Sawtooth Canyon Campground
5Heads up5 fires, nearest 15 mi
This is how it should work.
- Right now
- Nobody has saidNo season, no closure, no bookings to read
- A night
- FreeNo camping fee
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there
In the agency’s own words
Sawtooth Canyon Campground, also know by its nickname “New Jack City,” is located approximately 3 miles west of California Highway 247 and 20 mile south of Barstow, California. In this “Limited” use area there are many different recreation activities: camping, wildlife viewing, hunting, rock climbing, and picnicking. The name "New Jack City" is the most widely used name and originates for the rock climbing community who use the area. However, the historic name for the canyon is “Traer Agua” which means “bring water’. Keep reading
"Sawtooth Canyon” is derived from the resemblance between the ridge line and the outline of a saw blade. There are not open routes of travel in this campground area. OHV vehicles must be trailered in and trailered out, there is not a staging area. Sawtooth Canyon is designated multiple and “Limited” vehicle use. Recreation management guidelines for “Limited” use provides lower intensity, carefully controlled activity to ensure minimal damage to soil, vegetation, wildlife, scenic values, and air quality.
Know Before You Go
OHV riding is prohibited in Sawtooth, this is not a OHV Recreational riding area. Tell someone where you are going and when you expect to return. Bring sufficient water, food, clothing, equipment, and first aid supplies for your activity. Weather extremes and poisonous snakes are desert hazards common to this area. Avoid low-lying areas during storms and remember that rain upstream can cause flooding even though it is not raining in the immediate area. Weather: The area is hot and arid, with summer high temperatures ranging from 100 to 120 degrees F. Winter low temperatures may drop below freezing with highs in the 70's. Typical of the desert, winds are frequent and strong, and humidity is generally low. Food, Fuel and Necessities: Food, fuel and most necessities are available in Barstow. Cellular phone service is not reliable in all locations. Camping and Fees Campgrounds are on a first come first serve basis. No reservations are needed and there are is no fee . Sawtooth has 13 campsites: Four campsites are located near Boy Scout Wall, just north of the concrete pad, along with a vault toilet and kiosk. Three campsites are located on the other side of the canyon from Boy Scout Wall, these campsites are walk-in sites since they are 50 feet from the parking area. Sawtooth has a campground host-site just northeast of White Face Wall. There are shade Ramadas, 12 fire pits with grills, 12 barbeque grills, and 12 picnic tables. Sawtooth is a primitive campground area, primarily visited by visitors in tents as well as self contained recreational vehicles RV’s and travel trailers. Campfire Permits Campfire permits are required and may be restricted in fire season. Fire danger is extreme during most of the year. Campfire permits can be obtained online at www.preventwildfireca.org .
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…north of the concrete pad, along with a vault toilet and kiosk. Three campsites are located on the other…”
- Drinking water
- None, bring your own
- “…the canyon is "Traer Agua" which means "bring water'. "Sawtooth Canyon" is derived from the resemblance…”
Around the campground
- Climbing
- Picnicking
- Wildlife viewing
- Cell signal · Cell signal · BLM says
- Spotty
Nothing to book, just show up
One of 1,623 federal campgrounds where the site still goes to whoever pulls in first, and it costs nothing at all. Get there before noon on a summer weekend.
recreation.gov publishes no availability for a campground you can’t reserve, so there’s no thirty-night reading to draw here. The season bar above is what the agency does publish.
Every line of the receipt · 4
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s own record says there’s no camping fee, and no booking fee, because this campground takes no reservations. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
How we know this receipt · 5
rules read Sep 7, 2026 · record Aug 23, 2026 · How we know all this
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the phone number
Where it is
Rainbow Basin/Owl Canyon CampgroundBarstow Field Office · 24 mi
Big Pine Equestrian Group CampgroundSan Bernardino National Forest · 24 mi
Ironwood Group CampSan Bernardino National Forest · 25 mi
Holcomb Valley CampgroundSan Bernardino National Forest · 26 miThe weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Lucerne Valley, CA
Typical weather
Typical October night 47°F, day 79°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical December night 33°F. Bring the bag rated for it.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
who answers for it
Who answers for this land

Sawtooth Canyon Campground is in California’s 23rd congressional district. Its representative, Jay Obernolte (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
How we know
every fact on this page, and where it came from
“…and most necessities are available in Barstow. Cellular phone service is not reliable in all locations. Camping and Fees Campgrounds are on a first…”