$40 / night

Camper submitted image from Burnt Corral Campground - 1

Camper submitted image from Burnt Corral Campground - 2

Nature

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Facilities

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Roads

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Buildings

Established Camping

Burnt Corral Campground

18 Reviews

About

USDA Forest Service

Tonto National Forest

Overview

Burnt Corral Campground and Recreation Area (elevation 1914') is about 5.8 miles south of Roosevelt Dam along the Apache Trail (AZ Hwy 88) along the shoreline of Apache Lake. It is nestled amongst the saguaros, mesquites, and palo verdes, and offers opportunities to boat, swim, fish, relax, hike, and sightsee.____

Recreation

Burnt Corral Campground offers something for almost everyone. Motorboating, fishing, water-skiing, and paddlesports are very popular because of the developed and undeveloped lake access from within the campground. Others may enjoy hiking nearby trails, being challenged by local jeep trails, or practicing their landscape photography, or simply relaxing with a good book.

Facilities

Natural Features

Burnt Corral Campground is situated in what may be the most stunning Sonoran Desert landscape in Arizona. The contrast of sunshine, clear blue water, and saguaro's surrounded by the Four Peaks and Superstition Wilderness' is a magnificant sight to see. While shade is scarce in the desert, campsites are situated amongst mature mesquite and palo verde trees, and desert chaparral. Apache Lake is 17 miles long making it the longest in the chain of reservoirs on the lower Salt River below Roosevelt Dam.__

Nearby Attractions

Roosevelt Dam, Apache Lake Marina, Tortilla Flats, Tonto National Monument (Cliff Dwellings), Roosevelt Lake, Apache Trail Scenic Byway (AZ Hwy 88), Spines to Pines Scenic Byway (AZ Hwy 288). The City of Globe and Town of Payson are only an hour away.

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Location

Burnt Corral Campground is located in Arizona

Directions

Access to Burnt Corral from Tortilla Flat HWY88E/Apache Trail is currently closed, please use an alternative route. From the Mesa area: Head to AZ-87N for approximately 59 miles. Turns right onto AZ-188S for 31.6 miles. Turn right onto AZ-88W for 6 miles and Burnt Corral Recreation Site will be on your right. __From the Globe area:__Take AZ-188 west for 30 miles to its junction with AZ-88. Turn left onto AZ-88, and continue past historic Roosevelt Dam (unpaved) for 5 miles to Forest Road FR 183/ Burnt Corral Recreation Site. Turn right and continue to site.__

Address

28079 N. AZ HWY 188
Roosevelt, AZ 85545

Coordinates

33.627381 N
111.203326 W

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Access

Drive-In
Park next to your site
Walk-In
Park in a lot, walk to your site.
Boat-In
Sites accessible by watercraft.

Stay Connected

WiFi
Unknown
Verizon
Unknown
AT&T
Unknown
T-Mobile
Unknown

Site Types

Tent Sites
RV Sites
Standard (Tent/RV)
Group

Features

For Campers

Trash
Picnic Table
Firewood Available
Drinking Water
Toilets
Alcohol
Pets
Fires

For Vehicles

Sanitary Dump
Water Hookups

SEE WHAT'S AVAILABLE

$40

/ night

First Come - First Served

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Contact

General Info

Reservations

(602) 225-5395

Ruben

Scout

Reviewed Oct. 23, 2023

Desert Camping

This is one of our favorite campgrounds. Plenty of spots near the water.

Site52

Month of VisitNovember

Katrina I.

Traveler

Reviewed Jun. 11, 2023

Packed and peaceful

I wanted one of the waterfront campsite but since it was first come, first serve and school is out, it was packed. There still was plenty of room I was at campsite 64 still had a nice view of the lake and a short walk to it. Campsite 64 can hold two small tents. access to the bathroom, which were clean and trash, which didn’t smell. There is shade from the trees, but the pollen does come down a lot, but it was peaceful, and I loved it and I would go again.

Site64

Month of VisitJuly

(5) View All

Kiri

Guide

Reviewed Apr. 1, 2023

Spring Break

We stayed 3 nights mid-week for a short spring break. Campground was mostly empty on Wednesday and maybe 75-80% full by Saturday morning. There is a boat launch adjacent to the campground so most campers also had boats. Some sites were very overgrown which didn’t look very appealing for us as tent campers. Sites by the water had zero separation or privacy. We opted for a site on the outer road, we didn’t have neighbors until Friday night but still a view of the water and a short walk. Bathrooms are pit toilets. Pretty smelly but clean and well-stocked. This campground definitely exists for boaters.

Site25

Month of VisitApril

(22) View All

Sandra S.

Guide

Reviewed Feb. 22, 2023

Secluded Offgrid Camping

Beautiful camping sites! The lake with the mountains in the background is breath taking. The drive down to the campground from the main road is 6 miles but takes about 15 minutes due to the steep winding gravel road. The even camp sites are first come first serve, call beforehand to check how full it is beforehand. We went kayaking and just relaxed on the shore of the lake. No showers and no cell service! There are bathrooms, but they’re vault toilets and no sinks.

Site60

Month of VisitMarch

(4) View All

Brian T.

Traveler

Reviewed Apr. 23, 2022

Nice campground

Beautiful waterfront sites and seems like a great spot for fishing and water sports. Not great for hiking and a long drive on a rough road. Our site was dirty (cigarette butts and beer caps). Some of the sites are close together. Stargazing was awesome and there was no cell phone service.

Site42

Month of VisitMay

Matt M.

Traveler

Reviewed Apr. 12, 2022

Insanely beautiful

Gorgeous lake front campgrounds. It is busy and noisy but the views are worth it. The road is bumpy so leave your big trailer at home.

Site67

Month of VisitMay

(5) View All

Dave

Guide

Reviewed Feb. 21, 2022

Great getaway

Beautiful campground and perfect for a quick weekend getaway. A few things to note -Road is narrow and twisty with steep drops and thankfully only about 6 miles of it off the pavement. Sites were a little tight in spots and we unfortunately had some rowdy neighbors but we still had a great experience. No cell service which we love! Restrooms were clean however the odor at times was overpowering (vault toilets). Will definitely return.

Site25

Month of VisitMarch

JJ V.

Ranger

Reviewed Jan. 23, 2022

Beautiful, quiet

We visit Burnt Corral mid-January. The weather was balmy. We pulled at 20’ trailer. The road getting there has steep drop offs but we were able to navigate it pretty easily. Toilets were clean, Palo Verde and mesquite bushes/trees made the area beautiful and shaded. We loved being right next to the water and it was so peaceful. We stayed in 31D which was connected to 31E - but there is no way to reserve 31E so it was basically two sites in one. There was NO cell service. We loved that, but it is something to mention in case others need it for some reason.

Site31D

Month of VisitFebruary

(11) View All

Stuart R.

Scout

Reviewed Jan. 2, 2022

Don’t try taking an RV in winter

The only road open is from Roosevelt side over the dam wall … we had a 40 ft Cruise America RV. I would have been nervous taking an SUV down that road!!

We tried calling to ask about conditions and no one advised of road issues. Camp might be wonderful but the road killed any chance of us going.

We instead stayed at RV park by the town. Use google for directions and check with park operator before attempting this road. If you have a 4x4 it looks like an amazing drive.

Siteunknown

Month of VisitJanuary

Taleah U.

Guide

Reviewed Nov. 12, 2021

Burnt Corral Campsite

I stayed at this campsite for one night in early November because I wanted to find a place that would be good for paddle boarding the next morning. It was a bit too cold in the morning for me to actually paddleboard but it was still very very worth going. The road is a little bit tough to get down and you drive for quite a while so make sure you’re good on gas. But the dam and the drive down to the campsites on the river was beautiful. I paid $20 for one night in a single campsite. The reason why this campground landed four stars was because of the amount of flies and mosquitoes. I ended up having to hide in my tent by 5:30 because there was just so many of them. I understand the mosquitoes because you are on the water but the amount of flies seemed a bit much. There was also quite a bit of spiders. It was warm enough that I was able to keep the fly of my tent off during the night so I got to watch the sun go down, the sun rise, and the stars during the night which was absolutely beautiful. I would definitely go back just maybe with more bug repellent next time.

SiteFirst Come First Serve

Month of VisitDecember

(13) View All

Doug R.

Traveler

Reviewed Feb. 23, 2021

Our new favorite place in Arizona

Not easy to get to but it’s worth it!

Well maintained campground. Campsite very from water edge to hillside. Lots of trees to shade your campsite. Campsite are $20 a night for single campsite and $40 for a double campsite. Campground hosts are excellent. Very friendly, knowledgeable and reasonable to work with.

We camped at site number 44. A very nice pull through single site on the water.

Vault style bathrooms were clean. Great boat launch on site.

(8) View All

Tom W.

Guide

Reviewed Jul. 29, 2019

Beautiful setting with a flyover

March 20-22, 2019. Campsite #42. Site was right on the water, as quite a few are. There were other sites available that have amesome elevated views of the lake, and even more sites in between but we opted for the lakeside site(s) and it was perfect for us (2 families, 5 kids, 4 adults and our little pupperino Biscuit). There was a beach area on the grounds which was nice to play around and float about. The camp host, Nick, was great and the campsites and bathrooms were very clean. As we were packing up to leave, three airplanes flew over the lake about 40 feet from the surface of the water, flying threw the canyon. We were definitely caught off guard, but it was super cool and a nice way to say goodbye to a fantastic time at Burnt Corral. We would gladly go back and stay at the same site, or most of them really, with or without the flyover. But after hiking around a bit, for a more primitive or intimate experience, maybe we will try the Upper Burnt Corral area next time.

(5) View All

Adam H.

Traveler

Reviewed May. 27, 2019

Great

Great beaches as Kong’s s it’s not too crowded

Nolan S.

Ranger

Reviewed May. 20, 2019

Great camping!

We brought our pop up camper and stayed at the lower burnt corral shoreline over the week days. I heard from other campers who were more regular that it gets busy on the weekends and tends to fill up, but we did not have that problem. We ended up having plenty of room and privacy.

There was plenty of shade. Pit toilets, although some of them were pretty nasty

We were told by the ranger there that Tonto passes are valid, although signs are posted that stated otherwise.

There were also spots with pads and water spigots spread every few sites. Tables with benches at every site.

This instantly became a favorite spot with nearly every spot located right on the water. Great for swimming, kayaking, fishing, and boating.

Warning: DO NOT TAKE APACHE TRAIL ROUTE! Take AZ87-AZ188.

Photos titled ‘aerial view’ are from a private helicopter tour of the lakes I took about a year ago but they are so amazing that I had to include them. They are all of Apache lake where Burnt Corral is located.

(10) View All

Shari G.

Legend

Reviewed Apr. 23, 2019

An Oxymoron: Sonoran Desert Lakefront Camping

Just about 6.5 miles from Roosevelt Dam, along a seriously narrow, winding, and mountainous dirt road, lies a great camping oasis along Apache Lake in the middle of the Superstition Mts. The road is well-maintained and well graded, but the short drive from the dam to the campground took us about 30 minutes with our little trailer and 4-wheel drive truck. Seriously, not for the faint of heart if you are pulling a trailer. We saw lots of smaller cars manage it fine.

This medium-sized sized campground offers lovely sites along the water and along the hill in the trees. For $12 per night, it offers many amenities: nice waterfront sites with picnic table, fire ring, boat ramp, drinking water, plenty of pit toilets (clean given the number of people at the campground that week), and group sites. There are some easy pull-thru sites for RV's.

Hiking, paddling, boating and cycling opportunities are available right from the campground. We paddled up the Salt River to the dam and back for a fun afternoon adventure. Bird life abounds in both the lake and river!

Closest town is Globe, about 40 miles away, has grocery stores, Walmart, gas stations, etc. So come prepared with what you need!

First-come, first-served, no reservations.

Note: The campground didn’t have any mobile service available with Verizon.

Site61

Month of VisitMay

(13) View All

Danielle M.

Scout

Reviewed Mar. 13, 2019

Great campground

Nice area. Didn't catch any fish and lots of trees and rocks near water by camps. Didn't notice a dock till we were leaving. Enough room between neighbors, clean bathrooms. No phone service but it was nice to be off the grid. We will definitely camp here again!

Matt M.

Guide

Reviewed Jun. 29, 2018

Apache Lake, lower Burnt Corral

Apache Lake is a beautiful desert canyon lake. Getting there is a little difficult via a dirt road known as the Apache Trail. Nice improved maintained sites, most are shoreline and with fire rings, picnic tables. There are some open beach camping spaces as well. Expect a dirt and rock floor, mature desert trees and low scrub. Within the campground is a small boat ramp with dock and a parking lot for your trailer if you bring your watercraft There is a self serve pay station and a camp host. Dumpsters, vault toilets and a few freshwater stations.

(8) View All

Amanda O.

Traveler

Reviewed May. 29, 2018

Beautiful water front view!

You must get a camping pass at the campground. You can not use a Tonto pass. There are toilet bathrooms only with toilet paper (hopefully, one ran out in the evening and but was filled by morning) There are NOT sinks in the bathrooms and the toilets do not flush (like a multi person outhouse)

Our campsite was big and right off the water! We kayak and this was a nice place to do so however there were a ton of boats, some loud speed boats.

Month of VisitJune