Searching for a tent camping spot near Alpaugh? Find the best tent camping sites near Alpaugh. Would you prefer a quiet dispersed site or an established camgpround with amenities? Either way, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect place to pitch your tent.
These are beautiful sites overlooking the Tule River, which runs right through our property. All sites are well spaced, offering exceptional privacy and access to multiple day-use spots along the river. Rope-assisted steps allow access the river and are just feet away from your camp site. The Tule River runs year-around and offer some of the most spectacular vistas in the Giant Sequoia National Monument. Sites are ideal for small backpacking tents and medium-sized family tents and gear.
Located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains on the land of the Yokut people and bordering the Giant Sequoia National Monument, this 12-acre homestead (known simply as the Land) stretches along both sides of the Tule River and offers exceptional camping and outdoor experiential events.
The habits and vision of owner Donald McMillan reflects the Land's beauty and pristine natural habitats, inspiring daily living practices that value nature. The Land is his home and headquarters for organizing events that change the world and mindset of communities regarding respect for nature and preservation of culture and art. The Land is nestled in Blue oak woodland and riparian (river) habitat in the foothills of the Giant Sequoia National Monument and offers the ultimate in privacy and completely dark night skies for perfect star-gazing.
We are of the BIPOC, LGBTQIA+/Two Spirit, arts, and justice activist communities and host only people embracing diversity, inclusion, self-reliance, reciprocity, and equality.
(24 hour security and our German Shepard ensures your comfort, privacy and safety)
We offer the listed campsites here plus gorgeous outdoor venues tailored for small-scale special events and featuring a covered outdoor kitchen and BBQ area, outdoor living and bedroom spaces, fireplaces and fire pits and two outdoor showers. It is rustic and best suited for minimum impact camping for those with camping experience or who may be on their first outting. Reach us for special event hosting.
Don and the people who come here respect the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace at gathering places on the Land. You should too.
All visitors must register online at www.wildplaces.net to receive details, directions, and a liability waiver to sign. We ask each member of a visiting group to complete this online waiver.
Toilets are composting or chemical and the hotwater shower is tucked inside the majestic canopy of a Live Oak tree. The toilets are located near the house which is a 5 minute walk or less from most sites.
Use your own camp stoves and opt to stay clear of the house entirely for maximum seclusion.
You provide tents, tent footprint (tarp), lights, sleeping bags, food, insect repellant, camp stove and other stuff. There is an outdoor, hot water shower. NO SOAP of ANY KIND IN THE RIVER. CARRY WASH WATER 10 FEET AWAY From THE RIVER.
$60 - $70 / night
Scout
This KOA is great! Very clean, has a K9 area, barbecue grills, hot showers, laundromat, etc. and right in town!
Scout
Campground is full hookups. Lake was nice and not many boats. Ground was rough due to holes made by squirrel population. Some minor litter.
Traveler
We chose this campground to be an easy "getting back to camping" campground since it was supposed to be developed and even have showers.
Cons: The central restrooms/showers have been non-operational for over a year based on the maintenance log of the porta potty. While the porta potty was well maintained, there were no hand wash stations or anything to make up for the loss of sinks and showers. The tap outside the building didn't work and neither did the water fountain.
The host was not there for check-in. Thankfully, we ran into a very kind maintenance worker that gave us the predator rundown for the area and told us how to get to our site. The host eventually showed up, but was not there for at least 5 sets of campers who were trying to check in.
Nearly every campsite has a major hill, so most will not have a good flat area for a tent. Site 61 is flat and a couple of others have flatter grounds, but many will have you sleeping on an angle.
Cons Site 61: The previous group was very disrespectful of the site and left glass shards everywhere. We had to sweep it away from our tent site and kept finding more as we were using our site. It was especially a problem since we brought our dog, so eventually we just laid tarps out to let her walk on instead of the dirt for her safety.
No shade at all. While most other sites had trees or an aluminum awning to provide some sort of shade, Site 61 had nothing. Thankfully, we planned for that, but definitely worth mentioning for other campers. Most sites on the inside of the loop had good tree coverage, so if that's what you're looking for definitely book one of the inner loop sites like 63.
For those looking to be fully removed from the world, you should know this campsite is RIGHT off the highway, so there is traffic and some headlights if drivers have their brights on. That didn't bother us, but we've lived off of major streets for years, so we tune it out pretty well.
Pros: There was running water, but you had to find it near other campsites. (Closest one to ours was near Site 63, which was very convenient)
Pros Scenery: The stargazing is beautiful. There is some limited light pollution emanating from the other side of the foothills, but because you are surrounded by foothills you get some good, dark surroundings to really appreciate the stars. Similarly, the sunrise and sunset were slightly late/early because the sun was contending with the surrounding hills. When the sun was rising over the hills, there was a beautiful glow to them.
Pros Site 61: You have absolutely no neighbors, which gives you more privacy and the ability to face out in any direction and enjoy the scenery.
Predators: Coyotes, rattlesnakes, meat bees (bring cheap canned meat to set out during the day and they will leave you alone for the most part)
Cool Wildlife: Various birds, though I was never able to get a good enough look to identify them. There were also bats at night that really helped with the bug problem and created a cool ambience while stargazing. My husband loved listening to them hunt!
Overall: We enjoyed the site, but were extremely grateful that we are redundancy packers. If we didn't have our extras, we probably would not have had a good time since it was 100+ degrees every day we were there and the grounds weren't totally as advertised. (Toilets, showers, etc)
Traveler
Pulled in on a Friday afternoon and had the whole campgrounds to ourselves, until about 7 pm. Neighbors kept noise to a minimum. We chose site #3 (back right) and it had a fairly level spot for our cars RTT. Overall, the grounds and bathrooms were very clean. Holey Meadow, across the road, is small, but very beautiful. The main road is just past that, so you will hear traffic. The Trail of a Hundred Giants is about 2 miles north and worth a visit. A section of the trail was closed due to a downed tree, but still a nice walk.
Scout
The other "resorts" on the river need to come here and see what a real campground is like.
Either way this is a nice campground with nice stuff like a pool, hot tub, clubhouse, and more.
Traveler
Very convenient and super clean. The lady who answers the phone is super friendly and helpful. I think it's better for RVs and don't think there are any tent sites.
Guide
5+ years Full time RVer, worst ever campground we have ever stayed at, stayed in many states, long-term short-term, stayed at this one for two months, although had a reservation for three. Sites are too tight, everything‘s grayish/dusty and dirty, you’re near a rail track, that blows its horn for minutes 24/7, that includes 2 AM, that includes 4 AM. Many of the neighbors you’ll see look like they’re on (mental) disability and don’t look healthy. Hot tub is smelly and yellow water too often although they state they clean it almost weekly. I god major depression staying here.
Scout
Been going up there since 1969 had many many Fantastic trips fishing is always good sightseeing is good just all around good place.
Guide
When arrived the wind was blowing and the dust was a moving.. but in the evening it calmed down.. nice place every thing looks updated, facilities, pool, help is nice, right next to loves truck stop so there is traffic but not hateful.. good place to stop on I 5
TravelerGreat spot next to the lake. Very windy at times. Lost of gopher holes in the soil.
ScoutVery pretty spot 😊 could hear coyotes At night. Warm showers 😁. All awesome except for the fact you have to reserve one night in advance 😔
TravelerLoved our stay at this resort. Warm pool, riverfront and a gorgeous beach! Will be back with out family of five and two doggos! Stayed for spring break and weather was perfect.
LegendWe arrived after carefully following the website and emailed instructions, as our RV GPS and Waze would not have gotten us here. We pulled up in the small parking lot in front of the entry gate. Although we arrived during open hours, there wasn't anyone in the office, but a kid came up to us and offered to get his mom, who was the manager. However, the kid came back alone and told us our information package was on the front board outside the gate and had everything we needed to include the gate code. We then proceeded to our assigned FHU site 34 that was a pull-in with utilities set up for a motorhome. The site was large enough that we could have pulled in, unhooked, and moved the truck out, but we were concerned about connecting to the utilities in this configuration. Back-in site 33 with FHUs was empty, so we called the office number and the man who answered didn't know if it was empty but would go check in the office if we wanted to move sites. It was obvious we were putting him out, but he did call back a few minutes later and said that back-in site 33 was open for our two-day stay. The pads here are all sand, and after settling in, we noticed the campground(CG) was about half full with either residents or transient workers. Some sites were organized, and others were not. The way the large-sized sites here are arranged, you can park your rig in various configurations. The utilities worked fine, including a decent water pressure of around 40 psi. Supposedly, they have Wifi, as indicated by the multiple repeaters around the park, but we received no instructions/password and didn’t see a guest network to try and log in. This was fine as we put out our Starlink and we had 4 bars on Verizon. We are in no way prudes, but several of the private WiFi names we could see on“Other Networks” were pretty disgusting making us question who we were parked by. They do have a nice pool area with two hot tubs. There is also a nice-sized dog park with two separate fenced areas. According to the front of the office, they sell sundries and souvenirs, but they never opened the office during our stay even though should have according to the hours on the door. From the information on their website, the King River that runs adjacent to the CG is pretty much dried up this time of year(January) but fills for the summer season. Sorry to say we didn’t“feel it” on this CG and would not want to be here in the busy season.
TravelerConvenient park adjacent to freeway but the noise is minimal. Clean park and bathrooms. Nice place to spend a night.
TravelerPassing through this was a fine place to sleep for the night, but for the price of $70 for just water and electric (when we typically stay at very nice holiday KOAs for the same rate) - we felt disappointed with our stay. The bathrooms were clean-ish, but there were still cobwebs and very DIY. In the men’s room, you would step on loose tile that would squish water up through it. For the price point, we expected professionally renovated bathrooms. Sites are on gravel and pretty close together with no privacy. Within the park there was noise late into the night that sounded like an ice cream truck and we could hear the nearby train throughout the night. In summary, for the experience we should’ve stayed at the Love’s down the road rather than spend the money here.
Guide
While the sounds of highways and trains abound, the historical significance of this amazing site isn't lost to the sands of time. A pleasant, barely off the beaten path campground, this is worth a stop over before entering the hustle and bustle of southern California urban life.
Walk around the town and listen to the history of this very significant town that was once the site of the largest hotel between Los Angeles and San Francisco.
We are the only people here
Scout
A friend and I camped here overnight while on a 4-day motorcycle tour of the Sothern Sierra, the location was convenient. We found sitting and watching the sunset over the lake perfect site#30 after a long day ride. However, when we went to bed our neighbors were partying which is fine, but I was laying awake till 12:30 am when I asked them to please keep the noise down which they did, in the morning 6:30 am I was eating breakfast and greeted them with a good morning and a wave the response that I got was a middle finger and a loud“F” you, This kind of behaver is disgusting in a family environment
The date was Saturday night 9/16 and their site was#29
Scout
A friend and I camped here overnight while on a 4-day motorcycle tour of the Sothern Sierra, the location was convenient. We found sitting and watching the sunset over the lake perfect site#30 after a long day ride. However, when we went to bed our neighbors were partying which is fine, but I was laying awake till 12:30 am when I asked them to please keep the noise down which they did, in the morning 6:30 am I was eating breakfast and greeted them with a good morning and a wave the response that I got was a middle finger and a loud“F” you, This kind of behaver is disgusting in a family environment!
The date was Saturday night 9/16 and their site was#29
Scout
Great view of the KernRiver! Clean , quiet, good vibes.
GuideWe had a blast here. Collin our camp host was fantastic. Vault bathrooms are what they are. We loved our 3 days here. Tubing, Fishing... though, river was very high and super fast, plus wrong lures make for no bites. But a great time still...
Traveler
Loved this spot. Very friendly and helpful.
Scout
the restrooms were so clean! Spots were easy to find, we were close to the water which was so nice, some trash laying about but it was well upkept and there are lots of places to put away trash.
Picnic benches and fire rings at each site
ScoutClosed as of 6/30/23 (most likely temporarily)
Scout
Very nice lady, beautiful sunset location, pig friendly!!
GuideThere is very few campsites with shade. It’s a pretty far walk to the lake. On the pro side not too far from a town if you need to grab something. It was clean at the campsite. But the lake had so much wooden debris logs, branches etc. Really hard for phone reception to make calls or internet, we have AT&T, T Mobile. But we still enjoyed our stay.
TravelerGreat campsite (#21) right on rivers' edge. Winter runoff and water is high and fast. Shade during the day. Restrooms are being rebuilt but should be ready by mid to end of June. Porta potties for now but they are very clean. Geese, grebes, egrets, lots of ground squirrels and raccoons.
Guide
Still a bit of a mess after the flooding and no staff. Very scenic and beautiful though. Sites are not very level so come prepared.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Alpaugh, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Alpaugh, CA is Camp or Glamp along the Tule River next to the Giant Sequoia National Monument with a 5-star rating from 1 review.
