Boondocking Site Review – Plomosa Road, Quartzsite, AZ
A lovely, large, easy 14-day boondocking spot ~6 miles north of Quartzsite in West-Central Arizona.
Coordinates: Entry to Plomosa Road is on the right after mile marker 114 going north on Hwy 95 and is clearly signed. Approx coordinates 33.748916, -114.216356. Link to map location HERE.
Cost: FREE. 14-day stay limit (within any period of 28 consecutive days).
How We Found It: This is a very well-known boondocking site in the Quartzsite area. Many of our friends have stayed here and it is clearly listed on both the BLM website and the Quartzsite Chamber of Commerce.
Nearest Dump/Water: NO facilities onsite. Nearest dump/water/propane at the RV Pit Stop right as you enter downtown Quartzsite. Nearest trash/recycling area is at the Refuse Transfer Station (open Sun-Wed 7:30AM to 2:30PM) located between mile-markers 111 and 112 on Hwy 95 north of town. It is free to dump household trash here.
- Access – 4.5/5
This is a super easy spot to access, although (as usual) the best sites may take a tad more effort:
Getting There -> Boondocking is allowed from the beginning of Plomosa Road and~5 miles East. Plomosa Road is paved and there is a camphost at the entrance where you can check-in to get your free 14-day permit.
Campsites -> This is BLM boondocking so there are no “designated” campsites, but there are lots of dirt roads leading off each side of Plomosa Road with hundreds of obvious cleared-off areas to camp. When choosing your site just be sure to practice good boondocking etiquette and camp in a place that doesn’t disturb nature or your your neighbors. Most of the dirt roads are rocky, flat and very hard although there can be a unexpected dips, softer spots and washes, so if you’re in a big rig it’s best to unhook just off the pavement on Plomosa and scout ahead for your spot. Dirt roads to the left (north) of Plomosa go further back than roads to the right (south), so if you’re looking for more isolation/quiet chose one of these to scout first. Any sized-rig can camp here with no problem. - Nature – 5/5
This is a gorgeous spot. Lots of nature all-around including views of mountains and pretty washes. Occasional road noise from folks driving down Plomosa, but otherwise it’s quiet especially if you snag a spot further back from the main road. - Isolation – 3.5/5
Very decent to excellent isolation depending on time of year and where you park. This is one of the furthest free BLM spots from Q, so it tends to have lower visitation than some of the other popular sites. The area near the entrance will almost always be fairly crowded, and during the big annual Jan RV show there will lots of large groups and people camped all around. However outside the main season and/or if you drive further back along the dirt roads you have a very good chance of finding isolation. - Pet Friendliness – 5/5
Excellent spot for doggie. Lots of space in camp and easy dirt roads and surroundings to walk. The area is hard and very rocky, so doggies who haven’t spent much time in the desert may be somewhat sore until their paws harden up (take it easy on your first walks). Otherwise very little cactus and practically no cholla which is great for paws on the ground.
Overall Rating = 4.5
BONUS ALERT = Camp in desert beauty just 6 miles north of Quartzsite!
Summary: We decided to camp at Plomosa simply to switch it up a bit from our usual boondocking location at Dome Rock. Like all of the free BLM areas around Quartzsite this is super easy to get to and easily accessible for any-sized rig. Plomosa is paved and clearly marked off Hwy 95, and there is a camphost right at the entrance where you can check-in and get your free 14-day pass. Campsites are easy-to-access, obvious cleared-out spots along the many hard, rocky dirt roads that lead in both directions (north and south) off Plomosa. Dirt roads going to the north side tend to stretch a little further back than roads going to the south, so if you’re looking for more isolation check those first. Also, although this area is pretty flat and hard there can be unexpected dips and softer spots, so do scout ahead if you’re in a big rig and planning to drive further back. Compared to Dome Rock this area is further from town, but also much quieter (no I-10 noise) and flatter, so it just depends what you’re looking for. Cell signal is great at both locations, so you can’t go wrong either way. Stay limits are 14-days after which you have to move a min of 25 miles away (if you want to stay longer consider one of the pay LTVA areas just south of town). Within Q make sure you have a dinner at Silly Al’s (craft beer and sumptuous pizzas, including gluten-free!). Plus check out stuff to do in town both during the big show, and outside of the main season (= ancient Blythe Intaglios, day-trip to Parker & Lake Havasu, local desert sculptures & KOFA etc.). We came in the off-season and found a site few miles back from the entrance and not far off Plomosa that had both excellent isolation and views. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and we’ll most certainly be back!
Extra Info: Excellent Verizon (4 bars LTE) and ATT (4 bars 4G) . NO on-site facilities (no water, dump or trash), but there is free trash location at the Refuse Transfer Station (open Sun-Wed 7:30AM to 2:30PM) just a few miles south on Hwy 95, plus RV dump/water/propane at the RV Pit Stop right at the entrance to town.
Extra, Extra Info -> OTHER BOONDOCKING: Plomosa road is one of 5 designated (managed) 14-day free boondocking areas around Quartzsite. The other areas are Dome Rock (where we’ve stayed many times before), Hi Jolly, Scaddon Wash and Roadrunner. Plus there area also several paid long-term (LVTA) areas too. The LTVA areas allow for stays beyond 14 days and also offer limited facilities (trash, dump, water etc.). Detailed info and directions to all sites in these links:
- Quartzsite Camping – from RV Camping (detailed maps & location)
- Quartzsite Camping – from Your RV Lifestyle (description)
Thanks for the post, yep we’ve been in that area, pretty nice.
Just pull up to the biggest baddest fire pit you see.
Jack’s down, slides out.
Right on. Boondocking doesn’t get much easier than this.
Nina
We loved it there. Even though there are dirt roads leading into the many camping areas, the areas themselves are flat and covered for the most part with a myriad of flat rocks of a almost lava nature. It’s as if you are driving and parking on asphalt. And it helps to keep the dust from vehicles almost non-existent.
Very true. There’s not much dust at here, even with the wind blowing. It’s very hard and rocky all-around.
Nina
Thank you for this post. With no experience whatsoever for desert camping, I can hear this one calling to us! It is beautiful from this vantage point and I wanted to thank you for sharing it with us. It is a keeper for sure and we hope to aim for it this winter. 🙂
If you’ve never desert-camped or boondocked before I think Quartzsite is one of the best places to try it. It’s just so easy here, plus you’ll have lots of company and even camphosts to help you out if you’re not sure about anything. It’s a fabulous place to pop your boondocking cherry 🙂
Nina
We have a 26 foot Jayco travel trailer and have not yet had the experience of boondocking. Obviously need to get our feet wet and planning to try it even in a state park. I think we could easily do it for 2-3 days so here are my questions: If you are going to be out for 14 days how do you handle gray water dumping, having “enough” fresh water” and certainly battery life which I assume one either uses a generator which we don’t have in our travel trailer Or are using solar panels to recharge the battery “s”. Obviously we are newbies to boondocking, , not RV’ing as e have been doing that for many years, here and many of you apparently already have solutions to the questions I am asking because you are already boondocking a lot. Appreciate any feedback.
So, lots of questions there. For your tanks you need to practice good water management, and then find a dump station when you’re tanks are full and you need to dump. For batteries you either recharge with a generator or solar (if you have it). I have a ton of posts about these kinds of details in my “boondocking” tab. Here’s a few to get you started:
Going “Water-Green” = Conserving Water on the Road
Boondocking For Newbies Part I -> Finding Where To Go
Boondocking For Newbies Part II -> Prepping Your RV
Boondocking For Newbies Part III -> Geting Your Rig Into The Site
Boondocking For Newbies Part IV – Enjoying Your Time In The Boonies
Nina
“A lovely, large, easy 14-day boondocking spot ~6 miles north of Quartzsite in East-Central Arizona.”
Never been there, but maybe West-Central.
Yup you’re right. I always get East and West mixed up. Gah! Corrected now.
Nina
Thanks Nina, Just what I was looking for 🙂 Heading there soon if the “cooler” weather holds out.
Hope it holds out for you. It was getting a bit toasty when we were there last week, but at long as it stays below 85 or so, it’s totally do-able.
Nina
Love your blog. We have learned so much from it and are eager to try some boondocking out west. We are working our way to full timing, but aren’t there yet. We spend about 6 months on the road and 6 months at home. Our only boondocking on the East coast has been Cracker Barrel and Walmart : – ) This looks like a great place to cut our teeth on. I assume you can use a generator, unlike other remote places in many parks.
Yes, generator use is no problem.
Nina
Thanks for the Boondocking Information. We’ve only done truck stops and plan on going to the “Q” next winter.
Be Safe and Enjoy!
It’s about time.
Q is a great place to try our your boondocking legs. Enjoy!
Nina
Thank you for the great info and wonderful pictures. Love reading your posts and hope to meet you on the road some day.
If you’re going to be in Yuma area, check out Tireman and say hi..
https://goo.gl/maps/oYtxD6NJxf32
We left him there all alone.
Plomosa is our favourite place to stay in the Quartzsite area. Our first time at Q we stayed at Scaddan Wash and, although within cycling distance of town and the rv show, it was quite noisy (I10) and dusty. The past two years we’ve stayed at Plomosa Road (4-5 miles east of the 95 Highway and then north off of Plomosa Road through two small washes) and just loved it. We travel with two medium sized dogs and this is a fantastic place for them. One requires boots in this area because of the rock but it’s very dog-friendly otherwise. Even during the big rv show, you can find a spot with plenty of elbow room at Plomosa. Thanks for reviewing one of our favourite desert spots!
Totally agree w/ all your points. Cheers for chiming in.
Nina
We are newbies starting May 2016 with a new Leisure Unity. Reports like these are soooo NICE! Thank you!
Nice! You’ve got the perfect go-everywhere boondocking rig. Enjoy!
Nina
Thanks for the great post. This is added to my long list of places to stay. It’s good to see that 5/5 on Pet Friendliness … the hounds always like those type of places.
Doggie just loves it out here. We have to take it easy our first few walks just because of the hard rock, but then her paws get accustomed and she’s good to go the rest of the time.
Nina
Love your Blog, been a lurker for several months till I /We could dial this in. …You guys know your Stuff.
Cheryl and I just returned back to Ontario , the “Great White North”.
Spent time in Yuma, Mexico, Ca, NV and the trip home. “Loving every minute of it”, Lover boy,… oh yah!!
I need to be careful of the info I glean here, as I do not want to be a statistic and you all folks and brothers and sisters of the USA need to be cautious with the info you translate/upload. Jus say’n.
Perhaps everyone knows to put down jack pads before putting down the jacks. In a hurry one time and buried the jacks four inches! Experience, what a teacher.
Jack pads (or something under the jacks…we use pressure-treated wood blocks) are essential for desert boondocking. Many of the places around Q are hard-rocked enough that you can potentially get away without using them, but we always use them nonetheless.
Nina
To begin…I have barely been able to stop reading your blog. My partner and I are thinking seriously about this way of life and pouring through your blog has been a most excellent adventure for us. For me it has confirmed this is what I wish to do. I have travelled extensively worldwide. For my partner..reservation and skepticism abounds. He has done very little travel. My question is about personal safety. There are alot of odd sorts wandering the planet. Have you had any issues where you feel unsafe? People knocking on your door while boondocking for example. I think this is my partners greatest fear. Love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for the great read!
So this is a question that comes up alot, and my answer is always the same. I feel much safer boondocking than I ever have living in a big city. In my opinion crime is much more prevalent in cities than out in the boonies, simply because there’s waaay more opportunity/return for criminals in places that have more people around. What kind of criminal is going to waste time driving 50 miles down deserted BLM roads looking for a few RVs to rob? Not many, I think.
Also we don’t go to “iffy” spots or anywhere we don’t feel comfortable. Most of our boondocking is out in nature and well away from criminal hotspots. Many of the places we boondock (like Quartzsite) have plenty of other RVers around, and RVers tend to look out for each other. The times we boondock by ourselves we’re usually SO FAR out of the way, that no-one ever comes down the road. It just hasn’t been a concern for us.
That said I know some people still feel worried and feel they need personal protection of some sort. My personal preference is bear spray mostly because we need it anyway (especially during summer when we tend to RV & hike near bear country), it’s easy to use (no special training required), and there are no special restrictions on carrying it cross-country. I know other RVers who carry more serious protection, but then you need to be aware (and comply) with the laws for that as you travel from state to state.
Bottom line. We’ve never felt unsafe in the boonies, and if we were in a spot where we did feel that way we would simply leave. Common sense and intuition are good yard-sticks in these cases.
Hope that helps! Good luck w/ everything!
Nina
Stooped question from a future newbie (got the Winnie but still building up our cache before we make the jump). How do you stay cool in the solar oven?
Not a silly question at all! It can be tough to stay cool in our metal boxes, so you have to do what you can. Here’s a couple of tips we use:
1/ Follow the weather. We get out of the desert before the big heat hits, usually no later then April. And then we’ll head north and/or to higher elevations. With wheels you’ve always got options, and there are plenty within a few short drives of anywhere you might be in the SW.
2/ Park with your biggest window away from the sun (facing north). Glass is a big heater, so you’ll stay cooler this way.
3/ Fans, fans, fans. We have max air fans on our roof, endless breeze fan inside. They all help to keep the air moving.
4/ Shade. Park somewhere with afternoon shade if you can. Even a little helps. When it’s cooking inside the RV, it can still be pleasant to sit outside in the shade even when it’s 90 degrees. Also consider shade cloths. We have a shade cloth for our front window and another for our awning. They all help.
5/ Air Conditioning. You can make yourself a cheap swamp cooler or carry a generator to run your on-board A/C. We’re even able to run ours from our lithium batteries, but if you have regular batteries just carry a generator.
Nina
Thanks much for the really cool tips.
HI,
Enjoying your Boondocking series. We are new full timers, (8 months) and have been staying in commercial RV parks. We have a 40′ coach with 800 watts of solar as well as a generator. Still haven’t pulled the trigger on Boondocking yet. Hoping to try it next year off Plomosa Road as a first time adventure. Just have a couple of questions:
1. What are the best times of the season to boondock? Not worried about cold as much as the extreme heat in the area.
2. Is it difficult to find a spot at anytime?
Would appreciate your opinion on the above. You made it look easy in your series.
Regards,
Rich Burdick
In the SW desert I find mid-Nov to around mid-Mar are the best months (temp-wise) for boondocking. We’ve boondocked into mid-April before, but it does start to get hot and we typically try to get into higher desert (e.g. in Utah or Nevada) around that time.
As for finding spots? We’ve never had an issue. The SW desert is huge and places like Plomosa Road have miles and miles of space. We always scout around with our tow before we bring in “the beast” (which I do recommend), but we’ve never had any issues finding a good spot.
Nina
Thanks so much for the info. We will surely give it a try next year.
Really appreciate your response. Also, your previous trips via the maps on your site show places we are very interested in visiting. You all have been a great help to us. Will continue to view your site, it’s one of the best I’ve seen in a while.
Best regards,
Rich and Karen Burdick