Somewhere between Natural Bridges NP and Lake {Powell (Hite UT) there is a sign to turn off for a Historical Marker. On that turnoff there is at least one really quite nice place to camp. There was already a fire ring, so I know it's OK! A couple of miles south of the Jacobs Chair sign.
Right on the Umpqua, at the very edge of the little hamlet of Oakland OR. It's small so it could fill up fast, but darn it's a sweet little spot tucked away in an unlikely part of Oregon. I came here on an August Friday and it was FULL. It's a perfect place to go tubing on the river, so I'm (sad but) not surprised.
Lovely, quiet campground in an amazing location, tucked in a little valley six miles south of Winnemucca. You can hike up,up,up the creek, or hike up the side if the hill for an epic view north to the Jackson Mountains.
Very nice campground, the local Boy Scouts added amenities. It is the most deluxe BLM campground I've ever seen. Showers even! There is apparently a waterfall a mile or so up the hill across the road.
One of two large campgrounds on the north side of New Melones Lake. This side of the lake is apparently the poor relation, because they've locked the bathrooms for the season. One must drive 20 minutes back to Tuttletown for the advertised shower facility.
Heading north out of Moab, take a left before the Colorado River and head upstream. There are a string of BLM campgrounds along the river. This is the third one, about six miles out. It is three sections, the pay station is in the middle. A campsite consists of a picnic table and a fire pit close to a busy road, that's it. But you are on the Colorado River!
Twelve miles north of the town of Green River, on the Green River. A nice swimming beach, boat ramp, dramatic formations of the Book Cliffs in all directions.
Adventurous spirit and 2 bumpy miles of gravel pays off! All to myself on this warm Friday night. Beautiful spacious canyon and a fast flowing river. Reminds me very much of the river and canyon outside Yakima WA. Similar climate and similar geology (400' thick basalt lava flows as far as the eye can see). We are on the Deschutes River - a Wild and Scenic River at this point, right across the river from the Warm Springs Indian Reservation.
One of three large campgrounds on the south side of New Melones Lake. I've also been to Big Oak on the northern side.
Allstays calls this Poverty Flats, and the area across the road Snowbird Mesa. That's too cheesy for me. They both are large, flat parking areas, one on each side of Nevada 169 about 4 miles south of Overton. Evidently anybody can park wherever they want for as long as they want. It's very nice!
Right on the mighty Colorado River. Small, seven sites, a picnic area, and a boat ramp. Oh, and the ruins of the historically interesting Dewey Bridge across the road. pretty and quiet (at least the night I was here)
didn't stay here, but looks real nice, on a point of land jutting into the reservoir. There is also private camping for $6 all over the place, where you can camp right up to the water's edge
Very hot here. But it's a dry heat. The lake sounds kind of underwhelming from the BLM page, but there is a boat ramp and picnic area which looks like it has the best morning shade in this whole godforsaken acreage. The actual campground is a few hundred yards up the road before the boat launch. Once the sun got low it was really very pleasant there. Hawks and owls hanging out in the tree at my campsite!
The BLM campground is closed for the season, so I pressed on to the free camping along the shore. Pretty cool! I'll bet it would be really buggy in the summer. The lake level is very low and the last 50 yards or so of shoreline is quite boggy and churned up by the cows, so there really isn't a "beach" per se to get to, but it is a very pretty, quiet stop for tonight in any event.
Pleasant but boring BLM campground a couple of miles west of the tiny town of Junction City. Lots of road noise. A particularly boring stretch of the Feather River is right across the highway.
A nice free campground on the side of the glacial slope about ten miles north of Bishop. Pretty rough gravel spots running for some distance along lovely Horton Creek
Set up as a horse camp, but regular horse-less citizens can camp here also. Plenty of horse shit around, so it appears that horse people do use it!
5 miles east of US 101, great find when the beach campgrounds are full on Saturday night.
Close to Lone Pine, really excellent view of Owens Valley south over dry Owens Lake, The last 2 miles have many brutal diagonal speed bumps, beware!
One more in the string of handy, heavily used campgrounds up the Colorado River on Utah 128 from Moab. This one is past Drinks Canyon CG, and right before Big Bend CG. It's very small, 7 sites. So named I think, because sites 6 and 7 re hidden away in a little grove of scrub oak.
A real find! About a mile off Route 123, at the deserted top end of Eagle Lake. Its a beautiful scrub and pine forest looking out over the lake and the wide valley. Pretty close to Susanville.