Salamander Flat

This is a large gravel lot, with fire rings, but there is no where to pull in for an RV. The fire rings have some tree cover as well as a spot for a tent but RVs have to park alongside several large rocks. There were two more private site tucked away a little further past the vault toilets but were both taken. Some very pretty views on the drive up and from the campground.

You must pay to drive down the road to get to this campground. About $3 for several days unless you have an Annual National Parks Pass.

Loved staying here in early October as the location was great- right in the heart of the beautiful scenic byway. Convenient for exploring the area and tons of hikes around. Not really much privacy if you stay in the main area (directly ahead when you pull in), but we got lucky and snagged the site at the end of the road to the right. The road in (from either direction) is VERY narrow (no middle line) with sharp turns and lots of weekend traffic, so larger rigs beware. Stayed here the first weekend in October and got snowed on, but the aspen trees were stunning.

I went here on a Tuesday night at the beginning of June. This is the best free spot that is close to SLC that I have found. It is up American Fork Canyon about 10 miles, and despite its proximity to SLC, it was at least 10 degrees cooler during the day, and quite chilly at night, while it was in the 90s just 10 miles away. Pine trees everywhere, stunning views, including an overlook spot on the hiking trail just a couple hundred feet from my campsite.

There were not a lot of level parking spots. I had my camper trailer jacked up as high as it would go with plenty of wood and leveling blocks underneath it as well. The spot that I was in had a picnic table, the only one I saw there. It was a fantastic site and could have supported About 3 or 4 tents, if you had a larger group.

There were probably about 15 spots where you could back in a camper and have some reasonable seclusion (the road that goes past the bathrooms leads to more spots and there are places to turn around). I went on a Tuesday night and about half of the sites were taken, so I imagine on the weekend it would be cramped. There is a large gravel area in the middle where you could just line up a bunch of campers if it were full, but there wouldn't be much privacy, shade, or a fire pit.

You have to pay to enter the park if you don't have a national parks pass, it costs $6.

Also the stay limit is now 14 days, not 16.

I loved it there. Might not want to risk it on a weekend though...