Oxbow Recreation Area

As much as I don't want anyone else to find out about this hidden gem, it deserves a good review and clarification on "bridge noise". We camped at one of the sites by the river west of the bridge. Great size site, clean and very quiet. We did not notice any bridge noise. And even a beautiful painted rock. Great levee roads to drive around and the auto tour at the Cibola refuge is amazing in the the amount of birds we saw. And the hosts were welcoming and helpful!

After days camping in the desert what a gem this place is. You are surrounded by water. river on one side and a lake that is great for kayaking (or fishing). It is a BLM campsite so prices are the same but there are also free camping sites around. No water or dump so find water and dump before you come.
The camp hosts are great. They went way out of their way to help me when I was having car troubles.

Oxbow BLM campground is spread over a large area with several smaller camping areas tucked away. Don’t be put off by some of the negative reviews. There are areas, including the one we stayed at, where the noise of vehicles crossing the bridge is barely noticeable. We weren’t sure if the bridge was ok for RVs, but apparently, it’s rated for up to 40 tons. We pulled into the main campground and the camp host took us around in his cart so we could see what options were available. He was very friendly and informative. Rates are $15/night and half off for seniors with the NP Pass.

Access to the park is down a somewhat rough, washboard gravel road, happily it's less than a mile so totally doable.

We chose a spot facing the lake and then hunkered down for a wild windy day. Sites are sand/gravel, have a fire ring and picnic table. There’s a dumpster for garbage near the camp host. It’s a short drive to Cibola National Wildlife Refuge and worth a trip. If you want a short slot canyon hike that’s super easy, check Google maps for Gargoyle Canyon.

If Oxbow is full or you don’t find a spot to your liking, there’s a free BLM campground (Cibola-Colorado River Camping Area AKA Hippie Hole) a short distance away across the bridge.

We had excellent Verizon coverage, 4 bars of 4G.

The most beautiful campground on the Colorado River in AZ is ruined by a metal bridge that sounds like hand grenades exploding each time a vehicle crosses. Its maddening that this is allowed to continue but par for the course in the now defunct America. Public employees padding pensions and benefits with funding instead of caring for our infrastructure. Unless you are deaf and can't feel the ground rumbling like an earthquake, I would avoid overnight camping at Oxbow.

This is a very small BLM campground. It is $15/night but if you have an America the Beautiful pass it's is 1/2 price. Or you can buy an annual pass for $75 and it allows camping on the fee paid BLM lands in this area for a year.

AT&T has good signal with between 20-30 mbps down, but it tends to suddenly stop working for several minutes at a time. So if you're like me, and you need it for your job, it can be a challenge!

The camping area sits directly on the Colorado river with nice views. There is a boat launch. There is nothing else around the area so be prepared to bring everything you need or plan to drive about 30 minutes for any supplies.

When we were here they were working on the levy nearby so during the day it was very noisy during the day.

Also the test range, proving grounds, is close by so don't be surprised if in the middle of the evening the ground suddenly shakes violently, you hear a very loud boom, and a jet flies overhead. This happened to us and what we learned is they were testing bomb drops several miles away. In fact, the second day we were here we spotted a couple jets with bombs attached flying over head and a few minutes later we heard the booms!

I reviewed this CG last March but wanted to add a few remarks. We bought a yearly pass for $45 and there are a few areas that allow access few with said pass. Alternatively the Hippie Hole on the other side of the Colorado is free. We happen to like being by the lake where we can kayak and paddle board. There is fishing and at this time goose hunting.
The season runs from January through October. It was interesting seeing and talking to the hunters in there camouflage and blinds. They can only shoot birds in flight, we felt reasonably safe on our bikes with bright colors.
When we arrived the Colorado was so low you could see many mud/sand bars. I asked at the visitor center and they said due to drought they had been keeping the flow low. Two days later the River was up and there were no sand bars to be seen.
We had excellent Verizon coverage and streamed almost daily.
We were alone 4 days so it was extremely quiet and beautiful

Oxbow CG has two areas. We came in from 78 the CA side, not many signs. Short dirt road, first camping area is aside Oxbow lake. Then a short distance across the upper levee road brings you to the CG aside the Colorado. Clean out house, trash, boat launch and a host with some sites having picnic tables.
If you go across the bridge and right the road is paved and leads to Cibola WLR. We kayaked and paddle boarded on Oxbow which is approximately 6 miles around. You do get road noise and it is also a farming community but quite at night. Some were fishing, you could launch a small boat.
Numerous dirt roads aside the Colorado to mountain bike on or road bike to Cibola visitor center.
The night sky was awesome. Birding during the winter months is very popular, most birds were heading back north when we visited. RV antennae brought in the major stations. NO WATER bring your own.
A small country store a few miles away had a dump station $10 and water $10.

We found the area to be a bit confusing, but once we found this campground we loved it. The problem is that there are several sections to the recreation area. As you travel west to east along Baseline Road you eventually come to the banks of the Colorado River. Directly in front of you is a camping area that is basically a big gravel parking lot. The sites here (for the most part) have no privacy at all. There is a vault toilet, some trash cans, and not much else, except you are right on the river and there is a launch site. Drive on north on the levee road and eventually you will come to a bridge where you can cross over to the west side of the river. This is where a more developed, ans to our way of thinking, prettier campground is located. This campground has a camp host, clean vault toilets and a trash dumpster. Most sites have views of the river and include a fire pit and picnic table. Another section, described in previous reviews, abuts the oxbow lake. It's neat, but was full when we arrived. We found this a very relaxing place to spend some time and the access to the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge is good too. Hosts seemed very attentive and the campground was clean and quiet. No water or dump station so come prepared.

Our AT&T cell service was OK, good enough for email and internet browsing.

Our rate reflects 50% off. We loved this campground, even if it was just a dirt parking lot. We stayed on the Oxbow lake side, as opposed to the Colorado River side. The sites aren't really designated, we just pulled up where we wanted. Our spot backed right up to the water. We were able to paddle the lake and ride the gravel roads in the area. Very quiet and dark at night. There is traffic on the gravel road, but not a lot, and none at night. The road in is a bit washboarded, but it isn't very long. We had 1 or 2 bars of ATT LTE.

We were passing through and only stayed one night. I used to recreate here in the 90's and it was nice to revisit old stomping grounds. Things have changed, it's more developed and used to be free. There are only a few sites in this little notch and a couple are on the water. Across the road is a larger campground on the river side with lots of space.

Even though our time was limited we took the kayaks out for a paddle during the golden hour and it was amazing. The birding was great as well. I would have loved to get out fishing for bass and catfish if we had time. ATVs are also allowed to explore the desert.

The cell / data service left a lot to be desired, even with boosting. It was very location dependent so I believe you could find a better spot with a little searching. I'm writing this 6 months after our stay and can't remember exact coverage details.

Watch our road trip vlogs to see more of Cibola.
Coming: https://youtu.be/QgMGQzQV7mc
Going: https://youtu.be/wxJ31_WZo5I