Planning a dispersed camping trip near Wendover? Dispersed camping gets you off the grid so you can disconnect from the hecticness of everyday life. Search nearby dispersed campgrounds or find top-rated spots from other campers.
Volcano Peak Campground is dispersed camping at its finest. It’s located in the Silver Island Mountains in northwestern Utah near the Bonneville Salt Flats. Instead of trying to set a new land speed record on the Bonneville Speedway, set up camp and let the tranquility wash over you. This secluded area makes it a perfect environment for everything from lizards and birds to bighorn sheep and coyotes. If you’re the adventurous type — and if you end up here there’s a good chance you probably are — it’s a steep climb to the summit of Volcano Peak, but the reward is worth it.
No overnight camping on the salt flats. No driving vehicles on salt flats when wet or flooded.
The potash production canals north of Interstate 80 (I-80), located just east of the Bonneville Salt Flats, are leased and managed by Intrepid Potash and are located on a mix of private property, State of Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) land, and Bureau of Land Management-managed public lands. The canals are industrial facilities leased to Intrepid Potash for potash mining activities and are not designed or safe for public recreation. Therefore, the public should not access, swim, float, kayak, canoe, or pursue any other recreation activities in these industrial canals. In addition, the Utah Highway Patrol has indicated that parking along I-80 to access to the canals is illegal and extremely dangerous due to the proximity to the interstate highway.
Restrictions No overnight camping on the salt flats. No driving vehicles on salt flats when wet or flooded. https://www.blm.gov/sites/blm.gov/files/documents/files/BLMUtahBonnevilleSaltFlats.pdf
Leave No Trace
Do not drive on the salt flats when they are wet or flooded from precipitation. You can easily damage the salt crust and/or become stuck in the underlying mud. Come prepared. Travel and camp on durable surfaces. Dispose of waste properly. Leave what you find. Minimize fire impacts. Respect wildlife. Be considerate of other visitors.
Safety
Routes may become impassable due to weather. Bring extra clothing, shelter, food, water, first aid, tools, and spare tire. Cell phone coverage may be intermittent; notify someone of your travel plans before leaving.
Weather
Temperatures can exceed 100 degrees in summer and below freezing in winter. Always come prepared with extra clothing, shelter, food, and water.
Transportation Within and Around the Area
Routes may become impassable due to weather. All motorized vehicle travel limited to open, existing routes. No cross-country vehicle travel permitted.
Other Restrictions
All motorized vehicle travel limited to existing routes. No cross-country travel permitted.
Leave No Trace
Come prepared. Travel and camp on durable surfaces. Dispose of waste properly. Leave what you find. Minimize fire impacts. Respect wildlife. Be considerate of other visitors.
Ranger
Although Dyrt has this listed as Nevada, it is in Utah (probably the BLM office is NV). Drive to the end of the road and there is a sign. Drive past the sign to drive right out onto the salt. We saw a lot of vehicles out there, including some trucks with campers. But we were worried about the salt being too soft for the weight of our van so we just parked at the side of the parking lot and hunkered down.
If you take the spur of the road to the left that goes up the side of the mountain, there are places to park at the top that are part of BLM but UDOT restricts access to gravel/sand. Great views on top of hill in all directions.
BEWARE: Although you'll see people driving out on the flats, it MAY be VERY VERY muddy, with slick mud even though it appears to 'look fine.' I would suggest walking on it a ways out to see. IF it's dry it MAY be fine.
Overall, nothin' fancy but if you're in the area, might as well check it out.
Traveler
This is an absolutely breathtaking spot. Right in the middle of nowhere. Quite far away from the highway and very dispersed camp sites.
You have the mountains in the back and the salt flats in front of you. Very beautiful and calm. There are plenty of spots and you will barely see your neighbors.
You have the occassional biker, hammering through the plains and the access road is a pain for any motor home or any vehicle for that matter. It got that wash board feeling and I was afraid it might rip appart my RV when I was going over pedestrian speeds. And its not serviced, so no hook ups or any other amenities.
Other than that its a beautiful place to stay if you enjoy the deserted landscape and prefer to have a very private spot for the night.
Legend
The dispersed site that I camped at is about 100 yards north of this particular site on an unnamed dead end track. Both sites are located off of Lower Rishel Peak Rd. Large site with a clean rock fire ring. Mostly level gravel surface. It's on a rise a little more than a half-mile away from Silver Island Loop Rd. There is a view of the Bonneville Salt Flats. No hiking trails, but it's easy to wander around in the desert and visit a nearby cave. Very peaceful. No one else around. Stayed 2 nights. Loved it here.
Guide
Super close to the Bonneville salt flats. Large open area and would accommodate larger rvs and then some off-road spots that would need to be for 4x4. It was great for a night, but I wouldn't stay longer. Be prepared for the wind!
Guide(September 29th, 2023) Got here very late on a tight schedule and had to leave as the sun was rising, but we had no problem finding a spot to camp. The views across the salt flats were incredible! Get yourself a breakfast burrito from the Sinclair at the bottom of the hill.
Legend
Set up camp near Bonneville salt flats above the Silver Island Mountains backcountry byway. There are many campsites and all are far away from each other. As well as far away from highway. Site is very quiet but the flies before sundown are crazy. No bug spray works at all. They lick it off your skin and bite you regardless. Once sun goes down it's calm and peaceful. Great place to camp.
TravelerWhen we arrived we noticed a lot of camping site options. However, it was very windy make sure if your in a tent the stakes are down properly. Directions are accurate to site locations. We went during the 4th of July week and noticed it got very busy towards the end of the night, large group gatherings.
ScoutPlenty of space - quiet -quiet- quiet- can’t even hear the highway- great place to stop and relax for the night
TravelerThere’s a lot of land, it can be confusing to know what is allowed, but just look for other overnighters, take a spot. Made a nice quick night stopover while roadtripping.
TravelerLike others have said, there’s plenty of spots for everyone. There were some other folks out there, but no one bothered us and we didn’t bother them (sound really didn’t seem to travel too much!). We stayed pretty close to the road and located a fire pit. The spot was beautiful and we had a full moon, which was amazing to watch rise over the flats. Temperatures were nice as well. The wind picked up sometime in the early morning hours and never stopped, which made packing up the tent an interesting feat.
The ground is hard, so make sure to bring something soft to sleep on. The stacks were also a bit hard to get into place, even with a mallet. We also saw (what we assume to be) a kangaroo mouse, which was cool!
Definitely would consider this area again, although we may choose a different spot. Stayed June 21, 2024. FREE campsite.
GuidePlenty of camping spots on the SE side of Volcano Peak & Lost Boys Peak. Stayed for 4 days and moved around to different spots. Did stay on the North side at Pilots Peak Lookout and it was nice. Wind coming off the mountain was was rough every night. Rocked the car back and forth all night.
TravelerEasy to find the road was not bad at all. Many pull offs arrived after dark and felt safe
ScoutThe camping facilities are well-maintained and conveniently situated, allowing for easy access even for those towing small travel trailers. The site offers ample camping spaces, ensuring that visitors have sufficient options to choose from.
TravelerWe rolled in after dark and found a campsite easily. Gorgeous views the next morning. We saw a herd of bighorn sheep as well!
Road in was mild washboard. Very easy to get our trailer in and out.
GuideMy german shepherd and I had a beautiful nights sleep here. Camping sites are very spread out. No need to worry about noisy neighbors. We're close enough to the freeway that it's not way off the beat and path, but zero road noise. We were woken up to a beautiful sunrise. A great breakfast and back on the road to pennsylvania.
Notes: The main road silver island road is almost non stop rumble strips buckle up! Depending on how far in you wanna go for wheel drive maybe recommended. Site are clean and spread out everywhere. Sit back and enjoy the sunshine 🌞
Traveler
We spent the afternoon in this spot. As a first time BLM stayer I was impressed. There were others around, but we were unbothered.
Guide
Bonneville Speedway Access Rd > Left on Leppy Pass Rd till you reach a strange mysterious government building > Right on Silver Island Loop Rd > veer right on Volcano West Rd
Dope spot on a bluff looking out at the entire valley, with Pilot Peak prominently featured. Plenty of space to maneuver and very level. Already some fire pits.
Watch the rocks on Volcano West rd as you approach the lookout - I made it with my 25 ft travel trailer, but be careful you don't bottom it out.
You can see for miles in every direction, but limited protection from wind. Wasn't too bad when I was there but I imagine it could be.
Super close to West Wendover and the salt flats. There's dozens of campsites in this area so definitely go exploring. While the roads are generally in good shape, some of have pretty bad wash boarding, especially when towing.
Some cell reception, great for Starlink obviously.
Guide
If you have 4x4 and some ground clearance you can make it to the top. Great secluded spot.
GuideHave camped here twice. Never saw another human but still had verizon cell service. So quiet, beautiful stars.
GuideGreat spot to dispersed camp on BLM land. If you keep driving the road, there are some secluded areas that have relatively level parking. The road is about what you would expect from a BLM Road which is bumpy and about 25 mph for most cars.  in my one night here did not see anyone else pass by and woke up to a great view of the sunrise over the salt lake flats. 
Guide
north of the exit of the bonneville speedway gas station is public land on the mountains near the salt flats. many sites to choose and trails to ride. peaceful with a clear view of the stars, salt, and interstate.
TravelerGreat place to escape. Nice views of Bonneville Salt Flats. The wind was terrible though.
GuideUpon arrival, there were 3 other groups set up for the night. I drove in down a waterboard road until I found a spot. Sites are very dispersed, and you won't even notice the other campers. Highway nearby, but honestly not noticable, and somewhat relaxing. Woke up this morning to beautiful views behind my car! Would definitely recommend staying here, and I'll have to come back when I'm in the area again!
TravelerVery close to highway, lots of ample space to chill without being in other campers hair. Here on a weekday night and had plenty of choices where to camp
GuideWe arrived late, and this was a great place to crash for the night. We had dark skies. Perfect for stargazing. Woke up to beautiful skies. It was very windy when we were here the first time, but on our return trip three weeks after the first stop, there was a light breeze.
LegendI’ve loved visiting and driving across the Bonneville salt flats for decades. It’s a unique spot in the country (although not in the world, put Uyuni next on your list if you love endless stretches of white salt desert). The description is accurate that you cannot camp overnight on the salt flats, but it is surrounded by BLM lands and those are fair game. You can have essentially the same experience without damaging the unique and fragile environment at the actual site. The sunrises are phenomenal and more than worth the trip out here.
TravelerPerfect spot. Far enough off the interstate you can’t hear it, but close enough it doesn’t add to your trip. 4 bars of reception (VZ), and no one within sight for five nights.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Wendover, UT?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Wendover, UT is Volcano Peak Campground (Dispersed) with a 4.9-star rating from 35 reviews.
What is the best site to find dispersed camping near Wendover, UT?
TheDyrt.com has all 12 dispersed camping locations near Wendover, UT, with real photos and reviews from campers.
