White Spar Campground
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- OpenThe agency lists it open
- A night
- $18–$36Across the site types the agency prices
- Sites
- 5641 on recreation.gov
- Season
- Year-roundOpen year-round
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 15 notices
In the agency’s own words
White Spar Campground at 5,641 feet in elevation is a short drive of 2.7 miles south of downtown Prescott and east of Hwy 89. Campers will appreciate the mild weather and the cool ponderosa pine forest the campground is nestled in. The campground's convenient location allows for many opportunities for pursuing camping, hiking, mountain biking and bird watching. Several loop trails in the area allow for multiple modes of travel. The Tri-City Community comprising Prescott, Chino Valley, and Prescott Valley has events, functions, benefits, and attractions throughout the year are all within a few minutes' drive. To make reservations click on the availability button to the right to book this site or call 1 (877) 444-6777. For general campground questions contact the Bradshaw Ranger District at 1 (928) 443-8000. Keep reading
Recreation
White Spar Campground is available year-round, but campsites are limited during the winter season. Campsites are designed for RV, trailer or tent camping. Many popular outdoor activities abound in the area. Visitors may enjoy fishing, bird-watching, boating, backpacking, hiking, horseback riding, rock climbing, mountain biking, picnicking and just plain relaxing.
Facilities
White Spar Campground has 52 single and four double occupancy campsites. Some campsite driveways allow a camp unit (RV, or tow vehicle and trailer) and an extra vehicle, while many limit parking to only the camp unit. Each campsite has a picnic table, steel fire ring and/or concrete block grill, and either an established tent pad or an area for a tent. Accessible campsites are available. There are five pull-through, 34 back-in, and 17 parallel parking asphalt-surfaced driveways. Services include four vault restrooms, four trash dumpsters and nine water hydrants. There are no RV hook-ups or dump station in the campground. Water is not available in the non-peak season. The facility may be closed during snow events.
Natural Features
White Spar Campground is surrounded by a forest of ponderosa pine, oak, manzanita, and a variety of shrubs and grasses. In the Prescott Basin, the campground is near Granite Basin Recreation Area, Granite Mountain Wilderness Area, Granite Basin Lake, Lynx Lake Recreation Area, and Thumb Butte. Access to these areas can either be made by several interlocking hiking trails or by driving a short distance.
Nearby Attractions
Northwest of White Spar Campground, within ten miles, is the Granite Basin Recreation Area. Granite Basin Recreation Area has several day-use areas, and Granite Basin Lake (five acres), which is known for channel catfish, large-mouth bass, and sunfish. Rising prominently north of Granite Basin Lake is Granite Mountain at 6,874 feet. The Granite Mountain Wilderness Area is comprised of the mountain's rugged topography and mixed vegetation suite. Also, within ten miles, is Alto Pit Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Campground and Day-Use Area. OHV riders of all skill levels can ride the several miles of trails that meander through the area's challenging terrain and vegetative cover. Southeast of downtown Prescott and within eight miles of White Spar Campground is Lynx Lake Recreation Area. Lynx Lake (55 acres) is an popular attraction in the Prescott National Forest that offers a variety of recreation opportunities for all age groups. Activities include fishing, boating, and hiking. West and within four miles, is the Thumb Butte Recreation Area. At 6,515-feet Thumb Butte is quite visible in the Prescott Basin. The Butte is popular for its scenic vistas, jogging and hiking. Rock climbing is allowed, but only between July 16 and January 31 as it is closed to climbing during the peregrine falcon nesting period. Birdwatching is popular outside the closed area. The City of Prescott offers several day-use recreation facilities within ten miles. To the north and northeast are Watson (70 acres) and Willow Lakes and to the south Goldwater Lake (15 acres). Each have unique qualities and recreation opportunities including boating, fishing, birdwatching and hiking.
What the agency tells you
Maximum stay limit is 14 days within 30 consecutive days in Prescott National Forest including stays at dispersed sites.
No RV sanitary dump station is available.
Water is available seasonally.
Everything else this campground posts · 12
Fires are permitted only in concrete block grills or steel fire rings.
At least one person must occupy a campsite during the first night after camping equipment is set up. Camping equipment may not be left unattended for more than 24 hours
Single campsites are designed for up to 5 people and double campsites up to 10 people
The number of camp units allowed (one camp unit is either an RV towing a car, and/or vehicle towing a trailer) per single campsite and two per double campsite. One or two extra vehicles may be possible.
All guests without a reservation (first-come, first-served) or a second vehicle $5 at a single site, or $5 each for the 3rd and 4th vehicle for a doublce site must pay with exact change using the self-pay kiosk as soon as campsite is selected.There is a daily $5.00 fee for a 2nd vehicle at a single campsite and a daily $5.00 fee each for a 3rd and a 4th vehicle at a double campsite.
Pets are welcome but must be on a 6 foot leash or in a cage and never unattended.
Discharging any weapon is prohibited in the campground.
Fireworks, including sparklers, are prohibited at all times on National Forest Lands.
Fire restrictions may be imposed due to dry conditions, at which time smoking, wood and charcoal fires may be prohibited.
Internal road system designed for vehicles 45 feet or less. Accommodations for equipment vary by campsite.
Vehicles must remain on an established campsite driveway to prevent damage to vegetation and features, and to allow for safe traffic flow.
Don't Move Firewood: Prevent the spread of tree-killing pests by obtaining firewood near your destination and burning it on-site. For more information, visit dontmovefirewood.org.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 56
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 91 ft
- Paved pads
- All
- Accessible sites
- 17
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…driveways. Services include four vault restrooms, four trash dumpsters and nine water hydrants.…”
- Dump station
- Yes
- Camp host
- On site
- recreation.gov lists “Host”
- Stay limit
- 14 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake
- Biking
- Boating
- Climbing
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Night sky · 228th darkest of 262 in AZ
- Bortle 4
- Fall color · reported 4 days ago, 8.2 km away
- Patchy color
Full this Saturdayread 16:49 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
OpenBooked
Every one of the 37 sites on offer is taken this Saturday. 22 are free on Wed, Oct 21. read 16:49 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 14
What you actually pay
“All guests without a reservation (first-come, first-served) or a second vehicle $5 at a single site, or $5 each for the 3rd and 4th vehicle for a doublce site must pay with exact change using the self-pay kiosk as soo…” · the U.S. Forest Service’s own agency notice
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $18–$36 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 6
recreation.gov availability, read 16:49 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
56 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 41 mapped sitesAll 56 sites
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 41 of the 56 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 01 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | yes | 30 ft | 4,965 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 02 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 30 ft | 4,964 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 03 | standard nonelectric | 39 ft | yes | 65 ft | 4,902 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 04 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 117 ft | 4,804 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 05 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 69 ft | 4,836 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 06 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 89 ft | 4,841 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 07 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 58 ft | 4,598 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 08 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | 94 ft | 4,587 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 09 | standard nonelectric | 32 ft | 60 ft | 4,429 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 10 | standard nonelectric | 44 ft | yes | 60 ft | 4,465 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 11 | standard nonelectric | 60 ft | yes | 58 ft | 4,550 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 12 | standard nonelectric | 44 ft | 89 ft | 4,764 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 13 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 96 ft | 4,517 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 14 | standard nonelectric | 60 ft | 96 ft | 4,436 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 15 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 112 ft | 4,322 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 16 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 102 ft | 4,462 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 17 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 66 ft | 4,549 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 18 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | yes | 66 ft | 4,612 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 19 | standard nonelectric | 43 ft | yes | 73 ft | 4,556 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 20 | standard nonelectric | 49 ft | 73 ft | 4,488 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 21 | standard nonelectric | 59 ft | 113 ft | 4,382 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 22 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 93 ft | 4,301 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 23 | standard nonelectric | 60 ft | yes | 93 ft | 4,247 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 24 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 91 ft | 3,997 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 25 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | 37 ft | 4,124 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 26 | standard nonelectric | 24 ft | 37 ft | 4,147 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 27 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | yes | 61 ft | 4,088 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 28 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | yes | 102 ft | 4,006 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 29 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | yes | 102 ft | 4,107 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 30 | standard nonelectric | 44 ft | yes | 75 ft | 4,249 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 31 | standard nonelectric | 44 ft | 75 ft | 4,228 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 32 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | yes | 110 ft | 4,036 ft | $18–$36 |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 33 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 97 ft | 3,856 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 34 | standard nonelectric | 20 ft | 103 ft | 3,792 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 35 | standard nonelectric | 45 ft | 119 ft | 3,893 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 36 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 97 ft | 3,935 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 37 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 110 ft | 4,052 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 38 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 78 ft | 4,130 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 39 | standard nonelectric | 32 ft | 85 ft | 4,157 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 40 | standard nonelectric | 34 ft | 78 ft | 4,103 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 41 | standard nonelectric | 32 ft | 104 ft | 4,015 ft | $18–$36 | |
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 42 | type not stated | 26 ft | 3,526 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 43 | type not stated | 45 ft | 3,445 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 44 | type not stated | 18 ft | 3,410 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 45 | type not stated | 38 ft | 3,450 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 46 | type not stated | 45 ft | 3,545 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 47 | type not stated | 91 ft | 3,619 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 48 | type not stated | 32 ft | 3,647 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 49 | type not stated | 22 ft | 3,628 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 50 | type not stated | 18 ft | 3,677 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 51 | type not stated | 32 ft | 3,735 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 52 | type not stated | 34 ft | 3,756 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 53 | type not stated | 32 ft | 3,752 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 54 | type not stated | 46 ft | 3,874 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 55 | type not stated | 45 ft | 3,943 ft | |||
| WHITE SPAR CAMPGROUND | 56 | type not stated | 46 ft | 4,127 ft |
25 of 56 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Groom Creek SchoolhousePrescott National Forest · 3.4 mi
Groom Creek Horse CampPrescott National Forest · 3.5 mi
Lower Wolf Creek CampgroundPrescott National Forest · 3.7 mi
Upper Wolf Creek GroupPrescott National Forest · 3.8 mi
Thumb ButtePrescott National Forest · 4.0 mi
Lynx CampgroundPrescott National Forest · 5.0 miFrom Phoenix, Arizona: Traveling Northbound on I-17 take Exit 262 onto Hwy 69 North to Prescott, cointnue on Hwy 69 for 41 miles until you arrive in downtown Prescott. Turn left on Montezuma Street (Highway 89) south for 2.7 miles. White Spar Campground is located on the left (east side of Hwy 89).
Alternate route from Flagstaff, Arizona: Traveling Southbound on I-17 take Exit 278 onto Westbound Highway 169 and continue for 15 Miles until reaching the junction of Hwy 69, turn right onto Northbound Hwy 69 and continue for 15 miles until arriving in Prescott. Turn left on Montezuma Street (Highway 89) south for 2.7 miles. White Spar Campground is located on the left (east side of Hwy 89).
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Prescott, AZ
Typical weather
Typical October night 40°F, day 73°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical December night 24°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
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 · a letter you can send
Who answers for this land
White Spar Campground is in Arizona’s 2nd congressional district. Its representative, Eli Crane (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 3
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The member who votes the moneyElijah CraneU.S. Representative · Arizona’s 2nd district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationMark KellyU.S. Senator · Arizona
- Your senator, on the same appropriationRuben GallegoU.S. Senator · Arizona
No contact form we could verify, so that link is their own site. Contact is inside it. Washington office: 202-224-4521.
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona
Dear Elijah Crane, I’m a constituent in Arizona’s 2nd district. I tried to camp at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 41 of the 56 campsites the agency files at White Spar Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 37 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. White Spar Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run White Spar Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about White Spar Campground (Prescott National Forest, Arizona) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona
Dear Mark Kelly, I’m a constituent in Arizona. I tried to camp at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 41 of the 56 campsites the agency files at White Spar Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 37 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. White Spar Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run White Spar Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about White Spar Campground (Prescott National Forest, Arizona) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona
Dear Ruben Gallego, I’m a constituent in Arizona. I tried to camp at White Spar Campground, Prescott National Forest, Arizona, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 41 of the 56 campsites the agency files at White Spar Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 37 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. White Spar Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run White Spar Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about White Spar Campground (Prescott National Forest, Arizona) via campanac.com