West Sedona Designated Dispersed Camping

This is literally just a parking lot for huge rvs ( can you call yourself a camper?)  I’ve been coming to this area for 12 years . It used to be beautiful, peaceful , special. Today it is full of noisy generators , big rigs, atvs kicking up dust everywhere, zero privacy.  I don’t hear coyotes anymore,  and the trees are dying from being covered in dirt.  The road is like a freeway with rigs, cars etc all day long .  Gun shots from the nearby shooting range.  How can they even call this nature 😩

As many people have mentioned this area has been almost ruined. It’s basically a big rig RV park at this point. You can tell the impact of too many humans on the land, it’s quite shocking to see. It also doesn’t mesh with the values that I think a lot of true backcountry and dispersed campers go by. If you get a spot you are packed like sardines next to each other. Which makes for extremely unsanitary bathroom situations. The NF should limit RVs to first come first serve at certain parking lot areas along beginning of road. After a certain point only vehicles and tents. Super disappointing because the view is stunning. I’m sure this will soon become a pay to park type of area in the future.

We camped here in early/mid feb 2022 - dispersed camping road was very full - what seemed to be a lot of families with kids with RVs utilizing the OHV trails & many other tent & RV campers. Everyone was camped along the left hand side of the road, some on the right early on. It was awesome - such a great view for sunrise & sunset with free camping.

We read the locals concerns of what was happening to the area, especially post covid. We agree there were a TON of campers, everyone seemed to find a spot along the road with privacy from each other, which was nice - yes this affects much more ground area. We also noticed the increase in garbage along Highway, and are glad we didn’t encounter the buckets of human feces…

But - the camping that is now allowed come feb 2023 is extremely diminished. It is completely catered to RV’s and not to rent campers. There is zero privacy, and absolutely no where to use the restroom responsibly, even in nature - because you’re on top of each other. The amount of camping spaces available went to such small of a number that it’s basically become a parking lot. They did do a nice job creating the few spaces they did.

All in all we really enjoyed camping here previously & think there is a better way to be utilized while still protecting the space.

Agreeing with everything the review below me says. Must have been much better before all of the spots were blocked off. Moved to a different campsite because this one was bombarded. Pretty view.

The sides of the road in has been trenched and boulders put in infront of the pull off camp sites. There is a big sign when you pull in that says something along the lines of 'camping operations changed'. No more camp fires anywhere. There are now 4 large pull offs that you can camp in. The first 2 are for larger RVs and people not willing to drive the 4.5 miles in to the last camp site 'noland'. You'll be camping on top of one another so be prepared to not be in a secluded area. We drove the 4.5 miles down the road and there were about 20 other camper vans and tents. There was trash everywhere. It's very clear why the open camping was taken away. There was trash everywhere. If you are the kind of person who can't clean up after yourself and you think it's ok to straight up poop on the ground, leave bottle caps, glass, tp, and whatever else you brought that you think you're no longer responsible for, stay in a crappy motel where you belong. Public land will continue to be taken away if we cannot take care of it. Do your part. If you can't, stay out.

I went in a few miles up the road looking for the “end of the world” but it was too muddy to access in my little sedan. Otherwise the unlaced road is fine for small cars to access. Found a great spot, within sight of other campers but definitely not too close. Plenty of fallen branches for firewood, a few excitable ATVs in the night but nothing too rowdy. Some trash left by previous tenants, so pack out what you pack in please.

Plenty of campsites available. It's worth it to drive a few miles.

This spot was pretty cool, popular, but a lot of room to spread out. There were also some hills that you could get a good view at.

Drove in well after dark but the road was easy to follow. Pulloffs in the first couple miles were packed. Went in roughly 5ish miles before finding a less crowded pull off. Some camping rings but was too windy to set anything up

Stayed 1 night coming from Phoenix so I could hike two days in a row. The further down the road the closer you get to the beautiful red rock. The sites are off the main road for ohv trail users so could be dusty but I didn’t mind

Plenty of spots to pick. Might have some neighbors but it was great nice and quiet.

525 is super convenient to access Sedona. It is busy with lots of campers. Only negative is the ATV traffic on the road and kicking up dust. Can ride mountain bikes all the way into West Sedona.

We pulled onto forest road 525 and drove about a little over 5 miles in to a beautiful large camp site that went in deep off of the road. It allowed for multiple visitors and yet still provided lots of space and privacy.

We showed up around noon on a friday afternoon and was able to find this gem.

Remember! Whatever you pack in, pack it out !

We drove a honda civic and had no problems. Just take it slow. Some turn offs have more of a drop off than others. Just drove a little further and find one that’s perfect for you and yours.

I recommend tent camping or atleast leaving something to sort of “hold” your spot while you do your day activities. Otherwise, you might have a difficult time finding somewhere to sleep when you come back in the dark.

Everyone is very nice and respectful of your space.

Amazing space to get dispersed camping. We drove in an adventure van with AWD and had no issues accessing the campgrounds. For internet access, the best we could get was always sub 10 mbps, so perhaps not the best spot for video conference meetings.

I only stayed one night while visiting Sedona. While it’s extremely busy, I was able to find a spot late Saturday afternoon. This road is used for Jeep and ATV rides so it’s constantly busy. Road is very dusty so when they fly by, you’ll get dust in your area. Be sure to park your door away from the road. Very quiet other than the vehicles. Stargazing was amazing and had 1 bar of LTE via AT&T. Super close to Sedona and a bunch of shops. I’d recommend for a short stay!

Really enjoyed this camp spot. There was a decent amount of traffic due to OHVs and Jeeps, but all the spots allowed you to be kind of tucked away by yourself. The road wasn’t too bad either. Rough enough to keep 90% of people out, but smooth enough that my Subaru Forester didn’t have any problems.

One nice thing about this campground is that it can fit a LOT of people and yet feel like you are by yourself. It gets a little crowded right off the road, but drive a mile or two and it feels pretty secluded.

If you are there for MTBing, this might not be the ideal place since you have to drive a bit to get to the major trailheads.

Sedona is crowded so get there early. Found a nice spot just past the fork headed toward the cliff dwellings. Could barely hear the neighbors, nice view of the mountains. Plenty of privacy. No amenities so come prepared. Only noise at night was coyotes. During day there are lots of ATVs going past. Good place to sleep tho. No trees for hammocks- need a tent.

This has not been my favorite dispersed place. We had found a spot but then 2 other couples decided to join our spot, which wasn't ideal for us. There is lots of ORV,OHV from 8am-6pm so expect lots of noise. It has a pretty scenery but that was my only positive about the spot.

My wife and I went for our honeymoon..took our Rpod camper and boondocked on 525 for about a week. Soo many hiking trails, amazing weather and absolutely stunning views. The town of Sedona is quaint and quiet, shutting down at 7 every night. Don't worry though, there is a 24 hr spot to fill up your water jugs if you get in late from a visit to the Grand Canyon. 😉 Cannot wait to go back for our anniversary.

I took a completely last minute trip and every campsite I attempted to stay at was full. Finally I found this one and as an amazing plus it was free. It's a little dusty and my dog attempted to fight a skunk but the veiw of the moon and stars was amazing

Stayed at this spot back in April just for the night to have a full morning of sedona the following day. Many sites, I do think the farther you go on the road the less party/crowded lifestyle people are. High clearance car was a must when I went to pull off to the sites. Would go back again for a free night in sedona

We went during the hottest part of the year but the spots were nice, flat and full of views.

Great place for some free camping. Many different spots in the road and gorgeous scenery of Sedona. Bring lots of water and know that there are no bathrooms for a while. Would recommend. Road is rough, but not horrible.

Absolutely loved camping here because of how remote it felt, yet close proximity to Sedona. Especially Memorial Day weekend when the motels and hotels were full. Beautiful night sky and generally flat ground at campsites. Only complaints are the dust and rough road but hey, I was driving a Honda Civic! Many of the spots are tricky to pull into. Obviously no bathrooms or drinking water so pack it all in but it’s worth it!

The road in (525) is like a washboard most of the way to any camp sites. There were a lot of ATVs. Great access to Honanki Heritage site.

We stayed here after exploring Sedona. It’s a short drive away. There are plenty of spots. The only downside is they are tricky to pull off of main road into. Be careful. All in all good views. The starlight here was magnificent. Turn off your lights and look up at night.

Primitive dispersed camping right outside of Sedona. It’s right off 89A just south of Sedona. The GPS will want to take you 5 miles down the road but there’s camping all over the place as you go down so don’t feel like you need to go all the way down. As people mentioned before there is a lot of ORV and ATV noise during the day but it’s all wrapped up by 5pm ish. We didn’t have any problem with it but we were out doing stuff most of the day. This isn’t really the best site for someone if you’re looking to kick back in nature all day. No bathrooms or running water either but free is free so it ain’t bad.

Not site related but it’s not only close to Sedona but also close to Jerome which is a cool old mining town up in the mountains. Follow 89A south and even go passed Jerome up toward Mingus mountain. There’s some great views and even a hang gliding take off!

Good location for dispersed camping near Sedona. Only about a 15 minute drive to town and the popular hikes. Was very crowded but not bad if you find a spot away from the groups.

We tried to find a spot at 2PM on a Thursday in March. OHV stirring up dust constantly, road closures, RVs with toy haulers everywhere. Sure it’s free, but the view was nothing to write home about. Head towards the red rocks!

This was one of the best views I’ve ever camped at! Spaces were far between and we went deep in past the second cattle guard (34.9268502, -111.9224094) and had an amazing site. Only reason I give 4 stars is because of how busy it is. Pink Jeep tours coming through, ATV tours, people off roading, and some noisy sites nearby loud enough we could hear them. I would definitely go back!