La Posa South LTVA, Quartzsite, Arizona | Camping
Quartzsite, Arizona must be the RV boondocking capital of the world. Nowhere else have I seen so many RV campers. And there is plenty of room to camp. There are five free 14-day camping areas and four Long Term Visitor Areas (LTVAs). The La Posa South LTVA is one of them. You can camp for 7 months straight (the entire winter season) on the LTVAs. There is a fee of $180, but in return you’ll have water, a dump station, and trash facilities. For more details and to purchase a permit, visit the La Posa Long Term Visitor Area BLM webpage.
Quartzsite is situated on a vast plain surrounded by mountains. The flat open desert country makes for excellent camping. Even in January when the town of 3,000 swells to nearly 700,000 people, you can still find a place to camp, with elbow room to spare! The camping areas are enormous.
The La Posa LTVAs make up one giant 11,400 acre campground. What makes this spot ideal for a campground of this size? Well, it is desert and vegetation is sparse. It’s also flat and the surface is comprised of tightly compacted black rock, aka “desert pavement”. This surface makes travel very easy, and one can drive just about anywhere. Talk about perfect boondocking territory.
Quartzsite is famous for its gem shows, but it’s the sunsets that steal the show for me! The natural side of Quartzsite is remarkable – especially during springtime in March and April. This is when the wildlife awakens from its winter slumber and the wildflowers bring a splash of color to the desert. Many more birds can be seen during this time as they make their way north from Mexico.
We’re reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Where in The World?
Camping Elevation: 980 feet
GPS Coordinates: N 33 37.532’ W 114 12.958’
Directions to Camping Area: From the intersection of Highway 95 and Main Street in Quartzsite, Arizona, travel south on Highway 95 for 2.75 miles to the La Posa South LTVA entrance on your left (east). To your right (west) is the entrance to the La Posa Tyson Wash LTVA. You will pass by the La Posa West and La Posa North LTVAs, which are also off Highway 95 and closer to Quartzsite.
La Posa South LTVA Map
La Posa South LTVA RV Camping Journal
March 24, 2011
I camped here at the La Posa South LTVA for 3 1/2 months, the longest I’ve camped in any one spot. The landscape is mostly level and only broken by the washes. There are mountains surrounding the area off in the distance; the closest mountain taking around 2 hours to reach by foot.
Quartzsite is a small town and practically becomes a ghost town during the summer months. The town does have some nice features: a disc golf course, RC airfield with paved runway, outdoor fitness course, botanical garden, and a library.
There were many, many people in town during the shows and Hwy 95 had a long traffic jam reaching south almost to the LTVA.
Recreation: There are several neat areas to visit near Quartzsite. I took a trip to Cibola National Wildlife Refuge along the Colorado River south of Blythe, California with my dad. We saw many waterfowl and other birds, a hawk, deer, and a coyote.
We also visited Palm Canyon in Kofa National Wildlife Refuge south of Quartzsite. It’s a very scenic mountain area and the canyon has the only native palm trees in Arizona. We explored Kofa Queen Canyon with the Jeep Wrangler my dad had rented. Here we did some 4 wheeling in the sandy wash up the canyon. The mountainous scenery was beautiful.
Visiting Lake Havasu and the Colorado River north of Parker, Arizona was a real treat too. The scenery is gorgeous with enough places to explore to keep one busy for a whole year or more. Lake Havasu is in a mountainous location and surrounded by desert. There are parks, beaches, palm trees, and even the London Bridge. It’s a splendid desert oasis. I wish I had my kayak to explore this lake with its rugged coastline and several coves – unfortunately I left it back in Iowa. There are many hiking trails in the area too.
Weather: Highs have been in the 60s, sometimes 50s or 70s; lows in the 40s. The cold breezes during the winter do make it feel colder outside. Once the sun goes down, it cools off quickly. Typically, I’ll run the catalytic heater in the mornings and evenings. Only on a handful of days did I have to run it during the day (on the low setting).
One storm system brought a lot of rain and made the wash next to my campsite flow with water. It was perhaps one foot deep at its highest. Other than that, very little rain has fallen.
Cell Signal: Verizon mobile broadband internet has been very fast here, and I’ve had a strong cell phone signal.
