Campground Overview:
White Rock Campground is a smaller campground located a s short distance from Peña Blanca Lake on the Coronado National Forest. The Peña Blanca Lake Recreation Area is a popular recreation spot for visitors from neighboring Nogales, Arizona and nearby communities in Mexico as well. On weekends, and even weekdays, during the peak summer season, this area can be quite crowded. On holidays, especially Easter, it becomes extremely crowded.
Campsites:
Campsites at White Rock are located on the banks of Peña Blanca Creek in the shadow of a rocky cliff that gives the area its name. A portion of the rock actually splits the campground into two sections. Thirteen campsites make up Upper White Rock and are accessible off Forest Road 39. Two others make up Lower White Rock and are accessible off the road that leads to the lake
Facilities at the lake include a paved boat ramp, a couple of picnic areas, a fishing dock and a trail that leads most of the way around the lake. Nearby lake, fishing, boating, hiking trails in area, and scenic setting. Tables and fire grills are provided. Water is not available so be prepared to bring your own.
Exit at Ruby Road on I-19, approximately 8 miles north of Nogales. Take Ruby Road (AZ Hwy 289) west about 9 miles to the campground.
Campground at a Glance
Level: |
Semi-Developed |
Fees /Night: |
$10.00 |
Season: |
Year-Round |
Nearby City: |
Sierra Vista |
Fishing: |
Peña Blanca Lake |
Campground Website: |
White Rock Campground |
Campground Map: |
Click Here |
Reservations: |
First-come, first-served basis |
Location: |
Nearby Attractions and Activities:
Southern Arizona has a wealth of cultural, historical and natural resources. There are many opportunities for half or full day, side trips in the surrounding area. Walk back into the Old West and stand in the footprints of the Earp brothers at the OK Corral in Tombstone, relive the mining boomtown days by vising the areas ghost towns and mines, or explore the remnants of old forts, Indian ruins, and Spanish missions. Get out and hike on the Coronado National Forest’s numerous trails and explore the “Sky Islands” mountains which rise from the desert throughout the region.
Peña Blanca Lake was built in 1957 by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. It provides water-related recreation year round, although its location so close to the Mexican border can be a bit deceptive. Frequently, people who come here during the winter expecting warm, balmy weather are surprised at how cool it can be. This is a mountain lake located at 4,000 feet above sea level and its climate reflects that fact. This medium-sized body of water fills 49 acres of Peña Blanca Canyon in the Pajarito Mountain foothills. It is surrounded by grassy, oak-dotted hills, some of which are topped with bluffs of limestone.
Old Ruby Road Scenic Drive got its name from a once thriving mining camp located a short distance south of the road on the edge of the Pajarito Mountains. Ruby, the ghost town, reputedly was named after a pioneer resident who lived in the town when it opened its first U. S. Post Office.
The country which Ruby Road passes through is covered with grassy savannas and dotted with various species of oak, while an occasional clump of desert spoon, yucca or prickly pear cactus add to the high desert ambience. One of the first points of interest along this drive is Peña Blanca Lake. Here, you’ll find excellent birdwatching in season and good fishing year-round.
The Atascosa Trail makes another interesting stop, where a short hike can take you to dramatic overlooks of mountains and canyons. One more notable stop is Sycamore Canyon, where there is a Civil War-era ranch site, a streamside trail and excellent birdwatching. Back on the road, the drive continues through this area of shallow canyons and rugged bluffs past abandoned mines and working cattle ranches to Arivaca Lake. At that remote fishing and birding spot, you have the choice of returning the way you came or continuing on to the town of Arivaca and a paved route back to Interstate 19.
Tubac Presidio State Historic Park is dedicated to preserving the history of the settlement of the territory that would eventually become Arizona. It’s collection includes numerous artifacts from the 1700s as well as a starting point to hike what remains of the Anza trail.
The park includes various buildings and exhibits with numerous originally artifacts from early Native American archaeological and ethnographic collections, Spanish Colonial and Missions, Mining, Ranching, Civil War, Arizona Territorial Period, Women and Children, and the original Washington Printing Press that printed Arizona’s first newspaper in 1859. Buildings include a Visitor Center, Tubac Presidio Museum houses, Archaeological Excavation Exhibit, the second oldest territorial Schoolhouse in Arizona, Otero Hall, and the Rojas House.
Tumacácori National Historical Park is located in the upper Santa Cruz River Valley in Santa Cruz County, southern Arizona. The park consists of 360 acres in three separate units. The park protects the ruins of three Spanish mission communities, two of which are National Historic Landmark sites. It also contains the landmark 1937 Tumacácori Museum building.
The first Spanish Colonial Jesuit missions in the locale were established in 1691, Mission San Cayetano de Tumacácori (at Tumacácori) and Mission Los Santos Ángeles de Guevavi, are the two oldest missions in southern Arizona. The Franciscan church of Mission San José de Tumacácori, across the river from and replacing Mission San Cayetano de Tumacácori, was built in the 1750s. The third mission was established in 1756, Mission San Cayetano de Calabazas.
The Mission San José de Tumacácori complex is open to the public. Nearby are the park’s visitor center and the Tumacácori Museum in a historic Mission Revival style building. The Tumacácori missions complex was originally protected as Tumacácori National Monument, in 1908 by President Theodore Roosevelt. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. In 1990 the national monument was redesignated a National Historical Park. The Guevavi and Calabazas mission units were added to the Tumacácori missions complex unit, within the new Tumacácori National Historical Park.
The site was on the route of the 1775-1776 Juan Bautista de Anza Expedition from New Spain to Alta California, the first Spanish overland expedition to claimed but un-colonized upper Las Californias territory. A 4.5 miles (7.2 km) segment of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail lies along the Santa Cruz River between Tumacácori National Historical Park and Tubac Presidio State Historic Park.
Patagonia Lake State Park tucked away in the rolling hills of southeastern Arizona is a hidden treasure. Patagonia Lake State Park was established in 1975 as a state park and is an ideal place to find whitetail deer roaming the hills and great blue herons walking the shoreline. The park offers a campground, beach, picnic area with ramadas, tables and grills, a creek trail, boat ramps, and a marina.
The nearby Lakeside Market offers boat rentals and supplies. The campground overlooks the lake where anglers catch crappie, bass, bluegill, catfish, and trout. The park is popular for water skiing, fishing, camping, picnicking, and hiking. And the tracks of the New Mexico/Arizona railroad lie beneath the lake and remnants of the old historic line may be found at the Nature Conservancy in Patagonia. Hikers can stroll along the creek trail and see birds such as the canyon towhee, Inca dove, vermilion flycatcher, black vulture, and several species of hummingbirds.
Ruby, AZ (Ghost Town) is a well preserved ghost town 50 miles southwest of Tucson and 4 miles north of the Mexico border. It is surrounded by the Coronado National Forest in an area of rugged mountains, semi-arid deserts and abundant wildlife. The first Europeans to visit the area were Spanish conquistadors in the late 1500’s. In the 19th century there was knowledge of gold and the region was referred to as “Oro Blanco” or white gold. Later, as the colonists moved west, there was an influx of adventurers, mountain men, ranchers and miners.
The first strike in the Montana vein was in the late 1870’s, and by the turn of the century, Ruby had become the largest mining camp in the area. A post office was located here from 1910 to 1940. This historic ghost town of Ruby, Arizona is rich in the history of life at the turn of the century. The mining company left behind equipment and buildings that supported the operation of Montana Mine, which closed in 1940. The miners and their families left behind their one-room school, the playground, the merchantile and a rich vision of their everyday life in Ruby, Arizona.
Today the town of Ruby is privately owned and one of the best-preserved ghost towns in Arizona, with several dozen structures. Entry fee is $12/ adult. Ruby Road heading south from Arivaca is 12 miles long and half is dirt today. The road is generally in good condition except during the monsoon season and then you should call ahead before making the drive.
Nearby Campgrounds:
Campground full or want to see what’s around? Try one of these campgrounds located nearby
