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The Best Campgrounds in America
Hand-picked, road-trip-worthy campgrounds — clifftop coast, alpine lakes, redrock canyons, old-growth forest, and free dispersed sites. Each with how to reserve and how RV-friendly it is, so you can plan the nights as carefully as the drive.
63campgrounds6settings24states
Setting
11Coastal
MarylandAssateague IslandCamp on a wild beach with free-roaming poniesFloridaBahia HondaTurquoise Keys water and the old rail bridgeWashingtonCape DisappointmentWhere the Columbia River meets the seaOregonCape LookoutA sandspit between the ocean and the bayCaliforniaChannel IslandsBoat-in camping on California’s “Galápagos”GeorgiaCumberland IslandWild horses on a ferry-only barrier islandFloridaDry TortugasCamp beside a fort on an island 70 miles out to seaNew YorkHither HillsOceanfront camping at the tip of Long IslandSouth CarolinaHunting IslandA maritime-forest barrier island with a lighthouseCaliforniaKirk CreekClifftop sites straight over the Big Sur PacificWashingtonSouth BeachBluff camping on Olympic’s wild Pacific coast
Setting
9Lakeside
UtahAlstrom PointA cliff-top overlook of Lake Powell’s Gunsight BayMontanaApgarOn the shore of turquoise Lake McDonaldWyomingColter BayCamp on Jackson Lake under the TetonsCaliforniaConvict LakeEmerald water under sheer Eastern Sierra peaksCaliforniaD.L. BlissCamping above Lake Tahoe’s clearest waterMinnesotaItascaCamp at the headwaters of the MississippiWyomingJenny LakeTents-only camping at the foot of the TetonsIdahoRedfish LakeThe Sawtooth peaks mirrored in alpine waterOregonTrillium LakeThe classic Mount Hood reflection
Setting
10Mountain
VirginiaBig MeadowsSkyline Drive’s wildlife-filled high meadowTexasChisos BasinA mountain island in the Big Bend desertColoradoLast Dollar RoadFree aspen camping under the Sneffels RangeMontanaMany GlacierThe wild heart of Glacier National ParkColoradoMaroon BellsCamp below the most-photographed peaks in the USCaliforniaMineral KingA remote glacial valley deep in SequoiaColoradoMoraine ParkElk meadows in Rocky Mountain National ParkTennessee & North CarolinaRoan HighlandsSunrise camping on the Appalachian grassy baldsCaliforniaTuolumne MeadowsYosemite’s granite-domed high countryOregonWallowa LakeCamping under “Oregon’s Alps”
Setting
11Desert & Redrock
New MexicoBisti BadlandsCamp at the edge of a hoodoo badlands mazeUtahDead Horse PointA 2,000-foot overlook of the Colorado’s gooseneckUtahDevils GardenCamp among the slickrock fins of ArchesCaliforniaFurnace CreekCamp below sea level in Death ValleyUtahGoblin ValleyA valley of hoodoo “goblins” you can roamCaliforniaJumbo RocksSites tucked among giant boulders in Joshua TreeArizonaMatherSteps from the Grand Canyon’s South RimColoradoMedano / Sand DunesFree creekside camping below North America’s tallest dunesCaliforniaTrona PinnaclesCamp among 500 alien tufa spiresNevadaValley of FireNevada’s oldest park — blazing red sandstoneUtahWatchmanCamp under the Watchman in Zion Canyon
Setting
8Forest
MaineBlackwoodsSpruce-forest base for Acadia’s coastTennesseeCades CoveA historic valley loop full of wildlifeTennesseeElkmontThe Smokies’ synchronous firefliesWashingtonHoh Rain ForestCamp in a moss-draped temperate rainforestCaliforniaJedediah SmithCamp among the world’s tallest treesWashingtonKalalochBluff sites over a wild Pacific beachCaliforniaPfeiffer Big SurRedwoods in the heart of Big SurMichiganPorcupine MountainsOld-growth and the Lake of the Clouds
Setting
14Free & Dispersed
CaliforniaAlabama HillsFree BLM camping under Mount WhitneyOregonAlvord DesertCamp on a white playa under Steens MountainSouth DakotaBuffalo GapFree camping beside the BadlandsArizonaEdge of the WorldFree cliff-edge camping on the Mogollon RimUtahGooseberry MesaFree mesa-top camping & world-class slickrock ridingColoradoHartman RocksFree high-desert camping & singletrack near GunnisonUtahMuley PointFree cliff-edge camping over the San Juan goosenecksArizonaSedona dispersedFree red-rock camping outside SedonaUtahThe WedgeCamp on the rim of Utah’s “Little Grand Canyon”ArizonaToroweapA 3,000-foot sheer drop into the Grand CanyonUtahValley of the GodsFree camping among red sandstone monolithsArizonaWhite Pocket areaFree camping in the Vermilion CliffsUtahWhite RimPermit campsites on a 100-mile canyon-rim loopUtahWillow SpringsThe classic free slickrock camping outside Arches