About this place

Upper Hospital Flat Dispersed Camping Area is a great place to escape the summer heat of surrounding deserts and retreat to a scenic meadow in the Pinale?o Mountains of southeastern Arizona. The area is known for camping, scenic driving, picnicking, birding, wildlife viewing, hiking, mountain biking, and history. There are no amenities at this site. Refer to our Dispersed Camping page for more information and dispersed camping best practices. Hospital Flat is so named because in the 1880s it served as a site for a field hospital for ailing soldiers from Fort Grant. That frontier outpost is located along Grant Creek on the south slope of the Pinale?os. The restorative powers of this cool mountain meadow, carpeted with wildflowers and traversed by a small creek, were sufficiently notable that it also became a summer retreat for officers and their families trying to escape the heat of their desert outpost. Fort Grant was closed in 1905 and now serves as an Arizona State Prison Facility. Hospital Flat still serves as a popular refuge for forest recreationists who come to its pleasant surroundings for much the same reason as those soldiers. Note: Black bear area. Store and dispose of all food in bear-proof containers and trash bins, or keep it locked in your vehicle. Vehicles (including trailers) longer than 22 feet are not recommended because of the difficulty of negotiating the switchbacks on AZ 366. This dispersed camping area is not accessible by vehicle from November 15 to April 15 when the Swift Trail is closed for the winter. Early or late snow may extend the inaccessible season.