Vanderbilt Pond/Bombo's Pond is one of our go-to stopovers in southern Nevada. Finding a level-enough-to-work-with spot can be a little challenge. Clientele is hit-or-miss. We've never had huge issues but there's often trash left behind(particularly in fire rings) by less-considerate campers. Largely our experience is everyone leaves appropriate space and honors the invisible boundaries but(like everywhere, unfortunately) we did have issues with off-leash dogs encroaching on our leashed dog's space and causing some strife. 

If you can score the concrete pad up the hill from the pond, you're golden. We've gotten lucky on that once and it was great. Just watch for the rebar sticking out of the edges. Folks have piled rocks around as indicators but definitely do your own recon before pulling in and out. 

Also, remember this is Nevada. It gets really, really windy. Be prepared to hunker down inside your rig if need be. Decent enough AT&T and Verizon cell service to get some work done. 

Road Noise: There can be significant road noise in the main camping area closer to the road which gets a lot of traffic. Up on the concrete pad it tends to be a low hum. As my partner says though,"If you close your eyes, you can pretend it's the sound of the ocean."

We were on a transit from Phoenix to northern Nevada and decided a little detour through Ajo would be nice. In spite of the warnings about sketchy activity at Darby Well, we gave it a go. We had to go farther down the road than we planned to find a site that we felt we could navigate in our rig. The roadside berms closer in were bigger than we wanted to attempt. 

We found a good, level spot with neighbors reasonably spread out and walking distance to the well so we decided to stay a couple of nights instead of our original plan of just one since we had enough cell signal to get some work done, the area was quiet, and the neighbors respectful. 

The wind the first night was hefty and kept us huddled inside. Picture two adults, large dog, and a motorcycle in a tiny toy hauler! But by morning it easy to enjoy working and exploring outside. And, obviously, being a desert with no large trees around and lots of sun, we were able to keep our action up and running with solar power. 

While there, we did see a huge caravan of border patrol vehicles come and go but we had no issues or negative encounters at all. We did, however, have a Colorado Cane Toad hop through our site. Imagine our surprise when my partner said“That rock just jumped!” I was able to break out my biggie zoom lens and get some shots without disturbing it.

[Side note: On our way into town, we did the walking tour which is very engaging if you’re into history and understanding the places you travel through. There is RV parking in town behind the main square but you’ll have to watch your clearance if you want to pull out through the square. We were too tall so we had to maneuver around a bit to get back out.]

Dayton State Park is a lovely little park along the Carson River with a historic background surrounding silver mining in the area. There are only 10 campsites and until Covid-19 hit, you could almost always find a spot. That’s no guarantee now but I suspect visitation will subside over winter with no hookups at the park. It does get quite cold here in the winter. 

The sites are gravel and largely level. The first half of the loop is more tent-friendly sized spaces and the latter half have a bit more room for larger rigs. They are all surrounded by majestic cottonwoods that are utterly glorious in the fall. The tree cover is great for summer shade but a challenge if you’re managing a solar setup. There are some sites that are less shaded to offset that, though. There’s central water, flush toilets, and trash receptacles. 

The dump station is open intermittently and I’ve yet to understand the pattern to when it is and isn’t. There are two free dump stations I’m aware of in Carson City, though-- at the Maverik (at Hwy 50 and College Ave.) and the new Golden Gate (at College Ave. and Retail Dr.). 

The park is split by Hwy 50 with the stamp mill ruins on the west side and the campground and restrooms on the east side. There is a foot tunnel connecting the two bits but it’s a bit dicey from a safety standpoint so I’d recommend strolling to the aboveground crosswalk a little down the road. 

Dayton State Park is a sweet little place full of potential but largely unloved and overlooked. As a former Dayton resident, I’ve gotten to witness the park’s challenges over time. In talking with the park supervisor about it, she acknowledged Dayton has its struggles, sometimes involving crime, and that the Nevada park system is underfunded and understaffed like most public lands departments. I’ve not had any issues when staying there but have witnessed some questionable activity in the day use area. 

It seems the tide is turning as locals have begun to reclaim it in recent months and have been putting in substantial volunteer time to freshen it up and give it the love it deserves. I’m hopeful that effort will help Dayton SP become a destination instead of just a place to stop over for the night. We’re looking forward to joining in after our post-full-timer lives once we get our house built nearby. 

A note about fires: this is a volatile wildfire area so charcoal fires and smoking outdoors are often banned much of the year. Don’t count on being able to grill in any Nevada State Park during fire seasons. Have a backup plan or support some of the local business in my little town-- Js’ Oldtown Bistro on Main Street is absolutely wonderful. It’s my absolute favorite restaurant but since it's off the main drag(US 50), you might not notice it. And for scrumptious tamales and other Mexican fare, The Lady Tamales is right by the park. The Pizza Factory has also delivered to us in the park if you’re looking for your dinner to come to you.

You really can’t miss with Maricopa County Parks. The landscape and appeal of Lake Pleasant is quite a bit different from places like McDowell Mountain, Usery, and Cave Creek. It may seem strange to say we were fortunate to be at Lake Pleasant in inclement weather but it brought out insane levels of dramatic beauty looking out over the saguaros. We were only able to score two nights there but boy howdy we got a show. 

The sites at Pleasant Lake are a bit more difficult to manage than other Maricopa parks. The terrain is more challenging in terms of slope and they are not as spatially generous, also because of slopes. Still totally worth it but you’ll have to work harder to get into your site. We had to hastily block the road while we dropped the toy hauler ramp to unload the sidecar before we could back in properly. We were fortunate in that no one came by in the time we feverishly did that, sensitive to not messing up others’ experiences and creating a roadblock, even for a few minutes. 

Because it’s tight, we had to summon our best marshalling skills to back in and not tag the palapa at the site. But once in, the site was very level and no more work was needed to get settled. Cue up happy hour! 

Sites are paved and restroom/bath facilities are in line with all of Maricopa parks. Which means, well-maintained and very agreeable. But because Maricopa parks are well-deservedly popular, book hella in advanced for peak season. They’re popular for a reason. Note for those who carry“toys”: on the way out we made use of a larger, group parking area to load the sidecar. Depending on your site, you may want to consider unloading your tow-in/hauled vehicle at a larger parking area before getting to your campsite. Next time(now that we know the site challenges), we certainly will.

Boulder Beach is a very scenic place to dry camp overlooking Lake Mead. The trees and foliage make it feel like an oasis and provide a bit of privacy and separation between some sites. We were there in winter and it was pretty chilly at night but I'm sure it would be intolerably hot in the summer without the trees for shade. Plus it attracts lots of birds who flit round in them, much to our entertainment.

 Even with short days and some shade, we were able to generate enough solar power. We Had to manage it a little but we didn’t struggle. Navigating the loops was no problem with our 50+ foot bumper pull. Sites are level and pretty generous. We had plenty of room in our pull-through to unhook the truck as well as unload our sidecar from the toy hauler. 

The sites are equipped with fire pits as well as those massive national park concrete tables. The campground as a whole is well-maintained and clean. 

Water spigots are readily available. We were even able to stretch a hose to one to fill the trailer without moving. There was no potable water available at the dump station during our stay. It looks like there was some issue and it was cut off-- not sure if that was temporary or permanent. But again, plenty of water access in the campground loops. 

The restrooms are standard issue national park style with stalls and sinks but no soap. They are cleaned thoroughly daily. We had no issue finding a site in the off-season but I imagine it's super busy other times of the year. It's a nice walk down to the lake and along the foot path past the ruins of the Hualapai Lodge. It’s well worth a stroll to take in the scenery and history. 

NOTE: there seems to be a lot of confusion between this national park campground and the Lake Mead RV Village next door that offers full hookups. So read the reviews carefully to make sure you’re looking for info on the right one.

Cute little RV park in the middle of nowhere, Arizona. We stopped for a quick overnight while transiting back to Nevada. Definitely resupply before arrival. There's not much around and the fuel station across the road has long since closed. 

Super friendly staff and nice facilities. The grounds are extremely well-kept. Sparkling clean bathrooms and generous common areas. Wide lanes and easy access for large rigs. The sites are level and a fairly standard spacing for an RV park. We were fortunate in not having neighbors so it felt like we had more space for our short visit. There are no tables or grills at the individual sites which I generally like to see at this price point. The road noise was tolerable. 

We got a good laugh at seeing a cell tower across the street and thinking we'd have a strong signal. Nope. Just the slightest, unusable trickle on Verizon and AT&T anyway. I had a meeting to call into so upon checkin they suggested the best place to get a strong connection on their wifi was to be in the main building. I still struggled immensely to connect to begin with and then stay connected even in that scenario which was frustrating, obviously. We didn't have a booster then so I'm not sure if it would have been manageable to continue working with one. 

They have a nice little dog park and our boy was happy to finally stretch his big legs off-leash. I like that they offer a tent camping area as well which many RV parks don't. That's a big bonus in a remote area with few options since I camp in all the varieties of ways-- RV, auto, and motorcycle. It's nice to know this place is here for any of my adventures.

McDowell Mountain is a phenomenal park, as are all Maricopa County parks. This particular one is popular for its bicycle offerings. It's a stunning park and the views from camp never disappoint. There's a cute little playground in the campground for the wee ones as well as lots of trails to chose from. 

It's consistent with the other Maricopa parks in that the partial hookups were reliable and the restrooms and showers always clean. The camp hosts are top-notch and turn the sites around quickly for the next occupant with their efficient system of cleaning and raking. 

Like many other visitors, we pieced together our 12-night stay at 3 different campsites due to the nature of the reservation system. It tends to work out since we need to dump tanks from time-to-time anyway so we simply timed that activity with move days. The dump station was often very busy but everyone is always friendly and it just turns into a social event since most of us are doing the same thing by dumping on"move" days. 

All 3 of the sites we stayed in(10, 11, and 26) were level and easy to navigate with plenty of room to unhook the truck and unload the sidecar from the toy hauler. They were typically too short to park the front in front of the trailer so it got parked off to the side. 

Verizon cell signal was frustrating without having our signal booster installed yet. Just enough connection to make us think we could use it but really we just spent the whole time trying unsuccessfully to connect. I suspect with the booster running we would have been fine to keep working without that frustration. 

The nearby town of Fountain Hills is known for its fountain that spouts on the hour. It was once the tallest in the world and you can see it from many places in the park. 

Non-park tip: We found the nearby town, Fountain Hills, to be crowded and unpleasant, and the residents notably snobby. There are no laundromats, only laundry services so you'll need to look elsewhere to do the wash. We chose the Spin Doctor in Mesa and it was the best laundromat I've ever been in, and I've been in lots all over the country in my travels.

Maricopa County parks are some of the best run I’ve seen in my extensive experience as a camper— via motorcycle, auto, and RV. They are top-notch and consistent in their amenities and quality of sites. 

We were only able to get 2 nights at Usery during peak season but like the other parks, it’s simply gorgeous. Our site was spacious and level on the parking pad. Plenty of room to pull out our sidecar and park it without having to trip over as we moved around camp. The bathrooms are always clean and the free showers are a huge bonus. The partial hookups worked fine and the 2-slot dump station was in good order. 

The only issue we had was that getting the toy hauler far enough back to accommodate the full length of our rig(50’) meant the rear jacks were in a lower area that dropped off at the rear of the site so they had to be extended to their full height to stabilize. But that’s a very workable problem though. A little more rearranging and we probably could have avoided that issue. But setting up on the rain and being quite tired, we just made it work instead of faffing about more for the short time we would be there. 

The Buckhorn nature trail from the campground is lovely but narrow in parts and tough to keep the dog from bumping into cactuses. So just take care if you have a pooch with you. 

There was a good bit of noise from the nearby shooting range that wasn’t awful but still frightened the dog. We chose the furthest site available for our stay to minimize that so I’m not sure how much worse it is closer to the range. If not for that noise, this would be a 5-star park. You just have to be aware that there is a range nearby and accept the noise. It’s still worth it for such a lovely park. 

There was almost no Verizon signal. Just enough to be a tease, not enough to be useful. We work from the road as full-time RVers and we had not yet acquired a signal booster so we were dead in the water as far as work goes.

Cave Creek Regional Park was our first experience in Maricopa County parks and it's an amazing park. The park is very well-kept and brimming with ways to enjoy the landscape. 

Our site was level and spacious with easy access for our 50' of truck and toy hauler. The bathrooms and showers were always clean and we never encountered a line or wait to use them, even in peak season which was a surprise. 

I'm thoroughly impressed by the park system. It's very well run and drive-throughs by the county deputies multiple times give an added sense of safety and security. Multiple camp hosts keep things running smoothly. 

The price point for partial hookups would normally be a negative in other places. But given how wonderful these parks are, the free showers, dump station, and the popularity of the park system, it's reasonable. 

The reservation system can be cumbersome if you're trying to piece together your stay since you reserve specific spaces and you sometimes have to move within the park to get the nights needed for your visit. But it is doable but definitely reserve well in advance since they are in such high demand at certain times of the year.

We did a quick overnight on our way south to Scottsdale. It's a tiny mom-and-pop place run by super nice folks. We were arriving on a Saturday and even though the office is closed that day, our voice mail request for a spot was met with a quick response. When we arrived, we were escorted to our spot, and told to just pay in the morning. 

The sites are quite close together with no tables but it's a cute little place with lots of common space to relax in-- a volleyball court, a fire pit and chairs, and lots of quirky metal art to enjoy. Definitely a good bit of road noise but not overwhelming. There are lots of permanent residents but didn't really didn't have the opportunity to interact with them during our short stay. 

Showers were spacious and clean. The stalls have coded door locks but can't be latched from the inside while you're in it. There's a magnetic"occupied" sign you can put out but that's really inadequate for feeling safe while showering. 

There are 4 old school agitator washing machines and 4 dryers, one of which was not heating so be sure to check on your loads so you don't waste time and money on a machine that isn't working properly. There is a decent waiting area with to hang out while you do laundry. 

We had breakfast in the cafe on site which was super convenient for getting back to our long haul.