Hoegees Trail Camp Campground

The Big Santa Anita Canyon Loop on Mount Wilson offers dog friendly free camping immersed in thick mountain woods with babbling creeks and numerous waterfalls. The trail is dotted with one of a kind cabins but the trail camps are as primitive as it gets. Start your hike at the Chantry Flats pack station, don't forget to pay for parking, and be prepared to filter your own water. This is a gorgeous place to put in a few miles, get a little dirty, and feel like you are miles away from it all without even leaving LA.

Pro tips: There are bears in the area so hang your food and keep your campsite clean. Bring your own toilet paper. Parking fills up within an hour on weekends so get there as soon as the parking lot opens at 6am. Finish your hike with burgers from the pack station they really hit the spot!

I camped here a couple wks ago & it was great. You feel deep in the forest & there are plenty of spots, fire pits & flat top stoves.

The toilets were boarded up but Winter Creek was flowing well.

I hiked about 8 miles from Eaton Canyon Park via Jones Peak & the Mount Whitney Connector Trail to Upper Winter Creek.

Hoegee’s is 2 miles hike from Chantry Flats by way of the Lower Winter Creek Trail. The site is named for Hoegee’s resort which stood just upstream. The concrete foundation in the center of the campground was a private cabin which burned down decades ago. This facility has 15 campsites, each with table, fire ring and wood-burning stove. You must pack your garbage out. Site is shady year round with perennial water. It is illegal to take wood and water from the nearby cabins.  There is an emergency call box and calls phones do not work. 

  To go to the bathroom stay away from the stream and  Dig a hole 6-8 inches deep and bury your waste and paper. Do NOT leave it exposed on the ground.

Campsites are first come-first serve only. Stream water must be boiled or filtered. You can get a free fire permit from the pack station.

If you take the Upper Winter Creek Trail it's an easier hike but not as pretty as the Lower one. Campsite is very nice with enough sites for about 20 campers with a privy but no running water. There is a creek that might or might not have water in it. Bring a way of making the water potable. Lots of things to do for the kids and plenty of trails. Be aware of any fire restrictions.

You can only access this campground by backpacking in. There's about 12 campsites with picnic benches and fire rings. There's a creek that runs through. it's beautiful and feels completely isolated.