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I'm hoping to camp near the lower McCullough Gulch TH to aid in a car shuttle in the near future. Are folks aware of any issues with that (legality, bears, acid-tripping gun-toting locals, etc)? I'll basically be doing a quasi-backpack, leaving my car at the upper TH and hanging food and empty beer cans in a tree nearby my lower TH camp.

Thanks,

Matt

I once spent a night there in my car, it was quiet and I had no issues. I suppose you could pitch a tent. It's worth noting that when I was there in June the trailhead during the day on a weekday was about as crowded as the DeCaLiBron trailhead on a weekend with all the Breckenridge Texas tourists. October will be quieter, I'm sure, but don't expect solitude.

You can find dispersed campsites on 851 Road, left hand side ~1/2 mile past the Quandary TH.
This is after the no camping/no parking signs that you'll see on the right hand side.
There could be more up the road but we didn't go that far.
See: https://14ers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=47067

The lowest TH, right off Hwy 9 directly across from Lodge By the Blue is posted no camping. With the insane and disheartening crowds of jonesbags this year "they" have been doing a lot more enforcing than usual. If you go up Hwy 9 and turn onto Blue Lakes Rd (CR 850) then very soon after onto McCullough Gulch Rd (CR 851) and go past the main Quandary TH (a mile?) you'll come to a fork. Take a right at the fork (CR 852 but unmarked), it'll go down hill into the valley then curve around to the right and there are 3 campsites on the right. The crowds on the weekend have gotten absurd on the east ridge, so many ppl that you feel like ur downtown. If your skills are up to it, the west ridge is far more beautiful, peaceful, but challenging. Be advised it is, at this moment, snowing VERY hard in Frisco, so that'll make the west ridge that much more dangerous. You start at the base of the Blue Lakes Dam for the west ridge rather than McCullough Gulch. But unless you're comfy down climbing exposed class 3, descending the east ridge may be more suitable. Then however you're about 2 miles from your ride when u get back to the TH. Also they have been ticketing the s*** out of cars parked on the road this summer.

Is 851 driveable in stock SUV to the campsites past Quandary TH or there is no motor vehicles restriction? Probably has deep snow now and mud later but I plan to visit in late June so my concern is if I can drive 8 inch GC SUV up the road. Any local advise? Thanks!

no issues car camping there

All of the mentioned county roads are gravel and 100% driveable in any car with some maneuvering around potholes, but so yea, cake walk in stock suv.