Sierra Vista Dispersed Camping

5/5 for the site
4/5 for the people

The view of the Organ Mountains and Tortuga Mountain are stunning. The grounds are very clean. The site is at the head of a trail and there are multiple other trails within driving or biking distance. There are cattle that graze and will come up to the camping area. I absolutely adored them. Gas, supplies, water filling stations and grocery stores like Natural Grocers and Sprouts are a 10/15 minute drive away and downtown is also around that distance. You can see the city lights from the site but you are far enough away to still feel the serenity of the natural setting. This is dry camping and I could not find a dumping station nearby.

If you are looking for solitude, however, I would not recommend this site. Especially if you do not have a vehicle/RV that takes up the entire camp site space. People constantly drive through looking for a spot and will cozy up next to you at all hours of the day and night. There are generators running here and there. I camped in my Prius and at one point had two big rigs next to me. 13 people (two families with young children ) all on one site. It was a practice in patience for me since I was very much looking for quiet and to keep to myself.

The way I tried to look at it was, the land does not belong to me anyway. The beautiful views and proximity to town kept me here.

So simple to access and such a peaceful stay! There are maybe 10 spots that we large enough for our 36’ class a before the trail head. There were a lot of spots for tents, small trailers, etc and the looked like nice level ones. It’s the road that won’t support maneuvering a larger rig. Excellent cell signal with serenity aplenty! It seems like many folks either come for the day and hike then leave or overnight and go early next morning. We hung around about an hour before a truck belonging to ATVers loaded up and vacated our perfect spot

We were lucky enough to get the last real spot in the upper parking area just before the trailhead. Before settling in the spot we attempted to drive the road that goes on after the trailhead parking but turned around after getting stuck in soft sand. We wouldn’t suggest driving that part of the road unless you have 4 wheel drive and/or high clearance.
This is such an amazing place. There are beautiful views of the mountains, a vibrant sunset and free range cows wandering in the field. If we had more time we would stay longer and take advantage of the hiking and biking trails.

I was intending to go to Baylor dispersed camping but found this on my way. Coming into the trail head there are several level, developed and graded campsites. Most of these were taken up by large motorhomes or large trailers. So I continued past the trail head, through the wash, up a steep pitch that was quite rutted. I used four-wheel-drive on my truck just to be on the safe side. But once I had come through that there were several places along this more primitive road, which is basically an extension of the road to the trail head. I would not recommend this section of road to anything other than a truck or van.

Fantastic views of the mountains and to the west, the lights of Las Cruces at night were beautiful! Great location for heading to White Sands early the next morning.

The mountain bike trail is about a six or 8 mile loop of pretty mellow but beautiful riding.

What a spot. Beautiful area with views of the Organ Mts absolutely spectacular. Extremely friendly Rangers that come through everyday before dawn.

Zero amenities but you you can get water down the road (3mins) near the ranger station and dump about 25mins down the Hwy at Leasburg Dam State Park for $5 bucks and fill fresh water as well.

My buddy and I hiked the Organ Mt aka the Needle and was one of the best difficult hikes for me up to date absolutely breathtaking!

Totally free, super nice and clean as a whistle. If you want to stay on the area longer than 14days you can go to the other side of town and boondock at Prehistoric Trail, also an awesome free spot and closer to the state park to dump! 😊

Enjoy!

I happened to find the rusty nail capital of Las Cruces... I found the one spot in this dispersed Camping location where someone either dumped a drawer full of nails or a flood washed construction waste into this one spot. I parked/camped at the square lot near the trailhead before the 4wd road starts and after setting up camp I discovered/counted over 150 long bent nails hidden in the gravel/dirt I just drove over... I cleaned up what I could with magnets, but I'll be going to the Discount Tires tomorrow to patch any nail holes in my tires :(

But despite the nails, I would recommend this spot - just maybe park in a different spot.

Very nice view, spots are nice size. Problem is there are only like 8 or so designated spots for campers / motor coach’s. There are more spots but must have off road vehicle and just for tents. If you get a spot, you will love this place. It snowed on the mountains during our stay. With the price of free, it’s a perfect place to visit for a few days.

Scored the last spot near the entrance. This BLM land is very limiting as far a how many rigs could fit but a variety camping here - vans, travel vans, travel trailers, and a 5th wheel. Caution if you are a large rig driving in, the turn around can be very tight if the parking area near the trail head already has parked vehicles. Good idea to get a satellite view so you get a lay of the road. Very quiet here and beautiful views of both sunrise and sunset. Dry camping, pack in and pack out. The town is a easy 7 miles away with everything you need. Great dog park in town to let your pup socialize and run.