Dead Horse Ranch State Park Campground

Right between Sedona and Jerome, Dead Horse Ranch is a great campground to settle in for a week. We've stayed here twice and though I don't remember the details, I know we'd stay here again.

We've stayed here multiple times and think this is a great place. All the camping loops have attentive hosts, easy back in sites and all are well maintained. Big rigs have no issues here. All sites have fire rings, tables and there are several handicap accessible sites. There are miles of hiking and biking trails, fishing ponds, and horseback riding. It's very close to all the Old Town Cottonwood activities/restaurants. Bathrooms and showers are clean. The campground sits on the Verde River which attracts a lot of wildlife and birds, we see eagles here regularly in the winter. Beware of foxtails and goatheads, two extremely annoying barbed thorns commonly found in the area. Will continue to come here, it's a very well managed place.

This was our second stay at Dead Horse Ranch SP. We have stayed in the Cooper Hawk Loop both times. The back in sites are all level but the pull-thru sites do have a hump at one end but seemed long enough to level away from the hump. Each site does have water, electric, table, and fire ring. Restroom are adequate and well maintained. There are a number of walking, biking, and horse trails within the park. You can, also, take a trail to Old Cottonwood for a five mile round trip hike. The perfect location to visit Sedona, Jerome, Camp Verde, Tuzigoot Indian Ruins,and Montezuma's Castle and Well.

Overview
Our first trip and we enjoyed our visit. It was not a place that we are dying to get back to, but would stay there again. The surrounding area and access made it a great stay. Also the good cell coverage allowed us to get a little work done.

Review of the Park
The park has 3 camping areas and we stayed in Quail Loop, the oldest area. The sites are a little tight and some have length and height limitations. The outside spaces have some nice views of the mountains or the river. Each site has power, picnic table and a fire ring.

We found the park very quiet considering how close the sites are. Lots of kids, as we visited during spring break but no issues.

The bathroom is clean, but much smaller than some of the other areas. Showers were clean and hot. The bathrooms were heavily used compared to other parks. I think because there was a number of tent campers.

Verizon access was good at 2-3 bars. AT&T was lightening fast at 4 bars.

Review of Surrounding Area
There are some great walking and biking trails straight out of the area. The park sits on the Verde River. Fishing on several of the lagoons and even horseback riding.

Shopping Access
Cottonwood is close and has easy access for shopping. Walmart, Frys and Safeway are all there. The choice of stores is limited, but we did find some great restaurants and microbreweries in Oldtown Cottonwood.

Nearby Activities
Historic Cottonwood - great restaurants and beer
Sedona - not too far
Jerome - so funky and worth the drive but NOT in the RV
Flagstaff - worth the day trip for the microbrews
Tuzigoot National Monument - a good leg stretcher
Mountain Biking - Lime Kiln Trail (and yes you can see the old lime kilns)

This park is right out of Cottonwood, AZ which makes it a great base camp to explore the surrounding areas. We visited Montezuma's Castle & Tuzigoot in the same day, and spent the rest of our time relaxing in the park. Our kids earned their Jr. Ranger Badge, Sam and I both got in a mountain bike ride (Definitely intermediate to advanced trails!), and we explored down by the lagoons. Overall we had a pleasant experience!

We'd just acquired a dog from the shelter in Cottonwood and it was between our feet that he rest, staring at the campfire. I thought perhaps he might catch like a Q-tip, his hair thick and wispy at the ends. Though our neighbors were nearish, the night was quiet.

We were young and in love then, still figuring out the ins and outs of living with someone new--and now, for some reason I don't recall, a dog--in a small campervan with no running water, no bathroom, just a broken 12v fridge worth of IPAs and a pee cup.

And so it was through everything starry eyed and new hope for this future together that we saw everything. The short walk around the lake felt remarkable. Families on horseback screamed romance. And the little town of Cottonwood played the perfect adorable backdrop to it all.

So I leave the true reliability of my opinions here up to you. Be you a hopeful romantic yourself you may take them at more than face value, concoct ideas in your own head about the proximity to the mountain clinging ethereal several streets of happiness that make up Jerome and how it will ignite a passion with you and yours never seen before. Or if you're the cynical type, you may note that while it's also fairly close to Sedona, the town has been overrun by a sort of low key strip mall-idis that stings more than blatant Walmartian advertising principles.

Either way, I still recall the place fondly.

We arrived close to 7:00 pm, but we were able to meander to our site easily. They had the orange cone out to reserve our spot, and we backed in easily as there are not too many big trees around the sites in this campground. There are a few in between your neighbors, but it's pretty big and open. Though it's located in the hills, the site driveways are paved and fairly level. The hosts are friendly and helpful, and they kept the restrooms very clean. The hook ups worked just fine. Though you can see city lights in the distance, you still felt like you were out there. The park is about thirty minutes outside of Sedona, so a day trip there is very nice. We hiked in Fay Canyon, and that was very pretty and not difficult with kids (12 and 9) and Grandma (60-something). It was short trip, but a very nice weekend.

We stayed at two separate loops the middle of January 2016. The old adage about location, location, location is very true here.

The first night be stayed in the Red Tail Loop. We promptly departed the next morning as quickly as we could. The view of downtown Cottonwood was just too much to make it relaxing or enjoyable. The rude and annoying camp host with his neon green cactus and Christmas decorations still out sealed the deal. Seriously, we couldn't pack up and get out of there fast enough to suit our moods.

When we returned three days later, after a brief stint at Alamo Lake, we were in Cooper's Hawk Loop and it made all the difference in the world. Never heard or saw the camp host, no glaring lights from downtown Cottonwood and gorgeous views of Jerome nestled in the distance.

We would stay in the Cooper's Hawk Loop again in a heartbeat but will never return to Red Tail Loop.

This was a nice state park and a good home base for visiting the surrounding area, including Sedona. However, after staying at many excellent state and county parks in Arizona we found Dead Horse Ranch to be a bit lacking in comparison. Sites were closer together and pretty un-level, showers were smaller and more basic, and the landscape was less attractive (dirt/scrub). That said, it still beats most commercial RV parks... we've just been spoiled by other Arizona campgrounds! The state park has several lakes (lagoons) for fishing and our dog loved to go for a swim in them. It's only a few minutes to Cottonwood, and less than a half hour to Jerome or Sedona. AT&T and Verizon both worked well for us. We stayed in the Red Tail loop. The price ($25) is great, and we'll likely return again if we re-visit the area in the future.

We stayed here in May 2016 for 3 days and really liked it but because we were here to see friends who were in Sedona we really only had a taste of it. We returned for 6 days in Oct because we wanted to see more of the area and had some MoHo work that needed to be done.

Access: Really easy and from the size of some of the gargantuan rigs we've seen coming in pretty much anyone can fit. The park is off 89A (which goes to Sedona) or I-17. Be careful because once you leave Main St in Cottonwood and are on 10th St heading to the park the speed limit is 25 MPH and the police do seem to patrol the road. The park seems to fill up fast on weekends and even on Wed when I was in the office all the sites had been booked for the weekend. Tues/Wed/Thurs were the quieter days when we were here.

CHECK IN: if you have registered it is only a matter of stopping at the gate to pick up the tags for rig and car. Otherwise, they are willing to allow you to drive around to look for a spot and then come back to register for any you pick that are not reserved. There is a small gift shop with a small selection of camping supplies, a nice selection of books and information about the area and a few souvenirs. The camp staff, all that we have met during both visits, has been helpful and pleasant.

SITES are level, there is not a huge amount of space between them but there is a nice grass patch on either side and are at enough of an angle that you have a sense of privacy. Asphalt pad with grass/dirt. Fire rings and picnic table at each site. There are several loops. The two up the hill and one down have electricity (50 amp) and water: Cooper's Hawk, Red Tailed Hawk which are on the rise, just below the tent only area (Blackhawk loop) and Quail Loop which is under trees on the other side of the road. There is also a group/equestrian loop (Raven) as well as a loop with cabins. We stayed in Red Tain Hawk loop in May and Cooper's Hawk loop in Oct but did not find the lights to be a problem as one reviewer did.

BATHROOMS/SHOWERS for both of our visits have been clean (cleaned at midday) with plenty of hot water and pressure in the showers. The showers are not the most modern and the ADA shower had a hose that dripped and squirted around the connection but the other 2 were fine.

There is a dump station at the entrance exit with easy ingress/egress and away from the other traffic.

The CG was quiet the entire time we were here. The lights from Cottonwood to the south and Jerome to the west twinkle in the distance at night and even with the entrance light at night the stars were clearly visible and plentiful.

Cell: I had 2-3 bars of ATT and 3-4 of Verizon the entire time we were here. We saw plenty of TV receptors out so we have to assume it came in to those who watched.

PETS: are welcome on a leash and on the many trails around the park.

TRASH: There are dumpsters at the entrance to each loop with aluminum and plastic recycling pails.

Around the area there are a number of places to visit that are within 1/2 hour driving: Montezuma's Castle and Well, Tuzigoot, the old copper mining town of Jerome, Old Cottonwood and Sedona. There are 3 supermarkets right in Cottonwood (Safeway, Fry's and Food City as well as Walmart) French's RV (AKA A-1 RV in Camp Verde is fast, excellent service is you need any work done and they have a number of supplies-or will order (2 days at the most). There are 3 laundries in Cottonwood. Thee are somewhat strong winds at times so if your awning is of any concern it may be a good idea to leave it in when leaving for any time. It is also dry desert, with lots of mesquite and cottonwood as well as yucca which makes it quite dusty at times but the wildlife is abundant-Western Bluebirds, Gambel Quail, Roadrunners, coyotes (howling at night but quite near) as well as javelinas (smelled and heard but not seen).