Proctor Road Designated Dispersed Camping

I went mid March and mid week hoping to get a spot at the NPS campground (Bog Springs) but it was fully booked despite early arrival. In the end I was glad it was booked because it forced me to try this Boondocking spot that was far superior to the NPS campground. The NPS campground has no hookups and the spaces are very close together and only accommodates small rigs. This Boondocking spot was much better with sites spaced far apart and a beautiful view of Green Valley. The access road starts out with a few tight turns and big dips so it might be difficult to access in a rig longer than 24-26 feet. I was in a 21 foot van and had no difficulty. I had a good signal with Visible and was able to access streaming and was even able to get many TV channels using my antenna. The road is dirt and the sites are dirt with some straw/hay. It was easy to find a spot that was fairly level. There are lots of small trees and brush, enough to provide some shade outside of the rig but the trees were too low to shade the rig, so plenty of sunshine for solar if needed. There were some fire rings with evidence that people did make campfires here, but I would not personally feel safe making a campfire due to the amount of very dry brush in the area. There is plenty of hiking and easy access to the creek since this campsite is very close to the Proctor trailhead.

The road was fine for our Subaru Outback and 17' camper - just take it slow. We had no trouble crossing the creek and getting down/up the hill. We didn't scout for a spot ahead of time and I didn't want to rattle the camper too much so we took the spot right after the first cattle guard. I wouldn't recommend large rigs here. The site would probably be too tight. Overall the road is fine after the creek and you don't need 4WD. Our other vehicle we took back here is a Toyota Matrix.

- FREE w/ Annual "America the Beautiful" pass
- The site was riddled with trash and empty beer cans. I'm not sure if this is n Arizona thing, but in Colorado where we're originally from the majority of folks respect the land and pack out their trash.
- The site is near a path that takes you to the creek/waterfall! You can also hear it from the site. Wonderful!
- Lots of cars passing by on this road during the day. Dust is an issue.
- Expect people to occasionally come through your campsite. People get turned-around on the trails and a couple of them lead right to this site.
- Quiet at night.
- Overlooks the valley.
- Got great cell service here.
- No dump station.
- You will need to level your rig.

I think I have it figured out. The camping on Proctor Rd is free but you need to register. There’s a $8.00 day fee but if you have one of several passes, it’s free. They do have numbers at the sites but I think it’s more to control where people camp to add some organization.

Now on to the review of getting in here. Don’t do what I did. I was looking at so many different sites in the Tucson area that I forgot about the no large rigs warning. I managed to get a one ton dually, crew cab pickup with a 37’ fifth wheel and the rear 3’ extended platform into site #5 with just a little damage to the overhang on the fifth wheel. DON’T DO WHAT I DID. I have 14 years of experience driving semi’s in the US and Canada.

It’s a beautiful area and quiet except for the party across the road in site #6. They did tone it down after an hour or two and just enjoyed their campfire and talking.

A friend that lives in the area warned me that there are black bears, mountain lions and coyotes in the area so watch out for you and your pets. I found some bits of broken glass but overall the sites look clean.

I marked that I wouldn’t camp here again but that’s because it’s definitely not large rig friendly.

This is not a free campground! There are clearly posted signs everywhere that read $8 per day or $10 per week. Disappointingly, it seems many people ignored the fee. There is a self pay station in Proctor parking lot right before turning onto Proctor road. Drive in to find your campsite (if any available!) and return to the pay station to complete registration. There is space on the envelope to write your campsite number and license plate number. Do not camp in areas that aren't clearly marked with a campsite number. There were 12 clearly marked sites. They are spaced out really well.
Weekend warriors abound here. If you are seeking quiet solitude, come during weekdays. On Saturday there were non-stop vehicles driving through the campground looky-looing. Also, a group of people decided to use Proctor road as an OHV area on Saturday, driving their dirt bikes and ATV up and down the campground road ALL. DAY. LONG. Back and forth, morning to night. It was beyond stupid and lacking consideration for everyone else to say the least. Another large group used one of the campsites for day use. They were dressed in camo and carrying guns. Not sure what that was about as signs posted everywhere said No Hunting. Quite a bit of trash floating around. We picked up everything in our vicinity and frowned at another group which left their pop up trash bin spill over all around their campsite over 24+ hours.
Madera Canyon wilderness is a beautiful and magical place! Sadly, the two year AZ drought has hit this area hard. Unfortunately the creek and waterfall are no longer flowing through the campground. There is still plenty of wildlife to enjoy. We spotted javalina in the campground and deer and wild turkeys in the the hiking and recreation area. Cows and their accompanying pies are everywhere.

The entrance is intimidating, but the road evens out after that. Camped in a 30ft Class C about half a mile from main road. We found a spot to turn around and then backed into another site closer to the main road that worked for our size rig.
The low trees in the area offer a feeling of isolation and privacy, even with other campers 100 yards away. We found some broken glass and other trash around the site, but wasn’t terrible.

This is normally the kind of camp I wouldn’t review for fear of drawing too much attention, but from my experience, the secret’s out.

There are 12 sites, some big some small. Barely a drive to various hiking trails in Madera, or plenty of paths to explore from camp. A short walk behind the right camps leads you to a large stream (the same one you’ll drive through to enter) which was great for the dogs on hot days.

I drive a van pulling a trailer. No 4wd. I was fine. Don’t let the entry scare ya. Verizon 2 bars 4g. Sometimes a little fickle at my site but I was nestled against the hills. Overall the area had good coverage.

Free range cattle and deer everywhere. Spotted a pack of javelina once way off the beaten path. No other wildlife to speak of. One of my favorite things was an unusual lack of bugs. Door wide open, no problem.

You’ll drive a half hour for any conveniences, but that’s typical. It’s a popular place. Other than a few weekdays, most sites were occupied. My biggest beef is that during my 14 day stay, four different groups of campers took the liberty to share my site and only one had the decency to ask if it was cool. As a full-timer, I spend entire days sometimes hunting for a good secluded spot. It’s pretty offensive when someone squats and strips that away out of laziness.

Anyway, you don’t care about that. Loved this place. If you’re browsing sites, give it a shot.