Forest Road 687 Dispersed Camping

We just finished our 14-day stay at FR 687. What an amazing location with huge sites that can fit multiple rigs. But as the previous reviewers have mentioned the Middle March Road is a bit of a drawback. On the day we arrived (May 2023), they were grading the first 2 miles of the dirt road which seems to have made things a bit better currently.

The review by BootsBikesBoatsBooks was excellent so we will defer most of the specifics to theirs but we will add that it is great to see that the rangers are patrolling the area. One ranger stopped by on the day we arrived and just asked us not to have fires since the area was in a red flag warning, he stopped by around 12 days later just to check in on us and it was clear they are making sure that people are not staying past their 14 days. WE LOVE THIS !!!

If you are interested in seeing a drive-thru of the area we post a video review on this page or the link is below.
https://youtu.be/i6hpFl2p_iA

This lat/lon represents the start of Forest Road 687 when it connects to Middlemarch Road. Middlemarch is a wide maintained gravel road but can be washboardy in places. Drive 10 miles to 687, turn left and cross a cattleguard and there are miles of dispersed sites with fire rings all along the west side of the Dragoon Mountains. Some sites have trees for shade, camp right next to boulders, in grassy areas, or down in an oak grove, there are lots of choices. Area is very clean and very quiet for boondocking. Along the road there are a couple of named trails for hiking. Saw no ATV activity, just horseback riders. We pull a 24' lower clearance TT and we found a great spot 2 miles down 687. Road may be bumpy in places but if you go slow it's doable, but take a vehicle down to confirm your comfort level with the road condition. On Google Satellite you can zoom in and see many of the potential campsite locations. Verizon 4g would be good (3 bars) then disappear for a minute then reestablish, this happened constantly. Because of the long drive down the gravel road, we had a coating of dirt on everything we own but I guess that's the price you pay for some great boondocking. We would definitely stay here again because of the view and peace and quiet.

Granted the road is pretty bumpy to get there with a 35 feet bus with low clearance, but it is well worth the washboard ride and the few wash crossings to be in such a spectacular setting. And a bonus for us is that it's home to tons of awesome rock climbing routes 3 minutes away. Last yes, we camped right at the bottom of the Stronghold with the Westfalia (further down the road, by what the locals call Peanut Rock). It was the best spot ever. This year, we brought the bus, so we picked the first large camping spot on the left, about 1 mile after the cattle guard. It was plenty big for 3 rigs. The signal was great. Make sure you dump and fill and have enough groceries for the duration of your stay, since it is far from cities (Tombstone is the closest).

Beautiful peaceful spot up against the mountains. It is about a 30 min drive on a pretty rough and bumpy road...but so worth it. Get to Tombstone in 20-30 min. We love it!

This was the best camping location I've had so far. The surroundings were beautiful and felt truly isolated. There is a gas station about 14 miles from the location, with reasonably prices gas. The ride in is on about 14 miles of dirt roads that can be a little bumpy. The town of Tombstone is about 15 or 20 minutes away. Small town, with lots of history and lots to see. If you can't get cell coverage on the campgrounds there is free wi-if in coffee shops in tombstone.

FR 687 is accessed from North Middlemarch Rd, off Hwy 80 just north of Tombstone. Middlemarch Rd is badly washboarded - I drove much of the way in at 10-15 mph with the trailer, not knowing what was coming up, and I had cabinet doors open and stuff fall out. When I left, having gotten used to the road with the truck and knowing there were no ruts or sharp corners, I cruised out with the trailer at 30-35 mph, and it was a fairly smooth ride. From Middlemarch, turn left onto FR 687 at the Coronado National Forest entrance sign. I camped in the last week of November at a large pull-through at lat/long 31.8607,-110.0156, right in front of the sheer face of the Dragoon Mountains. It was an excellent site, but not level, needing 4 lego blocks. I had no other neighbors in sight. I explored the area, and can advise: (1) if you want to camp on the loop further in, close to the mountain, enter by the first entrance. The far entrance is badly rutted. (2) Do not attempt to take an RV past that loop - you will quickly get into trouble with huge humps, sharp corners and tree branches. If you are a truck camper or tenter, there are some great sites further down past the loop. (3) Do not attempt to take an RV further down Middlemarch, past FR 687. There are mountain roads to explore. You can take Middlemarch over the mountain, and get a view across the desert to Chiricahau. You can take East Stronghold Canyon Rd to some beautiful mountain scenery, but there is some treacherous gravel that I needed my 4WD to get through. FR687 is a good central location for Tombstone, The Queen Copper Mine in Bisbee, Kartchner Caverns, the Titan Missile Museum and the Asarco Mineral Discovery Center. On the way into Tombstone, there is a dollar store and a Circle K gas station with a purified water dispenser - $1 for 5 gallons. The only dump station available in the area is at Stampede RV Park in Tombstone. I stopped there on the way out. They charged $20, and the sewer hookup was way too high off the ground.

Really enjoyed our stay here. the only bad part was traveling up Middlemarch Rd extreme washboard for 10+ miles. Once you hit FR 687 it gets a little hairy if you have a larger rig. Narrow with tree branches and dips. We made it in OK with our 35' TH, but you better scout it before you pull in. There were only a couple of places that I saw where I thought we could easily fit, if those were occupied you would have a tough time getting turned around. We stayed in early March of 2017 so don't remember all the details of cell coverage, but do remember not having any problems with my Verizon cell & data. As far as dumping goes we used the SKP Saguaro Co-op up the road on 80 in Benson since we are Escapee members.

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The access road was wash boardy, but wide and clear. Only 1 or 2 sketchy spots at the end for our rental 23 foot RV’ but worth the adventure.

Amazing, breathtaking! This is hands down one of my favorite spots to camp in Arizona. The views are absolutely stunning, and the atmosphere is peaceful. I cannot wait to go back! ✨