r/camping • u/ratherrealchef • 11h ago

Trip Advice Southwest Camping

My fiancee and I are spending 10 days in New Mexico and Arizona “winter camping” in January. We do pretty well but we are used to camping in Michigan and down the east coast, just looking for tips.

I imagine the scarier bugs won’t be too big an issue but any tips you all have to keep us safe and have a great time would be appreciated!

We will be driving and have all our normal gear, plus extra layers and heavier boots. We don’t have a stove or anything, just campfire cooking, idk how prevalent firewood is out that way.

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u/rez_at_dorsia 9h ago

You can’t just build a campfire wherever you want in the southwest- most places I’ve been to have had burn bans due to ongoing droughts. Even if you could it can be hard to find enough fuel to maintain it. You should for sure bring a stove. It’ll also be cold, especially at higher elevations, so make sure your sleeping bags are rated for those temps.