Standard (tent/RV)
Group
RV Sites
Tent Sites
Fires Unknown
Pets Unknown
Drinking Water
About Lodgepole Campground
Lodgepole Campground is located in the breathtaking Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in central California's rugged Sierra Nevada range. Lodgepole is perched on the banks of the scenic and lengthy Marble Fork of the Kaweah River, at an elevation of 6,700 ft. The inspiring Giant Forest Grove and the mighty General Sherman Tree - the world's largest tree in volume - are just two miles from the campground.
Recreation
Forty miles of trails , including the paved Big Trees Trail , invite visitors to immerse themselves in the majesty of the ancient grove. Several additional popular hiking and wilderness trailheads are close by, including the trail to Moro Rock , a granite dome with spectacular views of the Great Western Divide and western half of the park. Tokopah Falls Trail is an easy walk along the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River , leading to an impressive 1200 ft. waterfall. Fly-fishing is also a popular activity on the Marble Fork.
Facilities
Lodgepole Campground is very popular with tent and RV campers alike. It has paved roads, flush toilets, and drinking water. Picnic tables, fire rings, and bear food storage boxes are provided at each site. Lodgepole Village is a quick, 1/4-mile away, offering a visitor center , Interpretive Ranger programs , a market, deli, and snack bar , gift shop , post office , and coin-operated showers and laundry facilities.
Natural Features
Lodgepole pine, Red fir, and shrubs forest the campground, while towering groves of giant sequoias and craggy granite peaks dot the landscape. The Marble Fork of the Kaweah River is fed by snowmelt and flows seasonally through the site. This region is characterized by warm days and cool nights in the summer and deep snow and cold days in the winter.
Nearby Attractions
The General Sherman Tree, General Grant Tree, Moro Rock and Tunnel Log are nearby, as is the informative Giant Forest Museum.
Colorful Crescent Meadow offers views of vivid summer wildflowers and access to Tharp's Log, a cabin in a fallen sequoia.
Tours into Crystal Cave , one of hundreds of marble caves in the park, give visitors an interesting view of rock formations, fossils, rare minerals, and unique wildlife. Tickets are required, but are not sold at the cave entrance. Reserve in advance on www.recreation.gov. Tickets may also be purchased same day, if available, at the Lodgepole Visitor Center.
Crystal Cave is about a 45 minute drive (13 miles/21 km) from the campground.
Vehicles longer than 22 feet long are prohibited on the narrow, winding Crystal Cave Road.
Charges & Cancellations
Payment in full will be charged to your credit card upon completion of the reservation. A $10.00 service fee will apply if you change or cancel your reservation. Additional fees will apply for late cancellations. All cancellations made between midnight on the day before arrival and check out time on the day after arrival are considered late cancellations and will incur a $10.00 cancellation fee and will also forfeit the first night’s use fee. Cancellations for a single night’s reservation will forfeit the entire use fee but no cancellation fee will apply. ADA Access: N
Fee Info
ENTRANCE FEES APPLY : 1-7 Day Pass- $35 per vehicle (private, non-commercial). $20 per person (on foot, bicycle, or bus). $30 per motorcycle (not per person). 12 month pass available at Ash Mountain & Big Stump entrance stations. Check www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/fees.htm for details.
Camping fees are $22 per night for regular camping and $11 per night for valid lifetime Access Pass, lifetime Senior Pass, and annual Senior Pass. No other passes receive reduced rates.
Failure to notify the campground 559-565-4487 prior to 12:00 noon the day following scheduled arrival may result in your reservation being cancelled.
Price
$22.00
Operator
National Park Service
Access
Drive In
Walk In
Features
Alcohol Allowed
Drinking Water
Firewood Available
Market
Picnic Table
Showers
Toilets
Trash Available
Contact
Location
Lodgepole Campground is located in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in California
Directions
Both roads leading to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks approach from the west. They are open all day, every day, depending on weather. From the east, no roads reach the park boundary.
The Main park road, The Generals Highway, connects the north and south entrances. Winter storms may cause temporary closures from Grant Grove to Lodgepole.
It takes about 1 hour to drive to the campground from the south park entrance (198E) or about a 1 hour from the north park entrance (180E).
Notice: Vehicles longer than 22 feet (including trailers) are not advised between Potwisha Campground and the Giant Forest Museum. Visitors with vehicles over 22 feet in total length hoping to visit the Giant Forest or camp at Lodgepole and Dorst Creek Campgrounds are advised to enter via the northern, Highway 180, entrance to these parks.
Arriving from the south (Highway 198):
From Highways 65 or 99: Go east on Hwy 198 E and follow signs for Sequoia National Park to the park entrance.
Highway 180 E may be reached from Highway 198 E using Hwy 63 N from Visalia.
Arriving from the north (Highway 180):
From Fresno: take Highway 180E, following signs for Kings Canyon National Park to the park entrance.
Once in the park, follow signs to Sequoia National Park and Lodgepole.
14 Reviews of Lodgepole Campground
scenic and close to hiking trails, the visitor center, and market
This campground is definitely worth all 5 stars! The location is unbeatable, and the views are to die for. We stayed at site 144, which is right along the river! The river was high and boasting, which made great white noise for sleeping, as well as drowning out the sounds of other nearby campers - it gave us lots of privacy! While the campsites are sort of close to one another, we couldn't hear a thing they were saying, and we could have our music on without worrying about it disturbing our neighbors. Lots of places to hang a hammock if you are into lounging. There are a few hikes straight out of the campground if you don't want to travel far to get your adventure on, yet there is also a Shuttle stop right at the campground, which means you don't have to fight the crowds for a parking spot and can leave your car right at your campsite. Sequoia Nat'l park is pretty large, so having the market and visitor center within walking distance is also an added bonus. I recommend booking in advance, but if you aren't luucky enough to get a spot right away, keep watching the website! We actually kept daily tabs on in and were able to find a spot only a few months before, simply by watching for cancellations. Weather is great - only in the high 70's/low 80's for our July trip, and not too chilly at night - mid 50's to high 40's. The vast number of trees also provide shade at every camp site! This is much more comfortable than some of the other campgrounds that are lower in elevation in the area, which have much higher temperatures and amounts of sun exposure. I hope you get the chance to stay at Lodgepole! Strongly recommend the Alta Peak Trail high for experienced hikers, and the Commerce Trail for an easy high around lots of Sequoias (with less traffic than the General Sherman tree area). Happy exploring! :)
River Runs Through
If you enjoy camping next to a river, this is a great spot for you. The campground is clean, comfy and provides enough scenery in the area to make staying here completely worth it.
Diamond in the rough
It's close enough to all the sites in sequoia but still at least 30 mins to the popular hiking trails. Our timing was bad when we stayed because they were doing a lot of dry brush clearing and thinning out the vegetation so we were greeted with the sounds of about a dozen chainsaws within a half mile radius of our campground. the good news was we didnt' have to buy any firewood as there were piles of them all around. There's potable water near each campsite and vault toilets that were maintained adequately.
Fell Asleep to the Sound of the Creek
A group of friends and I stayed at this campground on a Saturday night on the weekend of May 5, 2018. We got to the campsite around 2:00pm and were lucky to find a spot across the bridge next to the roaring creek. It was a beautiful open spot and the bathroom wasn’t too far away. There were bear proof food lockers for your food and drinking water nearby. We bought some firewood from the marketplace, which was next to the campground. The Lodgepole visitor center was closed for construction.
Beautiful Campsite by a stream and waterfall, Difficult to get reservatons
Spent 4 nights camping and hiking in Sequoia National Park. The site was great and offered good facilities.
Ooooh Oooooh the summer nights
Great visit. If you read online you don't need reservations that is not true. If you can't get one, keep checking.
Sequoia Upper Lodge
We went to the Lodgepole Campground-Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park and stayed for 3 nights at Site: 130. Check-in Time is 12:00 PM and Check-out Time was also 12:00 PM.
This was a great site especially if you have kids with you. We had a 4 and 6 year old with us and the bathroom was super close to the site. The site was also close to the creek and little pools formed to dip your feet in… water was cold at the end of August! Loved the fire pit and the table and our camping neighbors were super friendly.
The site was also walking distance to the shuttles that takes you to the various areas of the majestic and beautiful national park: Morro Rock, General Sherman Tree, Museum center, etc. We even saw bears while we were in the shuttle.
The kids loved seeing deers, chipmunks and the bears from inside the shuttle. There was a bear's bathing pool that I wanted to check out but we didn't get to… NEXT TIME FOR SURE 😊
Popular outpost for exploring Sequoia and Kings Canyon
Lodgepole is a very popular camp ground in the Sequoias. There is a river that runs through the camp ground that is easily accessed and made for a lot of fun during our visit. The lodge offers many accommodations including food, laundry, visitors center, and shuttle access. The camp sites we stayed in were only for tents and included fire pit with grate (needed to be dug out a bit) and picnic table. Bear box on each site and additional shared boxes in walking distance for additional storage. Water and bathrooms within short walking distance. This is a busy campground and I find that it's hard not to get to know your neighbor. We were very fortunate to have other kids our daughters age by us however I can see how this could be inconvenient for some. Rangers patrol sites often and lots of wildlife in area. We enjoyed our stay and felt that it offered great access to both parks and enjoyed the trails that led directly from the campgrounds.
Very nice campground
This was a great place to spend the Columbus day holiday at. The campground is well maintained, pretty and close enough to a restroom and the the C store that if we needed anything is was close at hand. The campsite is close to some great trails nearby as well.
My only complaint is that when there are noisy neighbors there arena enough trees or shrubs to baffle the sound so it can become quite noisy depending on who is adjacent to you. Overall, still a great campground.
