Best Dispersed Camping near Montpelier, VT

About 12 sites off National Forest Road 71. Beautiful area and very secluded. All have fire rings but that’s about it. Make sure to have a backup plan during the mud season and treat your skin and clothes during black fly season

It is a beautiful setting and the first nice weekend in May. There were quite a few folks there already but worth the visit. 

It is old Vermont farm land that the team of the US National Forest must manage. They have kept the clearing clear and access is pretty good. We are so lucky to have access like this for all of us to enjoy.

Just south of Warren Falls trail head and parking lot and just north of Green Mountains National Forest Road #25, is a small (4-5 sites, 3 picnic tables) camping and parking area wedged between the Mad River and Vermont Route 100. Grassy and Rocky sites, 4 fire rings, 3 porta-potties, and stream side (river) camping close to trails, Warren Falls swimming hole, the Lincoln Gap Road and hiking, and the "famous" Warren General Store, and covered bridge. There aren't any reservation or use instructions or signs posted.

If you can't snag a site along Gale River Rd or you are looking to hike the Twin Mountains, then continue a little farther north on US 3 near Twin Mountain (a little north of the Beaver Brook Picnic Area) and try your luck on Haystack Rd. This road is closed in winter and will open in late spring after the road has dried out and any repairs have been made. In 2019, it opened in mid-June. Check the the White Mountain National Forest FB page or website (FB is usually more up-to-date) for road status, including closures in the autumn.

When open, you can drive in to one of 11 numbered, wooded sites and camp up to 14 nights for free. You may have up to 3 vehicles and 15 people on a site. The only amenity is a fire pit, but the road ends at the Little River, offering fishing and swimming options. The parking lot at the end of Haystack Rd serves as the Twin Mountain trail head. You may see moose or bears in the area.

Franconia Notch State Park is just south of here, with its hikes, recreation trail, echo lake, and the Flume. Head east on 302 and you'll find yourself in Crawford Notch State Park with waterfalls and hikes.

Forgot something? Fosters Corners just a few miles north has an eclectic selection of essentials as well as gas. Or take I-93 north to Littleton to a wider variety of shops.

Wow this site was so beautiful!

The road into the site was scenic and beautiful. We followed the river all the way to the very end of the road up on the mountain. From there we decided on a site at the top of the mountain at the end of the long road. We quickly got rained out and went back down to one of the brookside sites. This site had great tree coverage to easily set up a tarp. It even had a premade firepit! Make sure to bring your own trash bag and water. 

The next morning we decided to visit the sites for this actual dispersed site on the field. There were many spots on open fields with beautiful scenic views of the mountains. If we go and stay up there again we will definitely be staying at one of these. 

If you're considering a spot in Vermont to camp, come here!

Also, make sure your car has a bit of clearance as some sports have dips in the ground.

Beautiful meadow campsites overlooking the valley. Firepits and tent platforms are in place although most of the sites are drive-in. If you’re looking for a picture perfect campsite with a view this is the place for you!

I was looking for the Austin Brook campsite north of this one, but someone on here gave directions to this site, which turns out has its own page on here. Right off the road, a small handful of camp sites, some picnic tables, presumably some fire rings although with snow coverage I didn’t see any. Main lot has plenty of parking, perfect for car camping. Pull through the trees has some spots for tents and smaller setups. Entrance and exit are a little steep and tricky in the winter, lot wasn’t plowed so AWD/4x4 and good ground clearance are recommended.

There seems to be a little confusion about where restricted day use ends and overnight dispersed sites begin. Some folks were camping in the picnic area. Past the gate at the end of the Texas Falls recreation area we found several sites with only a fire pit along the brook. They were well used with some litter. We packed out what we could find. There are posted signs on the opposite bank so we stayed on our side. Brook water filtered fine and was tasty. Relatively short walk to waterless toilets was welcome. Very pretty area.

This site has 3-5 campsites right off of route 100. This is right next to Mad River with a area to walk down into a swimming hole. Great place.

This area is wonderful, first Texas falls it a great place to stop and explore.  Then, if you venture further up into the mountains you come upon the campsites with fire pits and if your lucky you can get one on the river.

There is not much to these sites as far as amenities, just a fire pit.  But that is all I need.

Came in on a Wednesday afternoon in late September and found several available camp sites.

There are no amenities at this campground. It is an open field on the left side of the road with two or three sites on the right side of the road that are walk in sites.

The scenic beauty of this place is amazing. There was some color in the forest but most of it was still green. There are wide open views of 3 mountain ranges. There are many flowering plants, wild apple trees on the right side of the road. Lots of birds, butterflies, and bees (they were not agressive).

The campground was very quiet at night except for an occasional owl hoot.

We were fortunate to have perfect weather for our stay. This would be an awesome place to see the fall colors.

These are my go to sites when I am in the Franconia Notch area. They have a fire pit, plenty of woods around, and are free. The North Twin Trailhead is at the end of Haystack Rd., these trails connect to the Twin Mountain peaks and the Pemigewasset Wilderness area. Its is a great staging ground for weeks worth of adventures, and you're allowed to stay for two weeks. They do get crowded during the season, so you'll have better luck showing up mid-week. Leave your tent set up, or your site could be taken when you get back. There is cell reception at most of the sites. Do not rely on cell phone trail maps, there is little to no reception trail on the trails. Use a downloadable GPS map like a Gaia GPS, or a Garmin type device. Also, wildlife like bear and moose will visit you at night. it's almost a certainty, keep your food locked in a bear tight container. *** The first few sites on the left have a small stream behind them, it'll make your stay a little easier. Bathing, dishes, etc.***

All the sites were full when I visited (6 to 8 sites, approximately, but i didn't go down a couple little gravel paths to check each spot as you couldn't turn around easily) , so I didn't get to camp there. There was a NFS sign along FR-25 posted asking people to clean up after themselves (litter and human waste) as there'd been complaints to the extent that they were considering closing the sites if people didn't do better. There were some fire ring sites along Vermont 100 where FR-25 intersects it, but those are marked as No Camping (though one tent had been there at least a week). That area along 100 is supposed to be a day-use picnic area. 

The sites looked lovely though. Some people were really entrenched with string lights etc.

We were here on a Friday & Saturday nights. Friday night had the whole place to ourselves. Saturday night all spots filled. We had quiet and respectful neighbors. People have been careless with leaving discarded boards and other items…not good… but door is still beautiful. Gorgeous stream/river…love the river sounds.

Beautiful sites on the River but with the wet summer, we just couldn’t dry out. Make sure to lock you valuables. Our Jackery, Solar panels & toilet were stolen.

small number of sites and a bit hard to find