Sand Mine Road

We tried to get a spot in Valley of Fire after spending a week at Lake Mead. Well, that was not gonna happen, the parks there are not on reservation and extremely popular, so we decided to camp just outside the park and go back in later. We first stopped at Snowbird Mesa and Poverty Flats but man, was it crowded there! We backtracked a bit and chose Sand Mine Road and are so very glad we did. We found an area with only a few large rigs and were going to pull off when one of the campers came to us and told us they stop here all the time and that the road is really good for a mile or so with lots of options farther down. We appreciated this news and went all the way to a mesa just before the gravel road becomes rough and narrow and starts to wind down into the small canyon. We had 360 degree views of mountains and valleys (and of Snowbird Mesa on the other side of the canyon, haha) but in all, there were only two other folks on our section and each were a minimum of a football field away. Anyway. whether you stay closer to the highway or take the mile or so of the road farther, there is a lot of room for any sized rig.
We pulled off the road in a huge, flat and easy to level gravel area. It was windy for two of our days, but typical of the Nevada desert so we didn't mind. Overton was about 4 miles farther north on highway 169 for supplies or gas and there is the Lost City Museum if you want to check that out too. Extremely quiet, great sunsets, easy access to both Lake Mead and Valley of Fire for hiking, good UTV trails as you head toward Overton (Lake Mead and Valley of Fire do not allow off road travel) with canyons and valleys to ride through.
One note, if you are coming from Lake Mead and heading North, the road and sign are hard to see as they are on the right side of the road as you make a turn. Easier to see the entrance heading South on the left of the road, just pay attention, I found the coordinates listed here to be right on the money and google got us there no problem.

This is a delightful location, with an expansive view down into the Moapa Valley and the mountains beyond, and a clear view of the confluence of the Virgin and Muddy Rivers. It's close to Valley of Fire State Park, the Lake Mead NRA north entrance, St. Thomas ghost town and the excellent Lost City Museum. It's about a mile from Snowbird Mesa (aka Poverty Flats), and much quieter. When there were 4 other RVs here on the weekend, I drove over to Snowbird Mesa and counted 45.

There is a sign at the entrance that says "4x4 recommended", but the road through the camping area is excellent, with no sand, rocks or potholes. It is suitable for any rig. You only need 4x4 to go down into the canyon, or past the end of the camping area.

Campsites along the main road go in for 1.2 miles, with mostly-small canyon rim sites on the left, and much larger sites on the right. After the last site, the road goes down the hill, becomes definitely 4x4, and is partially washed out in places. There is a right fork off the main road at the power lines, which has one large site and then ends at a locked gate. There is a right turn off the main road at 1.1 miles, with a few sites followed by a "Property boundary. No motorized vehicles" sign at 0.3 mile.

I camped on the right just past the power lines (coords in site # above). The site was large, hard, flat and almost level. There was no trash. A burro family came to visit, there were a few big flies, and on some evenings, mosquitoes. I guess they were being blown up from the rivers when there was an east wind. Verizon 4G was excellent, with 5 bars, 22 Mps down and 11 Mpbs up.

Hwy 169 goes south only to Lake Mead NRA and Valley of Fire. Commercial vehicles are prohibited in both, so traffic was light and very quiet. The Lake Mead gate was not even manned - vehicles drove straight through.

There is nothing much in Overton, except for the Lost City Museum. There is free water and a free dump station at Echo Bay Upper Campground (at 36.3083,-114.4349). I checked the price at the Echo Bay gas station (down near the water), and it was 5 cents cheaper than in Overton. I couldn't find anywhere local to get a propane fill, so I got a fill at Pioneer Storage in Mesquite when I went there to Walmart.

For just an overnight I'd maybe go to Snowbird Mesa because it's just easier. This location is generally breezy with frequent high winds. Most sites are within the first 1/2 mile though the road is okay a mile deep. Go too far and reversing course might be difficult for RVs. Overton is very limited, but the grocery store is decent. The only fuel option (Maverick) is a tight squeeze for larger rigs.

Sand Mine Road is on the other side of a hill from popular Snowbird Mesa. Because the sites are smaller and the road a bit rougher, it doesn’t have nearly the crowding of Snowbird Mesa and has an equally beautiful view.

The area is close to Route 169 which makes for a quick and easy trip into Overton for supplies, though it does mean you’ll hear some road noise.

There is some trash and broken glass around. Our dog, taking his morning walk, found a pile of what looked like dog food and snagged a few pieces before we caught him. It turned out to be human grade potassium supplements, which quickly had us rushing toward Las Vegas for a vet. This isn’t to suggest that Sand Mine Road is covered in pills - it’s not - but a reminder to watch out for what people have left behind.

We camped here due to the amazing location just minutes outside of Valley of Fire State Park. There is plenty of room with lots of spots (some with fire rings) along this road. We chose a spot on the edge of a bluff/cliff which had great views. There were other RVers around which made us feel safe, but far enough away that we had privacy. Great spot!

The major negative was that we were there during a wind advisory with gusts of wind up to 60mph. This made our last 2 days and night pretty miserable as there is little protection from the wind and the dust/sand was sandblasting the Airstream. We had sand everywhere! We ended up leaving a couple of days early because of the wind but we'd definitely camp there again (next time we'll check the wind forecast).

We were here: 36.4726, -114.4404

We live in Vegas so this is on our favorite weekend getaway spots because we can get there in 90 minutes from our house, it's free, the cell service is strong, and we're never close to another camper. Last fall (October 2016) we even held a rally here for our Las Vegas Airstream Club - there was plenty of room for 7 trailers at one of the spots near the power line.

The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is that you do get a bit of road noise (not bad, but it reminds you you're not completely alone) and you often see planes overhead. On the plus side, you're less than 10 minutes from Overton if you need to get any supplies, including propane and a dump station.

There's nice hiking in the canyon below the camping area and you're only minutes from Valley of Fire State Park for more great hiking.

This Boondocking area holds a very special place in my heart. During a much needed getaway time back in April 2010 I boonddocked there overnight in my Nissan Sentra car right next to the bluff. Since then, I have revisited the area several times. And, most recently I drove there in my jeep with two of my granddaughters and we did a little off-road Jeeping.

There are many places along Sand Mine Road to Boondock and still have lots of privacy. Whereas these are unmarked sites, some have fire rings which may or may not be permissible. It is also likely that previous visitors will have left some of their debris. This always is unfortunate but a sad reality in our country's fabulous Boondocking areas.

Cell service with Verizon was iffy. Access off the main road, which is paved, is the rocky dirt road which is bumpy.

A delightful small town called Overton, Nevada, is north of this area about 7 to 10 miles. There's a really nice little ice cream shop that we have visited several times over the years. Overton has a grocery store, a couple of service stations, a hardware store, family dollar store and a few other eating establishments that are dotted along the Main Street. There is an established RV campground and a mobile home/Good Sam park. Just south of Overton is the Lost City Museum and is well worth a visit.

in addition to our usual ice cream stop, we also stop in front of the old army tank that sets out near the street just north of town. This is one of our fun photo ops!!

Traveling south of Sand Mine Road Boondocking area is the east entrance to the beautiful Valley of Fire which is Nevada's most famous State Park. Apparently so beautiful and famous that movies have been filmed there! There are two established campgrounds within Valley of Fire. I have tent camped in one of those.

Continuing south past the East gate entrance to the Valley of Fire is Lake Mead which part of the National Park Service. There are numerous Boondocking areas there as well as established campgrounds. Eventually the road leads to either Boulder City, Hoover Dam, Henderson or Las Vegas, Nevada.

In conclusion, Sand Mine Road boondocking area is one of my all-time favorite places. It is beautiful, quiet and situated close to so many other interesting areas. I will continue sharing this ruggedly beautiful and peaceful area with friends and family. And, now that I have a motorhome and can travel, I will do extended stays in one of these sites - most likely again near the bluff!

The proximity to one of the most beautiful and unique state parks in the country, Valley of Fire, make this a great spot. Overton sucks, there is nothing there really except a small, expensive grocery, a McDonalds and a laundromat that is closed, but there is a fantastic amount of free camping. Skip past the overly crowded Snowbird Messa (Poverty Flats) another 1/4 mile to find Sand Mine Road. This is a much better option than there, I'm really surprised it has 5 star reviews. There's tons more space and privacy here. Most importantly its less than 5 minutes to get into Valley of Fire. Beautiful sunsets and LTE are a plus as well.

Hoped to stay at Valley of Fire but the park's campgrounds were full and they directed us this way. Easy access off the highway - well graded dirt road. Quickly found a large site and parked because we didn't know what was further up the road. Our site had some trash strewn about and some road noise, but it was pretty far from any neighbors. We walked the road a bit after setting up and the other sites were cleaner. Easy access to Valley of Fire, private sites, and beautiful views! Would definitely stay again!