Three Rivers Lincoln National Forest campground

Controlling agency:	Lincoln National Forest; Smokey Bear Ranger District
Location in the state:	South-central;
Waypoint(s):	LNF3RIVCG
Elevation:	6335ft; 1931m
Number of campsites:	12
When we visited it:	2007-04-01.
Cleanliness:	8/10. Camp site cleanliness ranged from at least 100 pieces of litter in one campsite to as few as three in another.
Fee:	$6.00.
Water:	Yes.
Garbage cans:	Yes.
Fire pits:	Yes.
Cooking grills:	No.
Toilets:	Vault.
Showers:	No.
Handicapped accessible:	Unknown.
RV info:	No electrical hookups. No water hookups. No sewer hookups. Park on gravel. RVs limited to 25' length (from Forest service information).
When to camp:	Jan--Dec.

On US 54 between Carizozo and Tularosa, between mile posts 96 and 96 is a large sign indicating a turn to the east on Otero county road B030, also known as Three Rivers Road and forest road 579.

At about five miles, you pass the entrance to the Three Rivers Petroglyph site and the corresponding BLM campground.

Continue past it, remaining on the main road. Signs point the way at every junction, but in general, you are always following the primary road. At 7.3 miles, you follow the sign and go right down a dip, across an arroyo, and the road becomes gravel. At 8.3 miles, another county road (Otero B035) takes off to the right. You do not want this road; instead, go straight, and a sign just past the cattle guard indicates that you are on the correct road.

12.6 miles from US 54, the road dead-ends in the campground.

Note that the speed limit on US 54 is 55mph. The highway patrol strictly enforce this limit; we often see people pulled over. Many (five or six on our last trip) damaged guardrails attest to the wisdom of the limit.

On Thu Jun 21 20:23:56 2007 Bob from Tulsa, OK said:
We tent camped at this campground in July 2004. Very scenic site overlooking the Tularosa Valley. Clean, quiet campground. This is a great place to get away from the crowds. Seems to be popular with horseback riders. We've always meant to return, but we have not been able to yet.

On Thu Jul 12 22:02:33 2007 Austin BacaRay from LAS CRUCES said:
Me and my Boy Scout troop. Troop 66 . I loved this site it was very clean and quiet.love to come back.

On Tue Sep 25 08:17:58 2007 Pat Rasmussen from Alamogordo, New Mexico said:
We hike the 3-rivers trail at least once a year and it is especially beautiful in the late spring while the water from the snow runoff is still flowing. The campground is clean and quiet and the campground host is friendly and knowledgeable about the whole white mountain wilderness. Come visit us!

On Tue Jan 8 15:24:38 2008 Hayley from Phoenix, AZ said:
We originally planned on spending one night at the campsite and ended up staying for a week. A great place to explore the White Mountain Wilderness and the nearby town of Tularosa was a delight as well. We plan on returning this coming week and have been looking forward to the visit all year. We highly recommend this campsite and the camp host is very kind and knows all there is to know about the area.

On Tue Feb 26 15:41:16 2008 Anonymous from Somewhere said:
This place is fantastic! We are here now, week of 2/24, and it's beautiful. A little cool and windy, but nice. There are two other campers, and some dayhikers parked nearby. Good place for car camping or small RVs. Best RV sites are 4, 6 and 7, and the group area.

Thanks for the fantastic directions. Road coming in was fine for our 24' 5th wheel. Anything bigger though would be a little tricky once getting here, sites are not very level, and short.

Only one water spigot is working right now and pressure is low. Might want to fill your tank before arriving.

On Mon Jul 28 17:46:06 2008 Elizabeth and Jon from el paso said:
I just came back from my very first camping trip at the Three Rivers Campground in New Mexico and met some of the kindest people: Jon, the park ranger and his companion Christy. My boyfriend and I along with two friends of ours were hit by a terrible storm while out camping and they came to our rescue, providing us with food, shelter, and dry clothing. They really went above and beyond the call of duty and we are eternally greatful for their kindness. We highly recommend this campground!!

On Mon Aug 18 11:03:34 2008 Shaunna from Las Cruces New Mexico said:
Great time! Only campers there. Trail was washed out, but we had no problem finding the trail. We saw two bears in two miles, one one three rivers trail and one on dry canyon. One was all black, and one had a black face and legs with a blonde body. Beautiful!!!

On Tue Mar 24 18:34:38 2009 Amber, Max & Thomas from Santa Fe, NM said:
What a beautiful place! We just got back from a camping trip and had a great time. We live in NM and are always on the lookout for camping spots off the beaten path. This time of year, it can get pretty cold at night, so make sure to bring lots of warm clothes and extra blankets for sleeping. I highly recommend this place and the Volunteer who works at this campground is very nice and helpful. Beautiful hike up the river and Sue at the Trading Post makes great coffee.

On Mon Jul 6 02:06:02 2009 Tai from El Paso, TX said:
some friends and i went camping the weekend of 27 June 09, a couple days after the trail had been flooded out. it made the hike interesting to say the least! we didn't even make it past 6 miles b/c of thunder and heavy rain. but we're going back in a couple weeks to try again. the campsite was great though! i was the first one up there and i decided on site 12 b/c it would accommodate the group. a very nice spot.

the campgrounds host John is super friendly and takes great care of the campground.

i think it's a fabulous place to hike, and next time i'm remembering my rain jacket. i left it in the tent, much to my chagrin in the rain.

	Here is an example showing the large trees (primarily aligator-bark juniper) separating the campsites. Most, but not all, of the campsites have these shade shelters.
Many of the sites are well-set up for tents, with smooth, level areas. This example is from campsite 4. The area is gravel, so you want to bring a ground cloth to protect your tent bottom.
	Site 12 has the tent site up a couple of steps from the picnic area. You can see it to the right of the juniper behind the shade.
This campground is also the trailhead for forest trail 44 into the White Mountain Wilderness. People bring horses, and these corrals are available for them.