Maple Canyon Campground — Hotel in Four Corners States

A horrifying look at the future of national forest management. You pay a not-insignificant amount of money for a pit toilet, a fire ring and a rusty table. There is no water, you're right next to each other, and corporate America is taking a cut of every night you stay.

The forest service, in their infinite laziness, has taken a popular strip of forest service road and milked it for every dollar they can get. $5 to park for the day - in small, unlevel pull outs along the road. Campsites are $5-15, and of course recreation.gov has to be used if you're going to get anything. These sites are literally right off the road. Every vehicle that comes flying by coats you in dust.

They claim they have "first-come- first-served" campsites, but there's just a handful of them and they're the first ones you see. They aren't much better than the other poor sites that are here though - every site is literally just a spot some climbers hollowed out decades ago with a number in front of them.

And yes, corporate America gets their cut. The camp host is employed by a corporate contractor for the USFS, and Booz-Allen - the bomb maker- gets a cut of every credit card transaction.

With all that corporate money being madejts no wonder the road immediately after the campsite has been destroyed and isn't maintained. Gee, I can't imagine why that is. "Your money stays here" is either an outright lie or 2+2 does...

WARNING FOR FELLOW CAMPERS: Talked to some fellow campers and we all had stuff stolen from our site (coolers, camp chairs and tables, etc). The culprit seems to be a local 20-something with a mullet driving an old silver/gray pick-up truck (possibly a Cheve?). He goes specifically on rainy days and will take anything not tied down so hide anything you are intending on keeping.

Besides that, we had a great time camping here for 7 nights! Loved that climbing can be just steps away from where we were sleeping and there's still towns close enough (30ish min) with things you might need (Walmart, coffee, etc). There were some loud groups that stayed, but that can happen at any campground.

You can reserve a campsite online in advanced (these are often booked out for a while). The reserved sites are larger, come with a picnic table, and can accommodate bigger groups. There are first-come sites closer to the entrance. Some of them can fit around 2 cars comfortably. All sites have fire pits and there's a house just outside the canyon that has firewood for sale. If you're sleeping in your camper/car/van, it might help to bring something to level it as most of the...

I actually grew up in Sanpete, and Maple Canyon was a hidden gem that we enjoyed. In recent years, it has gained world renown for its amazing cliffs which are ideal for climbing, and now it is usually packed in the summers.

I still love it, and try to visit as often as I can, but it is a busy place nowadays, which is a mixed blessing. There are several notable sites worth visiting, like Box Canyon, a gorgeous slot canyon near the entrance of the main canyon. There are several hiking trails, caves, and even some hieroglyphics to be seen as well. Ice climbing is a popular winter attraction too.

I recommend coming in the off season to avoid the...