First-come, first-serve. No showers at campgrounds within the park. Brush up on bird baths before you go. Weekend campsites are tough to score during spring peak season (March-April). Get there on a Thursday if you can swing it. If you can't, get there at the crack of dawn on Friday. Campsites will probably be full, but if you have faith and perfect timing, you'll whine/pout in the car for awhile until you snag one as someone else is leaving. This ended up being the case around 6:30 am, when we tested our luck at Ryan Campground after Jumbo Rocks was full. Ryan Campground has 31 campsites. If a post has an orange envelope clipped to it, the site's taken. Otherwise, it's yours. Sites are fairly spacious and surround a cluster of boulders. We snagged #16 for $15/night. If it's a weekend, it's a guarantee people will be circling the grounds each day in search of a site and asking if you plan to leave. They will also approach you at night and ask for advice on a place to camp. If you're feeling altruistic, keep in mind it's 2 vehicles per site. Make sure to consult the weather forecast beforehand--what we thought would be a little breeze ended up being 30 MPH gusts of hell. We took the ominous warning from the state park ranger lightly, who devilishly giggled after saying "no, you won't blow away." We didn't, but our tent collapsed, as did 80% of the tents surrounding us. Amidst our elemental battle, a couple pulled up to ask if we were leaving. We weren't, but invited them to share our site with us. The 4 of us combined couldn't keep our tent upright against the wind. An hour later, a torrential downpour forced us to throw everything into the car and sleep in a hotel. We returned the next morning when the wind died down. The weather didn't deter anyone, the sites were still full. Our tent dried out during the day and we were able to have a great experience. Highly advise a night hike to Ryan Ranch, but bear in mind you may encounter desert stragglers who've ingested hallucinogenics. It's entertaining. No matter your experience of Ryan Campground, you're sure to come away from it with a good story. read more

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When we were there it was quiet and our site, #5, was close to the bathroom. We were pretty close to site 6 and luckily it was unoccupied when we camped. It felt like we had a lot of space to ourselves. The site is pretty exposed so the sun was burnin'! There seemed to be a lot of sites on the other side of the campground that were next to big boulder rocks so there are sites with more shade. The bathrooms were pretty clean, no showers. The fire risk was high due to the high winds so we were barred from using the fire pit and bbq grill that weekend. The Joshua trees are mesmerizing and are everywhere! There are a couple more campgrounds in Joshua tree that we would like to check out but wouldn't hesitate to stay at Ryan campground again! read more

Ryan Campground - Hiking Near Me - Joshua Tree, California

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Review is for the hike, the payoff is an abandoned adobe homestead with the main structure still standing and old parts strewn around the base of Ryan Mountain. Joshua Tree will always have a special place in my memory. I came camping here for the first time as an elementary school kid and my friend's father taught me how to pitch a tent, spot constellations, and different types of rocks. Luckily, my kids seem to have inherited the same feelings and loved their time at Ryan's Ranch. Hike is an easy 1.1 miles out and back but you can spend much more time scrambling on the rocks which we did. There are Joshua Trees everywhere you can walk right up to. My favorite part was total freedom to explore. It's not like many hikes that have a set path and barriers to stay in, a lot for the rock scrambles are very close to the trail and there is easy visibility so you won't get lost if you don't wander too far. read more

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We truly enjoyed this campground, depending on what side you stay on you will either have sunrise or sunset view. Our site was #2 which had a sunset view. Lots of big boulders to explore and climb on. Smaller campground with 33 sites, sites are pretty close to one another so this being a smaller campground offers little more peace and quiet than some others. Best part was being able to walk and explore the remains of Ryan ranch, a quick walk from the campground. Beautiful sunset views from there. Be prepared for a lot of wind, the ground can be very hard and difficult to steak down a tent or easy up. And the vault toilets stink even though they are maintained, on a busy weekend if your campsite is near the restroom and you are downwind it can be unpleasant. All the restrooms at all the campgrounds and trailheads are vault toilets so just be prepared. We would stay here again. read more

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Beautiful place. Very clean and well kept, sites are semi private and the views are incredible. read more

Ryan Campground - Hiking Near Me - Joshua Tree, California

Unfortunately we got into Joshua Tree just after sunset on Wednesday. It was a race against time to find a campsite before it was completely pitch black. We circled frantically around Hidden Valley twice before giving up and driving over to Ryan Campground with our breaths held. Thank the desert gods for the only open campsite, #34!! It was $15/night, first-come-first-serve. We slipped our money into the iron box and clipped up our orange slip. Setting up camp with just headlamps and the glow of our neighbors' fires was slightly annoying, but nothing compared to the feeling of relief of actually having a place to set up our tent for the night. #34 is tucked between two other campsites but feels very private as you're in a protected semi-circle of boulders. Depending on where you set up your tent, you won't see your parked car. You even have your own personal Joshua Tree. The site itself was very clean, as was the rest of the grounds. The vault toilets were sucked out daily so there weren't any nasty smells. Don't forget to bring your own hand sanitizer and wet wipes. It's totally understandable there isn't any running water in the entire park (it's a desert after all), but I wish they provided hand sanitizer in all the restrooms to prevent widespread outbreak of e-coli. Location-wise, this campground is excellent as it is close to the most popular vista points and hikes. If you aren't able to stay in Hidden Valley, I would definitely recommend checking out Ryan Campground. Enjoy your stay! read more

Ryan Campground - #34 - Hiking Near Me - Joshua Tree, California

Cozy and fun, around 30 campsites. Great location in Joshua Tree, clean bathrooms. Requisite hike nearby and amazing rock formations in camp. Well located refuse and recycle bins. Wonderful. read more

Ryan Campground - Site 26 foreground left. Site 3 foreground right. Site 25 background. - Hiking Near Me - Joshua Tree, California

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$15/night. First come, first serve. Fire pit was in great condition. Large picnic table with a BBQ grill near it. No cell service like most National Parks. It was fairly easy to get a spot mid-week. No water, so bring all the water you plan to use. A gallon a day for drinking per person. We brought extra for our portable shower as well. Be mindful that bees will appear any moment they sense water on the ground or in open containers. Lots of rock climbers. If you are situated with the pile of boulders behind your campsite, be prepared for people walking/climbing around non-stop. We left on a Friday, and noticed the rowdy/loud campers started showing up claiming spots. If you are seeking peace and quiet, DO NOT come on a weekend. You've been warned. LOL. A few trails start from here which is very convenient. The closest being Ryan Ranch. Overall, we enjoyed our time at this campground and would most likely stay here again. read more

The desert holds a genuine and undeniable beauty that simply cannot be expressed by mere words. I usually plan about 2 camping trips (5 to 6 days) each year. Much planning and preparation go into these 2 trips, including - but not limited to - hikes, meals and visits to certain points of interest. In between my bi-annual planned trips, I take many 2 to 4 day spur-of-the-moment trips with very little planning; sometimes as many as once a month. My trip to Ryan Campground in Joshua Tree National Park was one of the planned variety. Sunday through Thursday, directly following one of the busiest weekends of the year for JTNP. As Neil Young once said, "the devil fools with the best laid plan." To make a long story short, once my Jetta Sport Wagon was fully loaded on Sunday morning, I noticed a flat tire... or nearly flat. Instead of taking hours trying to remedy the problem, I took the gas-guzzling Ford Taurus. But of course I had to unload the Jetta and load the Taurus; cut just over an hour out of my day. Adapt and overcome. How to get there: When using the west entrance into the park, remain on Park Blvd. for approximately 18 miles. The campground will be on your right just past Keys Road and Cap Rock. With just 31 sites to choose from, Ryan Campground is the third smallest campground in JTNP, not including Sheep Pass Campground, which is a group only campground. Fees are minimal, just $10.00 per night. Like most campgrounds in JTNP, Ryan is based on first-come, first-served... no reservations. There is no running water here at Ryan, though if your timing is right you may see some patches of snow, so be sure to bring your own (water). Showers can be had for $4.00 approximately 18 miles away in the town of Joshua Tree at a quaint little souvenir/gift store called "Coyote Corner". It's just across the street from the Visitor Center. The only restrooms at Ryan are of the vault variety, but they're kept clean (and I came after one of the busiest weekends of the year!). There are the usual campsite amenities: fire pit, barbecue grill and picnic table. No cell service. I always turn off all of my electronics upon entering a campground; helps to reset my biological clock (http://directorsblog.nih.gov/2013/08/29/reset-your-body-clock-with-a-camping-trip/). Ryan Campground consists of a single loop with most of the sites on the inside of the loop; only about four on the outside, they were all taken. I always prefer camping on the outside of a loop... for reasons I won't get into now, but no biggie, I can deal with that. Of the sites located on the inside of the loop, only a handful were available, and each one of them abutted a neighboring site... which is okay... I've never met anyone I didn't like when camping. Still, a little privacy never hurts. There are a few hikes I would recommend from Ryan Campground: Ryan Ranch (about 1.4 miles out and back); Ryan Mountain (2.8 miles out and back); and the California Riding and Hiking Trail (35 miles). If you choose the CA Riding and Hiking Trail, you have a choice of two directions: southwest or southeast. Neil Young's devil would visit me again on the morning of my final day, but there's no need to elaborate on that. Overall, Ryan is an okay campground, but not the best at JTNP; not even the second best, but it's still JTNP, and there's so much to do and see there. Its location alone warrants it a 4-star review. I was lucky enough to visit when there was still a remnant of the recent snowfall... "Earth is a flower and it's pollinating" - Neil Young read more

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