Box Bar Recreation Site
Tonto National Forest
Write a Review Box Bar Rd. Scottsdale, AZ 85263 480-595-3300 602-225-5200 Official WebsiteGPS: 33.7437, -111.6608
Overview of Box Bar Recreation Site
Tonto National Forest Daily Pass or Tonto Discovery Pass are required. Contact the Cave Creek Ranger District at (480) 595-3300 for more information.
Last Price Paid: $0
Reported by roadtrippers-tyndale on 10/25/2024
Longest RV Reported: 31 feet (Travel Trailer)
Reported by Trekerboy on 11/9/2018
Pad Type dirt
Elevation 1,476 ft / 449 m
Max Stay 14
Max Length 32 ft
Tent Camping Yes
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Q&A - Ask the Community about Box Bar Recreation Site
To ask questions of the owner or manager please contact the campground directly. 480-595-3300
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Reviews of Box Bar Recreation Site 13 people have reviewed this location.
Cell Phone Coverage
Confirmed by 4 Users
Last reported 1/2/2023
Confirmed by 5 Users
Last reported 10/25/2024
Confirmed by 1 User
Last reported 10/5/2019
“Nice Spot on Rio Verde”
Reviewed 1/17/2021
| Nightly rate: | FREE! |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 14 |
| RV Length: | 27' (Travel Trailer) |
Overall Rating
Enjoyable spot right on the Verde River. Great place to fish (smallmouth bass, roundtail chub) and lots of bird species. Outhouses on site; portable style but clean. Close to McDowell Mountain Park and McDowell Sonoran Preserve. ATT mobile signal good but did not provide much usual service, even with booster. Busy place in evenings and... more
Enjoyable spot right on the Verde River. Great place to fish (smallmouth bass, roundtail chub) and lots of bird species. Outhouses on site; portable style but clean. Close to McDowell Mountain Park and McDowell Sonoran Preserve. ATT mobile signal good but did not provide much usual service, even with booster. Busy place in evenings and on weekends.
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AT&T 4G
HagePhoto would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Off Box Bar Rd- not Rio Verde”
Reviewed 10/5/2019
| Nightly rate: | $8 |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 0 |
Overall Rating
We scouted this for future boondocking with our 42’ fifth wheel. There are a couple tight turns, but complete manageable for a seasoned hauler. Dirt road. Take first left after you turn onto Box Bar Rd. It’s not marked for camping. You might want to scout first (if you have a big rig) because if it’s crowded you might not have great op... more
We scouted this for future boondocking with our 42’ fifth wheel. There are a couple tight turns, but complete manageable for a seasoned hauler. Dirt road. Take first left after you turn onto Box Bar Rd. It’s not marked for camping. You might want to scout first (if you have a big rig) because if it’s crowded you might not have great options for turning around. There’s plenty of room for camping but it all depends how/where people decide to park their rigs. There are dumpsters and portable toilets on site.
It’s bumpy in areas and some flat ground. 4WD recommended. 35 minutes to Scottsdale. 20 minutes to Fountain Hills. We’d stay here. It seemed quiet.
Small sign at left turn off Box Bar said motorized vehicles permitted July-Nov so not sure on remainder of year camping.
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T-Mobile 4G
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Uneven, riverside camping”
Reviewed 11/9/2018
| Nightly rate: | $8 |
|---|---|
| Days stayed: | 1 |
| RV Length: | 31' (Travel Trailer) |
Overall Rating
We decided to give this spot a chance despite there not being any reviews on Campendium because we needed to be close to Scottsdale. It's... just OK. The area of Arizona that Box Bar Recreation Site is in in technically Scottsdale, but you're a good 40+ minutes for the main part of town, and Rio Verde, which is only a mile or so fro... more
We decided to give this spot a chance despite there not being any reviews on Campendium because we needed to be close to Scottsdale. It's... just OK.
The area of Arizona that Box Bar Recreation Site is in in technically Scottsdale, but you're a good 40+ minutes for the main part of town, and Rio Verde, which is only a mile or so from the campsites is sort a strange housing and country club oasis in an otherwise very National Forest-y region. Rio Verde has what seems to be thousands of homes and lots of golf courses, but I have yet to find a single coffee shop, grocery store or gas station within the town. The nearest google result was 25 minutes away. The only reason I mention this is that entering the Box Bar recreation site you may think you're just outside a town center, but you're really not; you'll have to give a half hour or more to get supplies.
The camp here, you need the Tonto Forest Pass, which is $8, and you can get a 50% discount with America the Beautiful National Parks pass. You can use the VIPly app to purchase pass on your phone and then display a permit (provided near the entrance to the camping area on the sign posts) with the purchase and permit information. The sign posts also list a number of other areas where passes can be purchased (none of which are nearby).
The campsites themselves... well, the pictures from the USDA make it look like there is a wooded area with lots of flat space to camp... I don't know if the river topography changed recently or what, but this area was nowhere to be found. What was there was a dirt parking lot, and maybe 6 other sites where you could set up a camper. The parking lot would be suitable for big rigs if you could manage the few tight turns and steep inclines getting in there.
The 5 suitable campsites aren't well defined; you can pretty much park wherever you want once you get into the area, but it's very uneven throughout and lots of large pits to avoid when maneuvering around.
The river is right there, and a rope swing for kids if you walk the river's edge to find it. River itself is fast moving.
At the time we camped there, it looked like someone may have been "permanently tent camping" down by the river on the other side of the brown metal fence/barrier.
There are garbage dumpsters near the entrance to the main camping area, a few porta-potties in the main camping area, and access to at least two hiking trails.
Internet access was decent... on AT&T about 10mbps down and 2mbps up. Verizon about the same (both unboosted and un-mimo'ed). Internet access in the "town" of Rio Verde wasn't much better... LTE signal was strong but throughput was ssssllllooooowwwww...
It's just sort of an "eh" place to camp, but it was quiet and very little light pollution if that's something you're looking for.
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AT&T 4G
Verizon 4G
Trekerboy would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
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Amenities
Hookups
- dry camping
- Dispersed Camping
Recreation
- fishing
- picnic area
- water access
Facilities
- restrooms: vault
- trash
Pets
- pets
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