The Helipad Dispersed Camping

Access: About 18 miles from the freeway, all paved until you pull off onto the grounds. Pretty bumpy out there but you can camp pretty much right off the pavement so not a big deal. At the entrance there’s a sign that said mining, almost missed the entrance so keep your eyes out. On the way in there’s a dirt road immediately on the left to get to the sites. I recommend skipping that and turning straight onto the grass past the little clump of trees, as that road has a low hanging branch and a big dip in it. Do not recommend if you have super low clearance.

Site: Large open area on the left when you come in. Straight ahead and to the right was where the ATVs and dirt bikes were playing so you won’t want to set up there. Counted four fire pits in the area on the left, although fires were not allowed when we were there. Did not go further back to see what was there. Great for group camping and any size rig, but again, if you have super low clearance it might be tough. We came in on a Saturday around 8pm and there was nobody there. It was a bit dusty where the riders were, but they were gone once it got dark, and most of the dust dissipated before it got to us as we picked a spot in the back away from them. Lots of space to use our chuck it with the dog. Very clean, seems like campers have been very respectful of the space.

Area: Great area if you have off road toys. Big grassy bumpy fields and surrounded by trees. Would have liked more time to explore, but we just stayed overnight. Beautiful sunset.

Coverage: I was getting 2 bars or less Verizon LTE, but it was pretty slow. Pictures took a long time to load. We couldn’t get any channels with our TV antenna.

We stayed here on a Wednesday and Thursday night, which couldn’t have been more different.

When we pulled in on Wednesday, the area was almost all wide open. Many fire rings showed where others had previously stayed and we grabbed a nice looking spot toward the back. The site was very level and there was some firewood left over from the previous group. It was peaceful, quiet, serene, and we absolutely loved enjoying the nature around us. There was even a flock of sheep grazing in the area, so in the evening we started hearing them move in and soon we were surrounded by hundreds of sheep and a couple of very friendly sheep dogs! Our kids thought that was the coolest thing ever.

After such a fantastic experience, we decided to stay another day. That was a mistake. On Thursday, about 50 new RVs showed up to pack the place full and most of them were towing Jeeps. It was obvious that the Jeep crowd cared nothing for nature and were only there to trash the place and leave. They let their dogs run all over, pooping everywhere and never cleaning it up. They yelled and hollered all throughout the night. Worst of all, they blasted music until the early morning hours. They were as annoying as possible and completely killed the nice vibe from the night before.

My rating of 3 stars is a combination. I would give our Wednesday night 5 stars, but our Thursday night 1 star, for an average of 3 stars. I would ONLY stay again if we were there from Monday through Wednesday.

We did get one bar with Verizon, so there is internet access, but it’s extremely slow.

"The Helipad" is a huge rolling grassy meadow (BLM land), surrounded by tall Ponderosa Pines with a majestic view of the Cascade Mountains. Unfortunately, you won't get any mobile reception in this part of the world.

From Hwy 97 turn onto Liberty Rd and go about 1/2 mile. There is a dirt driveway on the left, with a faded sign for the miners' association marking it. There are no facilities on site, other than a single pit toilet at the farthest edge of the field. Nearest civilization is in either CleElum (20 min. away) or Ellensburg (30 min.)

The field hosts large gatherings of RVs with ATVs of all sorts for exploring the trails. There is a private mining camp located beyond a gate towards one end of the field. Pickup trucks come and go during the day, but nobody ever bothered our two big rigs parked in the vicinity of the gate.

Liberty is a great location for rockhounds going up to Red Top Mountain to hunt for agates and the famed Ellensburg Blue. Anyone would enjoy the view from The Helipad!