Larson Ridge Camping Area

Due to COVID our reservations were cancelled at Sharp Creek Campground in Christopher Creek. Decided to keep our time off and head up anyway to the mountains. Young Rd was packed so we checked out FR 237. The front numbered sites were full but if you head back, until FR 172, there were a ton of spots. Some close together, some spread out. We got lucky and found a spot on a Saturday morning and grabbed it. Would stay here again for a quick last minute getaway.

Likes - close to Willow Springs Lake for day fishing, 237 is a nice ride to the rim for a fun adventure, plenty of spots to choose from.

Dislikes - LOTS of traffic on 237. ATVs and off road vehicles all day. People also drive fast so be prepared for dust in your campsite all day. Also, the power lines buzzed. There are sites not by them but we grabbed the first spot we found and would prefer to go deeper next time to avoid them. As with all disbursed camping be prepared for other campers mess. Each day walked around picking up trash from others.

Service was spotty. Kids would watch downloaded movies but texting and other social media apps were limited due to no service.

Not your typical dispersed camping. You are supposed to camp only the marked spots and many of them are rather in close proximity with not much privacy. No trash service and the campsites are not the cleanest.

With so many campsites closed, the availability is very very limited. There is a lot of activity on the dirt road and there are also some powerlines buzzing in the background.

I was looking for a sunny spot to use my solar since this is dry camping. I stayed in the area between 237 and Old Rim Road, there are about 1/2 dozen marked sites with 14 days no permit. The main road in (237) is dirt and slow going because of all the dips and holes in the road. Off 237 the dirt road can be flooded and quite deep and sketchy after rain.

The elevation is 7,683 here, about 20 degrees cooler than the Phoenix area. You are very close to the high-power lines and can even here the buzz and crackling constantly. It is very peaceful and I'm sure very crowded in warmer weather but I enjoyed my stay here.

Internet for both Verizon and AT&T are very poor, even with my cell booster I could barely get internet service.