Bixler and Bill Williams Mountain, Williams, Arizona

by Will
(Arizona)

There's plenty of adventure to be found at Bixler and Bill Williams Mountain in the Kaibab National Forest southwest of Williams. And there are dozens of great RV campsites along the forest roads that loop around these mountains. You'll find some excellent hiking trails on the mountain and some fun mountain biking routes along quiet forest roads. If you want to get away from the summer crowds that surround Flagstaff, this is the perfect place to camp.

RV Campsite GPS Coordinates: N 35 12.373’ W 112 16.007’

Elevation: 6683

Campsite Directions: From Williams take I-40 west about 5 ½ miles to Devil Dog Road, exit 157. Go south on Devil Dog Road (FR 108) for about ½ mile then turn left (east) staying on FR 108. The road soon curves right, heading southeast. Continue uphill until you reach a large meadow and the road levels out. You’ll see a forest road to the left, just before a fence marking private property. The campsite is almost directly opposite this road, on the other side of FR 108. You will see faint tracks in the grass leading to the campsite, which is situated next to a large juniper tree.

This campsite is in a rather tight spot and any trailer over 28 feet may be too large. The good news is that there are many, many good RV campsites along FR 108 and the Bill Williams Loop around Bill Williams Mountain. I only saw a few other campers while here during late spring; but this does appear to be a popular camping area, due to the shear number of campsites found here.

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Bixler and Bill Williams Mountain RV Camping Journal

May 29th, 2012

I left this campsite this morning after a stay of 16 days (oops, please don't tell the ranger!..14 days is typically the rule). The campsite sits in a beautiful meadow spotted with juniper trees and a few ponderosa pines. Beyond the meadow it’s tall ponderosa pine forest. The campsite has an excellent view of Bill Williams Mountain and Bixler Mountain. The site is rather close to FR 108, a medium travelled road, so privacy is not the best.

Recreation: There is the Bixler Saddle Trail, which goes up Bill Williams Mountain, an enjoyable hike. It eventually reaches a road that goes to the very top of Bill Williams Mountain. Taking the

road to the very top is not worth it though. The peak is riddled with towers and there isn't much of a view. It’s best to turn around or take Bill Williams Mountain Trail north. There’s also a nice little mountain bike ride called Devil Dog Loop that follows Historic Route 66. Further south is the Stage Station Loop Bike Ride which I did not do. I took a hike east of camp along the rough forest service roads heading up the mountain. The meadow is good for hiking too, just watch out for the occasional prickly pear cactus - which can be hard to spot among the grass.

Weather: One word: wind. I heard it was windy everywhere in Arizona at the time, and much of the southwest, even Texas. But it probably was worse being in an open meadow here, and on a bit of a westward facing slope. Besides the gusty winds, temperatures were nice - in the 70s and 80s mostly. It was a bit chilly at night, down into the 40s, even 30s on a few nights. Almost every day has been mostly sunny; a few clouds on some days, and a few sprinkles one morning.

Insects: No problems. The sound of crickets can be heard at night – something I don’t hear often in Arizona.

Wildlife: I saw several deer in the meadow and there are lots of deer and elk tracks in the meadow, easily visible on the small road that starts just south of this campsite and heads west. There are lots and lots of ravens here, even more once you get further up Bill Williams Mountain. It’s fun to watch their aerobatic maneuvers – they do lots of rolls – and it looks like they have a lot of fun doing it! I also saw a few hummingbirds, turkey vultures, an eagle, several other varieties of birds, jackrabbits, cottontail rabbits, and squirrels. On my wildlife cam (motion sensor camera) I caught whitetail deer, jackrabbit, and 3 elk!

Cell Signal: Verizon cell phone service is good. Verizon mobile broadband internet is not too fast most of the time. All bars are green, but it’s still slow. Service is very unpredictable. One minute it would be fairly fast, the next minute it would be very, very slow. It’s slow most of the time.

RV Campsite Rating: 7 out of 10. There’s great hiking and biking in this area and it’s a lovely meadow to camp in. However, the campsite is close to the road, so it's not too private.