Chevelon Canyon Lake Campground is my favorite type of site. 1) vault toilets 2) National Forest location 3) semi established camping sites 4) still classified as dispersed camping.
There isn’t any potable water at this site or trash. Bring your own water. Pack it in, pack it out.
The sites are large in the camp site area. We were there on a non-holiday weekend and it stayed busy. The sites are first come, first serve and free. We camped in site #1 which had 2 fire rings, a metal picnic table, and large trees to provide shaded areas throughout the day. In mid-September, highs were mid 70 degrees Fahrenheit and lows were in the mid 50s. Our whole group commented on how nice the weather was on this trip.
We went during a new moon and the stars were fabulous.
There was definitely some rough road the last .5 mile before you reach the camp on FR 169B. Some of it had washed out and there are a few step areas. We had no issues with our group of stock 4x4 pickup trucks and Subarus. Our neighbor at the next campsite over even had a Fiat.
As for the lake, we were not prepared for how long of a hike down it was to the water. According to my watch, it was over a mile and 550 feet of elevation. It is not an easy hike back up. It’s almost all non stop elevation gain and extremely rocky. We brought our mini bike and didn’t dare take it down to the water. We ended up on carrying 1 kayak down to the water because no one wanted to have to hike it back up. It took 2 fit men, 90 mins to bring that kayak back up from the water the day we left. We even had a kayak cart. We were very jealous of the people with quads. Our group only caught 1 small trout but we met other people that were having better luck. Note: live bait is not permitted.
I would go back, but I wouldn’t even try to kayak or paddle board again. I’d just take our time walking to water and brining a picnic to the lake. Maybe just cast a few lines from the shore.
