Coal Mine

If you are looking for amenities, this is not the place. If you are looking for real peace and quiet and dark skies, this is it. The campground is right next to NM-547, but there is so little traffic the road is hardly noticeable. There is a ranch road bordering just to the east, but I think we saw all of about 4 vehicles pass through over 6 days. Weekdays there were just one or two other campers in the campground. July 4 weekend it was almost full, but the "crowd" was quiet and well-behaved. Elevation about 1 ft higher than Grants, and thus about 10 degrees cooler than in-town. Some of the sites have good shade from mature pine and pinon trees. Very no-frills camping, even by USFS standards. Sites are well spaced. The most desirable seem to be the back-in spaces, although they would generally be short for a long trailer or big rig. Our 22' trailer was fine. Expect to make use of your leveling blocks. Roads are paved, as are the sites, and the pavement is in good condition. Some sites are ok for a small tent, but it would be hard to find a level spot for a very big tent. Toilets are very clean, but toilet paper was not consistently stocked. There is no water. Picnic tables were in good repair. Verizon cell service is almost nonexistent. There were a few spots in the campground that we could get 1-2 bars of 1x and make a decent phone call. Texting is iffy. Most times we were able to get Verizon 4G internet using a Winegard hotspot and MiMo booster antenna. I measured 75-95 ms ping speeds, up to 6 mbps down and 0.4 mbps up. I was actually able to stream a YouTube video once. But there were a few times we could not get a signal even with the booster. We will camp here again.

BTW, while you are there, you must eat at El Cafecito in Grants. Wow! Excellent southwestern fare.

My son and I were split about the rating of this campground. I gave it a 5. It is everything I am looking for; remote, quiet, beautiful. The sites could be more private. The vault toilets were very well maintained and clean. While we were there there were probably only 2-3 other campsites taken.

But this type of campsite isn't for everyone. No ammenities, no activities and no cell service (Verizon).

I would definately use this again if I was passing through the area.

Quiet, clean, seems well kept. More than average fly population. Easy walk to the Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center (Prison) if you are camping in order to be near your loved ones. Grocery store costs in Grants NM are high, gas price is average, so plan for that.

Nice, quite, and peaceful

Solid rustic campground with fire pits, coal grills and picnic tables at the sites. We were in site #2 which had some tree growth that interfered with our 12' tall class A, but otherwise it was a great site. The night we were there, we happened to be the only people at the campsite (on a Thursday); Friday and Saturday had plenty of bookings. There is a prison about 7-8 mi away. So between that fact (the prison nearby), that we were the only ones there, and that we had no cell service (T-mobile), maybe it wasn't as purely relaxing as we were hoping. The site was 5 stars. Our experience, however, maybe less so. Had there been other campers, though, I believe we would have had a better night's sleep.

What a little hidden gem.
Fifteen minutes away from I-40, a campground sits off to the side of a two lane windy road. Covered in trees and bleeding scenic beauty it makes you feel transported farther away than 15 minutes off the freeway.

All sites are non electric, making the hard shell camper generator noise as annoying as a mosquito buzzing in your tent. The crickets and froggy peepers try to drown out the hum; but who can really complain at $5/night!?

When the satellite goes by with ATT, you will see 1 bar LTE, otherwise I never had service (Bliss!)

About 2 minutes South of the campground are a few houses and a gorgeous valley to watch the sunset. I just pulled over on the side of the road to take in it’s beauty. Here you can get 3 bars LTE to tell your Momma you made it.

Check the map before you reserve, some campgrounds have the road in your back yard, other spots have a neighbor you’ll be able to see.

Picnic tables, coal grills, and fire pits at all spots.
No showers, No water, vault toilets. AMAZINGLY CLEAN!
Big driveways to plant your house on wheels, number 10 looks the most convenient for backing in.

FYI: There is a Correctional Facility ten minutes from the campground.

I love camping in rustic sites like this. You pack it in, you pack it out. Leave no trace, and enjoy the quiet. There are some nice trails and I found the bathroom to be nice and clean. It's just a pit latrine, but the tank was empty and no bad smell. A ranger comes through once or twice a day to just check on things. No running water, no lights, just a basic place to set up camp. At $5 a night (when you pay cash) or even at $13 per night when you reserve online, I feel like it's a great value. Even though New Mexico doesn't have a lot of trees, this campground has them and hammock camping was a breeze. The altitude is high enough where the flying bug population is sparce.

I drove cross country from Georgia to California and I stayed here one night on the way west, and again on my way east. It was the best two nights' sleep I've had in quite some time. Very peaceful.

I definitely recommend this campground to anybody who actually likes to sleep outdoors. There are a couple of pull-through sites so you can get a good size trailer in there. For a minimalist like me, it's a slice of heaven.