Pilot Knob 14-Day Camping Area

We got around 20mb AT&T with our hotspot. We stayed for 14 days and had maybe 6 other campers there at all times.

We got 3 days of rain striaght and the 1.5 mile dirt road turned into a mud pit. The road also flooded a good 2-3 feet in certain areas.

We ended up heading to the north side of the Chevron we’re there is camping and right off a blacktop road.

The AT&T over there was 40-60mb because of the tower.

Little hard to find. It’s the dirt road right before the sign that says “pilot knob Rec area”. Take that dirt road west and there will be a few turns in semi-soft sand. 4wd not required but it helps. You’ll end up behind an RV park, but keep going west until you see some electric line posts and large stakes that say 14 day camping limit. That’s the spot.

Mostly flat gravel, mostly level. Noisy! The noise doesn’t bother me, though it may bother others. Lots of generator use, atv use, border patrol driving by. The interstate is also a good 400 yards away and you can hear all the cars whiz by.

Not bad for free though.

This is my first experience with camping on BLM land and have been extremely happy. I did find a couple spots where the sand was a little lose and my truck started to sink, but turned on four wheel drive and wasn’t an issue after. Great cell coverage also.

As others have stated, the turn is right past the gas station where the dirt road starts. If you make it to the long term visitor area you went to far and missed the turn.

As mentioned, turn right after leaving pavement after the gas station.

The sign says to go 1.6 miles but it was getting close to sunset and the road was gravel with Sandy spots and I was on a motorcycle towing a trailer so I probably didn’t go far enough.

I ended up 1/2 mile or less from I8 and it was noisy all night and I had to wear my earbuds.

Other than that it was great and no one was around.

Maybe the road turns south and takes you further away from the highway.

Stayed here in March of 2020. Great spot, only had 2-3 'neighbors the entire time we were there, and all were 200-300 feet away. Relativel quiet, even though you can see I-8, Border Patrol cruises by a couple of times per day. Chevron station near the entrance has gas, propane and water (pay). Propane wasn't too bad, gas prices are high, go to Yuma/Winterhaven to fill up. About 9 miles west on I-8 is a Rest Area with free water. We filled the rig (and bladder) there while using the pay stop at the Chevron to fill our drinking water jugs.

Never had an issue with Cell service here, always had service and at decent speeds. Only a couple of miles East of the exit is the exit to go to Los Algodones, which is primarily why we came here. Not a lot of landscpae, but not a bad place to isolate from everyone in the COVID-19 times.

It can get windy for sure. We had to keep a close eye on canopy and other items that could blow away. Also, it rained 2 of the days we were up there. When it rains, it gets muddy fast! See my last picture after one afternoon of rain.

Take the road right before the paid Pilot Knob area.... if you enter area where it says no free camping you have gone a very short distance to far.

Go to the right and you will see a sign that says public land / camping is 1.6 miles ahead.

Very flat. Lots of room to be by yourself.
Good cell service.

Some broken glass where we were otherwise 5 star all around

The road was an excellent gravel/dirt road in a 40’ Class A. Plenty of space to park. Could see interstate but noise was very low. Saw trains but never heard them.

BUT the Verizon signal was VERY flaky on all three phones (iPhone and Android) Anywhere from nonexistent and 1X to 3 bars LTE for short periods of time. Also roamed to Mexico on one phone (got a text welcoming me to Mexico😳). If you must have signal this may not be a good place for you.