Pictures courtesy of the Coconino National Forest -Little Elden Springs Horse Camp.
Campground Overview: **Horse Required**
Little Elden Spring Horse Camp is located in the Coconino National Forest a few mile northeast of Flagstaff. The campground was created for those who love horses and enjoy riding in a beautiful landscape. This camp has been designed for the particular needs of equestrian campers in mind. All 15 campsites allow easy access for vehicles pulling horse trailers and are equipped with horse-friendly accommodations.
The campground lies near the base of Mount Elden in a lush ponderosa pine and gamble oak forest and has a view of the 12,000-ft. San Francisco Peaks. Fall foliage can be outstanding and very inviting for photography. There is a healthy population of mule deer and elk in the area that can be fun to watch and photograph when sighted.
Drive 5 miles northeast of Flagstaff on US 89. Turn west (left) on FR 556 and drive 2 miles to FR 556A. Turn north (right) and continue to the campground. (see Bonito Campground map for a better idea of how to get there)
Campground at a Glance
Level: |
Developed |
Season: |
May – October |
Nearby City: |
Flagstaff |
Fishing: |
None |
Campground Website: |
Little Elden Springs Horse Camp |
Campground Map: |
Click Here |
Reservations: |
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Location: |
Nearby Attractions and Activities:
The Coconino National Forest around Little Elden Springs Horse Camp includes numerous recreational opportunities, so vast, it’s difficult to list them all. Nearby landmarks include the beautiful San Francisco Peaks, Kachina Peaks Wilderness, numerous trails, National and State Monuments, as well as the town of Flagstaff, Arizona. You can access the Kachina Peaks Wilderness at the Weatherford Trail near Schultz Tank just up the road.
The Mount Elden/Dry Lake Hills Trail System is also accessible right from camp, and is comprised of over 30 miles of trails. The horse camp access trail connects to the Little Elden Trail, which provides a variety of loops and trail pursuits. Deer Hill Trail, which is at the rear of the campground, heads due north for 4.5 miles. This trail offers amazing views of the San Francisco Peaks, especially during the changing of the leaves in the fall when the aspens turn from green to gold.
The San Francisco Peaks have been memorizing visitors for thousands of years. In the 1500s, the Spanish Conquistadors explored the area searching for gold and came upon the peaks and named them “Sierra Sinagua” meaning Mountains Without Water. The name didn’t stick, because they left the area quickly in search of the Grand Canyon and other gold. In 1629, Franciscan Friars who were conducting missionary work with Natives of the area named the mountain “San Francisco Peak” in honor of Patron Saint Francis of Assisi. In 1898, U.S. President William McKinley established the San Francisco Mountain Forest Reserve, at the request of Gifford Pinchot, the head of the U.S. Division of Forestry. In 1908, the San Francisco Mountain Forest Reserve became a part of the new Coconino National Forest.
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument was established by President Herbert Hoover on May 26, 1930, to protect Sunset Crater and the surrounding geologic formations. It occupies 3,040 acres surrounded by Coconino National Forest.
Arizona’s Sunset Crater Volcano reshaped the nearby landscape, and now offers hiking, scenery of flora like Ponderosa Pines, and an array of wildlife. Sunset Crater Volcano was born in a series of eruptions sometime between 1040 and 1100. Powerful explosions profoundly affected the lives of local people and forever changed the landscape and ecology of the area.
People had been living here for several hundred years, at least, before the volcano erupted. Although we don’t know what they called themselves, archeologists consider them representatives of the Sinagua culture. They were farmers, living in scattered groups adjacent to their corn fields. Their homes were pithouses, dug partially into the ground. 900 years later, Sunset Crater is still the youngest volcano on the Colorado Plateau. The volcano’s red rim and the dark lava flows seem to have cooled and hardened to a jagged surface only yesterday. As plants return, so do the animals that use them for food and shelter. And so do human visitors, intrigued by this opportunity to see natures response to a volcanic eruption.
Wupatki National Monument was established by President Calvin Coolidge on December 9, 1924, to preserve Citadel and Wupatki pueblos. Monument boundaries have been adjusted several times since then, and now include additional pueblos and other archeological resources on a total of 35,422 acres.
Wupatki represents a cultural crossroads, home to numerous groups of people over thousands of years. Understanding of earlier people comes from multiple perspectives, including the traditional history of the people themselves and interpretations by archeologists of structures and artifacts that remain. You can explore both through the links on this page.
Nearby Campgrounds:
Campground full or want to see what’s around? Try one of these campgrounds located nearby
