White Spar Campground

White Spar Campground, at 5,641 feet in elevation, is a short drive of 2.7 miles south of downtown Prescott and east of Highway 89. Campers will appreciate the mild weather and the cool ponderosa pine forest the campground is nestled in, and its convenient location allows for many opportunities for camping, hiking, mountain biking and bird watching. Several loop trails in the area allow for multiple modes of travel, and the Tri-City Community of Prescott, Chino Valley and Prescott Valley, with events and attractions throughout the year, is within a few minutes' drive. The campground is available year-round, but campsites are limited during the winter season, water is not available in the non-peak season, and the facility may be closed during snow events. Campsites are designed for RV, trailer or tent camping. Many popular outdoor activities abound in the area, and visitors may enjoy fishing, bird-watching, boating, backpacking, hiking, horseback riding, rock climbing, mountain biking, picnicking and just plain relaxing. There are 52 single and four double occupancy campsites. Some campsite driveways allow a camp unit and an extra vehicle, while many limit parking to only the camp unit. Each campsite has a picnic table, a steel fire ring and/or concrete block grill, and either an established tent pad or an area for a tent. Accessible campsites are available. There are five pull-through, 34 back-in and 17 parallel parking asphalt-surfaced driveways. Services include four vault restrooms, four trash dumpsters and nine water hydrants. There are no RV hook-ups or dump station in the campground. The campground is surrounded by a forest of ponderosa pine, oak, manzanita and a variety of shrubs and grasses. In the Prescott Basin, it is near the Granite Basin Recreation Area, Granite Mountain Wilderness Area, Granite Basin Lake, Lynx Lake Recreation Area and Thumb Butte; access to these areas can be made either by several interlocking hiking trails or by driving a short distance. Northwest, within ten miles, the Granite Basin Recreation Area has several day-use areas and the five-acre Granite Basin Lake, known for channel catfish, large-mouth bass and sunfish, with Granite Mountain rising prominently north of it at 6,874 feet within the Granite Mountain Wilderness Area. Also within ten miles is the Alto Pit Off-Highway Vehicle Campground and Day-Use Area, where OHV riders of all skill levels can ride several miles of trails through challenging terrain. Southeast of downtown Prescott and within eight miles is Lynx Lake Recreation Area, where the 55-acre lake offers fishing, boating and hiking. West and within four miles is the Thumb Butte Recreation Area; at 6,515 feet Thumb Butte is quite visible in the Prescott Basin and is popular for its scenic vistas, jogging and hiking, and rock climbing is allowed only between July 16 and January 31, as the area is closed to climbing during the peregrine falcon nesting period, though birdwatching remains popular outside the closed area. The City of Prescott offers several day-use recreation facilities within ten miles, including Watson (70 acres) and Willow Lakes to the north and northeast and Goldwater Lake (15 acres) to the south, each with boating, fishing, birdwatching and hiking.