We were looking for boondocking camping opportunities while traveling west toward our winter base in Quartzsite, Arizona. While we were originally planning on camping further north, we noticed that those campgrounds were predominantly forest roads and possibly impassable by our bus. We wanted to stay in “day trip” range of Carlsbad Caverns National Park and started looking further south. What we discovered was perfect: Chosa Campground! Chosa Campground is a quick 10 to 15-minute drive south of Carlsbad Caverns, and as a bonus, about the same distance to Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
The Campground
Chosa Campground is a BLM-managed campground and as such isn’t much in the way of a campground. It consists of a large fenced-in and level gravel parking lot. The lot also has a set of cleared dirt tent pads on the other side of the fence. The best feature of the site was dumpsters! When you’re used to free camping on BLM land, any amenity is nice. The site sits high on a hill, and while exposed to winds, offers breathtaking views of the Guadalupe mountain range and the Chihuahuan valley below.
Additionally, since the campground is on BLM land, there are several small trails one can explore. Probably most palatable is the parking area is right off a paved road, and only a minute or two from the freeway. Far enough not to have much road noise, but close enough to make travel to the parks and nearby towns a breeze.
The Area
We only stayed in the area for a few days, enough to spend some time at both national parks with rest in between. However, the town of White City, near the entrance of Carlsbad Caverns National Park, has many amenities for RVs. The City of Carlsbad is not much further away for groceries, making Chosa Campground a great place for a longer stay if you’re in the area and looking to visit not one, but two great national parks!
