting. About a 7-10 min drive to the freeway. No freeway noise though. Some broken glass and trash, but nothing unexpected.

• 

  Robert H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 27, 2024

  Forsyth Reservoir

  My InBetween Stop

  I stayed here one night while traveling from Vail, CO to Zion National Park. No Services around (except 1 toilet), but a beautiful open landscape with sweeping views. I parked along the lake, and marvelled as the night sparkled. I believe most rigs can access this location (all flat).

  I believe it was 3hrs to Zion (probably the same if you wanted to drop down into Bryce) This was definitely off the "beaten path". Very few vehicles were passing on Route 72 (runs south from I-70).

• J

  Jeffrey S.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 26, 2024

  Glenwood Hills Dispersed

  Very basic free camping

  Large, open, flat area with easy access. Trailhead for mountain biking and dirt bike trails.

• 

  Michael S.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 24, 2024

  Twelve Mile Flat

  Total isolation......sort of.

  This is the place if you like being "off the grid". 18 miles of unpaved (and, for us, muddy) road to get to the campground. It's a 90-minute trek each way from the closest gas/food/retail, so be prepared. It's also a fairly aggressive grade up and down. Brakes and transmissions will need a chance to recover the climb/descent.

  Altitude is also a major factor. This is over 10,000 of elevation. Our lungs definitely felt it. While Salt Lake City was hitting 100 degrees, we were sleeping with three blankets at night as temps were in the low 40s/upper 30s.

  This campground is definitely not level. Outside of the group sites, most of the spots are sloped, and ours might have been the worst. We needed leveling blocks to lift our pop-up about 8 inches on the dedicated "pad" and there was no flat spot to set up any canopy or EZ Up. Our site did have plenty of shade with direct sun from about 8 am to noon.

  We did have a couple of issues that will deter us from coming back. First was the constant flow of ATVs/OHVs/vehicles coming into the campground to use the toilets and unused sites for lunch/dinner. Since there was no camp host on site, this felt a little abusive. There are several open sites along the road to the campground and more as you continue up Skyline Drive. I think everyone using them knows that this is basically a truck stop for them.

  The second issue we had was the moths. Having a pop-up, we understand that critters happen. But we must have had over 100 moths that found shelter under our flaps, in the roofline, and inside our camper. It added 45 minutes to our breakdown and pack up.

  Those issues, coupled with the long and rough road, make this place a one-and-done campground for us.

• J

  Jill S.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 21, 2024

  Mountain Mecca

  Pleasantly Surprised

  Beautiful scenery and just right outside of town. Very easy to access for most. I did see an RV camping but it had to be a bit more difficult for them. There are several established places to camp with beautiful views. Very private. Great for mountain biking

• 

  Valorie H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 15, 2024

  Fish Lake National Forest Campsite

  Easy to get to from the I-15

  This wasn't where we planned to camp but got too tired to drive any further. We are in a Toyota Camry and just hammocking. This spot worked out nicely. There was someone in the actual place of the coordinates. But we found a spot near by.

• E

  Erik J.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 5, 2024

  Mackinaw

  Our favorite place at Fish Lake

  We just finished another stay at the Mackinaw Campground and it was the best one yet, even though our vehicle broke down on the last day of our stay. 

  Thanks to the amazing camp host, Karen, we were able to contact local mechanics and get it quickly towed and fixed. She was so helpful, understanding, and flexible with assisting us. We couldn't have done it without her. 

  The campsites have great picnic tables and firepits.  There are multiple small tent sites at each campsite and room for our longer travel trailer as well.

  This is dry camping, but the bathrooms are clean and have flushing toilets. There are many drinking water stations around the camp.  

  The park service has recently improved a dump station as the south end of the lake. It is a great place to fill your fresh water tank before pulling into camp and to empty black and grey tanks on the way home.

  The lake shore trail is just across the street making it an easy walk to the marina.

  Aspen trees cover the campground making it a great place to hang hammocks and relax.

  We will be back again and again!

• B

  Barbara B.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 1, 2024

  Huntington State Park Campground

  Nice park-like setting

  We camped here May, 2024.  This is away from the noise of I-70; however, a train runs quite close to the campground, thus the 4 star review instead of 5.  It doesn't come by that often.  There is lots of green grass, as well as a lot of trees. It seemed to be well taken care of.  The campground was full when we were there, but was very quiet at night.

• B

  Barbara B.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 1, 2024

  Huntington State Park Campground

  Do not camp here

  We camped here in May, 2024,  on our way north, traveling through Utah.  What looked like a nice campground from the Utah State Park website was not a nice campground.  Firstly, the bathrooms were not clean. Second, this seems to be a hang-out for the locals in Huntington, especially the teens.  Third, what few trees there are, are half-dead from not being watered.  There is evidence that a lot have been cut down, probably because they died entirely.  It is a mystery that a state park, with a reservoir, does not water the grass and trees in the campground! Fourth, and most importantly, there is semi-truck traffic on the highway that borders the campground, about every 5-10 minutes, day and night, no exaggeration!  Drive a few hours northeast and camp at Green River State Park in Green River, UT.  That is truly a nice, park-like setting, away from the noise of I-70.

• 

  Ed W.

  Traveler

  

  May. 26, 2024

  Fish Lake National Forest

  Nice stop for the night

  Nice quiet stop to park for the night. Close to the highway, far enough to not really hear it.

• 

  Karen

  Guide

  

  May. 25, 2024

  Ponderosa

  Overnight

  We were there only One night and I was glad. It's a nice campground, but everybody's close to each other. And I don't like that.

• J

  Jennifer A.

  Traveler

  

  May. 9, 2024

  Mountain Mecca

  Off road camping

  Open area looks like local party spot, not for RVs. Lots of spots to pitch a tent, established fire pits. Not far off the main road. Road goes up past water tower and recommends using 4wd to come up to prevent washboard, but any vehicle with awe would do. No amenities and very private.

• 

  Kim J.

  Guide

  

  May. 2, 2024

  Maple Grove

  Maple Grove BLM

  Beautiful view! Several fire pits, some with wood left by the rangers. Well maintained and quiet on this chilly night.

• E

  Erin G.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 12, 2024

  Rochester Rock Camping

  Quiet and Easy, Nice Road In

  Stopped here for a quick overnight stay. There's a trail out to a petroglyph site which was really neat. We hiked out in the morning and didn't encounter anyone else. The gravel road to the parking area is really smooth. You can camp in the gravel lot but there's also a few different dirt roads that presumably lead to other sites. We stayed at one right off the main parking area and it was quite nice. Pretty level and good cell service with Verizon.

• 

  Caitlin H.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 5, 2024

  Forsyth Reservoir

  Tempted to gatekeep this gem

  We had this entire place to ourselves and it was BEAUTIFUL. Toilets on site which were convenient. Can’t beat the views of the water and mountains.