Agency-listedBLMFree
Sunset Reef
Drive-up · Bureau of Land Management · NM · 32.11958, -104.42422
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 →Bureau of Land Management 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 Sunset Reef
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 3,595 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Sunset ReefNIFC · 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 Sunset Reef · Bureau of Land Management · NM
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- WWater4 mi
- FFuel5 mi
- GGrocery5 mi
- LLaundry5 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- +Urgent care21 mi
- RxPharmacy22 mi
- EVEV fast charger22 mi
- HHardware22 mi
- MMechanic23 mi
- OOutfitter24 mi
- ShShower31 mi
- DDump31 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 5 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: 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 — Sunset Reef
Access
Drive-up
Land
Bureau of Land Management
Elevation
3,595 ft
State
NM
Coordinates
32.11958, -104.42422
Cost
Free · dispersed public land, no fee in any source
Nearby & resupply — around Sunset Reef · Bureau of Land Management · NM (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureBlack River (river) · nearby
- Nearest townWhites City · ~4.8 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~4.0 mi
- FuelChevron · ~22.8 mi
- Propane / LPGPropane · ~26.1 mi
- GroceriesStore · ~4.7 mi
- PharmacyWalmart Pharmacy · ~22.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicPecos Valley Urgent Care · ~20.8 mi
- HardwareBES Supply Store · ~22.5 mi
EV charging — from Sunset Reef · Bureau of Land Management · NM — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger22.3 mi straight-line NE — Carlsbad, NM - Tesla Supercharger (at a hotel) · Tesla · NACS (Tesla) · 8 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-06-18 · hours: 24 hours daily. NACS partner enabled. · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach2 within 25 mi · 2 within 50 · 20 within 100 · 58 within 150
- Nearest listing CCS24.2 mi — Arby's - Carlsbad, Carlsbad
- Nearest listing CHAdeMO24.2 mi — Arby's - Carlsbad, Carlsbad
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)23.5 mi — McDonald's, Carlsbad, NM (at a restaurant) · Non-Networked · J1772 · 1 Level 2 port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2023-02-13 · 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 448082 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Sunset Reef · Bureau of Land Management · NM — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletSunset Reef Vault Toilet · at this camp · BLM
- RestroomB# 65 - RSS Vault Toilet · ~2.5 mi W · NPS
- Vault / pit toiletCottonwood Vault Toilet · ~3.1 mi SW · BLM
- RestroomB66 #17 Visitor Center · ~4.0 mi N · NPS
Open Sunset Reef elsewhere
Other camps near Sunset Reef
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Mile 10 Dispersed Camping~1.1 mi
- Parks Ranch Campground~1.2 mi
- Chosa Campground~2.2 mi
- BLM public land~19.4 mi
How we know this — Sunset Reef
Source
OpenStreetMap contributors
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
auto: drive (road/trail right there)
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 Sunset Reef
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 — Sunset Reef
Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Dumping grey & black →Getting unstuck →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 →