van on a hill with blue sky and a big tree in the distance

Boondocking Near Zion National Park : Mount Carmel Utah

Beautiful Sunsets And Free Camping

Boondocking Wasn't Originally In The Plans

As we planned our 16 day trip, we had to guess on how long we would want to stay at each campsite. Turns out we really misjudged. We ended up leaving three campsites early which left us with no place to stay for those nights. 

We left Zion because the temperature was too hot to really get in any long hikes and hanging around the campsite had its own heat challenges.

So we turned to our old trusty boondocking friend.

 

van after the sun has set with pink skies and a silhouette of a tree behind it
sunset looking over the deck of the van

How Did We Hear About This Place

Whenever it’s time to find an off grid location to stay for the night, we always turn to the iOverlander app. While it is not always a foolproof way to find an amazing place to stay, for the most part you can make your decision based on the reviews other people leave. 

It always feel a bit strange as you enter the boondocking space. Often you are the only vehicle, but if it’s a highly rated spot, you are sure to find others. The night we stayed there were four other vehicles camping, but we all had plenty of space between eachother.

How To Find Our Campsite

It is pretty easy to find if you put these coordinates into your map; 37.25446° N, 112.76967° W. This should lead you right to our area, but there are many other spots to stay at this location. You will hear slight road noise as you are a couple hundred yards off a two lane road. It really was minimal though and did not last into the night.

sunrise with sun half showing
sunrise before we see the sun

Leave No Trace

Remember that these boondocking spots have no toilets, water or garbage receptacles. Our side did have a fire pit that was made from rocks somebody before us gathered. That night there was a bit of a wind so we decided not to make a fire.

Please take all your garbage with you when you leave so that others can enjoy this amazing setting.

What Does This Location Offer

Our campsite was up on a small hill that gave us 360 degree views of beautiful trees and red rock mountains in the distance. The landscape was ever changing throughout the day and evening as the sun hit it at varying angles.

There are areas that require a more capable van than ours. Four wheel drive might find you a more secluded spot. As it was, our Falken WildPeak 4W tires helped us get up on this mound.

van up on the small hill our campsite was on
sunset with the front of the van in the foreground

Cell Service

  • ATT – 1-2 bars, but WeBoost was required to post pictures and send texts.
  • Verizon – A little less signal strength than ATT.

Would We Recommend this location

Without a doubt! This was a beautiful boondocking location. The pictures really tell the whole story.

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