Agency-listedUSFSFree
Lower Black Canyon
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · NM · 33.18444, -108.03397
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this site. On most of their ground you can camp away from developed sites pretty much anywhere — so treat this as a known-good spot, not the only one allowed. The unit sets stay limits and how far off road and water you must be. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Lower Black Canyon
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 6,734 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Lower Black CanyonNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Lower Black Canyon · Gila National Forest · NM
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel10 mi
- GGrocery10 mi
- WWater13 mi
- @Mail23 mi
- +Urgent care30 mi
- HHardware30 mi
- OOutfitter30 mi
- LLaundry32 mi
- EVEV fast charger32 mi
- MMechanic42 mi
- RxPharmacy45 mi
- ShShower46 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 10 mi out, the nearest EV fast charger is a 32-mi run (and back).
Not within 60 mi: Dump, Propane. Plan those before you head up.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Lower Black Canyon
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
6,734 ft
State
NM
Coordinates
33.18444, -108.03397
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Lower Black Canyon · Gila National Forest · NM (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureTom Moore Creek (stream) · nearby
- Nearest townBloodgood Place · ~9.9 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~26.7 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~29.4 mi
- GroceriesLake Roberts General Store · ~13.0 mi
- Hospital / clinicHospital · ~28.2 mi
EV charging — from Lower Black Canyon · Gila National Forest · NM — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger31.8 mi straight-line SW — Western New Mexico University, Silver City, NM · VIALYNK · CCS · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reachnone within 25 mi · 3 within 50 · 26 within 100 · 62 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)45.3 mi — Truth or Consequences, NM - Tesla Supercharger, Truth or Consequences
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO62.4 mi — DONA ANA HATCH EV 1, Hatch
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)44.8 mi — LOVES 1045 - NM # 1045 CP6K 3, Truth or Consequences, NM · ChargePoint Network · J1772, NACS (Tesla) · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 335770 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Lower Black Canyon · Gila National Forest · NM — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletLower Black Canyon · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletUpper Black Canyon · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomMiddle Mesa · ~0.7 mi N · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBlack Canyon Access · ~0.8 mi NE · USFS
Open Lower Black Canyon elsewhere
Other camps near Lower Black Canyon
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Black Canyon Campground - Lower~0.1 mi
- Black Canyon Campground - Upper~0.2 mi
- Rocky Canyon Campground~5.9 mi
- Grapevine Campground~9.8 mi
The unit that manages Lower Black Canyon
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Lower Black Canyon are set by Gila National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Mcknight Cabin at 9,230 ft, about 15 miles away. It sits about 2,496 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Lower Black Canyon
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
Free but developed (not dispersed) - review
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Lower Black Canyon
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Lower Black Canyon
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Reading a forest MVUM →How to read this page →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →