Easy Vast Desert Camping Near Safford | Tanque Road

There are a number of great options to choose from for dispersed camping near Safford. Choose from vast desert camping on Tanque Road and Hackle Road to dispersed or developed camping near Mount Graham in Coronado National Forest. Since winter was approaching at the time that we were looking for camping near Safford, we decided to stay at lower elevation and found a nice spot camping on Tanque Road. If you’re looking for an accessible, quiet place to camp with vast desert views then read on!

Quick Info: Camping Near Safford

Cost: Free

Ownership: BLM; 14 day limit

Directions: From Safford, follow the US-191 S for about 16 miles then turn left onto Tanque Road. There are several dispersed camp spots along this road.

Solar: Great

Miles From Town: About 17 miles from Safford

Water: None

Road Conditions: The dirt road is in good condition

Cell Service: Yes

Our Experience Camping Near Safford

We were eager to leave the cold Flagstaff temperatures behind as we headed south. But besides that we were in no hurry with nowhere in particular to go when we found dispersed camping near Safford. We decided to stop and camp on Tanque Road for a few days and enjoy the warm weather and desert views.

As we turned onto Tanque Road, we found the dirt road was in great shape. We chose the first turn out as it seemed the vistas wouldn’t change much no matter which spot we chose. After exploring the area a bit, we found that just a little bit further there are a couple other camp spots on Tanque Road. But as we walked further we didn’t see many others. Though we have read that Tanque Road is a long road so there are likely many other camp spots further in. But if you’re camping near Safford with a rig, the first few spots might be your best options.

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From our spot, we had panoramic views of the vast desert with Mount Graham to the west. The sunsets were varied yet beautiful every night while we were camping near Safford. And the stars were pretty good here too!

While we were here, there was a little bit of traffic coming and going on most days but we only saw one other camper on our last day here. But we did see several tarantulas and a diversity of cool cacti.

Camping near Safford on Tanque Road didn’t give us a whole lot of exploring to do from home. But we did walk several miles around our camp spots and enjoyed the peaceful scenery. And luckily, we did have service here so we were able to get some work done while enjoying the great weather.

All in all, camping near Safford was a nice place to spend a few days camping in the desert. We enjoyed the accessibility, the scenery, the weather and the peace and quiet.

Thanks for Reading!

If you would like to read about more of our boondocking experiences, check out the articles below:

• Camping on Kebler Pass Road
• Dispersed Camping Near Quincy
• Free Camping Near Flagstaff
• Camping near Camp Verde

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