Free camping near Santa Cruz, NM
Yes. 6 of the 20 camps within 25 straight-line miles of Santa Cruz, NM are listed as free; 7 charge a fee and 7 have no price on record. The closest free one is BLM dispersed camp — Santa Fe County, NM, 6.9 miles east, on Bureau of Land Management land. The closest camp of any kind is Santa Cruz Lake Recreation Area, 6.8 miles east, a fee campground.
All 20 camps near Santa Cruz, NM
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz Lake Recreation Area | 6.8 | Fee | Santa Cruz Lake (water) | 1.2 mi to Potrero | — |
| BLM dispersed camp — Santa Fe County, NM | 6.9 | Free | Santa Cruz Lake (water) | 1.2 mi to Cundiyo | — |
| Diablo Canyon Recreation Area Camping and Parking | 14 | Unpriced | Cañada Ancha (stream) | 2.2 mi to Buckman | — |
| Borrego Mesa Campground | 15 | Free | Chupaderos Creek (stream) | 5.0 mi to Truchas | — |
| Borrego Mesa | 15 | Free | — | 4.7 mi to Truchas | — |
| Old Spanish Trail National Historic Trail | 18 | Unpriced | — | 3.0 mi to Dixon | — |
| Aspen Basin Campground | 19 | Unpriced | Rio En Medio (stream) | 5.9 mi to Rio en Medio` | — |
| Juniper Family Campground | 19 | Fee | — | 4.1 mi to White Rock | Open |
| Big Tesuque Campground | 20 | Unpriced | Tesuque Creek North Fork (stream) | 6.5 mi to Holy Ghost | — |
| Ponderosa Group Campground | 21 | Fee | — | 5.6 mi to Los Alamos | Open |
| Black Canyon Campground | 22 | Unpriced | Little Tesuque Creek (stream) | 5.9 mi to Tesuque | — |
| Panchuela | 24 | Fee | — | 13 mi to Rio en Medio | — |
| Hodges Dispersed Recreation Area | 24 | Free | Rio Santa Barbara (river) | 2.1 mi to Llano Largo | — |
| Jacks Creek (Group Cg) | 24 | Fee | — | 14 mi to Rio en Medio | — |
| Jacks Creek Campground | 24 | Unpriced | Jack's Creek (stream) | 1.3 mi to Geronimo | — |
| Holy Ghost (Group Campground) | 24 | Fee | — | 11 mi to Hyde Park | — |
| Jacks Creek Horse Camp | 24 | Free | Jack's Creek (stream) | 1.0 mi to Geronimo | — |
| Cowles Campground | 24 | Unpriced | Cowles Ponds (water) | 0.3 mi to Cowles | — |
| Holy Ghost Campground | 24 | Fee | Holy Ghost Creek (stream) | 0.8 mi to Holy Ghost | — |
| Santa Barbara | 25 | Free | Rio Santa Barbara (river) | 4.5 mi to Llano Largo | — |
Who manages the camps near Santa Cruz, NM
Who manages them: 14 on the Forest Service; 4 on the BLM; 2 on the Park Service.
- Santa Fe National Forest — 12 camps: 3 free, 4 fee, 5 unpriced
- Taos Field Office — 4 camps: 1 free, 1 fee, 2 unpriced
- Carson National Forest — 2 camps: 2 free
- The Park Service — 2 camps: 2 fee
Season read for these camps, today
Today's season read covers 2 of the 20: 2 open, 0 closed, 0 worth a call. It comes from each camp's own record, so a camp with no season word is not counted either way.
Forecast near Santa Cruz, NM
This is the Weather Service forecast for the town, fetched when the page opens. It is not a forecast for any camp in the table; ground higher up or in a canyon can run colder or windier. It needs JavaScript; without it, see weather.gov.
Camping near other towns close by
The nearest towns that have their own page, with the straight-line miles between the towns.
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Santa Cruz, NM, not a driving distance — a camp four miles out across a canyon can be an hour of road. Cost is the audited three-state verdict on each camp's own record: free, fee, or unpriced where we could not confirm a price. A blank column is a gap in the record, not a statement that the thing is absent. Camps come from state and federal agency records, not from a visit, except the ones marked. Seasons, permits and fire rules change: confirm with the managing office before you go. Found a fee where we show free? Tell us on the contact page.