Cherry Creek Road Dispersed Camping

This spot is between Durango and Mancos with easy access to both. I have a 35' 5th wheel and there is a short bumpy climb to the gravel lot if you will. 4x4 would most like needed on a big rig like mine due to weight.

For others, any car can make it. Just take your time and pick your line:)

Pros:
Price
Location
Great Single track motorcycle riding out your back door.
Mancos- Great town be sure to check out the local bakery and library if you need free wifi. If you happen to show up after hours the Wifi is Guest and the password is Guest123 and you can reach it outside with some other teens on any given night.

Cons:
Dusty open gravel area. There is more camping up the road if not in a big rig with privacy.
You can hear 160 but it puts me to sleep.
Wifi. Crazy.. sometimes 4 G with Verizon and then nothing. Dont count on it... Go to the Mancos LIbrary, very very nice.

We stayed here 4 nights. Our longest boondocking yet!
The uphill before and after the cattle guard is rough. I don’t think we would of made it if it was muddy. We started on 2WD but we were struggling. (Chevy 2500 + 31’ TT). Switched to 4x4 for the bigger hill and it was fine. We have pretty good ground clearance and plenty of horse power. I do have some off road experience as well.
But we saw many cars and small SUVs make it (Honda element, older beat up Chevy cobalt, etc.)
After that initial hill about 300’ long, there is a football size dirt lot. Pick your spot, the whole things tilts south, we used 2 blocks on the low side.
The road keeps going but we would definitely not make it with our trailer. Maybe a 10’ trailer max?
The road is a bit noisy but we didn’t mind it.
Quite a bit of people camping around us. About 4 or 5 other cars/suvs/vans would show up every night to sleep and the leave. Some of them always the same peopl, some new. Everybody was quite and to themselves so we didn’t care.
Takes about 30 minutes to Durango, it’s nice because you enter Durango and hit historic downtown.
Durango Joes Cafe has great internet. 23mbps download and 15mbps upload. Current password as of today: lovecoffe5
We are really liking Durango, we will spend 4th of July at the other free site just east of town, Durfield Dispersed Camping.
VERIZON: sometimes 2 bars of LTE at best. Then 1x, then 2 bars of 3G. Not great.

I got to this spot around 4pm and all the shady spots were taken but overall I had a good experience. The others staying there were really kind. The road directly off the highway is quite bumpy but my 2wd made it ... might not recommend attempting after a lot of rain.

We made it up the hill just fine in our 32’ class c pulling a Jeep, BUT, driving up is like pure hell! Huge rocks, deep gullies, bumps. Glad we didn’t fling rocks thru our holding tanks. It’s a decent area, with some more secluded areas, close to Durango and Mesa Verde and the price is right. We will not return in a Motorhome.

Dirt road right off the highway, we passed it a few times before spotting it. The initial hill to get to campsites is rocky and steep, but worth it. Our Subaru forester took it like a champ. There's 3 "level". There's about 6 sites at the first level, easy access for RVs and campers that were there. The 2nd and third level are better suited for those with cars. We followed tire marks up to the 3rd level, after scouting of course, and found 4 more spots. Beautiful views and private. Some firepit rings, plenty of rocks to make your own. If you can, get to the 3rd level.

lots of options in the area but this is pretty convenient! decent amount of others camping especially right off the road. a lot more space if you continue up the hill but road gets a bit more tough. pretty easy access with a 4x4 vehicle. Solid location right off the highway and pretty close to town. seemed like 1 or 2 more permanent rvs parked. saw a forest service ranger/worker each day come through and check sites. firewood everywhere but fire ban in place i think. pretty solid amount of cell service especially higher on the hill.

My 21 foot Class C couldn't make it 50 yards from the highway. Got stuck in the rutted road on a very steep hull and engine died right after. Do not attempt this unless you have a seriously capable vehicle

As I was forewarned of the first 100+ feet, the incline is challenging. No joke. Know your vehicle's true capabilities as it's loaded for this uphill slog. I pulled my 6,400 lb 27' Lance 2285 up with my 3.5zl Max Tow 2017 F-150 in low range 4 wheel drive. I chose a bad line to miss the larger hole and crept up the grade with the trailer in Tow. Made it up without issues. Be forwarded, and if you feel it's too much, don't attempt it.

We chose one of the pullthru sites on the second lift. I didn't have to level the axles. I just parked and lowered the tongue. Minor traffic noise because otherwise it's silent. There were 4 others camping here: truck camper, class B and C, a schoolie and a car camper.