How is camping on the BLM land near smith rock

Hi all. I have purchased a state park pass in hopes of keeping stays at smith rock less expensive. Instead of camping at the bivy, my plan is to camp for free on nearby BLM land in order to save money. I’m curious if anyone has had experience camping on BLM land and if so where would you recommend to stay. It would be awesome if you could drop in a google maps coordinate link! Thanks! 

There is some free camp sites north of Skull Hollow campground. 

Rick.Krause Krause wrote: There is some free camp sites north of Skull Hollow campground. 

Have you camped there before by any chance?

Cyrus Horse Camp is a little bit farther than Skull Hollow, but it's free and has a picnic tables and a drop toilet.

If you are going down soon double check that the skull hollow camping area is open first. We went down last year in March and it was gated off. Not sure if it was a seasonal closure or because of the road construction. There was an excavator parked back there...

Carson McDonald wrote: If you are going down soon double check that the skull hollow camping area is open first. We went down last year in March and it was gated off. Not sure if it was a seasonal closure or because of the road construction. There was an excavator parked back there...

Is skull hollow free? I have done some research and found mixed answers  

Not sure. We didn't stay there because it was closed. If it is ran by the state there's probably be a fee 

The skull hollow campground is not free, but as has been mentioned earlier there is BLM land litteraly right next to the camp ground and you can camp there for free.

I've camped on the roads above Skull Hollow... it's fine. Minimal as to be expected and since you're basically set up in a pull out right off the dirt road you can expect infrequent noise from people driving past. Beyond that, it's free and ~15 min from the park. Drive as if you're heading to Skull Hollow and instead of taking a left across the cow-catcher into the campground, stay straight on the dirt road headed up into the hills. You can camp in any of the many pullouts along that dirt road (NF-1395).

Thank you all! I’m looking forward to finding a campsite using all of your instructions!

Dillon Smith wrote:  You can walk to Skull Hollow to use the facilities if need be.  

I've done this before and I hear that the camp hosts are beginning to crack down on people poaching the toilets

Daniel Bookless wrote:

I've done this before and I hear that the camp hosts are beginning to crack down on people poaching the toilets

This sounds WAY above the pay grade of the average campground host. 

Dillon Smith wrote: Regarding the bathrooms

Can people using the dispersed free camping next to the Skull Hollow camp ground use the bathrooms in the campground?  Who owns the bathrooms?  The contractor or the NFS?

Thank you for you inquiry regarding bathroom use at Skull Hollow. This campground use has more than doubled in recent years and the dispersed use outside the campground has also increased proportionately putting social and financial pressure on the management of this facility. When the campground is open the facility is managed by a third party concessionaire under permit authorized by congress through the Granger Thye Act and the Recreation Enhancement Act. The state and county also have laws that apply to the payment of services. For example when a person sneaks out on a meal they did not pay for. The same applies to using amenities of a fee facility whether that is a day use trail head or an overnight campground. When a fee is charged, a fee is lawfully expected when using those facilities.
That said we encourage patience in the managing of these facilities to a point so long as the facility is not being taken advantage of or becomes a hardship to those managing them. The maintenance of these particular high use bathrooms comes at a cost and are not free. For someone choosing to disperse camp we encourage using Leave No Trace practices or to pack out their waste and dispose of it properly at home.
 
Forest Service Shield
Kent Koeller
Recreation Planner

perfect opportunity to implement the Dollar For Duece program.  I'd happily throw a buck into the fee station for the option to use the bathroom only.

Dillon Smith wrote: Regarding the bathrooms

Can people using the dispersed free camping next to the Skull Hollow camp ground use the bathrooms in the campground?  Who owns the bathrooms?  The contractor or the NFS?

Thank you for you inquiry regarding bathroom use at Skull Hollow. This campground use has more than doubled in recent years and the dispersed use outside the campground has also increased proportionately putting social and financial pressure on the management of this facility. When the campground is open the facility is managed by a third party concessionaire under permit authorized by congress through the Granger Thye Act and the Recreation Enhancement Act. The state and county also have laws that apply to the payment of services. For example when a person sneaks out on a meal they did not pay for. The same applies to using amenities of a fee facility whether that is a day use trail head or an overnight campground. When a fee is charged, a fee is lawfully expected when using those facilities.
That said we encourage patience in the managing of these facilities to a point so long as the facility is not being taken advantage of or becomes a hardship to those managing them. The maintenance of these particular high use bathrooms comes at a cost and are not free. For someone choosing to disperse camp we encourage using Leave No Trace practices or to pack out their waste and dispose of it properly at home.
 
Forest Service Shield
Kent Koeller
Recreation Planner

This is flat out wrong. While a contractor may be hired to manage a FS campground, they do not own the infrastructure there. It is public property, still.  And many FS campgrounds also serve double duty (and doodie) as day use areas, trailheads, etc.

If the contractor has issues with providing proper upkeep at the rate they're being paid by smokey bear then they need to renegotiate. 

Dillon Smith wrote: Don’t shoot the messenger.  Write them an email if you want.  I had no idea the Granger Thye Act or Recreation Enhancement Act was even a thing.  I’m interested to read more about it.  Pretty stoked I was able to get a quick and nuanced response.

I didn't mean it as any reflection on you, Dillon. Just pointing out that the person answering your email is totally making it up. 

Mister Arroz wrote:

This is flat out wrong. While a contractor may be hired to manage a FS campground, they do not own the infrastructure there. It is public property, still.  And many FS campgrounds also serve double duty (and doodie) as day use areas, trailheads, etc.

If the contractor has issues with providing proper upkeep at the rate they're being paid by smokey bear then they need to renegotiate. 

Yeah... no.  This would mean camping is free at all pay sites too.  We have pay sites to concentrate use and keep the backcountry inept out of the backcountry.  

chris magness wrote:

Yeah... no.  This would mean camping is free at all pay sites too.  We have pay sites to keep the backcountry inept out of the backcountry.  

Pay to poop ot pack it out.

No, that's not what I'm saying. What I said is that just because a private contractor takes over management of a FS campground it doesn't mean the public day use infrastructure there is suddenly privatized. The public craps like crazy in NFS and NPS campground bathrooms, even when not staying there.

If they want to implement a "overnight guests only" policy that would be a big change.