Are Mogollon Rim first come-first serve campsites competitive in spring?

Hi, I'm thinking of camping at any of the Mogollon Rim area campgrounds near Woods Canyon lake in May.

It looks there are many to choose from: Aspen, Mogollon, Spillway, Crook, Rim Campground, and Sinkhole campground. However all of these appear to be first come first serve on recreation.gov

Anyone know if these are competitive/hard to get on a weekend in May? I'd be going up either Friday morning or evening.

in AZCampingby Endless_Horiz0n

100%

1mo

biking4jesus

1mo

Yes, many free campsites (dispersed) are first come first serve. Established Campgrounds are available for a fee, and reservations are avail.

lancethruster12

1mo

Pretty much all of those campgrounds are reservable

Endless_Horiz0n

1mo

Yes good point. I found out later that they switch from FF to reservations later next month. So…problem solved

I_was_Batman82

1mo

You should be okay if you go up Friday morning. There's typically quite a few spots in those areas and I would also check out FR 171 (technically Old Rim road). The entrance is the south side of the 260 and is right across the street from the entrance to the road that leads to Woods Canyon lake. Plenty of dispersed campsites here to choose from and it's a quick drive to the lake.

Woods Canyon lake can be a popular place in the springtime so I would recommend going Friday morning if you are able to. Just gives you better odds at finding a nice spot.

Endless_Horiz0n

1mo

Thanks! Good to know there's dispersed camping available if those other sites are full.