Black Canyon Campground

This a be campground. BUT, this whole first come first serve and reserve some sites is crazy. I camp at national Forest campgrounds all over the country and some of these rules are hard to follow. I pulled into a campsite that said in the tag (view the pic) and at 7pm enjoying my fire some pulls in and says the reserved it. We both handles it well and they moved to a site that was open. Of course the camp host was nowhere to be found. It all worked out but it's messy at some places.

I’ve been RVing full time for 14 months from SC to ID to CO back to SC to WNC to SC to TN to AL to TX to NM to AZ , UT and CO again. Hands down Deb Lujan is the best camp hostess I’ve met in all of the many publicly owned campgrounds I’ve stayed in. She bends over backwards to accommodate campers’ needs and to amickably settle concerns plus is always cheerful and helpful with recommendations of places to see and services available in town. She’s a true asset to our NP system.

This place is great, next to Hyde memorial Park but with affordable prices. It's strange that there's no water. There spigots, but the Hyde State Park doesn't want to run the pump the transport water to black bear canyon. In the last there was electricity, because the restrooms have lights with sensors. Spots are spacious and fill up quickly. The reservation system sucks. We've seen many spots which were empty for days/weeks. Someone made a reservation and didn't show up. All spots should be "first come, first serve" The area has beautiful hiking trails. The camp host Deborah was extremely helpful with providing us a last minute spot. She was always there for any questions or issues. She made sure everybody feels welcome and rules were followed.

Black Canyon Campground exceeded our expectations! This was our first visit and we were impressed with the paved sites. There is a variety of sites to choose from. We ended up reserving site #17, which was pretty private, yet right next to the restrooms. We loved that there is a fire pit with grill and picnic table. It was very beautiful, peaceful, and affordable. The guests were very quiet. Any talking or music we heard seemed distant. The hiking trail is nice for a short hike and we finished it under 45 minutes. There is a host onsite and she seemed attentive to campers. It was my first time camping since I was a kid, and this is great campground for those who don't want to "rough it." You feel like you are in the middle of nowhere, but are only 7 miles from the city. I wish I could give half stars, as I would give this a 4.5. Minus a half star for the toilets. The vault toilets were okay. The women's had a ton of flies, I just held the door open every time for a moment and most flew out, but they were coming out of the toilet as well. My husband reported the men's did not have this problem. Both had fly traps that needed replacing. We did get an occasional whiff of the restrooms, since our site was right next to them. The women's bathroom ran out of toilet paper. I am glad we brought a bathroom bag with our own TP and hand sanitizer. This is not a deal breaker for us, as it is the reality of camping. However, if vault toilets are provided and there is an onsite host, I would assume they would be attended to. There are water taps in the campground but no water was available. We only stayed one night and brought our own water.

Black Canyon is a gem. We stay there during all our Santa Fe trips. It is consistently clean, quiet and convenient. The host was very helpful and friendly during our visit in July 2025. The night sky is spectacular with stars.

The poisonous caterpillars descended onto our campsite and made it hard to enjoy being outside. They have almost destroyed most of the coniferous trees in the area. I would recommend waiting until these are gone to visit. They can cause a severe rash or worse if you touch them or breathe in their tiny hairs.

Excellent campground. Beautiful paved terraced sites. Just a short drive to Santa Fe. Helpful camp hosts. Would definitely return.

Spent a long weekend in the Black Canyon Campground in the Santa Fe National Forest. It was a beautiful spot with recently updated camping spots with rock walls, fire pits, picnic tables, and flat surfaces to set up tents or RVs. There are 35 available spots, and with many being reservable and some first come, they fill up quickly. We were surrounded by pine trees and aspens, and there is an easy hiking trail at the far end of the campground. The bathrooms were plentiful and fairly clean and other campers were respectful. Do be aware that there is no phone signal (which was fine by me!) and no electricity. $10 per car fee.