Aspen Campground

Our first visit here was mid August, and since then we have already returned for Labor Day weekend, and have our 3rd visit scheduled for the beginning of October. Great place for families, good restrooms and plenty of water spickets. The lake is only a minute away as well.

The site was lovely we got one that made it so you did not feel in top of your neighbors. The bathrooms are externally well kept. The host are very friendly and helpful. You are a short walk from the lake and a few other trails. The general store is reasonably priced if you forget something. The sites are rocky so be sure to check that the site will work for your tent first. They will not accept your National Parks pass and give you the discount so I knocked off a star for that.

The camp spots are close enough to see all your neighbors but far enough that you couldn't hear all their conversations. It was a well maintained camp ground and the hosts were very nice. Its also very close to Woods Canyon Lake which is nice.

I backpacked there starting from the 260 trail head. It was about 4 hours of hiking. And worth it

Campsites have a decent amount of space. We had to 10 person tents, 210 x 10 foot canopies, plenty of area around the fire pit as well as space have horseshoes and cornhole set up. Maybe we got lucky with our site location but it definitely worked out well! The forest service staff that maintained the campgrounds were also very friendly.

It was $7 to dump trailer waste, $3 for Porta-Potty waste.

From our view, if you have a trailer more than 20 ft the spaces do get small for parking as you can only park on the asphalt near the campsite. We saw others make it work but it was a tight squeeze depending on vehicle / trailer size.

Sites well spaced out, friendly hosts, close enough to the lake and the dump out ($7), quiet. The big plus for us was the spacing between the sites and the quiet nature of the camp.

Beautiful location, Large sites. Camp hosts very friendly. The only downside is it very busy on the weekends. People swarm the place to get away from the heat in Phoenix. We fished a couple of lakes and they were stock regularly and lots of shore access. There isn't a lot of trash locations so people seem to leave their trash everywhere. It is a pet peeve of mind that if there is no trash can take it with you. I picked up bags of trash fishing. Fun place to visit Monday thru Ftiday.

Clean, well maintained. Helpful camphosts. Very large sites and lots of first come first served as well as reservable spaces. Elk wander through the campgrounds in early mornings and evenings. Beautiful place.

Went back in May of 2019 for a family tent camping trip. Friendly Staff, Clean, Well Maintained, and the Lake was great for fishing and kayaking. One of the best features is the large sights, as we had no problem fitting 3 large tents and didn’t have to listen to anyone snoring! Pet and Kid friendly. Looking forward to taking out pop up camper up there later this year.

Decided to do a second review of aspen because this time seems a bit different than past times. Only 1 loop of the campground was open but it sure was much louder than usual. A good amount of the campers enjoyed very music that could be heard from many campsites away so this was unfortunate. Other than that the hosts were kind as always and the site was very nice and open.

This is a family favorite. We stayed in a new spot this time and will definitely be staying in this one again. Wouldn’t advise a trailer longer than 28 feet and no motor homes. We tried fishing but weren’t successful. Bathrooms and watet spigot is right across the street. You are able to fill up fresh water at camp host spot or the dump station has a spot for fresh water fill up. Verizon cell service is really spotty to no service at all.

We drove up to Payson spontaneously hoping we would be able to find a campsite and we went to 4 full ones before stumbling on this one. This one luckily had room and we were thrilled about that. It was $25 for the one night. The site was very accommodating too, they sell firewood at their for $8. The owners of the site also helped us get a fire going when we had trouble. The bathrooms were also clean which was nice. Overall a great campsite!

Aspen campground is our go to campground. It has all the necessary amenities for simple camping. What we like best is the paved roads and the paved bike path! Incredible to take it all the way up to the rim. Only downfall is that some spaces are quite close and reservations are slim to none at times.

Always a great place to stay in the summer. Usually about 25 degrees cooler in then Phoenix. Close to lakes and creeks along with hiking trails.

Site #102 was very open and easy to back into. Good shade. Our spot has a large table, metal fire ring and charcoal grill. The water spigot is right across the street and the vault bathrooms are just a few spots down. The campsite has 140+ sites and over half are available to reserve 6 months ahead of time. It’s just a short walk to Woods Canyon lake. It’s fully stocked over the summer month with trout. They have kayak rentals available also and electric trolling motors are allowed on the lake. They have a small convenience store down by the lake with some essentials you may have forgot. Closest town is Forest Lake (10miles) with gas and groceries. The entire campground is paved which makes it nice for children who like to ride bikes or scooter around. No service at all at camp

July 29 - August 4, 2019. Site # 131. 131 is a pretty open site as it sits next to Aspen Meadow. There is a movie screen or projector in the meadow where they show movies on Saturday nights (weather permitting) and they also hold Junior Ranger programs there. A previous camper roped up a swing between the campsite and the meadow, which was great for the kids. The campground itself is huge as it holds over 140 sites. Some sites are more open than others and it’s easy to find the best ones for next time by driving through the grounds. There are plenty of Pines as the elevation is upwards about 7,500 feet. Mon -Thu was pretty quiet and felt more of a open, or private camping experience, while Friday and Saturday nights the campground was completely full and thus made the sites more congested. Still, the ground seemed capable of catering to everybody. This seems to be the case as the Aspen Campground is just a short walk to Woods Canyon Lake, where there is a general store, fishing, boating etc. Next time we come back, we are bringing kayaks or something to get out on the water.

I’ve been to this area a lot of times as a kid and decided to take my kid up here. It still a great area. Its quiet and very clean. The bathrooms are cleaned daily and are very nice. The host were very friendly also. Will come back again

Campground Review

The area near Woods Canyon Lake has multiple campgrounds and is a very popular summer getaway because of the cooler weather, lake access, beautiful views, and hiking trails. Because of this, the campgrounds are usually full on the weekends and I highly suggest reservations on recreation.gov. Aspen in particular has 148 campsites of which only 27 are first come first served. The closer sites in Aspen are about half a mile walk from the boat dock and store while the farthest are around a mile walk. There is parking at the lake but it is always packed so plan to walk or use the overflow parking lot, which is about a quarter mile away. The roads and the driveways are paved which makes parking, driving, and walking through the campground very easy.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that even with 148 sites most of them had a decent amount of space in between. We camped with friends and reserved two spaces hoping to have some space for the kids to play without disturbing the neighbors and we could have easily only reserved one. We found very little trash on the ground from the previous occupants and the sites seemed to have fairly level clearings for tents. Each site had a metal fire pit with a fold over adjustable grill grate. There was also a standalone BBQ and a picnic table. Most of the driveways were surrounded by large boulders so depending on the length of your RV or trailer you should pay attention to the length of the driveway when you make reservations as you may not have room to hang over the end or bring an extra vehicle.

There were bathroom buildings and water faucets throughout the facility and there was hardly ever a line. The bathrooms have both a men’s and women’s side and were always stocked with toilet paper and relatively clean. Aspen has a weird design and there is only one single lane to exit the campground. This is also where the dumpsters are located so on our way out on Sunday morning there was a line of cars parked in the road blocking traffic while they threw out their trash.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time. On this trip, I tested the Matador Beast28 Packable Technical Backpack. Matador has put some nice features on the backpack but has left a few things to be improved on. I am going to start with some of the pros:

• Lightweight – This backpack weighs 1.14lbs which is very light! The material is very thin but seems to be resistant to wear and tear. They have also cut the weight and bulk by making the straps out of a lightweight breathable mesh.
• Pockets – The backpack has a lid pocket and a bottom pocket can hold some of your favorite small items to keep them from getting lost in main area. The bottom pocket claims to be a storage space for the compression sack but I have been using it for a beanie or other small items. There is a front stash pocket with expandable compression straps and two smaller side pockets.
• Daisy Chains – When space is at a premium, it is nice to be able to clip some extra gear on the outside of the pack. I have been using a carabineer to hang the compression sack from the daisy chains giving me a little extra storage space. There are two gear loops towards the top of the backpack that work perfect for hanging a solar panel when you are out. This is where the expandable compression straps come in handy. They hold some of the weight of the gear you loop on the daisy chains and keep the extra pressure off the zipper.
• Main Compartment Access – The main storage area on the backpack has a clamshell design so it opens down both sides and the top giving you easy access to the entire compartment.
• Hydration Compatible – I am a big fan of being able to carry a hydration bladder instead of just water bottles that tend to sweat all over everything. The backpack has easy to use generic clips that should allow you to use any brand bladder without issues.
• Compression Sack – So many times, you buy something with a compression bag and you cannot ever get it back in. This backpack actually rolls down really well and can be put back in the back for easy travel or storage. The sack also double as extra storage space when hung from the daisy chains on the front.

With all that being said here are some areas I think Matador could have improved the Beast28:

• Pockets – The side pockets on the backpack are great for smaller items like a map or a cell phone but are very small and won’t hold a water bottle any larger than a disposable plastic bottle (even then it was a tight fit). They have a bit of stretch to them but not a lot. The other pocket that I felt could be improved is the external stash on the front. The pocket is not stretchy at all and that seems to limit it to a small book, map, or GPS.
• Compression Straps – The compression straps go more to the side than to the top so it’s a little awkward to try to roll up a jacket or blanket to put in that area. I have done it but it would have made more sense to put them closer to the top. Especially since they are already kind of the way when you want to try to access the main storage area. In addition, if you choose not to utilize that area or the daisy chains then they do not serve much functional purpose but cannot be left undone otherwise you have extra material loose and swinging around.
• Capacity Rating – I am not sure if this backpack is too small or my other backpack is too big but my other pack is rated at 18 liters and hold easily 1.3 times what the Beast28 (with a 28 liter capacity) holds.

Overall, I am happy with the Beast28. It is working well as a more capable day pack than what I have been using and allows me to carry a full hydration bladder, lunch, snacks, and a few layers of clothing for the varying weather conditions. It is super light and compresses down so it’s easy to throw in my bag for longer trips but still capable of being used for more technical outings. I have highlighted a few things that I think Matador could improve on but none of them are notable enough to keep me away from using this as my primary day pack moving forward.

Great getaway for those from the valley. The lake is in walking distance with rentable boats and swimming. The site was a drive up, with a table and pit. You can make reservations ahead and we picked a spot away from others so it was super quiet. Perfect temperature to sleep outside or in the tent. Stars are magnificent here.

This is a very nice forest camp. Sites are great, semi private. Lake is beautiful, store available.

Deep on the 300rd you'll find campsites that haven't been used in years. We found the perfect on right on the cliff of the mogollon rim.

Lots of campsites water and trailer dumpsite available! The trout fishing here is top notch. The lake is stocked during the summer almost everyweek but the hold overs in the spring can get pretty huge!

Woods canyon lake offers beautiful trails for hikers of all levels.

I spent a weekend here in late September. The site was clean, had a nice fire ring, grill and picnic table. There were plenty of trees to hang your hammock on. The hosts were nice and helpful. Bathrooms were well maintained and drinking water was nearby. The best part is the wildlife; birds, squirrels and elk coming through my campsite made my weekend!

Love that it's close!

Very good campground, close to lake and elk often visit the site. Nearby is Willow Springs Lake which is also great!

We put up tent after checking in with the friendliest hosts. This camp ground is get for accessibility. We found a spot close to the bathroom the toilets didn't smell. The lake was beautiful however wheelchair access isn't the greatest. I lucky had my off road tires on. Needed help from the hubby to get down to the lake to go fishing. The wildlife is amazing here great for photography