Recapture Reservoir Dispersed Camping

We took the Radio Hill road on the south side of reservoir- not the dirt track right next to the reservoir. Glad we did because Radio Road is paved all the way to the water and we are in 25’ Class C towing a jeep. Still snow on the ground in patches and the dirt areas off the paved road are too soft for us. Parked on flat area by the dumpster and outhouse (both are pretty disgusting at this time). We saw two truck campers and a van camping on the south side. No one else camped on our side, but a few vehicles drove by. Nice looking area.

We arrived Sunday May 1. The entry road finishes at the boat launch/lake. (It’s evident the road, prior to the building of the dam, continued across to the opposite shore.) There is a substantial area on the right, with a garbage dumpster, where one could turn around. An almost equally large area is to the left. We parked our 35’ 5th Wheel, to the right of the sign, to scout the area. There is a network of sandy, dirt roads fronting the lake and into the hillside. We ended up traversing the road closest to the lake to a very wide area, across from a picnic table, with a beautiful view of the lake. It was evident this was a campsite, as it had a fire ring. Over the course of the 3 days we stayed various campers came and went; one mid-size trailer, several car campers and a Class C.
Daily a number of fishermen launched boats or simply fished from the shore. We launched our kayak and explored the lake. This is a lovely asset and super convenient to enjoy Blanding’s amenities. Unfortunately, the dumpster was full to overflowing when we arrived on a Sunday afternoon. Not sure who is responsible or how frequent garbage collection is scheduled, but it was sad to see the bags pecked open and garbage spread by birds.
Cell Coverage: Our ATT hot spot had marginal coverage (better during the day).
If you need to do laundry One Stop Laundry in Blanding was superb. The cleanest, updated, well-run laundromat we’ve been in during our past year traveling the country. Clark’s Market was equally impressive and well stocked. We filled up our propane tank at the Sinclair.
We did take time to explored the scout the opposite shore (BulldogRoad Dospersed), for future boondocking options. The access road is barricaded 2/3’s down the hill to the shoreline, with a dumpster as a part of the blockade. A rough dirt road skirts around and we observed a few cars negotiating to get to the shoreline. Low hanging tree would preclude big rigs.

We stayed at this campsite after just leaving another campsite due to it not being what we expected, so we didn't have too high expectations for this site but it turned out to be great. It's not too far from the main road which is nice, but getting to each of the campsites was a little bumpy and we had to maneuver our campervan a little bit in order to get us flat, but we made it work.

A nice fire ring where we were able to build a fire, and bins where you can drop in your trash & recycling. No other facilities. We did spend some time at the "beach" where it was nice to be able to look into the water. We arrived about 4pm, but after that, it got quite busy. Seems like there were a few people who were there long term (longer than 1-2 weeks), but can't confirm since we only stayed there a night. After you get off the main road, we got no service with Verizon.

Human/pet feces and toilet paper all over the camping areas, people's dogs barking and running loose. No one including San Juan Sheriffs office practice social distancing or wear mask. If you are an at risk person and understand the reality of Covid-19. You`'ll definitely want to stay away. Teenagers party near the southeast of the lake, but really never bother anyone since the access right off the highway. Butler Wash and South Cottonwood Canyon right off US 95 much better and worth the extra drive. Bridges N.P is even futher, but there are very clean bathrooms with water. The campgrounds are closed, but primitive camping outside the park is near buy.

Free camping at its best! We have a 37' 5th wheel, only 3 sites will fit a rig this size smaller units will have plenty of nice spots to choose from. Easy access off a paved road to the boat ramp, we stayed next to it with little noise, there are trash dumpsters and a vault toilet. I had a great time fishing and just enjoying the area. We had no cell service with Verizon had to go to the end of the road to get service.

No toilet / no water / no bathroom sink / no shower / no table / rocks fire pit / easy access / middle shade.

We arrives at midnight and it was a little bit scaring - why there is so much horror movie with "reservoir"?! -. So, we don't really find a good place for a tent, but it was convenient, road is paved, and you can swim on morning, water was clean (a "swimmer club" came to swim), and had good temperature. It's a beautiful place to stop on road and swim (what a pleasure!) but arrive during day to have a good spot (tent) because there are not so easy to catch. We stayed there beginning of July.