Hanging out in Lake Havasu

[Perseverance]

Good you are liking the area. I imagine October is still very warm in that area, due to the lower elevation. When I was there in March, central AZ was extremely cold (20s at night in Payson), but LHC was just great.

I did not boondock there, but freecampsites shows such on the road south out of Oatman. Miles of outback. Have lunch at the old historic Oatman Hotel. If you're towing a trailer or driving a big rig, do **not** go on the Sitgreaves Pass road between Oatman and Kingman.
- https://freecampsites.net/#!oatman+az
- https://freecampsites.net/#!28682&query=sitedetails

Thank you for doing this[emoji106] I am grateful! I am in a Van[emoji604]

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[Perseverance]

all kinds of BLM land around Oatman. you can also get a camping permit from the tribe and camp on the river, sandy beaches. you need a 4x4 to get close to the water. highdesertranger

Fabulous, thanks

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[skellr]

Hi! Do people hang out in Lake Havasu before the Van Build and RTR?

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I spent last winter just north of there near I-40. Lots on mice, pack rats, kangaroo rats crawling all over and chewing on stuff in my van. Chewing on wiring and whatever it is they thought was edible. 

Nothing like waking up to a mouse jumping across you face or to the sound of nibbling. Woke  up early from the noise and decided to make some coffee. I just brew it in a sauce pan to save space. Went out for a ciggarette, and came back to find a mouse floating around in the boiling coffee. Ohh, nice. 

Maybe some peppermint oil would be good to use as a deterrent if you run into issues.

Pilot and Loves truck stop showers are $12. If you have two people that want to shower go to the register and ask for a "team shower". You get two for the price of one.

 

[QinReno]

skellr, thanks for the heads-up on mice and rats in that area. There have been several threads on dealing with the problem. Of all the bizarre things, it seems that the insulation on a lot of wiring has soy in it these days.

 

[wayne49]

Keep in mind both "team members" will need to enter the room together and exit together. The door opens and locks one time.
There is no requirement to actually share the shower.
The discount is for sharing the supplied towels and they only have to clean the room once.

 

[RoamerRV428]

didn't know that about team shower to save bucks. good info.

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

I'm in Lake Havasu City (LHC) right now. (I know, after the Van Build Party) and I think it is nice enough. Craggy Wash BLM campsite was easy to get into. It is a narrow ravine and almost all the camping spots are right off the road (I mean 10-20 feet). Even though the BLM land starts about 1/2 to 3/4 mile from 95, you have to go a mile in from Highway 95 before you get to where you are allowed to camp. Lots of spots have been marked for "restoration."  I got 5 bars on T-Mobile when I pulled in, but by the time you get to where you can camp, all T-Mobile signal is gone. Don't know about other carriers.

I have tried "Camp Sweetness," which Google lists as BLM land, but is not. It is AZ Land Trust land and you have to get a permit for $15 (individuals) to camp there. It is a misdemeanor to even go there without a permit. Although, lots of people were camped there long-term with no permit, so take your risks as you choose them. 

I tried "Standard Wash," farther south of LHC. It is OK, and I could get just a bit of a T-Mobile signal there if I stood by the highway and held my phone up in the air. However, it is heavily used by quad drivers (quaderists?) so they churn up a lot of dust. Almost the entire area is inaccessible by any low-clearance vehicles. When you pull in, you can turn 45 degrees to the left (towards and past the BLM sign) for some relatively tolerable parking, or you can turn 90 degrees right and pull into a small space of some really flat parking, but the quads go by there all the time. I ate a lot of dust while parked there. Be sure to pull off of the quad tracks or you will have them going around your vehicle on both sides till late at night.

P.S. I did meet a guy here today who said he has been "hanging out" in this area for about 4 years. He says there are lots of areas that aren't really BLM land, but people park there all the time with no repercussions. He has parked in the same spot for months at a time. Unfortunately, his directions on how to find them were a bit spotty. I think they were mostly just north of Craggy Wash.