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Recreation.govUT

Sand Island Recreation Area

Bears Ears National Monument

Upcoming Availability

0 of 14 days currently show available sites.

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Campground guide

What to know before booking

Sand Island Recreation Area is a good camping option for visitors launching San Juan River float trips, or wishing to camp close to the town of Bluff or the Cedar Mesa area of Bears Ears National Monument. Sand Island is located along the San Juan River.

Official campground details, summarized

Concise planning notes based on the public Recreation.gov campground information.

Natural Features

Sand Island is located along the San Juan River. Cottonwood trees line the banks of the river and are scattered throughout the campground, providing shade at many of the sites. The north side of the campground is lined with red sandstone walls.

Recreation

Sand Island is the primary launch point for multi-day San Juan River float trips. San Juan River trips provide boaters with access to spectacular canyons rich in scenery, geology, archeology, history and wildlife. A river permit is required in advance. The Sand Island Petroglyph Panel site is located on the sandstone walls on the north side of the recreation area. There are many nearby hiking and scenic driving opportuites in the Cedar Mesa area of Bears Ears National Monument.

Nearby Attractions

Bears Ears National Monument San Juan River Cedar Mesa Valley of the Gods Goosenecks State Park

Campsite map

Site markers come from Recreation.gov campsite coordinates.

23 mapped sites

Campsites

A sample of official campsite metadata for scanning equipment fit before booking.

Site 21

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 1

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 9

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 12

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 4

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 10

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 20

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 5

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 8

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 15

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 14

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 6

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 11

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 2

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 23

Loop B

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 17

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 2

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 18

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 3

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 19

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 16

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 7

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Site 13

Sand Island Recreation Area

STANDARD NONELECTRIC

vehicle

8

people

shade

Important notices

A permit is required in advance for floating on the San Juan River.
Drinking water is seasonal and is typically available March through October.

More at Bears Ears National Monument

Other tracked campgrounds from the same park or area.

Surrounding campgrounds

Other tracked campgrounds within driving distance, nearest first.

Common questions

Is Sand Island Recreation Area available right now?

Kestrel's most recent scan found no open sites in the next 14 days. Set an alert and you'll be emailed the moment one opens up.

How do I book Sand Island Recreation Area?

Reservations are handled by Recreation.gov, not by Kestrel. Use the official reservation link on this page to book. Kestrel only watches availability and tells you when a site frees up.

How quickly will I hear about a cancellation?

Kestrel rescans every two minutes, and every 30 seconds during the provider's daily release window. Alerts go out by email as soon as a matching site appears.