The locale is genuinely appealing with ample space to accommodate rigs of all sizes. The majority of the route leading in is well-tarred, followed by numerous turnouts for parking. Essential amenities like water and waste disposal are just a short drive away, and you can reach Yuma in approximately half an hour. The only significant downside is the extreme wind conditions that forced us to remain indoors for several days. Mobile network coverage was generally excellent, albeit with sporadic brief interruptions. We definitely plan on returning.

An excellent location for free camping can be found to the west of Yuma, Arizona, within the Californian Desert. There are numerous flat, hard surfaces suitable for setting up camp. However, it's quite exposed, so wind might be a problem. The Verizon connection is superb, with a download speed of 131.1 Mbps.

There's a vast amount of open space in this area. Given the harsh weather and strong winds this year, I'm dismissing it as an anomaly. Although it's usually windy here, this season is unusually intense. There's ample space to find solitude, but the lack of trees makes it hard to find shelter. If you have an awning, it's best to keep it folded up, as sudden gusts of wind can cause damage and result in expenses. Essential facilities like water, waste disposal, and garbage collection are conveniently located a few miles down Route 8. The city of Yuma, which is approximately 15-20 miles away, provides all necessary amenities. The terrain here is mostly flat, with several easy entry points from the main road.

This is an excellent winter destination that I visit annually. While this commentary pertains to American Girl Mine Road, you could venture virtually anywhere in the vicinity and have a similar experience. The area is open, never congested, and boasts excellent AT&T mobile coverage. Streaming videos is a breeze. The stunning sunrises and sunsets are a sight to behold. Evening bonfires in the desert are a unique delight. I even had a fox drop by one evening. Be prepared for the occasional gusty winds. Mosquito bites are rare. Here are some recommendations: - Visit Yuma and watch the car races at Cocopah Speedway. Remember to bring a warm coat as winter nights can be chilly. It's a blast.- The area is perfect for mountain biking, with a few hills and numerous arroyos to cross and jump.- Downtown Yuma is home to charming shops and eateries.- Stop by Del Sol Market in Yuma for the freshest corn tortillas you'll ever taste. The market also has a coin-operated, pay-per-gallon fresh drinking water station in the parking lot. It's only 75 cents for 5 gallons.Aside from these activities, there isn't much else to do except kick back and unwind.

The road named American Girl Mine is ideal for an F-350 towing a 38-foot 5th wheel. It's advisable to drive in at your preferred spot, then get out and inspect the area for any deep tracks or loose sand. However, the ground is mainly composed of compact gravel. Although the wind can be intense at times, a quick check on your wind app will reassure you that it's temporary. During our stay, only two out of seven days were windy. The view of the sunrise and sunset was breathtaking. The area was quiet, with no noise from other campers, creating a tranquil environment. We refueled at the rest stop located in the middle of the road, 4 miles west from the Ogilby exit as suggested by a previous visitor. It was simple to rejoin the westbound traffic. We managed our food and propane supply efficiently, stocked up in Yuma, and comfortably spent a week there.

Over the past couple of years, we've had the chance to stay at this location twice. It served as a perfect spot for us to recoup either before or after departing from Baja, MX. It's an excellent, serene spot to spend a few days. The area is spacious, level, and open. On the positive side, there's ample space, it's secure, and there's convenient access to waste disposal and water at the nearby rest area off Hwy 8. There's abundant sunlight for solar power, and it's near Los Algodones, MX for day excursions and Yuma, AZ for any necessities. On the downside, the scenery isn't the best, there are ATVs roaming around (which could be a plus if you own an ATV), AT&T coverage can be inconsistent, and it can get windy. I would certainly endorse this place.

We stopped with the intention of staying 5-6 days. When we arrived we were shocked by how few people were here. The few who were here were all in a bunch. We found a spot far away from everyone else.

I can't help but think of the Tom Petty song when I think about boondocking at American Girl Mine Road outside of Yuma. Anyway. This place is pretty awesome. When we camped there it was the less populated road just past Sidewinder off of Ogilby. The winds were howling in January, but the temperatures were perfect. 50's at night and 70's during the day. Access is convenient, even for big rigs. There were 2 when we arrived. There's good (free) water at the rest stop just west of the Ogilby exit. Both Verizon and AT&T worked for us and to top it off, there's even over the air television. Lots of spanish channels, but we did manage to find CBS and watch Charlie Rose.

We pulled into the area in a 38ft Moho dirt road going in was very smooth no problems. There is plenty of level Land to park away from everyone else. Close to the 8 fwy and 25 minutes to Yuma AZ. Not alot here but serene and quite, we did 4x4 to the old mine town of Tumco for a nice sunset hike. I would stay he again nice area to decompress! Really good cell reception with ATT & Verizon!

We stayed in two locations near here (one a couple miles down American Girl Mine Road on the right, and one a couple miles further up Ogilby Road, on the right). It's pretty easy to find places to camp along either road. Both times it was a good place to enjoy some privacy, isolation, and free camping while being relatively near Yuma. The weather in January 2016 had highs around 60 and lows around 40, while our second visit in February had highs around 85 and lows in the mid-60s. Unfortunately during our stay in February the wind was extremely strong all week, so much so that we had to un-tilt our solar panels and pull in our main slide-out much of the time which lessened our enjoyment of the site. There's a dump station at the gas station a couple miles east, and fresh water a the rest area a couple miles west, although we didn't use either. Our Verizon and AT&T had strong signal but Verizon was often slow while AT&T was always speedy. We'll very likely stay here again in future winters rather than pay high rates for small sites at Yuma RV parks.

While this site is a little far from Yuma (30-40 min), it was a great spot for a few reasons: 1) tons of space to camp, 2) great Verizon signal, and 3) very little dust, 4) well-maintained roads in. We stayed here for quite awhile. There's not much to do nearby (a small ghost town to the north, and Yuma to the east), but it was a great spot to hunker down and take it slow for a few weeks.

The pros of this spot is that it's easily to get to, lots of options and easy enough to find some land to yourself. There's also great cellular signal in the area. Otherwise, the land is pretty barren. But there are some great views of the sand dunes and surrounding mountains. Yuma is a bit of jaunt away (close enough to do some shopping, but too far away to go into town often.. at least for our style). Can definitely see why folks going the border crossing for dental work and such enjoy the spot. There area we plopped down is technically not BLM land, but owned by the nearby mine. According to other boondockers in the area, the company is good with folks there - and don't enforce stay limits - as long as campers keep it clean. For us, it won't rank high on our list of places to route back towards .. but we'd probably stop in for a bit if in the area.

This is a fairly barren part of the desert, with stunning sunsets and sunrises and some desolate beauty, but you need to look for it. The nearby sand dunes are wonderful, we took so many pictures. This spot is convenient for Yuma and for crossing the border to Algodones for dentist work, prescriptions and Tequila (should be available on prescription!). Yuma is a short drive away and has everything you need, including decent supermarkets, food truck tacos and a couple of breweries. We found the military aircraft overhead to be quite active when we were there. They fly pretty low and at all times of the day or night, which disturbed the peace a little. Blissfully bug free while we were there, and not too dusty. This was a coolspot to hang out with our friends for a few days.

We have stayed off the Ogilby road a couple times in the last two years. Lots of places to boondock, flat ground, easy access for any size rig. There are always several other campers in this area, but it's pretty easy to camp away from other people. Close to Yuma, and Algodones. Tumco ghost town is just down the road, and that's a pretty interesting place to explore.

We picked a spot not to far in as we were unsure of how the road or area would be. It was awesome. The spot had a rock fire ring too. Short ride to refill water and dispose of trash. Lots to see and do in the desert! The are train tracks near by but they run mostly during the day. After the first night it was just soothing. Awesome fast internet on hot spot.

Stayed further back in near the mines and mountains in a 40ft 5th wheel. Not as open as when you first turn on American Girl Mine Rd., but secluded and protected from the winds.

This is a great place to stay if you are wanting to hit Los Algodones for anything. For me, it was for dental work and to get new glasses. We had friends meet up with us and there is PLENTY of space for everyone to spread out. The road, as others mentioned, is very well maintained coming in. We had our share of very windy days and nights. There is a train track pretty close by, depending on where you stay. I like the train sounds so it didn't bother me. The planes and helicopters flying overhead and around were a tad annoying. It wasn't constant, though. Generally, it's a good place if you have a purpose- to get away and be as isolated as possible, or a place to stay to visit Mexico. Yuma is not too far away, though it's not exactly a 'nice place', it likely has all the amenities you need. The Imperial Sand Dunes are visible from here. They filmed parts of Star Wars there. (Tattooine) My dogs had PLENTY of space to run around while I hiked the hills. I'd stay here again to escape the cold or to camp while needing to go to Mexico. GREAT internet speeds as well. Verizon.

I've stayed here twice. January 2016 and January 2017. Both times I've stayed as far back in as you can go, against the wash. Plenty of wide open space so if washes aren't your thing, you have choices! ;) Blazing fast Verizon. Easy access to Yuma and Algadones. Plenty of walking trails to be had. If Jeeping is your thing, this is also available.

We have heard about this boondocking spot from multiple full timers. When we had friends working in Yuma and others camping, it was a good excuse to check it out. Aside from the warm weather. As we were driving down there we saw a hundreds of RVs driving and then a hundred more there already. We were worried it was going to feel cramped/crowded. Marshall and Kelly found a great spot off American Girl Mine Rd and we didn't feel the hundreds of other RVs or hundreds of people. The sunrises and sunsets were amazing and there was actually a lot to do in the area. Dumping and water might be hard to come by, but you can still find it in the area. Most are here for the sand dunes and medical tourism in Mexico. We weren't there for the medical tourism but I was sure to make it across for the tacos! We will definitely be back to this area. It is the perfect place for a quiet get away or a group get together. The dogs could roam and even in a group of 4 we were not squished. Perfect for solar and you can be far enough away from people to use your generator if you need it. The sign of any good boondocking spot!

This is a good alternative to Yuma but I think we are only so, so on it. Seems a bit windy and dusty at times. Good Internet. Not the most scenic place we have stayed. Would we camp here again? Is there a maybe checkbox?

Great cell, great location, not far from a good sized city yet still far enough for some desert tranquility. Some wind but just enough to keep things pleasant. We stayed here in January and the weather was perfect. We drove down right next to Bluebird hill and were able to take an interesting hike up to the top and found some really nice Kyanite samples. There were a few trucks that drove by during the day but that was all of the traffic that we had at the end of the road. The access and location, for us, is perfect. You are 22 miles west of Yuma and all the fast food or groceries you could want. The roads are all paved until you turn off onto American Girl Mine Road. After that there is a graded dirt road that leads through the main part of the dispersed area. From there you can head off on some of the lesser roads. There are also more roads just north of the main drag where many others had found nice spots. As with any desert spot, do scout ahead and check for washes. Even though we had many neighbors it was easy to find a spot and everyone had a good chunk of land (think acres) to themselves. The land here is flat, so leveling is an option and the clime is desert. Not many insects or any other life for that matter (although I have not went to hunt for scorpion at night with a black light - yet). We did find a rattle snake sleeping a couple of hundred yards from our trailer so do be careful and oh yeh, don't poke them with a stick. We could occasional hear our neighbors (if they were yelling for one another) and there is a train that runs by infrequently but we don't mind a distant train once or twice a day. P.S. Our profile pic was from one sunrise where the winds woke me early.

Very nice level spots with lots of room for even the largest rigs. There is a nice view of some small mountains and great sunsets. There is not much in the way of trees and only a few random bushes. Weekends bring in ATVs and during the weekdays large trucks move up and down the well maintained road to the area (perhaps the smoothest dirt road that I have been on anywhere at anytime). Cell signals were fantastic!

It's not necessary to go very far in. I went way too far and the road got really rough and rocky. Where I was there was no one else and it was very quiet. Not sure if I would stay longer than one night, but I would surely stop again.

Free camping found in Southern California. In this video, we show you three separate free camping locations in Southern California. All three of the free camping locations shown in this video are on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land with a 14 day stay limit. Grid coordinates for the ultimate free camping location featured in this video are as follows: 32.832134, -114.815018 Verizon cellular service clocked in at 98.3 Mbps download speed and 8.09 Mbps upload speed. AT&T cellular service clocked in at 57.3 Mbps download speed and 3.58 Mbps upload speed. T-Mobile cellular service clocked in at 25.3 Mbps download speed and 14.7 Mbps upload speed.

Stayed out for almost 2 weeks super beautiful it’s desert but I think it’s amazing. You can hear a faint hum of the train occasionally but not too bad.

The area is easy to find. It is located just off of I-8 and Ogilby Road. There is pavement all the way until you arrive at American Girl Mine Road which is a well maintained gravel road.. Signage is poor but you will know that you are in the right place as soon as you cross the railroad tracks. The area is to the east. It is flat and will easily accommodate any size unit. The rules are fairly basic. Try to keep a good distance from your neighbor (there is plenty of room available), CLEAN UP after your pet, DO NOT dump your grey (or sewer) on the ground and pack your garbage out. Leave it how you found it. You will find that others have respected this area. It is clean and safe. Fresh GOOD water can be obtained FREE at the Wells Grey Rest Area located about 4 miles west on I-8. You can dump your holding tanks for a fee at the Chevron Service Station in Pilot Knob about 10 miles east or in Yuma about 20 miles east. Our Verizon cell and Wifi worked very well. There are some OTA television stations and, of course, satellite will work very well. There are mining ruins, a ghost town, rock hounding, ATV/Off Roading including The Imperial Sand Dunes near by. Some interesting/odd places such as “The Valley of the Names” as well as hiking and climbing nearby. Be aware, it can get windy on occasion. Desert sunrises and sunsets are beautiful. The night sky here is muted a little by light pollution from near by Winterhaven and Yuma to the east and Mexicali to the west but still pretty nice.

American Girl Mine Road isn’t the only access to this very large area. There are a couple more entries a bit farther north off of Ogilby Ed. Permission is only required for parking on the small patches of private land in this large area. Saw a video that claims you must be within 300 ft of the “marked” roads (posts with a marking like EC592), but I never saw an official looking vehicle around for the nearly 2 weeks I was there. Can get very windy at times, so keep your eye on the weather forecasts. I rated it high because I like riding my fat bike on the roads and ATV paths in and around the nearby mountains. Tumco ghost town is worth checking out if you have time. Close to all the conveniences of Yuma.I have been there twice, both times in mid March,

We spent three nights here. There were quite a few others but there’s so much space! Road is in level and the side roads are good albeit a bit rocky. Have four bars LTE with Verizon. It’s been windy every day but warm and sunny. Great place to spend a few nights, near Yuma, and right off of I-8. There is a train that rolls by and toots his horn but it’s not too bad.

This is a huge area for any size camper. The main road in is in great condition but most of the side roads need a 4 x 4 to travel on. Although, we did see some good size campers on some of those roads. If you enjoy exploring for rocks, this place is amazing! We enjoyed searching for “treasures” every day. Yuma is the closest town for getting groceries, doing laundry, etc.

Lots of room to spread out. 30 minutes from Yuma. Garbage dump and freshwater are 4 miles west at the Interstate Rest Area. It is convenient as it is in the middle. Propane at CAL Ranch for the best price as of today's date. Laundry, showers ($10), dump ($15) ice cream, and local history at the Gold RV Park 4 miles up Ogleby Rd. Wed-Sunday. Mail-Winterhaven P.O. Amazon Lockers available at GNC in Yuma $6 parking fee at the border unless you park out on the road and walk-up. I hope that is helpful.

We stayed here after RTR and the access with the 5th wheel was easy, really any size rig could fit here. The trick is to move onto a side dirt road before pulling into a spot in the desert since there are "little earthen hills" on American Girl Mine Road from the road grater. Saw very little trash and there were not too many off-road vehicles around (a few more on the weekends than during the week). Right before the turn onto AGM Road there is a double train track. We hardly ever heard the trains since we went pretty far towards the mountains. I downloaded the "BLM route of travel map for Eastern Imperial County California" (pdf file) and used the map for a lot of walking/hiking into the mountains. There was a lot of wind the first 2 days and than again for 3 days when a cold front came through. It seemed to be stronger near the mountains, but it was still better than being in "real winter weather". There is free water and trash service at the rest area (about 3.5 miles west of exit 159) in the middle of the interstate. Our location was at 32.843117,-114.813538. The area is a great mostly quiet place to go to Los Algodones for medical or dental..... Our Verizon hotspot worked fine without a booster. We even watched the superbowl without any problems....

Went to the CRVL coordinates at AGM. Nothing spectacular, but plenty of level sites. Plenty of previous people have marked out fire rings with stones. Cleaner than most other free BLM locations. Beautiful sunset when a few clouds are in the sky. This area is more pest-free (few if any ants, mice, spiders) than most other areas I have been to, probably due to being more rocky and barren than typical. A few ATVs, but no crazy stuff. Would rate this place higher, but not at all happy about the excessive wind that was there about half the time. Windier than surrounding areas, windy for no good reason. Must be a geologic reason for the wind in this particular spot. T-Mobile excellent here!

We were able to get our big ol' girl into a spot with little difficulty - we did get our legs snagged on one of the pull-offs so be careful which one you choose, they dip down a bit on some of them. The road is paved until you get to American Girl Mine Rd which is dirt but really easy to drive down - hardly any ruts or washboard like.. All the spots are pretty much level - we didn't have any issues finding a spot and leveling - even when still attached to the truck. The space here is incredible. There were probably 20 other boondocks inner 'area' and you could hardly notice. Cell signal was great for both AT&T and Verizon - we were able to do conference calls and stream with no issues. Yuma is about 20 minutes or so away which wasn't bad for us - we ended up staying in the area for awhile so we got a gym membership for a month in town (4th Ave Gym is awesome if anyone wants to know!). Sprouts is in town and so is Walmart. Yuma has everything. The only downsides we experienced was that the ground is very rocky (duh, its the desert) but I didn't realize how hard it was on the dogs paws. So be careful - let them adjust! AND American Girl Mine is an active mine at this time so there are trucks driving back and forth all day. Didn't bother us but it might bother some. :) Otherwise, GREAT spot!!!! Enjoy!!

Stay in Jan 2019. Can be wind. The road was dirt but it was better then most paved raids. ATV and UTV sometimes more on weekends but t not to bad. Trucks during the week but really not noisy. Weather was warm and sunny. Days in the low 70’s night in the mid 50’s.