Searching for a dispersed camping spot near Carlton? Dispersed camping gets you off the grid so you can disconnect from the hecticness of everyday life. Find dispersed campsites you've visited before, or discover new spots from other campers.
There are many undeveloped camping locations on the forest. Generally there are no amenities available, such as restrooms, water or garbage dumpsters. All trash and waste must be packed out. No toilet available? See How to Go in the Forest. Use existing sites and do not damage vegetation. Campfires are not allowed at these sites during high fire danger. Check Fire Restrictions page.
14 Day Stay Limit at National Forest Campgrounds and Dispersed Areas
PROHIBITED: Camping or occupancy in any developed campground by any person or group for more than fourteen (14) days. Camping or occupancy in that campground by the same person or group may not occur again for a period of seven (7) consecutive days thereafter.
Camping or occupancy in any dispersed areas by any person or group for more than fourteen (14) days. Camping or occupancy in that site or area within a 5 mile radius by the same person or group may not occur again for a period of fourteen (14) consecutive days thereafter.
These restrictions also apply to camping equipment. Camping equipment may not remain in place longer than the stay limit, even if used by a different person or group. Camping equipment must be removed by the end of the fourteen (14) day stay limit or the equipment may be impounded.
Washington State Discover Pass required https://discoverpass.wa.gov/
Designated areas are available for tubing and general snow play at the Fields Spring, Lake Wenatchee, Hyak, Rose Springs, and Oldman Pass Sno-Parks. In addition, tubing and general snow play are permitted in non-designated areas in many Sno-Parks and in state parks that are open in the winter. For safety's sake, snow players should stay off designated snowmobile and non-motorized sport trails. Ice skating is not available in any location. Due to the mild Washington climate, lakes do not freeze hard enough to permit safe skating.
$12 - $50 / night
Guide
Lots of small pullouts on the way up but they were all taken. None of those would work for Starlink.
We went as far as we could in our Ram Promaster till there was a crazy steep and washed out climb. Had to turn around
Traveler
Great campsite with an awesome view. Sandy dirt camping site near the USGS sensor station. No fires today due to high fire danger, but there was a pit in the camp. Tent right on the ridge. Dirt road was 12 miles up the mountain. Lots of switchbacks, but passible in a sedan. Takes 45 mins to get up. Take shady pass road to the top.
Scout
Great spot with plenty of sites. Lots of room at your site and between neighbors. Super close to the river. There were a lot of people, mainly families, but everyone was super respectful and it honestly made me feel safer and a solo traveler. Would definitely go back.
Scout
We turned at (47.8178974, -120.7258512) which you travel a short distance down a well maintained FS road to a very large gravel and dirt parking area. You can park in this parking lot if you choose, lots of space, great internet speeds. To the right of the information sign you will see a small sign with a snowmobile on it. That is the road that you can take back to the airstrip portion of the site. You will only travel about 100 yards on that road before it opens up to a very large grass field (and airstrip) you will need to turn left to head toward the camping locations. To the right will be the landing strip so you need to avoid that area. There is a dirt/sandy road leading back to 2-3 sites with fire rings but also a very large open field where you can camp as well. MOSQUITOES WERE AWFUL AT NIGHT FYI. A forest service rig pulled up on us in the AM and just waved :)
Guide
Short trip from the town of Loomis. Only a mile or so of gravel road. The campground has 10 sites. It sits between Forde lake and a pond we call reflection. It is or was a part of an irrigation system. The gravel road is fairly busy with plenty of dust boiling up. I recommend not taking the first site in even though it looks like it would accommodate a 40 ft rig. Four of the sites looked able to handle our 27 ft trailer. A few are slide in camper sized. Not busy during our stay and was a less improved area near by with more sites. Remember lake and pond so mosquitoes are present.
Traveler
A couple spots washed out and need high clearance but otherwise just a long slow switchbacky road to the top.
Traveler
Just a single paved road in and not too much room. It worked for me just finding a place between Leavenworth and Seattle
GuideI stopped by to scope this one out. it looks like there's 2 entrances, one on the north and one on the south, but the south side doesn't connect to the main road so taje the north one. there isn't really a good turn around so you'll have to use the one turn off or an empty site to turn around if needed. I thought the 5 or so sites looked alright, but if you pull back past the site on the turn off there's an abandoned camper and a bunch of trash around a bend(I wouldn't have gone that far back if I'd been pulling a trailer since there are tight turns and no real good turnaround. it seems fairly decent if you don't go to the back site and out of 5 or more campsites on a Sunday afternoon only one was taken.
Legend
This would get 5 stars if it weren’t for the terribly bumpy and long road up to the main site. My Toyota Highlander made it up, but I was a little nervous. It seemed like there was only one large spot at the top/end of road. There was a fire ring which is how we could tell it was a spot. The views of the mountains all around are insane!!! Loved watching the sunset and sunrise up here. It is very windy!
ScoutNice, quiet dispersed camping next to Sullivan Pond near Winthrop Washington. Recommend 4wd with good clearance. Washington Discover Pass required.
ScoutLots of spots between Entiat River Rd 19 and this location. Ground is mostly a fine dirt.
TravelerFound a spot with incredible near-360 mountain views! Exposed to the wind though. Have to go pretty far in along Derby road to find campsites. The first few miles are private property or in the thicket, lower in the canyon. Road was in good condition. Didn’t hit large potholes until we pulled off 7400.
TravelerNear the peak of Fox Mountain, this area is at one of the highest points in the area. Great cell service(AT&T) and a amazing view for both sunrise and sunset!
Traveler
A place to sleep. You can set up tent on the elevated ridge you see as you drive in off the pull-off from the hwy. But be mindful of the cactuses, these are small but quite sharp.
ScoutAs described, little to no water sources. Private property marked in some areas. Camp sites are just off the road so there is some road dust. In May there was plenty of wood for burning. Do be mindful of burn restrictions later in the season. This area is very popular with mountain bikers and some dirt bikes. Service roads did have some heavily washed out areas and rocks that higher ground clearance and AWD/4WD would be beneficial, but a 2WD car could make it to some sites. Great spot though to camp near Leavenworth Wenatchee area. Verizon phone service was ok, T-Mobile was spotty at best occasionally a message would get through.
Guide
A wonderful site, with awesome lake access.
TravelerDry camping. Bring your own water. Tons of choices all up the hillsides. Tons of great locations with views.
ScoutYou guys who built this site #*&ck up's That's all I have to say!!!!!!!!
Legend
We camped here because my grandparents used to fish here long ago. The camping is free and dispersed. There is a large gravel parking lot suitable for large RVs plus those towing a trailer or boat. We chose to find a more secluded site away from the strong winds. The views of the lake were beautiful especially in the fall.
Below the gravel area was a large paved area for boat trailers. A discover pass is needed ($30/year) but we always get one and use it extensively.
You access this area via long wide well graded gravel road. There are no site numbers; you just find a spot and stay.
TravelerWas here last summer and the bugs were BAD, like hiding in the car and tent bad.
Left with more bug bites than I could count, but was a nice and open space at least.
Lots of spots even late on a holiday weekend, but definitely was not out first choice
LegendA good option for Dispersed camping if Lake Wenatchee State Park campground. This is a at the Lake Wenatchee Airstrip Snoparks at the junction of 207 and 22 near Lake Wenatchee and Fish lake. There is a large parking lot and some pull outs off an old forest road the loops around from one side of the road to the other. Quiet in the spring. No facilities and good AT&T cell reception.
Guide
This campsite is along the Washington Backcountry Discovery Route between the Cashmere and Chelan sections along NF-8410. Obviously, this is a 4X4 road but if you approach from the Chelan side you could maybe get away with a high clearance AWD vehicle. Incredible sunset views of the valley overlooking Lake Chelan to one side and a vast forested mountain range to the other. This particular spot photographed is on the south side of the road to the north of the Baldy Mountain crest. This area seemed to have a good number of sites in the immediate vicinity, not that we saw anything in them. This particular site was clearly well used as it was flat, had log stump seats, and a stone fire pit (even if you aren't supposed to have fires most of the year in this forest). Someone even built a rustic camp toilet in the woods just away from the campsite.
GuideWithin the almost 4 million acres of the Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest, lie countless locations for dispersed camping. This area of the southeast corner of the NF has very little traffic compared to others, we saw only one ATV for the whole time we were there. This area lies along the Washington Backcountry Discovery Route between the Cashmere and Chelan sections along NF-7400. Obviously, this is a 4X4 road and I wouldn't suggest it in anything less. Incredible sunset views of the valley in front of Chumstick Mountain, it gets pretty windy at night but there are treelines you can position against. This particular spot photographed is just up the hill off the roadside in a nice grassy clearing. More spots were just up the hill around the bend as well.
RangerNF dispersed camping along Derby RD. Multiple sites along the road...make sure to look for signs as there are some pullouts marked “no camping.” No amenities but super quiet. Great place when you need to escape.
TravelerBeautiful lake, long, big and I hear they have fish (not a fisherman). Has several points of access to the lake.
TravelerThis is a dry Camp only. , no water/power ect. Has a small lake or a large pond? With a beautiful view of the valley floor.
RangerWe arrived here on a Sunday night in May and the place was empty...... only one other camper and it was really far away. It is very remote, no services around and a little odd to get to, in that you have to wind past a lakeside"resort" with a little store and campsites that didn't look really very nice, yet there were people everywhere, it looked totally booked. Then you cross over the line into the campground where a$30 annual pass is required, yet the per night cost is$0 as of 2017, and there was nobody around! The campground is like a big open parking area with a boat launch and toilets and then there is also a little more dispersed sites where random fire pits have been built. We had our choice of sites so we picked one that sat away from others and was right above the water making the launch of the kayaks pretty easy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Carlton, WA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Carlton, WA is Cooper Mnt Rd Dispersed Camping with a 5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find dispersed camping near Carlton, WA?
TheDyrt.com has all 21 dispersed camping locations near Carlton, WA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
