Black Canyon Dispersed Camping

This is a really pretty campground near Montrose and Black Canyon NP entrance. We are in a Honda accord and didn’t have trouble accessing the first front sites, but the dirt road is very rutted if you continue straight and I wouldn’t gamble it in a low vehicle or in rains! Great spot, simple and scenic with a lot of wildlife heard (turkeys, chickadees, woodpeckers and the like!)

This spot was easy to find, but driving was a little rough to actually find a spot. I drove around the area for about 20 minutes trying to find the spot right for me. But there are great options. Got there around 6 pm on a Saturday and found a stunning overlook. There was definitely trash from old camps around some areas. No bathrooms or amenities

Hard to get into if it rains, but a really beautiful place to camp. Lots of sites, decent roads at the top of the hill.

We arrived at 6pm on a Saturday and were able to find a spot! Super convenient to the national park. Highly recommend buying wood from corner store on the Hwy 50 turn off.

Easy to find the entry, we took the road to the right since the other option was deeply rutted.

Sites are all dirt, spaced out from each other, and nestled in the trees. Size varied but we found one large enough for our Wawona 6. Extremely quiet, only crickets and traffic/generator (until 10ish), very few signs of life otherwise, not even birdsong aside from a few crows.

Wasps a plenty! We had to bail on cooking breakfast because they were all over the cook station 5 minutes after firing up the stove.

A few minutes outside the south gate of the park. Multiple sites, most of which are on dirt. Paths to and from can be a bit rough for most passenger vehicles. But it’s quite and close to the park. If you’re lucky you can grab a site looking down onto the highway and into Montrose.

Went dispersed camping for the first time! Location is amazing and very close to the entrance of the black canyon national park.

Whilst setting up our tent we even saw a bear (really close really scary, we slept in the car)

10/10 would recommend

Amazing quiet spots! We chose the site at the very top! The only reason we didn’t give it 5 stars was the dust and damage to our paint job because of low branches!

Great view and cell reception

There are some nice spots here.  If you are in a high clearance vehicle and comfortable on bumpy roads, drive beyond the initial 10 spots or so to find some fantastic spots, including group camping locations.

Arrived at 4pm and there were only a few others there. Easy to miss the turn. I have a 2WD SUV so I was able to drive a little ways down the road to a more private spot but didn't feel comfortable going much further. RVs or trailers would have a hard time except for the first couple spots right when you turn in. Roads were dry but very very bumpy. Also tough toget a level spot if thats important to you. Unfortunately the few sites I looked at had trash leftover such as egg shells and TP in the fire pit and broken bottles. If you walk/drive further down the road there is a great view of the hills. Also saw lots of deer.

This campground is easy to miss in the dark, and once you drive in its easy to get turned around and lost trying to find the exit again.

Hammock, Chair, Axe and shovel stolen when out for a short period of time. Luckily tent was locked. Pass is narrow and is better for smaller vehicles like overlanding Jeep’s. A lot of spots are covered in trash, food, condoms, etc…. Just really sad as this place has some real potential.

No amenities

Crappy rough area a couple miles from the NP entrance. Sites are tight and tucked into the oak brush/trees. Sites are best suited for Overlander types, tenters, vans or trucks. No way for TT and RVs. Center road shows signs of huge ruts if saturated wet so beware. Abandoned trash small TT left here also. This ace was an ugh IMO, only positive is that TMobile cell signal seemed good.

Overall there are some great sites here. Plenty of space between sites for a lot of privacy. Lots of sturdy trees for good shade and hammocking. We did hear some cougar noise on our second night and found tracks very close to our site in the morning. So make sure food and trash is secured and be safe.

Good for a 1 nighter. Cell reception anywhere between 1-2 bars AT&T. Campfire rock rings, some secluded perch spots, road in is awful. Not far from Black Canyon National Park about a mile. Ranger told me in Winter vagrants, and college kids create issues. Was a little spooked here stayed 1 night. No garbage, no water, no bathrooms.

Nice area with lots of dispersed sites. Lots of good shade at the sites. Most have decent privacy from other sites. Not too crowded right now. No mosquitos. Some sites are close to the road but not too much noise. Not sure I'd take a trailer or rv down the side roads too far without scouting but if you have 4wd the roads go quite a ways and there a few sites I saw but closer to the main entrance area has better sites

There were many options and it was quiet when we were there. Some spots had fire pits made out of rocks. Really loved it here! As I had read on here, a dirt road off to the left as you head towards the entrance of the park.

It felt like a 5-minute drive from here to Black Canyon - it's so close to the entrance. I met some wonderful people also camping here who had a long trailer (there are a few spots for bigger trailers to stay) and we had a good time in this great spot. I will be returning here next time I come to the area!

Great location outside of Black Canyon NP. There were a few other people camping at this location but plenty of space to still have some solitude.

This spot is really nice. A few campsites right at the front for those with low clearance. If your car is capable to go further down the road, then the views are chefs kiss

5 min drive from the entrance of black canyon, you don’t need high clearance for the first few sites but you do for the ones further back that look nicer. Great signal, hardly any traffic noise.

Stayed two nights in this spot. Very close proximity to Black Canyon NP. My Subaru Crosstrek didn’t have any issues making it up the hill to some of the back sites, but I wouldn’t try it in a sedan. It was dry when I was there, but I imagine the road becomes impassable when wet.

You can access the first few sites with a car, after that you need a SUV or 4x4. It was dead when we came. Only complaint would be people leaving toilet paper around the sites instead of packing out or burying waste

I stayed in the park my first night and I am mad I wasted the money. The dispersed sites here are great. Some of the roads to go deeper into the camping area are more suited for trucks or off-road capable cars.

I didn't make it very far. When you pull in the main road to the right of the sign is pretty torn up and unusable when wet. Look for the roadway second path that parallel the main road, this appeared more solid. I didn't risk it with my sedan since it was wet and just took one of the first spots.

I will say, the first few stops have more trash than most dispersed campgrounds I have been to. There was also human waste on the ground at an adjacent spot.

I am sure if you can go deeper, it is better.

Great spot. Didn’t say pet friendly on the reviews but my dog and I found a nice little secluded campsite off to the right and down a less jagged road. Be careful. I wouldn’t try to go too deep looking for a campsite during wet season or if you’ve got a low hanging vehicle without 4WD.

First time user of the Dyrt - we used someone’s recommendation for C77 Rd and we’re SO glad we did. We explored the North Rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP (amazing!) but the North Rim Campground didn’t do much for us. Instead we drove a couple miles out of the park on the Black Canyon Road and turned onto C77. The road was a little rough with dispersed campsites right off the main road. If you follow any of the spur roads out onto the plateau there are more options for dispersed camping with fire pits. We drove down a few Spurs and settled on one with a couple scrub oaks for shade and beautiful views of the mountains. 10/10 would recommend if you do not need facilities.

This was my first time using Dyrt and accessing BLM/public land. The campgrounds at Black Canyon OTG were packed and hotels in the area were outrageously priced (2-star hotel for $200). I got in at around 7/8pm. I slept in my car and enjoyed it! You can totally car/tent camp or RV it; whatever. Just respect the land. The roads further in are "fun". My stock-wheeled SUV did ok on them but if you have a trailer, it might be hard to turn around. If you're low-to-the-ground car, don't bother going back there. All-terrainers will be fine. Some sites look like they're made for one, but you can probably squeeze in 2 or 3 for anyone traveling as a group. Megafauna: I saw deer on my way out. I was fearful of bears but the natl park literature I got later didn't list them. So you're probably good. Obviously, no toilets except at the park.

Verizon LTE unstable 1-2 bars. So close to the park that you can get there early and beat the crowds.

Arrived Sunday at 1 PM, two tents. The rest was empty. Cell service (Verizon) was 1-2 bars with LTE. 20 tv channels. Area was tight lost a weboost antenna up the hill. Close the the Park, plenty shade in spots, sunny in others. Over all, pretty good spot.