Sunset Reef Campground BLM | Established Campground

October 30th, 2023 by Live Wyers

Fantastic little campground that filled up. Flat, Clean, Free.

October 2nd, 2023 by jilleelkema

Very clean; shade coverings over every picnic table. Cement pads under every table made for a handy place to organize gear. Gorgeous sunrise! No wildlife except for birds and a small tarantula!….

April 30th, 2023 by janed9640

This campground is not far from the highway and easy to access. It’s relatively flat with a toilet and a few picnic tables. We pulled in close to 8:00 pm. All the official sites were taken but there was plenty of room for us along the rail. The maximum number of nights one could stay here is 5 nights and we stayed for two nights.

April 28th, 2023 by fragrantfield

PLEASE REMOVE THIS POST
was told by a Ranger at Carlsbad Visitors Center that it was cool to camp here. Just a cleared fenced “day use” park with picnic tables and a pit toilet. Sign at the entrance says it’s maintained by BLM. I’ll let you know in the morning how it went. I’m the only one here at 4:30pm.

April 10th, 2023 by lorriam

Nice free BLM campground with covered picnic tables and fire rings. Has very clean vault toilet.

March 9th, 2023 by swoop711

As described. Packed. Lots of spaces but all filled. I was lucky that someone was leaving as I got here for an open spot. I think it might be noisy tonight because several people using their generators but I didn’t want to keep heading south risking not having a spot at another place

T-Mobile 2 bars

March 3rd, 2023 by A sudden leap into boondocking

Sites fill up fast and though the sign says that you must Park in a actual site there are many people around the edges. Stay limit to 5 days. Very peaceful for as crowded as it was. If you like to hike this is a wonderful place head off towards the Guadalupe Mountains and the Black River it is amazing.

February 20th, 2023 by akashasearcey

Awesome campground. Free for five days. Decent Verizon service. Pit toilet super clean. Lots of people here.

December 17th, 2022 by tyler.oneal

Wow! Awesome free space close to Carlsbad Caverns National Park! Excellent place!

November 30th, 2022 by VanpeDiem

Second year to stay here. Pleasant both times.

November 23rd, 2022 by ajmhikes

A fairly nice place. We stayed multiple nights. The place fills up at night, but mostly empties out each day. Saw the occasional park ranger pull through. 5 pull-through spots & 5 smaller tent sites, all with picnic tables and fire rings. Good view of the reef.

November 6th, 2022 by mirogintz

Came in last night, it was full! But with my van, I was able to park by the fence facing north. Real nice. Took pic of sundown. I decided to stay out for today then visit cavern on Monday to avoid the crowd. I would come back again. Nice!!!

June 9th, 2022 by haileycshager

Nice spot, only 3 other cars on a Wednesday night. The toilet was swarmed with dozens of flies, completely unusable with them coming in and out of it.

May 30th, 2022 by brawoweb

There is no dump station

May 30th, 2022 by brawoweb

Nice site. We enjoyed our visit. We can recommend it.

May 5th, 2022 by adam.talajkowski

Good little corral camping area. 12 designated sites but plenty of room around the outside of the fence to park if you're late to arrive. Pit toilets were clean. Quiet when we were there.

April 10th, 2022 by bm.aroundtheworld

We stayed 4 nights here, very nice Campground, but you have to be lucky to get one of the 6 rv spot with table and BBQ.. Very busy place, with lot of generators! Rule say they have to be off from 10pm to 7am! You can stay max 5 days. Very clean toilets. Good t-mobile service.
Bm.aroundtheworld from Switzerland

March 28th, 2022 by skwerl81

Last review is correct- NO dump station! only pit toilet

March 24th, 2022 by skwerl81

Super busy by evening but several tent sites were open when I arrived around 4pm on a Thursday. Seems like a good spot and for good reason - shaded picnic tables with grills and fire pits, and super clean pit toilet with light provided. Just don't expect too much privacy and know that it's damn near impossible to stake a tent into the gravel

March 14th, 2022 by marlenekarmstrong

Entrance to the campground is off Washington Ranch Road. (Large red sign saying Washington Ranch Park marks the entrance off the highway) Easy access, however we got there too late. We rolled in at 6:45PM on a Sunday. Every spot was taken and some vans parked along the perimeter fencing (not in designated camping spots). Some campers were even camped along the road to the site. If you stay here, expect to be VERY close to your neighbors and only one pit toilet.

March 3rd, 2022 by kktorr2

Great spot. We got there at 11am on a Friday and it was already crowded but we found a spot along the fence. By 4pm people were coming in and turning around because there was no space left. It was very quiet, great views, everyone was very nice. We didn’t use the toilets but the trash can was closed up and couldn’t be used. Just be sure to get there early!

February 26th, 2022 by csmaglis

We stayed here 4 nights. We stayed here last year, and since then they've added nice firepit and grills to all the RV and tent sites. Toilet is always clean and stocked with toilet paper. If the spots are full, just park around the perimeter.

February 26th, 2022 by csmaglis

There is no dump station at Sunset Reef. There is one at the RV park in White City.
There is a vault toilet at Sunset Reef that you can dump your pee jugs or cassettes. Otherwise, NO DUMP STATION HERE.

February 10th, 2022 by katebirbilis

Great, free spot! We stayed here for 2 nights. Spots fill up quickly, but there are more spots across the street ( without facilities).

Each spot has a picnic table, BBQ, and for pit. There’s a pit toilet too.

Close to Carlsbad Caverns NP. Gas is a few miles away, along with some facilities ( restaurant, showers, post office, etc) at a one stop town called White’s City.

The GPS coordinates are accurate. Go past miles marker 11 ( on National Parks Highway South). Pull into the area that says ‘Historical Marker’ and go down the road that says Washington Ranch Road. Take the first right, which is a dirt road. You’ll get to the campsite at the end of that road.

February 10th, 2022 by katebirbilis

The front desk said that they have a dump station on site. The cost is $15.00.

January 30th, 2022 by 2peace4love

No sign on the main road but it was not difficult to find. We pulled in at night and were fortunate to get a designated spot. It is popular spot. Very nice campground.

January 29th, 2022 by juliakc1117

Awesome place! The bathroom was clean and nice. People were nice. Awesome views. Close to Carlsbad and Guadalupe. Couldn’t ask for more!

January 20th, 2022 by mrudoma

As described, very nice primitive campground, decent number of people but plenty of space and nice neighbors, quiet and peaceful, full ATT service cleanest pit toilet I have ever seen

January 8th, 2022 by butterz457

Very clean and quiet. Pit toilets were clean as well. Every site has a grill and fire pit. wasn't full in evening but by morning it was pretty full. but this is peak time of year here. can get windy.

January 3rd, 2022 by hare_s

What a great spot. All picnic areas full so we just parked along fence. Great views.

December 30th, 2021 by Kevin Stotz

nice close corners camp ground. the entrance is unmarked, but the directions have been given above. toilets, picnic tables and all.

December 29th, 2021 by kelsietravers

Super crowded. Lots of people overflowing to the sides and just camping by the fence, but everyone was nice and respectful when we were there. Toilets clean. Very convenient to Guadalupe mountains and Carlsbad caverns.

December 8th, 2021 by howmuch4ribs

Got lucky and scored the last pull through site on a Wednesday in December. Nicest free campground I’ve been to, very clean, garbage, toilets, and all for the price of free! Would come back in a heartbeat.

November 4th, 2021 by thirtyeyes

Nice place. Early November and packed but there’s room at the fence for everyone. Get here early if you want an established site. 5 day limit so I bet slow turn for table sites.

May 10th, 2021 by youtube.com

Stayed here a couple times in april. Beautiful spot. We stayed by the fence. Pit toilets and trash available. Be advised it gets very very windy. Check weather before you come as it can get very hot. No trees or shade. There is some shade where picnic tables are of the campsite spots. (Those get taken quickly)

April 26th, 2021 by nspiher

Campground full of RVs last night. 5 official pull through RV spots were occupied. 10 unofficial spots on the camground periphery were occupied. There was one tent camper and one van-lifer at the 5 tent sites. View of Guadalupe mountains is lovely. Best free campsite in the area in my opinion. The pit toilets were clean but my teenager says they stink and are hot. Campground was mellow during the day and silent during quiet hours 10pm - 7am. We had one bar of reception AT&T. Stayed for 2 days

April 15th, 2021 by ggbearandthevanlair.com

Stayed 1 night here & really enjoyed it! The RV & tent areas were both full - but a few of us little vans parked along the perimeter. Had cell service (Verizon) & couldn’t hear highway noise. Oh & the vault toilet was a L U X U R Y.

April 2nd, 2021 by siemprevagabundos

Access from County Road 418, then first turn on the right.

February 19th, 2021 by Mike

We spent one night here before visiting the cavers. It was mostly empty and very quiet. The vault toilet was clean and we had a nice sunset. There was a host on site.

January 22nd, 2021 by mdemmons

Sunset Reef Campground is fairly new. It has space for several tents and 5 RV pull-throughs. There are no connections here for water, sewer, or electricity. Each site has a grill, a covered picnic table, and a trash bin. There is a vault toilet on-site.

You can't see this campground from the highway, as it is blocked by a small hill. Turn at the Washington Ranch Road and take the first right into the campground.

You may stay here up to 5 nights. Then you have to move 25 miles away.

November 3rd, 2020 by LtMaintain&TheDoc

Established campground with 6 tent sites and 5 pull through trailer sites. No water but does have a vault toilet. Nice concrete pads with picnic tables and roofs to keep the sun off. Absolutely gorgeous sunsets over the Guadeloupe mountains with the Carlsbad Caverns visitor center off in the distance. Each tent site has fire pits and everywhere has a charcoal grill. Not a lot of firewood in the area though. Free of charge and 100% worth the stop. For some reason I couldn't change the stars but I'd give it 3.5-4/5 for tent camping.