Campvue

Reviewed: Jun 21, 2026

5 out of 5

Bonita Canyon Campground is one of my favorite campgrounds of all time. Chiricahua is an amazing place I wish all will get an opportunity to visit. As for the campground, it's heavily shaded by a thick tree canopy, and virtually all sites receive good shade throughout the day. Each campsite is well manicured, each with its own fence around it (helping to distinguish campsite boundaries), with welcome amenities like nearby water spigots, trash collection, and a picnic table and stand up grill. Note that ground fires are typically not permitted here, but you can make one in the stand up grill if you like. Each site, just like site 15, also has a tent pad, making this a tent camper's paradise. I chose 15 because compared to many other sites here, it is more spread out and private, the last site on the corner of a loop. There are other sites here that sit close by to the neighboring site, but not site 15. It is among the best here for privacy. Like most sites here, things are very level too. There are restrooms with flushing toilets in the campground (just one facility), and site 15 requires a short walk to get to it, but as I have experienced here, the restrooms are usually sparkling clean. One word of caution I have is to come prepared. Chiricahua is pretty remote, and the nearest town with services is Willcox, which is a 45 minute to an hour drive away (one way), so if you forget something, need food, or even ice, you will need to devote at least 2 hours out of your day. If I could offer one critique, I'd like to see the visitor center sell ice at the least. If they could do that I could easily camp here for many days without needing to leave. On this trip the campground was not full, though there were others. But, all were silent as a mouse. A ranger did drop by on my first afternoon and advised a black bear was spotted about 2 miles from the campground, and to be on guard (and make sure food is secure). I never saw the bear though. The only slight challenge I had is, as this is a popular birding location, each morning, before 5 AM, the birds here put on quite a loud performance,. I think the blue, Mexican Jays are the biggest culprit, as they travel in groups and rotate around the campground, making quite the racket. You will almost certainly be awakened by this, but to some, its part of the charm. Not sure if this is unique to the time of the year I camped there (early June), but all in all, it did not sour the experience as I typically go to bed early when I camp anyway. I did reflect it in the ratings section, but note, at least for Verizon, there is zero signal here. I was completely off the grid for a couple days here, and I suspect the same is true for other carriers.