A white Tacoma with a camper shell parked on a rise above a broad, empty basin under building cloud.

Forest Service group campground

Upper Fir Group Area

Forest Service group campground in Lincoln National Forest, Otero County, New Mexico. 8,787 feet. 0.4 miles from Cloudcroft.

Managed by
Forest Service Lincoln National Forest
Elevation
8,787 ft USGS elevation model, at the mapped point
Sites
1 1 group standard area non-electric
Longest rig
35 ft The longest vehicle any site is listed for
Hookups
None listed
Reservations
Recreation.gov
County
Otero County

Overview

Upper Fir Group Area is one of the most popular campsites in the Sacramento Mountain area. Unique to its neighboring campgrounds, it's set far back from public roads, allowing for true peace and quiet. The campground is on the northwestern portion of the Lincoln National Forest, a protected area spanning an incredible 1.1 million acres of land. Spend your days exploring the mountains, or head west for a day trip to explore White Sands National Monument, the world's largest dune field of pure, white gypsum sand.

Recreation

An open meadow, perfect for sports like ultimate Frisbee or horseshoes, is connected to the campground. The Rim Trail is a short hike or drive away, offering epic views, rocky inclines, and switchbacks for adventurous mountain bikers, hikers, and horse-back riders. Further down, the same trail opens up to motorcyclists as well.

Facilities

This is one of the only group sites with water access. Upper Fir comfortably fits groups as large as 120, and it's connected to Lower Fir Group if your party has a need for an additional group of up to 70 campers.

Natural Features

Set 9,000 feet above sea level in the Sacramento Mountains, Upper Fir Group Area is close to breathtaking scenic overlooks, spanning the far-reaching desert valley of the Tularosa Basin. The high-elevation region offers a mixture of pine, fir, aspen, and oak trees, with high mountain meadows full of wildflowers and blossoming plants.

Nearby Attractions

The campground is a mile from the town of Cloudcroft, a quaint tourist village with New Mexico's only standing railroad trestle.

The description, directions and fees are the Forest Service’s own words, from its record on Recreation.gov.

What people do here

  • camping

The land around Upper Fir Group Area

The ringed pin is this group campground; the others are its nearest neighbours. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see the way in.

Interactive map. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select any point to see which agency manages the land. Arrow keys pan and the plus and minus keys zoom when the map has focus. A list of every state with its share of federal land is on the Explore page.

Map layers

Layers
Base map
Legend

Federal land, by managing agency

  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
  • US Forest Service (USFS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • US Fish and Wildlife (USFW)
  • Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
  • Department Of Defense (DOD)
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
  • Other Federal
  • State
  • Local
  • Alaska Native Lands (Patented or Interim Conveyed)
  • Alaska Native Allotment

Federal campgrounds, by agency

  • Forest Service
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • National Park Service
  • Army Corps of Engineers
  • Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife and others

State and local land (USGS PAD-US)

  • State land
  • County and city land
  • Regional agency or district
  • Land trust or conservancy

Gaps with no tint inside public land are private parcels, often old mining claims and homesteads. They are not open to the public.

Dashed clay lines on the base map are unpaved tracks from OpenStreetMap. They show what exists on the ground, not what is legal to drive.

Select any point to see who manages the land.

Boundaries are approximate and land status changes. This map is a planning aid, not a survey or a statement of access. Confirm routes, closures and camping rules with the managing office.

Source: Recreation Information Database (Recreation.gov), record updated March 11, 2026. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Seasons, fees, water and fire rules change; the managing office has the final word.