Camping in Arizona: The Most Epic Campsite at the ‘Edge of the World’
Situated between Flagstaff & Sedona, there is a campsite with incredible views of the red rocks miles away and this beautiful green forest over cliff sides in front of you. It’s a view of absolute beauty and grandeur! When it comes to camping in Arizona, it doesn’t get much better than this.
I visited the ‘Edge of the World’, also known as the ‘End of the World’ or East Pocket in November of 2020. More exact, I camped on election night of 2020. A place called the End of the World seemed quite.. fitting! Haha. Me and my boyfriend Tyler arrived on that weary Tuesday afternoon to the most EPIC campsite we have ever been to.
Since getting a rooftop tent in the summer of 2020, we have camped through Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, & Arizona. Tyler, who is not the biggest fan of camping still says this is his favorite spot and he would go back again to camp. He also says it is a better view than the Grand Canyon!
If you want to learn more about car camping off grid in Arizona and around the U.S., visit this blog post for more information!
Looking for more things to do in Arizona? Read my blog post on spending three days in Tucson & Phoenix!
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Rental cars – I recommend DiscoverCars to shop around at multiple car rental agencies.
Travel insurance – I recommend Safety Wing; keep your trips insured to protect yourself while traveling.
Tours/experiences – I recommend Viator!
How to Get There
Getting to the Edge of the World requires a bit of a drive. It is a little over 25 miles one way down a long dirt road, Woody Mountain Road located in the Coconino National Forest.
Check this site out for a map of the drive.
Most of the drive is level and easily driven in any type of car.
However, we did end up getting stuck in my Honda Cr-V with AWD. We got stuck driving between the campsites. The paths between the sites is a whole lot of dirt that feels like quick sand, and we got stuck in a rut. For an hour we dug the bottom of the car out and put a tree branch and car mat under the right front wheel to get it out! It was an experience for sure. Apparently someone had gotten stuck around the same area that day before as well!
So, I would really recommend at least AWD with a little bit of ground clearance, and really investigating a path before driving down it!
What to Bring
- At this dispersed camping site, you can tent camp, rooftop tent camp like we did, or car camp. This spot is popular for vans, too. RVs and tow trailers should use extreme caution because of the long, rough road.
- Water. There are no potable water sources here!
- Food. When we camped here we ate our usual camping meal- Ramen noodles! Lol. We use a Jetboil to boil water to make the noodles. Think about preparing food ahead of time to heat up on a camp stove or over a campfire, or eat things that don’t have to be refrigerated like PB&Js! Be sure to secure all of your food in your locked car when not you’re not eating to not attract any critters or wildlife to your campsite!
- Flashlight. It gets dark up here at night so having a light source is extremely helpful!
- Toilet paper & wag bag or shovel. Dispersed camping means.. no toilets! If you are going to go #2- use a wag bag and pack it out, or dig a hole at least 6 inches deep to go in.
What to Do
- Find the swing! The swing is a coveted thing to see at the Edge of the World. When you leave the main road and enter into the campsites, go to the right. It’s not far from the entrance, so don’t look too far. If you feel like you’ve been walking or driving for a whole, you probably passed it. It is located at a campsite, so look along the rim for a large spot with a fire ring.
- Relax, read a book, or set up a hammock, and take in the gorgeous view!
- Watch the most amazing sunrises & sunsets. Sipping coffee in the morning or hot chocolate at night makes them even better. 😉
- Walk to the East Pocket Lookout Tower. We did not do this but it looks awesome and if we go back I’d love to find it!
Camping Rules
Note: this is dispersed camping which means it is free! However, practice these rules below to be a safe & respectful camper:
- Leave no trace. Pack out whatever you bring in! Please respect this area and help to keep this place beautiful so we can visit in the future.
- Check forest status & fire danger before going: If there is a fire ban in place, it is extremely important abide by it. As we saw in the summer of 2020, fires are devastating and can be easily started by accident! Check this website for current conditions.
- Be courteous to other campers. Just like arriving to a dirty campsite with trash, hearing loud music at night when you’re trying to be at peace in nature and sleep is disrespectful and annoying.
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