Best Dispersed Camping near Ford, WA

BLM land was easy to find right off the highway. Rough gravel road easily traveled in a truck, low clearance vehicle may have trouble. There were a few people with campers at the end of the road. A lot of dispersed sites, some close to the road, a few very private. Two nice lakes.. at the end of the road you cross to state park land which does not allow camping but is very well marked with a gate and signs. There was a fe portapottys scatter along the road. Light freeway noise, did hear one night train, but for free and a beautiful landscape not too bad.

The fishing area is closed for the season and there are no camping signs everywhere around it. Before you come there is a sign for the BLM land and you will follow that down. When you get to the end there’s a porta potty but the vault toilet is closed. There are no fire rings or tables but flat grass you can see used for camping. ATT service is limited.

Free pack in pack out dispersed camping

We found the most amazing site! We felt like we were on top of the world! Clear open skies! Loved the sound of the cows, coyotes, and owls! Total dispersed camping! Thank you to whoever left us wood!

This is great for boondocking and we liked it. Be aware that its gravel road and bumpy in spots. We came upon a group that had high centered their airstream trailer trying to cross a small drainage ditch to access a site. You may need to do some tricky maneuvering to get into and out of some of these road spurs and spots. We had very high winds one night, but by luck we had selected a spot at the end of the road near hog lake that had us nestled between to small "hills" and trees which protected us. we were not in the open and exposed to the wind directly. Even so, it shook our trailer but we were snug and secure. Not for the novice boodndocker. This is BLM open land camping at its purest.

The good -A beautiful camp ground. Small space with multiple dispersed camp sites along the creek and throughout the wooded area. The creek is very small but powerful. You can not swim but still a great place to get wet. If you have a tube bring it and enjoy a short river ride. Not a good place to fish. The main camp area is completely shaded keeping things cool. The camp is very close to the creek. Still there was no issues with bugs. I did not need bug spray. There are established stone fire pits or you can gather up some rocks and make your own. Plenty of deadfall and fire wood all over the place. There is also a fence that runs the perimeter of the camp area. Helping to keep the predators out. The only animal I saw besides squirrels and birds was a skunk. Bears, coyotes, wolves and cougars are know to frequent the area.  

The bad - Many of the locals are not friendly and claim the whole creek portion of the camp ground for themselves. There are about 6 different camp sites directly on the main creek. The others are spread out through the woods. People often use the creek just to bring their kids down to frolic in the water for a few hours. More than once I have been approached and ran off by hostile creek users. Im sure there are good folks around their too. That said the few people I have met out there are nasty and will refuse to share the campground causing all kinds of drama until you just get mad and leave. Last weekend I was approached by 4 men who were not camping just using the creek to tube with their kids. I was told that I better go find another place to camp. That they were using the creek and I could not be there. I set up anyways camping away from them and was not in anyway a bother to them. Still they continued to come over and harass me about leaving. Until I finally I strapped on my pistol approached them and told them I wasn't going any where. I was met with a lot of cussing and threats. But finally They did leave! So sad a beautiful place I truly loved the area. Not sure if I will continue to go back. It was not worth the ignorance or drama of other human beings. No toilets or electricity, No wifi or fresh drinking water. If you can avoid ignorant humans I would recommend this place to camp.

Nice open blm area, rustic campsites. there's an established trail that goes to hog lake and the boat launch area which is only accessible on foot when we were camping. The lake access (with the toilet) is not open, gate is locked. Saw a rattlesnake on the trail but we kept our distance and he went on his way. Be kind to the animals, it's their home. Can stay up to 14 days

A lot of places to camp here all equipped with fire rings. We had a 30ft RV and drove in on the nice gravel road. We took the very last camping spot closest to the lake and it had a good amount of shade on all sides. It was big enough to fit two campers if camping with friends. The spot was very spacious and felt private. It was clean with only a couple specks of trash that we found.

We walked down to the lake and it looked great for paddle boarding or small boats/rafts but not for swimming. There is a lot of seaweed and it’s murky.

The area/sites are really dusty in July. Lots of dirt but the road is gravel. Sites are pretty well spread out.

We took a little hike and saw a buck with a big rack on it, other deer, and a coyote. Great spot for back country hiking.

Beautiful BLM area! Plenty of drive-in areas and tons of land around the lake to access. The single vault toilet is down at the lake, but helpful if needed. We will be back!

We camped at Cooks Lake for two nights, this past Friday and Saturday. There were 4-5 camp sites at the main campground, well-separated and each with a fire pit. There is a vault toilet that was disgusting, beware. Swimming/small boat access is through the main campground.

Hop out onto the road and keep heading the same direction and you'll come to a couple of other little pods of sites, most had fire pits, and they were fairly level and well-separated as well. 

We turned around and went back and past the main campground, and took the next downhill driveway toward the lake. The driveway ends at a decent raised fire pit with a ledge for a pan or pot. There is a small level area there for chairs. Past the fire pit, it slopes down to the lake. The beach is dirt and sharp rock, and mostly sloped, probably 150 feet long? and narrow. There is another steep entrance to this beach at the other end, from a pullout on the road above. We decided to stay there because it felt pretty secluded, and there was one spot that was level enough for a tent…there was 12" of beach between the tent and the water!

We were 'invaded' by groups of fishermen/women/families both mornings pretty early, one was rude, one was quiet. But, the early mornings on the lake were worth it. The mist rising and the vast, green mountains, right in front of you! Birds everywhere, woodpeckers in the birch trees and killdeer darting down to the water. Chipmunks and rabbits. Tadpoles and turtles and little water snakes. The water was warm and we swam all day. Bats at night, and the stars!!

Excellent camping experience.

We found a great spot to camp but since it was dispersed we made our own fire ring and camped in this area. There were some other sites that were occupied or we did not like it as much as the spot we ended up pitching up camp. Saw no ticks, but did get a few bites from other insects.

Hearing the birds was really cool.

Quiet campsite in Fishtrap Recreation Area.

Pros:

Very quiet open sites. Plenty of opportunity for solar 3 bar 5g Tmobile Open mostly level sites Not very busy Some larger sites able to accommodate bigger rigs (25' at least)

Cons:

No amenities (where we are, maybe further in they have them) Dusty and dry Fire restrictions in place Sites have some trash in them.

Overall we enjoyed it for a layover stay. It's very quiet, open skies were good to recharge solar and stargaze and it was a nice break from some of the more crowded campsites.

This site has a very strange energy about it...though we were here on a hot weekend so perhaps the discomfort with the heat colored our experience. Campsites are equipped with rings and there is a restroom

Cute little dispersed campground approx 6 sites. At least 2 of them are good for me trailer although I wouldn't try if you're not experienced with towing. The road to get there was approx six miles of gravel winding single lane road. But so worth the drive for the beautiful shaded sites and the open Lakeview sites. Not alot of traffic comes through during the week. Has one vault toilet that was pretty clean but bring your own tp. Also it is bear county so be sure to bring bear proof containers although it was so hot when we went that the wildlife was hiding out...lol

We really enjoyed our night stay , it was very quiet and the campsites were spread out well enough that it was quite private! We will be going back . Can’t drive right down to the lake , but you can walk in and take the trail around it .

This campsite was the perfect break in our drive from North Cascades to Glacier. The road was easy to find and there were so many great sites. There is a porta potty too. We found a site that was both tent-able and hammock-able. Lots of mosquitoes though!

Stayed for a night to breakup a long drive. Arrived Monday evening and was the only one here. It’s just a large gravel parking lot with a single vault toilet, no other services. The road getting into here is very bumpy the last half mile so take it slow. Close to the interstate so easy to get to. Surrounded by fields and beautiful sunsets. Definitely would stay again and it’s free!

As we drove through looking for the best spot we noticed there were several quality spots. We opted for a spot right by potters pond. It was very spacious and was walking distance from the dock and a toilet facility. However the toilet was very foul and we opted out of using it. The spots we saw were all quite large and they are very spread out from each other. There was also a creek running behind the spot we chose which was a treat for the dogs to drink from. Each campsite is supplied with a fire pit with a metal ring and a cooking grate, which came in very handy. There are not tables provided and it’s completely haul in haul out. We had a lovely view of the pond, which did make the mosquitos quite a nuisance but manageable. There is a family friendly fishing dock on Potters pond, and it is stocked with good sized rainbow trout the little kids had a blast fishing. A little further down was Bayley Lake which is fly fishing only and not as easy to access. Both the lake and the pond would be amazing places to kayak, we would have if the weather had been a bit nicer. Overall, I was very impressed with the size and seclusiveness of all the sites we saw. We will most definitely be back again!

We parked at the end of the road the gate was locked down to the water somebody had hung a dead coyote in the tree. people came and went all night long the water was stagnant and absolutely disgusting and smelled even worse

This spot has made many memories for me. The hike is pleasant and the view is pretty awesome. Pet friendly and honestly it doesn’t feel like this place is well known. I don’t find many folks there every time I go.

A friend and I car camped here overnight on our way through the state. We couldn’t get down to the lake by car because a gate was closed but we were able to park at a pull off up the road a ways. We could hear someone shooting skeet or something and the train nearby but it didn’t bother us much.