Mt.zerkil wilderness

[COEngineer]

Is a person allowed to park on the side of a dirt road and camp if theirs room? Or does it need to be at an actual campsite?

You can camp anywhere in the National Forest that is not marked otherwise. It doesn't hurt to check the ranger district's website for closures, etc the day before you head out, but usually there will be signs along the road for closures/restrictions that match the online info.

BTW, Mt Zirkel Wilderness has some really rough terrain. There was a post on here from last Fall that described some of the difficulties. If you get into the areas without trails, you might find yourself in over your head, which is not necessarily a bad thing - it's how you learn your real limits. Just turn around while you can still get yourself out so you aren't in the news as another guy that had to press the SOS button.