AtoZ Bucket List
"Where have you been?"
Abandoned & Ghost Towns
Ancient Ruins
Caves
Desert
Forest
Historical
Hot Springs
Lakes & Rivers
National & State Parks
Peaks
Desert
The Sonoran Desert is one of the most diverse and visually striking landscapes on earth, and we've barely scratched the surface of what's out there. Box canyons, boulder fields, towering saguaros, and wide open bajadas — the desert has its own rhythm if you slow down enough to notice it. This section covers the places that belong to the low desert with some great desert camping.
Apache Trail (Davis Wash)
Davis Wash along the Apache Trail (AZ-88) near Apache Lake in the Tonto National Forest is one of the most scenic and accessible dispersed camping areas in the greater Phoenix area — a rugged desert canyon setting at the edge of Apache Lake with wildflowers, Sonoran Desert wildlife, lake views from the hilltops, and the kind of close-to-Phoenix solitude that's increasingly hard to find.
#Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Hiking, #Photography, #TontoNationalForest, #Wildlife, #Views
Baker Hot Springs
We first visited Baker hot springs in 1995 and went on and off through out the years while I lived in SLC. We last visited while traveling through Utah in 2017, we camped near the springs at that time there was one other camper. This gentlemen served us pancakes in the morning and told us he had spotted a white llama that came down from the hill to drink from the water. During our visit the water was flowing well and appeared the tubs have been well maintained, due to lack of algae. We found an additional pool in the area that could be dipped in as well as the tubs. There was once some abandoned buildings in the area, they since I believe have been destroyed. I look forward to visiting Baker hot springs again.
#Camping, #HotSprings, #Desert
Chiricahua Mountains
Cave Creek Canyon in the Chiricahua Mountains near Portal, Arizona is one of the most biologically diverse canyons in North America — a birding mecca with 370+ species, spectacular rhyolite cliffs, year-round flowing streams, multiple campgrounds, waterfalls, and dispersed camping across one of Arizona's most rewarding sky island ranges.
#Camping, #Exploring, #Forest, #Hiking, #Historical, #Recreation, #River, #Wildlife, #Photography
Fish Creek Canyon Wilderness (The Twist)
Fish Creek Canyon Wilderness Study Area on Cedar Mesa in San Juan County, Utah is one of the most remote and rewarding backcountry destinations in the Bears Ears region — deep canyons reaching 700 feet, natural arches, Ancestral Puebloan ruins, and the historic Emigrant Trail route followed by Mormon pioneers in 1879, accessed via the rugged Snow Flat Road (BLM 237) through some of the most spectacular canyon country in the Southwest.
#Ancient Ruins, #BLM, #Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Historical, #Hiking, #Petroglyphs, #Photography, #StarGazing, #Wildlife, #Views
Fossil Creek Wild and Scenic River
Fossil Creek is one of only two Wild and Scenic Rivers in Arizona — a spring-fed desert oasis discharging over 30 million gallons of 72°F water daily from the base of the Mogollon Rim, with crystal-clear turquoise pools, travertine waterfalls, lush riparian habitat, and one of the most dramatic creek restoration stories in the American Southwest.
#CoconinoNationalForest, #Desert, #Hiking, #River, #Recreation, #Photography, #Wildlife, #Exploring, #Fishing
Hot Well Dunes Recreation Area
Hot Well Dunes Recreation Area near Safford, Arizona is one of the most unusual BLM recreation sites in the Southwest — 2,000 acres of sand dunes for OHV riding alongside two 106°F artesian hot tubs that sprang accidentally from an oil drilling operation in 1928, with camping, wildlife viewing ponds, and a remote desert setting far from anything.
#BLM, #Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #HotSprings, #Recreation
Ironwood Forest National Monument
Ironwood Forest National Monument is a protected area located in southern Arizona, United States. It was established in 2000 and covers approximately 129,000 acres of Sonoran Desert landscape. The monument is named after the iconic ironwood trees (Olneya tesota) that grow within its boundaries.
#BLM, #Camping, #RockHounding, #Ancient Ruins, #Petroglyphs, #Desert, #NationalMonument, #Recreation, #Historical
McDowell Mountain Regional Park
McDowell Mountain Regional Park is a 21,099-acre desert jewel in the northeast Valley near Fountain Hills — one of Maricopa County's largest and most scenic regional parks with 50+ miles of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails, sweeping views of the surrounding mountain ranges, and camping options from developed RV sites to primitive tent-only areas.
#Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Hiking, #Photography, #Wildlife
Muley Point
Muley Point on Cedar Mesa near Mexican Hat, Utah is one of the finest and least known dispersed camping overlooks in the American Southwest — perched 2,400 feet above the San Juan River canyon on BLM land with panoramic views stretching to Monument Valley, the Goosenecks, Valley of the Gods, and the Four Corners region, accessible via a five-mile gravel road with no fees and no reservations.
#BLM, #Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Photography, #River, #Wildlife, #Views, #StarGazing
Navajo National Monument
Navajo National Monument in northern Arizona preserves three of the most intact Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings in the Southwest — Betatakin, Keet Seel, and Inscription House — set within the dramatic Tsegi Canyon system on the Navajo Nation, with free entry, free camping, and ranger-led tours to dwellings last occupied around 1300 AD.
#Ancient Ruins, #Desert, #Exploring, #Historical, #Hiking, #NationalMonument, #NavajoNation, #Petroglyphs, #Photography, #Wildlife
Oak Creek (Midgley Bridge)
The Midgley Bridge swimming hole on Oak Creek in Sedona is one of the most beautiful and accessible creek experiences in Arizona — reached by a short descent on the Midgley Bridge Trail and Huckaby Trail, with red rock narrows, natural water chutes you can ride, deep swimming holes, and canyon views that rival anything Slide Rock has to offer with a fraction of the crowds.
#Desert, #Hiking, #River, #Recreation, #Photography, #Wildlife
Oak Creek (Red Rock Crossing)
Red Rock Crossing on Oak Creek near the Village of Oak Creek is one of the most iconic and photographed views in Arizona — Cathedral Rock rising 1,515 feet above the creek, reflected in pools of clear water, accessible via the Baldwin Trail from Verde Valley School Road with swimming holes, Buddha Beach, sand banks, and the kind of day that ends with a double rainbow if you stay long enough.
#Desert, #Exploring, #Fishing, #Hiking, #Photography, #Recreation, #River, #Wildlife
Peralta Regional Park
Peralta Regional Park is a Pinal County gem nestled against the Superstition Mountains near Gold Canyon — offering 31 remote campsites, 9+ miles of multi-use trails, a stargazing node, and a gateway to the Superstition Wilderness.
#Desert, #Camping, #Exploring, #Hiking, #Photography, #Wildlife
Picacho Peak State Park
Picacho Peak State Park along Arizona's I-10 corridor is one of the most historically layered state parks in the Southwest — a striking volcanic peak rising 1,500 feet from the Sonoran Desert floor, site of the westernmost battle of the American Civil War, a showcase for spring wildflower blooms that draw visitors from across the state, and a developed campground with 85 electric sites just 45 miles from both Phoenix and Tucson.
#Camping, #Hiking, #ArizonaStateParks, #SonoranDesert, #Desert, #Historical
Red Cliffs Recreation Area
Red Cliffs Recreation Area near Leeds, Utah is a BLM gem tucked against dramatic red sandstone cliffs just off I-15 — featuring Early Jurassic dinosaur tracks in the sandstone, Ancestral Puebloan ruins, 14 hiking trails through Quail Creek Canyon, and one of the most visually striking campgrounds in southern Utah.
#Camping, #Hiking, #Recreation
Red Rock State Park
Red Rock State Park is Sedona's most serene and family-friendly outdoor destination — a 286-acre nature preserve along Oak Creek where five miles of interconnected trails wind through manzanita and juniper to the creek's lush riparian corridor, framed by the iconic red rock formations that make Sedona famous worldwide.
#ArizonaStateParks, #Desert, #Hiking, #River, #Wildlife, #Photography
Saddle Mountain
Discover Saddle Mountain in Tonopah, Arizona, a hidden gem for rock hounds, hikers, and outdoor enthusiasts. This stunning desert landscape offers chalcedony and quartz hunting, vibrant sunsets, petroglyph exploration—perfect for a unique desert adventure.
#Hiking, #SonoranDesert, #Camping, #Recreation, #Petroglyphs, #RockHounding
Saguaro National Park East
Saguaro National Park East — the Rincon Mountain District — protects one of the densest saguaro forests on earth alongside the 8-mile Cactus Forest Drive, 128 miles of hiking trails, and a wilderness backcountry that climbs from Sonoran Desert to pine forest at 8,666 feet in the Mica Mountains.
#Desert, #Historical, #NationalPark, #Hiking
Sand Island Petroglyphs
Sand Island Petroglyphs near Bluff, Utah preserves over 100 yards of continuous rock art panel on the banks of the San Juan River — spanning 2,500 to 8,000 years of human history from Archaic hunters to Ancestral Puebloans, Ute, and Navajo peoples, including five Kokopelli figures, San Juan Anthropomorphs, and some of the most accessible ancient rock art in the Bears Ears National Monument region.
#Petroglyphs, #BLM, #Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Historical, #Photography
Slide Rock State Park
Slide Rock State Park in Oak Creek Canyon north of Sedona is one of Arizona's most beloved natural attractions — an 80-foot natural sandstone water slide worn slick by Oak Creek, a historic 1912 apple orchard, wading pools, hiking trails, and canyon views that have drawn visitors from around the world since Frank Pendley built his homestead here more than a century ago.
#ArizonaStateParks, #River, #Recreation
Sycamore Canyon (Parsons Trail)
Parsons Trail is the gateway to Sycamore Canyon Wilderness — Arizona's largest canyon wilderness at 56,000 acres, stretching 21 miles from the Verde Valley floor to the Colorado Plateau rim. A 7.4-mile round trip along Sycamore Creek through towering red sandstone walls leads to Parsons Spring, one of the most rewarding hike-to destinations in central Arizona.
#Desert, #Hiking, #Photography, #River, #Recreation, #Wildlife, #CoconinoNationalForest
Valley of the Gods
Valley of the Gods near Mexican Hat, Utah is the lesser-known cousin of Monument Valley — a 17-mile BLM loop road through isolated sandstone buttes, mesas, and spires carved from 250-million-year-old Cedar Mesa sandstone, with free dispersed camping on the valley floor, no fees, and formations named Seven Sailors, Castle Butte, Rooster Butte, Setting Hen, and more.
#BLM, #Camping, #Desert, #Exploring, #Hiking, #Historical, #Photography, #StarGazing, #Wildlife, #Views
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Place has camping
or close by.
Abandoned & Ghost Towns
Ancient Ruins
Caves
Desert
Forest
Historical
Hot Springs
Lakes & Rivers
National & State Parks
Peaks