Camping near Forest Lakes, Arizona

Camping near Forest Lakes, Arizona includes 2 public campgrounds on record, 1 reservable and 1 first-come. All are run by the U.S. Forest Service. The nearest, Black Canyon Rim Campground, is 4.2 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line, and all 2 are within 15 miles. 1 is free. Another 35 public campgrounds filed under nearby towns are within 30 miles of Forest Lakes.

Black Canyon Rim Campground Fr 171

noindex Fewer than 5 campgrounds here clear the indexable bar yet, so this page stays noindex.

Camping near Forest Lakes at a glance

Public campgrounds: 2 (2 National Forest)
Getting a site: 1 reservable and 1 first-come
Cost: 1 free; lowest posted fee at Black Canyon Rim Campground: "Single Site: $20 per night (up to 8 people and 1 vehicle)"
Distance from Forest Lakes: 4.2 miles (Black Canyon Rim Campground) to 4.2 miles (Fr 171) in a straight line; 2 within 15 miles
Elevation: 7,571 ft (Fr 171) to 7,660 ft (Black Canyon Rim Campground), 2 of 2 on record
Season: 1 seasonal with posted dates
Campsites: 68 across the 2 campgrounds that state a count
RVs: 1 take RVs; no hookups on record; longest stated RV length 60 ft (Black Canyon Rim Campground)
Drinking water: 1 of 2

Distances are straight-line miles from Forest Lakes's point in the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2025), not driving distances. Every other fact comes from each campground's own sourced record, linked from its page.

Reservable Black Canyon Rim Campground Forest Lakes · National Forest · 4.2 mi

Agency: National Forest
Sites: 20
Season: Not on record
Fee: Single Site: $20 per night (up to 8 people and 1 vehicle)

First-come Fr 171 Forest Lakes · National Forest · 4.2 mi

Agency: National Forest
Sites: 48
Season: May 1 to November
Fee: Free

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More campgrounds within 30 miles of Forest Lakes

Canyon Point Campground, 1 mile from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $38 per night (up to 8 people and 1 vehicle)); listed under camping near Payson.
Upper Canyon Creek, 2.9 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Payson.
Airplane Flat, 3.3 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Payson.
Sinkhole Campground, 4.6 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $25 per night; $12 per additional vehicle); listed under camping near Payson.
Colcord Ridge, 5 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Payson.
Rim Campground, 5.8 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $18 per night; $12 per additional vehicle); listed under camping near Payson.
Gentry Campground, 6 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site $18 per night; Group Site $90 per night (up to 50 people and 6 vehicles)); listed under camping near Payson.
Spillway Campground, 7.2 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $36 per night; $12 per additional vehicle); listed under camping near Payson.
Spillway Group Campground, 7.4 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (Group site non-electric $185 per night, includes 25 people and six vehicles); listed under camping near Payson.
Woods Canyon Group Campground, 7.4 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (Group site non-electric $275 per night, includes 120 people and 30 vehicles; $25/night family sites when not reserved); listed under camping near Christopher Creek.
Crook Campground, 7.5 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $25 per night); listed under camping near Payson.
Aspen Campground, 7.7 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $35 per night); listed under camping near Payson.
Mogollon Campground, 8.4 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $18 per night); listed under camping near Payson.
Fr 195, 8.7 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Christopher Creek.
Fr 169 Campground, 9 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest (free); listed under camping near Christopher Creek.
Fr 9350, 9.8 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Christopher Creek.
Promontory Pit Road, 11 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Christopher Creek.
Sharp Creek Campground, 11 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $29 per night; Group Site: $150 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Sharp Creek Group, 11 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Group Site: $150 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Haigler Canyon, 12 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Young.
Chevelon Canyon Lake Campground, 13 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Heber-Overgaard.
Christopher Creek Campground, 13 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Overnight Use:); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Christopher Creek Group, 13 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Group site: $80 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Lower Tonto Creek, 16 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $20 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Upper Tonto Creek, 16 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $20 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Knoll Lake, 17 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (Single Site: $20 per night (up to 8 people and 2 vehicles)); listed under camping near Payson.
Ponderosa Campground, 17 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $22 per night; Group Site: $100 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Ponderosa Group, 17 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Group Site: $100 per night); listed under camping near Star Valley.
Chevelon Crossing Campground, 18 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (free); listed under camping near Heber-Overgaard.
Rock Crossing, 28 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $20 per night (8 people, 2 vehicles); Double Site: $40 (16 people, 4 vehicles)); listed under camping near Blue Ridge.
Blue Ridge, 29 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come ($20 per night.); listed under camping near Blue Ridge.
Moqui Group Campground, 29 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Group Site: $85 per night (up to 50 people)); listed under camping near Blue Ridge.
Houston Mesa Group, 29 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Group Site with electric hook-up: $170 per night); listed under camping near Payson.
Houston Mesa Campground, 29 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , reservable (Single Site: $29 per night); listed under camping near Payson.
Kehl Springs, 30 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line , National Forest , first-come (Single Site: $8 per night); listed under camping near Washington Park.

Things to do near Forest Lakes

Public land and water within 30 miles of Forest Lakes, the public land its campgrounds sit in, and landmarks at those campgrounds, nearest first.

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, all 2 campgrounds here sit inside this national forest, the nearest Black Canyon Rim Campground at 4.2 miles from Forest Lakes; publiclandsdb.com has its dispersed-camping rule, ranger offices, and boundary.
Mogollon Rim escarpment, at Fr 171 (4.2 miles from Forest Lakes): The camping area runs along the edge of the Mogollon Rim escarpment behind the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center, and a few campsites are bordered by a vertical drop of more than 300 feet.
Hellsgate Wilderness, a wilderness area whose mapped point is 25 miles from Forest Lakes; its permit and camping rules and boundary on publiclandsdb.com.
C.C. Cragin Reservoir water level, a reservoir whose mapped point is 26 miles from Forest Lakes; current water level on reservoirfinder.com.
Waterwheel Falls, a waterfall whose mapped point is 27 miles from Forest Lakes; details on the falls on swimholesmap.com.

Supplies and emergencies near Forest Lakes

Nearest emergency room: Little Colorado Medical Center, 1501 N Williamson Ave, Winslow, AZ, 49 miles from Forest Lakes , (928) 289-4691. Next nearest: Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center, 5880 South Hospital Drive, Globe, AZ, 64 miles, (928) 402-1122. Both report emergency services in the CMS Hospital General Information dataset (accessed 2026-09-26) ; the location of Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center is from OpenStreetMap, the Census geocoder could not place its address. In an emergency, call 911.

Groceries: Forest Lakes General Store general store · 0.5 miles
Woods Canyon Store convenience store · 7.7 miles
Circle K convenience store · 13 miles
Fuel: Circle K fuel station · 13 miles
Circle K fuel station · 15 miles
Chevron fuel station · 15 miles
Propane: Pinnacle Propane fuel station · 15 miles · (928) 474-2254
RV dump station: Canyon Point Campground campground · 1 mile
Woods Canyon Dump Station RV dump station · 7.6 miles
Aspen Campground campground · 7.7 miles
Potable water fill: Aspen Campground campground · 7.7 miles
Heber Water Company water fill point · 14 miles
Pharmacy: White Mountain Pharmacy pharmacy · 15 miles

Not mapped in OpenStreetMap within 25 miles of Forest Lakes: laundromat and ice. Stores, fuel, propane, dump stations, water fill, laundromats, and pharmacies are the nearest few mapped within 25 miles, straight-line, © OpenStreetMap contributors (data as of 2026-09-29; this extract under the ODbL). Hours are as mapped; call ahead.

Common questions

Where can I camp around Forest Lakes, AZ?

2 public campgrounds are on record near Forest Lakes. Nearest first, straight-line from town: Black Canyon Rim Campground (4.2 miles) and Fr 171 (4.2 miles). 1 is first-come, first-served with no reservations and 1 books through Recreation.gov.

Is there free camping near Forest Lakes, AZ?

Yes: Fr 171 charges no fee at the campground.

Where can I camp with an RV near Forest Lakes, AZ?

1 campground near Forest Lakes takes RVs: Black Canyon Rim Campground. None has hookups on record. The nearest mapped RV dump station is at Canyon Point Campground, 1 mile from town (OpenStreetMap).

Where can I camp near Forest Lakes with drinking water?

Black Canyon Rim Campground has potable water on record.

Where is the nearest emergency room to Forest Lakes, AZ?

Little Colorado Medical Center, 1501 N Williamson Ave, Winslow, AZ, is 49 miles from Forest Lakes in a straight line and reports emergency services to CMS; phone (928) 289-4691. In an emergency, call 911.

Every campground in the state: camping in Arizona ; by agency: National Forest campgrounds in Arizona ; by county: campgrounds in Coconino and campgrounds in Navajo .