Best Tent Camping: Arizona. Kirstin Olmon Phillips
long as the motor is less than 10 horsepower). Anderson Mesa has been designated an Important Bird Area—come here for great bird-watching, particularly during migrations. If you should see an osprey drop from the sky and splash up with a fish, look for the bird to turn the catch in its talons in flight so that it faces aerodynamically forward. Among the coots (the lake’s most common denizens in every season), look for pied-billed grebes, whose telltale sign is the uncanny ability to duck underwater as soon as you get your binoculars pointed in their direction. During spring and fall migration, you may see northern shovelers, cinnamon teals, northern pintails and ring-necked ducks, plus western grebes courting with their long, swanlike necks. Mountain bluebirds are everywhere, and in the early-morning hours you won’t be able to miss the cascading, liquid call of the meadowlark. You may also see less attractive fliers; bring bug spray for spring’s no-see-um gnats. Hunters and avid fishermen can use the campground in the off-season, without the comfort of facilities, although in bad winter weather the road may be closed. You’re on high, flat land up here, so come prepared for heavy winds in any season.
If you get sick of your camp cooking, head over to Mormon Lake Lodge at Mormon Lake Village. The lodge, open since 1924, has a restaurant and a general store. A catastrophic fire burned the original lodge to the ground in 1974, but local ranchers rebuilt it, and the interior walls still display their cattle brands. Western literature buffs will find a nice selection of Zane Grey memorabilia, as well as a plethora of game trophies. The village also offers gasoline, riding stables, rental cabins, and winter recreation, including snowmobile and cross-country ski rentals.
Mormon Lake is Arizona’s largest natural lake, but don’t expect much fishing here, as it’s often nearly dry. The resulting marshy pasture is a great place to view wildlife, so stop at the overlook and see if you can spot a bald eagle flying overhead, or elk grazing on the tall grasses. One (possibly tall) tale we’ve been told is that as many as 50 elk will gather in the middle of the lake bed during hunting season, as if some instinct tells them that no hunter will take a shot in the face of an impossibly soggy retrieval.
GETTING THERE
From Flagstaff, take Lake Mary Road (FR 3) southeast 17 miles to FR 82E. Turn left and drive east 4 miles to the campground.
GPS COORDINATES N35° 01.372' W111° 23.828'
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Freidlein Prairie Dispersed Camping
Beauty
KEY INFORMATION
CONTACT: 928-526-0866, tinyurl.com/freidleinprairie
OPEN: Year-round; sites 10–14 closed March 1–August 31
SITES: 14
EACH SITE HAS: Fire ring
ASSIGNMENT: First-come, first-served; no reservations
REGISTRATION: Not required
AMENITIES: None
PARKING: At campsites
FEE: None
ELEVATION: 7,900'–8,600'
RESTRICTIONS:
PETS: On leash only
FIRES: In fire rings only
ALCOHOL: Permitted
VEHICLES: RVs and trailers not recommended; motorized/mechanized vehicles not permitted in the Kachina Peaks Wilderness.
QUIET HOURS: Not specified
OTHER: 14-day stay limit; pack in/pack out; no drinking water available; bear-country food-storage restrictions
This campground borders a stand of aspens overlooking a grassy meadow.
Aspens lend a touch of fall gold to site 14.
Freidlein Prairie Road (Forest Road 522) climbs along the southern flank of the San Francisco Mountains above Flagstaff, through a dense mixed conifer–aspen forest dotted with small clearings. Freidlein Prairie itself (sometimes spelled Friedlein or even Friedlund) is an irregular patch of aspen-rimmed grassland that, especially in fall when the trees blaze with gold, can easily be seen from town. Wildflowers abound in season, and elk and mule deer graze here throughout the year. This beautiful spot in Coconino National Forest may have been named for an Arizona pioneer family: in 1894, the local newspaper mentioned the theft of a horse from the Friedlein brothers, as well as one Will Friedlein’s successful duck-hunting trip to Mormon Lake.
Dispersed camping is allowed through most of Arizona’s national forests, providing some of the state’s most beautiful and serene camping experiences. In areas of very heavy human impact, such as the Flagstaff wildland-urban interface, however, the U.S. Forest Service sometimes uses “designated dispersed” campsites to reduce fire risk and damage to the land. In 2001 an abandoned campfire off the Freidlein Prairie Road started the 1,300-acre Leroux Fire, spurring the creation of 14 designated sites, a change meant to protect both the fragile forest and your backwoods experience. A numbered fiberglass post by the road marks each site, and another sign, CAMP WITHIN 50' OF THIS POST, defines the campsite itself. While there are no picnic tables or portable toilets, you’ll find parking, a tent area, and a fire ring at every site. The beginning and end of the designated camping area are also signed.
The first two sites are fairly close to FR 516, also known as the Snowbowl Road. If you don’t want to go too far up the rugged road to get to the remaining sites, site 3 has a nice, open feeling. Sites 4 and 5 are neighborly, but not on top of each other; sites 6 and 7 should appeal to two groups camping together, since they’re just separated by a small mound of boulders. While Freidlein Prairie Road is definitely unimproved, passenger cars with good ground clearance should be able to make it at least as far as site 7 in dry weather.
Sites 8 and 9 sit off 9002W, a spur road to the south. Wildlife spotting should be terrific from site 8, which sits at the ferny border of a stand of aspens overlooking a grassy meadow. Site 9 is among ponderosa pines at the very edge of the designated camping area. It’s close to the road, but you’ll see more saucy Steller’s jays than passing vehicles on this dead end.
Back on the main road, the landscape gets rockier. Freidlein Prairie is actually a well-known bouldering spot, with at least one published guide to the best climbs. It’s a few minutes’ drive to reach shallow site 10. Site 11 is on a ledge below the road, surrounded by boulders. Sites 12 and 13 are nice, but our pick for beauty is site 14, a tight spot among lichen-covered boulders and bright-green ferns. Note that sites 10–14 are closed March 1–August 31, the nesting season of the Mexican spotted owl. Any traditional nesting area may be important to the survival of this endangered species, so please respect the closure.
With no services available in the Freidlein Prairie area, pack-in/pack-out and Leave No Trace practices are required. With any luck, the camper before you had good wilderness