Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge

Site 73 sets on the edge of a ridge overlooking the Baboquivari Mountains to the west and the San Luis Mountains to the southeast. The site is at 3600 feet of elevation and gives you an almost 360 degree view. It’s on road 201 and is not very washboarded but that said it’s a main road for the border patrol and you will have MANY trucks flying by. It’s a large site so several campers can fit.

This was our first time dry camping and we weren’t sure what to expect. The roads were clearly marked and it was easy to drive into the campsites with out 19-foot trailer. The campsites were far apart and off the road. It was easy to pull through with our trailer (no backing up). We had great cell signal from Verizon and were able to stream Disney+ easily. The site was very flat and the views were lovely. This is a very exposed area so I wouldn’t come here much later in the season- the sun and heat were already pretty intense in March.

The phone number did not work and there was very little post COVID info available but we headed down anyway.

We pulled a 26 foot Airstream and had no problems. We took the Arivaca road off of 286. Between mile marker 3 & 4 is the main dirt road which has most of the campsites. You do not have to go check in at this time. The visitors center is closed but there was a very nice volunteer (Barbara) who answered all our questions.

We turned north and passed many suitable campsites most unoccupied (we arrived on a Saturday). Great dry camping experience.

T-Mobile had 2 bars and download speed was 35mbps. Upload speed VERY SLOW. AT&T had 2 bars. I didn’t try a speed test.

We stayed here for the first two weeks of February 2020, then came back for another two weeks in March. We absolutely loved it! It was so quiet, except for the coyotes at night. The site was big, high, and dry, with a large fire pit. We were 1/4 mile in off the highway, along a dirt road that was easily accessible for our rig - although you wouldn’t want to try to tow your rig in during rainy weather as the dirt becomes mud. Other than that - awesome Boondocking spot!

The views at this site are great. It can get quite windy because of the elevated planes. When the winds are not blowing there are a lot of black biting flys that can be very very annoying. I really don't know if I would go back because of the bugs, black flys do not respond to repellant, and I was not prepared for that, they are very bad at this campground.

Just what I was looking for. I live in Tucson, so I may go back just to recharge from time to time when it's not full-on summer. As another reviewer noted, be prepared to be completely self-sufficient... there's no water, no nothing other than the wind and sky.

The volunteer staff at the Visitor Center was cordial and informative... they have a picture book of each site, and a sheet with information about access to each.

I was up on a ridge and had excellent Verizon service.

The Border Patrol is everywhere, typical for southern Arizona. Polite and helpful. Those who are concerned about safety issues this close to the border should take comfort in that.

We just stayed here in February. I don't think I would go in the middle of winter again, fairly bleak and brown. But it is very quiet, lots of great solitude, and some wildlife watching. The place we camped was very easy to access, even in our big rig. The road was pretty good, and everything was pretty level. The visitors center can help you find a spot, if you need that. I can see how the area would be pretty in the spring and summer.