2014 Best Campgrounds Of The Year
Welcome to 2015!! With the lure of the new year ahead, I’m going to finish up the last (well second last) of last year’s blogs with a round-up of our favorite campgrounds of the year. As I mentioned in the previous post we managed 43 stops last year. In our usual lover-of-nature style 32 of those stops were on public land (state park, national forest, BLM etc.), 3 were volunteer jobs and 8 were private parks.
We ended the year spending an average of $9.88/night on campground fees, most of which we dropped in WA during our Olympic Peninsula tour since we were too large (in beastly size) to fit in almost all of the cheaper NFS campgrounds along the coast (yes, size does matter). Despite this 2014 was our lowest year in campground fees since we started on the road which just goes to show how much we love public land (especially boondocking) and that we’re getting better each year at finding the sweet spot between scenic beauty, isolation & cost. For reference, for those of you who have an interest in these things our first year on the road we spent just over $21/night on campground fees, so our camping expenses have come down quite a bit 🙂
This year I’m going to split our favorite campgrounds into 3 categories
Most Scenic Campsites
It’s no surprise that our most scenic sites of 2014 are all boondocking sites. There’s nowhere you can get as broad, open, unobscured views as in the boonies and that’s the reason we love to spend winters out here:
1/ Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Sasabe, AZ (free)
A totally new find us in 2014, this remote and gorgeous National Wildlife Refuge offers over 83 primitive camping areas. Make sure to avoid the active hunting season, but otherwise this is an excellent spot to relax and get away from it all. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.25/5
2/ Ogilby Road, Yuma, AZ (free)
This is a barren, rocky, desolate place but we love it nonetheless and we’ve been going here for years. Wide open views, lots of hidden mines (gold?) and enough space to call your own. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.6/5
3/ Rockhouse Road, Borrego Springs, CA (free)
This has made the top list multiple times and there’s a good reason why. A lovely, large boondocking area surrounded by scenic mountains and only a few miles from a cute town. We come back every year. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.6/5
Best Waterfront Sites
This year we had the good fortune to camp several times within view of water, one of my favorite things to do, so these spots deserve their own special mention:
1/ Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, Alamo, NV (free)
This spot definitely gets some road noise, but it has the closest and prettiest water view of just about any place we’ve ever stayed. And you can’t beat the price. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 3.75/5
2/ Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Lake Mead, NV
This massive oasis just outside of Las Vegas, NV boasts several dispersed camping areas all with excellent water views. You can expect company here, but you can’t beat the view, and for only $10 (7 days) or $30 (year) it’s an outstanding deal. We stayed in two areas -> Link to first Review HERE and second Review HERE. Rating = 3.6/5 and 4.25/5.
3/ Point Hudson Marina, Port Townsend, WA
We love Marina camping, and we love it even more when we’re walking distance to a super cool, funky, historic town. What a great place to spend a week! Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4/5
Best Private Parks
Since we managed a {gasp} total of 8 private parks this year it’s worth mentioning the top three:
1/ Likely RV Golf & Resort, Likely, CA
An unlikely resort in an unlikely place in NE California, and what a cool surprise it turned out to be! Lots of green surroundings and the bonus of a dog-friendly golf course. We totally enjoyed our stay here. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.1/5
2/ Olde Stone Village RV Park, McMinnville, OR
A great base to explore the wine valley of Oregon and walking distance to the amazing Spruce Goose. Probably one of the “fancier” parks we’ve stayed in (ever). If they had broader dog policies they’d get an even higher rating. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.3/5
3/ Sam’s Family Spa, Desert Hot Springs, CA
It’s a quirky little park that keeps us coming back year after year. Four fabulous mineral pools, a great monthly rate and a totally relaxed attitude. All the reasons we love it here. Link to Review HERE. Rating = 4.1/5
That’s it folks. Next up, more Borrego goodness (lots of pics a-coming) and an itch to move on. Where, oh where will we end up next?
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Happy,happy,happy 2015!!-
Love this “best of post”!!!
Many more great adventures to you!!!!
I keep adding places you guys have visited to our spreadsheet of places we may want to visit once – along time from now – we go fulltime in an RV.
Thank you for all the great content on your web site. I find myself returning often.
I keep lists from other folks too. I always enjoy the blog end of year roundups. Great inspiration posts.
Nina
You mentioned that some places had length limits that kept you out. In general, what are the limits you usually run into?
We have been RV’ing for some time, but in a 30′ Class A. We have not run into limits at that size. I am wondering what we will run into when/if we end up in a 35′ or 36′ unit.
Totally depends on the state and where we’re going. This summer for example, many of the NFS campgrounds along the Olympic Peninsula had 21-foot recommended length with a few sites up to max 35. In the Colorado mountains we ran into similar limits, often 30 and below. You’ll always be able to find somewhere to stay (plenty of private parks around, for example), it’s just a question of whether you can get into the more remote and isolated campgrounds.
Nina
Our average,our first few years starting in 2003, was about $7.00 a night with lots of boondocking, going to Alaska, staying at the Elks (mostly donation) plus private parks..I say this to show how prices in private parks as well as donations to Elks have gone up…
You guys have the Golden Age pass too right? The one that gives you 50% off national forest, BLM, national park campgrounds. I seem to remember you were paying half our price when we met up in Singletree those years ago. Sadly, we are not yet “of age” to get it. The one thing I’d love to be older for!
Nina
When we first started we did not have the Golden Age Pass…that is not to say that when we qualified, we were not glad…But our low prices were before that…but I think that what we paid then is probably the equivalent of what you pay now….
Makes sense. Cheers.
Nina
P.S. our average also reflects State, City, County and Federal Parks as well as Corp of Engineer Parks…and workcamping….
Being our first year, I think we are up in that $20/night as well. We love boondocking but usually pay for a site in a new area then go exploring. Thank you for your posts throughout the year, we have used your recommendations more than once (Dome Rock and Ogilby Road). If you are ever in the Flaming Gorge are and want a great waterside site, check out our post from that area for a great waterside boondocking site!
Our campground fees have come down every year we’ve been on the road. I think the biggest drop was year 3 when we started volunteering in the summer months & engaged in more boondocking. We like the mix of low-cost camping & “splurging” when we feel like it.
Nina
Although our rig is only 35′ (just got it this week!) it is helpful knowing where the beast could fit for future reference! I always enjoy your year-end wrap-ups, remembering all those great places you took me to!!
35′ is a sweet size. If we were to do it over I’d target somewhere around there. You can see squeeze into 30-foot spots when needed, and have more maneuverability than our 42-foot size.
Nina
Definitely concur on several of the camping areas, most notably here in Anza Borrego and Point Hudson Marina. We’ve yet to try Ogilby Road, and that may just be next. Also, Sam’s Spa is a must! Thanks…
Sounds like we have very similar tastes 🙂
Nina
Happy 2015 Nina and Paul, we really enjoy your web site! My wife and I are not full timers yet, but we manage over 30 nights a year in our RV. My question for you is dogs and snakes! A lot of your travels and hiking is done in snake country. Has your dog every encountered one? Our dog always hikes with us off leash as well and we are always very concerned how she will react if she meets one. Have a great year and keep up the good work.
I am considering RVing. My plan is to buy a leisure travel unity class B+ which is 25′ I am also planning on towing a 16′ trailer with my toys. Would the length limitations you mentioned include my unity and the trailer?
If you tow a trailer you’ll need to find sites long enough to hold it, so yes those limitations would apply. You’ll have a shorter turn radius on your main rig, so you can certainly squeeze that into smaller spots, but you’ll still need space for the rest.
Nina
Thank you Nina,
Thanks for all your valuable info. My sister lives in New York and hours to go on the road soon. Are you familiar with a similar blogger who does the eastern U.S.?
Happy New Year, Nina and Paul! Love your blog and have added a couple more of your favorite sites to our travel plan this year. Thanks for sharing such useful information all year long! Always looking forward to your next post. Cheers! -Linda
I always love these year-end posts of yours Nina. Thanks so much for taking the time to provide us all with such great information. A happy happy 2015 to you and Paul. 🙂
Great and useful post if we can EVER get out west to stay for any length of time. Your stats pushed me to do ours and I found that I didn’t like them much. I like yours better. We had too many stops and too many one night Passport America private campgrounds and with most of our boondocking being in National Parks and Monuments it wasn’t quite free. But thanks for the shove and all this great information. After 4 years you’d think we could get this down. Circumstances seem to make us be in too much of a hurry. Not fun.
Well I know your circumstances are difficult, so I think you do a great job. Your goal is to get out and see as much stuff as you can, yet still enjoy the nature of each area you visit, and you really do it well. No one right way to travel 🙂
Nina
Hi fellows,
First of all, we love your writting.
We are from Israel and we intend to become a full timer in the next winter. We have almost decided about the size of our rig. (More or less the same beast you got)but we have some difficulties in our decision making what kind of car to tow behind us. We love the idea of a very small car like smart but we are concerning about routes conditions. Please tell us what is your recomandations. (we are not looking for extremist effects in our journey) Thank you in sdvance Sara & Zvika
Hi there and welcome to the blog!
I have some other Israeli friends who also RV in the US for 6 months every year. See their link here:
http://danyshula.blogspot.com
For the tow car it all depends how much off-road stuff you want to do. We have a CRV which is kind of a half-way mix between a small car and a SUV and it suits us really well. We can do some easy off-road stuff, but nothing serious. Our neighbors here have a manual Mini which is really cute and gets outstanding gas mileage. They can’t do any real off-roading, but they are fine everywhere we go and can zoom around town with no problem. More hard-core off-roaders will get jeeps.
Whatever you get I would just recommend that you make sure it can be towed 4-down. It’s sooooo much easier than using a tow dolly. Some cars need modifications to do this, but just check before you buy.
My blog posts about towing:
https://www.wheelingit.us/2011/07/08/all-about-towing-toads-dinghy-towing/
https://www.wheelingit.us/2011/07/09/all-about-towing-part-ii-tow-equipment-supplemental-brakes/
Nina
Thank you very very much for your quick respond. It is very helpful for us. Also, we are going to contact Danny & Shulla.
Go on with your blessed doing in your beautiful blog.
By the way, we are building now our blog (in Ebrew) http://www.mitgalgelim.co.il
Thanks again and see you soon
Sara & Zvika