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Camping

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Dispersed Camping

Bluff Springs Dispersed Camping

14 Reviews

About

National Forest

Lincoln National Forest

Partially developed picnic and dispersed camping area nestled next to the waterfalls called Bluff Springs. A short trail exists just beyond the bridge that will take you up and over the waterfalls as well as another trail (Willie White Spur T112) that follows and old railroad grade to the east.

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Location

Bluff Springs Dispersed Camping is located in New Mexico

Directions

Take the Sunspot Highway (NM6563) located just 2 miles south of Cloudcroft about 8 miles and turn left (east) onto the Rio Penasco Rd, county road C017.  This road is paved up to Water Canyon, then dirt the remainder of the way.  Continue on the dirt portion for another 1.5 miles and Bluff Springs will appear on your right.  

Coordinates

32.83114965 N
105.73726997 W

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Access

Drive-In
Park next to your site
Walk-In
Park in a lot, walk to your site.

Stay Connected

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

Site Types

Tent Sites
RV Sites
Standard (Tent/RV)
Dispersed

Features

For Campers

Trash
Firewood Available
Toilets
Alcohol
Pets
Fires

For Vehicles

Pull-Through Sites
Big Rig Friendly

Enjoy dispersed camping on government land and leave no trace. Pack in and pack out. No (or limited) services at this camping area. Permit may be required.

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Contact

General Info

Twan M.

Guide

Reviewed Mar. 29, 2024

Private Pine Valley

Sunspot Hwy to Rio Peñasco Rd., past the pavement onto dirt road for about 2 miles before coming to the trailhead/bathrooms on your right. No overnight camping at the trailhead but overnight camping is allowed beyond that point, along the creek. Very quiet and private, a bit of snow was still down at the end of March, no other campers. Very windy, so campfires are allowed but need to be well controlled. Great spot all-around. There is NO Verizon service there or on the way in, pretty much since you pass Haynes Canyon on Sunspot.

Month of VisitApril

(7) View All

Hailee S.

Traveler

Reviewed Sep. 4, 2023

Super pretty, SUPER busy

We were here Labor Day weekend and it was so busy. Do not expect the have a quiet camp if you go on a holiday weekend. That is my only complaint though. It was beautiful, the stream was so pretty. The waterfall is so fun, and the natural spring was super convenient! It dropped into the 50’s at night but was low 80’s during the day! So bring blankets and jackets for night time!

Month of VisitOctober

(4) View All

Mandi W.

Guide

Reviewed Jun. 29, 2023

Beautiful free spot

We tent camped here on a Friday night, it was kind of crowded for dispersed camping but a really beautiful place and still easy to find a spot despite arriving at like 8:30pm. We camped right on the creek, kids loved playing in it and seeing the waterfall. We saw deer, tons of elk, a hummingbird came right up to us and chirped and tried to land on us, and we woke up the first morning to a herd of cows mooing and walking past our tents with their calves. Would definitely stay here again. No cell signal (Verizon). Road to get there is not paved and in some places can only fit one vehicle so we did see some minor issues with that with people traveling the road.

Siten/a

Month of VisitJuly

(7) View All

Alli P.

Traveler

Reviewed Dec. 31, 2021

Bumpy and Busy

Went 12/28-12/30 and the actual campground area was packed the whole time even with it being 20-30 degrees outside. Extremely windy and most areas only get an hour or two of sun. Do not take the route via Mayhill, take the sunspot hwy route in cloudcroft (mayhill route will be 9 miles of horrible unpaved road while cloudcroft route is only about 2 miles unpaved). If you like to be away from people and have a 4x4/AWD vehicle, take the right at the fork when it turns to unpaved road. The area is basically surrounded by neighborhood, especially the east side of the campground. No cell coverage but is not far from Cloudcroft where you get signal. If you like being away from people, this probably isn’t your spot. Traffic up and down the roads. Elk, mule deer, and turkey were seen.

SiteDispersed

Month of VisitJanuary

Ally

Traveler

Reviewed Sep. 11, 2021

Awesome campground

This campsite is a gem. We stayed from Wednesday to Saturday and we were the only campers there until mid day on Friday. Many people visit for the quick waterfall hike (can be done in less than 30 min). The “campsites” are very spread out. I’m not sure where they all are because I only saw 3. It was HOT during the day and COLD at night. Great easy hikes right from the campsite. Only downside was the gnats/flies (mostly during sundown) and lack of shade. Bring your own pop-up. By Friday night, this place was PACKED. So if you want one of the better sites, go mid week. It was also a tiny bit muddy on the road

Month of VisitOctober

(4) View All

Name

Guide

Reviewed Jul. 17, 2021

Beautiful

Stunning views. Waterfall. No cell coverage

Month of VisitJune

Jeanie P.

Guide

Reviewed May. 24, 2021

Camp with cows, moo!

Great little spot next to pit toilets in the Sacramento district of the Lincoln NP. Easy to find and can get there with 2wd no problem. This is a super popular spot on the weekend so the camping area and parking lot were PACKED all day when we were there on Saturday. Cleared out Sunday. Big OHV area. Nice trail access from the campsite that is OHV friendly, so not super great for running or biking. There is a small waterfall that we could see and hear from our campsite and a creek for for kiddos to play in. Its a free range area so cows are all over the place which was fun to see. Cloudcraft is the closest town, small and cute to visit.

Month of VisitJune

Abraham

Guide

Reviewed Jan. 1, 2021

Lots of options

Dispersed camping along the bluff spring stream. A ton of campsites, and easy access to bluff spring and a trail complex. High clearance vehicle recommended, pretty packed in the summer months.

David L.

Guide

Reviewed Sep. 16, 2020

Awesome Dispersed Camping Spot

This is a quiet area tucked away in Lincoln National Forest. It's not too far from Cloudcroft, NM so it's easy to resupply on water, snack, etc. You can camp right next to a creek and the valley makes for some great views. This area is basically everything you can ask for when dispersed camping. It's quiet and other than the occasional hiker, nobody else is around. There's plenty of hiking and just good times to be had. A quintessential camping experience.

Month of VisitApril

(4) View All

Gene S.

Traveler

Reviewed Aug. 11, 2020

Best family get away in years...

We arrived in Cloudcroft NM around 7pm on Thursday the 6th got some last minute supplies at all sups gas station and headed to the ranger station just down the 130 Cox Canyon Hwy to get a map of the park, we kinda knew where we wanted to go but wanted to do a last minute look see at the map. We kept our plan of Bluff Springs and headed out. We found a pretty big spot and set up camp. With one camper, two tents, two jeeps, two dogs, six kiddos and 10 adults it was a chore to get everything out and set up but worth every minute to enjoy the next three days worry and technology free. The spot was amazing right next to the little creek. We will definitely be going back soon.

(5) View All

Jacob W.

Ranger

Reviewed Aug. 3, 2020

Potentially good

Bluff Springs is nestled in a pretty forested valley with a creek and falls in Lincoln National Forest about 10 miles south of Cloudcroft off Sunspot highway on Upper Peñasco Road. There’s a gravel parking lot with bathrooms but no campground. We tent camped Sat, Aug. 1, 2020, arriving about 2pm. There were many people camping and it was difficult to find a spot along the road with dispersed camping sites. We had to camp in thicker grass among cow dung because the mowed sites were taken. Still, life outside is better, right? It stormed much of the day and night but Sunday morning dawned clear and we took a short 1-mile hike from the Bluff Springs trailhead to the Willie White trailhead. There are longer hikes too. There were some camping trailers but no big RVs. Upper Peñasco Road is narrow in parts. A decent place.

J E.

Guide

Reviewed Jun. 12, 2019

Lovely little spot in the Lincoln NF

This is a little pull-off area in a very populated National Forest. It can get pretty crowded so hiking in is important. The car-camping and RV camping is right on the road.

Month of VisitApril

Scott B.

Guide

Reviewed Jul. 24, 2018

Beautiful area near Cloudcroft, NM

It has dispersed camping that, depending on the site, may require a short walk. I did not actually camp here (wish I did!), but spent an afternoon at the campground. A beautiful area!

Month of VisitAugust

(9) View All

Brittany N.

Guide

Reviewed Jul. 16, 2018

very popular spot.

some good hiking and a pretty waterfall but a lot of people camp near the waterfall. I don't think it's an amazing spot but love to visit the waterfall and hike.