The Coconino National Forest renewed its 14-days-in-30 camping limit through October 2028

The Coconino National Forest still caps camping at 14 days in any 30-day period, and the cap now runs through October 29, 2028. The new order took effect at 8:00 AM on October 29, 2026, the same hour the old one expired, so there was no gap. We read both orders on November 3, 2026.

What the order says

Forest Order 03-04-00-26-08 has one prohibition: “Camping for more than 14 days in any 30-day period.” It covers “all NFS lands within the boundaries of the Coconino National Forest.” It was signed October 22, 2026, and runs “through October 29, 2028 at 8:00 AM, unless rescinded.” A violation is a Class B misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual, up to six months in jail, or both.

The wording matches the order it replaces, 03-04-00-24-04, word for word. If you camped on the Coconino last winter, the rule hasn’t changed.

One small mismatch: the alert listing shows an end date of October 26, 2028, while the order text says October 29, 2028. The signed order is the rule. Either way, it’s two years off.

What it counts

The order names no move-on distance and no per-site limit. It counts camping days anywhere on the forest. Read plainly, driving to a new spot on another district doesn’t restart the count. That’s different from the BLM’s familiar 14 days in a 28-day period, and from the Deschutes order in Oregon, which caps 14 consecutive days at “a single location” plus 28 days a calendar year.

The 30-day window rolls. Camp 14 days, then stay off the forest for 16, and you can start another 14. Any shorter break puts more than 14 camping days inside some 30-day window.

The federal rule behind this, 36 CFR 261.58(a), prohibits “camping for a period longer than allowed by the order.” The number lives in the order, which is why a renewal matters. We covered how that works in our piece on national forest stay limits.

The area bans still apply

The stay limit sits on top of area bans that are still in force. The Coconino alerts page lists year-round camping and campfire restrictions around Flagstaff, west of Sedona, in Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon, at Kachina Village and Pumphouse Wash, and at Lake Mary. The Flagstaff order, 03-04-08-25-01, bans camping on the forest lands around the city through April 30, 2027, except in Canyon Vista Campground and Little Elden Springs Horse Campground. Inside those areas you can’t camp outside the named campgrounds, whatever your day count.

What to do

1. Count your days across the whole forest, not per site.
2. Before you pick a spot near Flagstaff or Sedona, open the alerts page and read the area order’s map.
3. If your reading of the count differs from ours, call the Supervisor’s Office at (928) 527-3600 and ask before you plan around it.
4. Read the sign at the road. The posted order and the ranger beat this page.

Our Arizona free camping page covers the designated dispersed areas we’ve verified on the Coconino and its neighbors.