Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Azusa, CA

Access to this campground is so easy, whether it's by car or by bike. I have bikepacked here a couple times now; once biking up Highway 39 from Azusa (after taking the Metro Gold Line to Azusa), and once driving up the 39 with bikes and bags in the trunk.

The trailhead to the campground is impossible to miss, as it is marked by a large parking lot and a sign marked "Cogswell Dam". This campground is so perfect for bikepacking novices or those looking to do a gear check because it's an honest 6.5 miles of a relatively flat paved road. If you're trying to bike_fish_ (it's a thing), this road is lined with fishing platforms for all sorts of trout, as the road follows a river the entire way.

The campsite itself is relatively large, with two vault toilets and two bear-safe trash cans. There are at least 5 campsites with picnic tables The river lining the road to the campsite is very accessible, and is perfect as a water source, or washing camp dishes.

While bugs are an inevitable aspect of being outdoors, the biting gnats and/or mosquitos are very formidable in the summer. We had some "natural" bug spray that had little to no effect, so you might want to bring your bug repellant A-game if bugs bother you.

Overall this campground is near and dear to my heart as it was my first bikepacking experience. If you're looking to introduce a bunch of friends to bikepacking, or backpacking, bikefishing, fishpacking (?), then this is the place to do it.

I had site 126 in the fields, corner site and lake view. This campground has a pool, splash pad, park, dog park and access to the lake. They also have a band on Saturday nights. The only bad part is they strictly enforce quiet time at 10pm. I felt like a kid being told to go to bed. I feel like on weekends people should be able to stay up late in front of their camper with low voices. Shouldn’t be hounded night after night! That was my only complaint.

Sprawling lush green hills? Can’t beat Chino Hills State Park.
The campground itself feels very close together and wide open compared to the space of the park. Gets loud at night if there are too many groups camping. No cell service. Super clean bathrooms and showers.

PET OWNERS BEWARE: Our dog munched on a frog at this campsite and started foaming at the mouth. We rinsed her mouth out with water and she turned out fine, but a smaller dog or a swallowed frog and she could have died from toxicity.

Anaheim RV Resort is close to Disney and is on the Anaheim Resort Transportation (ART) bus route. They have full hook up sites and room for large rigs - back-in and pull through. They are very pet friendly and even have a dog walking/feeding service (for an extra fee). There is a small pool and hot tub. The restrooms/showers and newly remodeled and very nice! Sites are all level and fairly large. We've stayed here 4 times and will be back again!

Recreational vehicle camping available Daily, Weekly, or Month to Month. Spaces available based on waiting list, and by appointment and inspection.**

We have 3 RV lots; ■ “A Lot” is for RV’s 34’ or smaller. ■ “B Lot” is for RV’s 35’ or larger ■ “C Lot” is for RV’s large or small.**

All RV’s must be 2000 model year or newer. All RV’s must have Lone Wolf Colony caretaker approval.**

We are a pet friendly facility. 2 pets permitted per RV. **

We have movie night every Saturday.

Nice spot if you don’t want to drive far. Fantastic views. Get there early to get a spot with shade...we arrived in the late afternoon and the only spots had zero shade. It was so hot!! Sites are relatively private and pets allowed.

Hardly anyone there when I went in March and felt like I had the place to myself! Hot showers and picnic table available. Just a 1 min walk down the hill to the lake - a perfect place to have my morning coffee! They allowed pets which is awesome. Super quiet, lots of stars, and a beautiful view. Couldn’t ask for better!

This was our first trip with our new motorhome and first camping trip ever.  The staff was really friendly and accommodating.   The grounds are nice and very large.  Sites are easy to navigate and pull into, especially for a first timer.  

The RV sites are pretty close together but the full hookups makes it really nice.  Will stay here again and they are very pet friendly which was nice.

This place is huge. There are multiple sections to the campground. Views are better from the top portion of the campground. Tons of grassy areas for kids and pets to play. 2 pools, very basic square shaped, no jacuzzis and not many patio furniture to sit at around pool. Very quiet and the majority of spots are good size. They do have a number of long term residents at this park which can turn some people off. They are in process of trying to make this place more of a resort. They need more activities for the kids, not much. You can easily walk to puddingstone lake and fish or swim when the season is here. Overall, nice and not too expensive.

This is your typical regional park Campground. There’s a lot to do here, including fishing, playgrounds, and even a waterpark in the summer. The bathrooms are decent, no showers.

We stayed in group campsite A. Tent camping is only allowed in group sites. They do have about 30 to 40 RV sites as well. The tent camping sites come with plenty of space for group camping. There’s a built-in grill and running water.

There’s no larger wildlife, like bears, so less stressful when you have pets or kids. Plenty of space to bring bikes and ride around. There’s a large community park right next-door where you can go and play baseball, basketball, sand volleyball, or frisbee.

We’ve been here several times over the last few years and really enjoy a nice quiet place close to home.

This is a very nice campground near everything but still away from it all. No issues parking our 42' 5th wheel here. Clean and quiet despite the peacocks. They can be rather loud when startled. I swear they could hear my morning alarm and squawked their disapproval. The camp host Shawn is AMAZING! Bathrooms are very clean. Showers are coin operated. DO NOT expect cell service. I could only work from this spot by placing my mobile HomeFi router on top of the camper. Our Verizon phones were paper weights. Make sure your reservations are complete online before arriving. The Rangers check the spots multiple times a week. The kids enjoyed the playground and fields. It's not uncommon to see and hear movie/TV production crews at the filming locations along the road. Pet friendly but be careful at night. Mountain lions were spotted while there.

This is my second stay at this RV resort. Both times I was here the Rangers would not enforce any rules and regulations. This particular stay there were two RVs with excessive dog barking from 7 AM till 10 or 11 PM every day and night. 

One RV was parked right next to the restroom and they would tie their dog up to the picnic table for over 12 hours a day. Every time someone walk down the sidewalk to use the facilities, the dog with lunch and start barking at them. The manager and the other Rangers said they do not care and did not enforce anything over a three week. This was an aggressive dog that was lunging, and I’m very concerned that it will break loose invite somebody. None of the Rangers have any concern for our safety.

 The second RV left two dogs and a cat alone for 12 hours a day. They left the windows open and the dogs with aggressively bark and how all day long. Again the Rangers did not care and did nothing about it. Brian, the manager, and three other Rangers witness the dogs in the window, barking aggressively, and refused to do anything about it. 

My neighbor and I called over 20 times to the Rangers. I even personally met with the manager Brian. He said he would take care of it and he never did. The Ranger name by the name Sandra said that she was unwilling to do anything about enforcing the rules, and that if I didn’t like it, I should move. I informed her that I’m paying her salary/wages and I expect her to do her job. She hung up on me. She is completely useless, and should be removed from the staff. 

I’m not sure why Thousand Trails system as allowing Rangers to collect their paychecks without doing their job. 

I regret purchasing by thousand trails membership. If I wanted to hear dogs barking all day, I would stay at a dog boarding kennel. Beware before you visit or purchase a membership through thousand trails Soledad Canyon. Chances are you will regret it.

Lovely campsite with all sites on 30a + water spigot. Rangers at entrance to check for pets (not allowed) and where you can buy bundles of wood for $5 if you want. Technically not allowed to bring in outside wood. Sites are pretty level, gravel and of a good size. My 24’ + truck can fit lengthwise with room behind and plenty to the side. They have the “site” and then they have like a lounge area beside it where you have your own table, fire pit and charcoal BBQ. Plenty of squirrels, bunnies, the occasional deer and coyotes at night, signs warning you are now in mountain lion territory. Rangers do the rounds to keep an eye on everything. I really liked it here, only downside is that there is a road quite close and you get some road noise which may bother some - we were both fine. Lots of trees to segment the sites, so even though the neighbors are 30’ ish away... you are quite secluded.

So we’ve never camped here mostly because it’s a 15 minute drive from our house and that just feels like cheating lol. But we come here constantly for fishing, bicycling, and kayaking. Biggest frustration? Dogs are not allowed out on the water, even if contained to your boat/kayak/canoe/etc, even if you strap your dog to you (she has a K9 sport sack just for this). Trust me I’ve tried all the logic there is, the sheriffs ain’t budging. I get it, but my dog loves kayaking and is very well trained and it’s frustrating to be so close yet she can’t come with me. And I’m single so it’s not exactly like I can leave her with someone on the beach while I kayak, so unfortunately when I do kayak here the poor pup has to stay home. However, out of the water dogs are allowed and enjoyed everywhere! We have done the cycle loop of the entire park so many times I’ve lost count and everyone seems so impressed a 19 pound senior dog with a heart condition can rack up a 5 mile jog no sweat. Haha this pup is invincible! If you aren’t familiar with the trails they can get a little tricky to follow but easy enough to recorrect. (The first video shows what some of the main trails are like, easy to ride and very well kept!)

Now that a good section of the East side of the park bordering the RV Resort and Airport is privately owned it is a BEAR to circle back to your original point. Honestly we’re talking a 10 minute bike trail of about .4 miles now loops out 5 miles into the neighborhood right next to the freeway off ramp and into normal traffic near the Pomona Fairgrounds. Also no sidewalks so talk about going leisurely on a bike path dumped into 40+ mph with signaled turn lanes on 5 lane wide streets where you need to merge and make left turns. (The second video shows this transition and redirect, please be safe people!) Honestly this new adjustment has caused a lot of cyclists I know and ride with to swear off the park because it’s too much to ask for those of us with pets or small children. I heard there is a petition circling to ask for a safer updated option.

Also realize that this change is not marked anywhere on the trails or maps and there is a huge elevation change from the top parking lots north of the park down to the southeast side. This means unless you know the bike path has changed, your only option to get the last .4 miles back to your car is to jump on to a busy main road, turn around and bike back the 5 miles completely uphill, or call an Uber and have them deliver you back lol. All in all though, great place to relax and have fun.

Learning that was a city run campground things made more sense.

Being a family of 3 kids, 3 dogs, 3 adults and a cat that run our business from the road there’s things that are important to us as digital nomads. You can follow us at EmpoweringHumansAdventures.com

Things that we loved:

1. Very safe & secure.
2. The staff was incredible.
3. Ideal for children with all the fun things to do.

Not so much:

1. Internet was great but it had bandwidth restraints that would turn your internet off after very small amounts of data used. There was no option to upgrade so you had to use your own hotspots. Very disappointing and will be one of the reasons we do t go back.

2. The beach was right there, close and beautiful right on Lake Elsinore. Yet the beach was disgusting, stinky and covered with algae. There wasn’t clear information on the lake. We chose this Campground because of the beach and location.

3. The sites were all uneven. Every camper we saw had to do major leveling efforts.

This place has HUGE potential but there’s a LOT to fix.

Watch our video reviews...

I wish I could be positive. OK. One positive note, the sun was bright. No obvious maintenance in years. Trees are dead and standing for the most part. The laundry smells of cat pee. The flies have taken over. The tweekers have violent tendencies. The large riverbed homeless encampment is next door. They will not return my deposit or any of my months rent after three days of stay.

This is a great small, hike in camp ground with no privy but decent tent sites. There's no running water but the creek is usually running so come prepared with your own water and something to treat the creek water with. Check for fire restrictions and dig your cat holes at least 200 feet from the water. Or bring WAG bags and pack it back out. Very much like Hoegees campground. Good for families abs Scouts.

Pros: Large campsites

          Clean-ish toilets

          Lake within walking distance

Cons: Right near highway, noisy

           Lots of flies during the day

           tent sites are very flat          

Last minute trip and decided to check out Lake Campground. There are 8 sites placed on this hilly area, with a vault toilet in the center of the campground. It is located right next to the highway, so it can be pretty noisy during the day as its a popular route for motorcyclists. The campground itself was fairly clean, and all the sites were very large and spaced well away from each other. The sites weren't very flat, so options to set your tent up were very limited. Some sites had some shade, others almost none. There were tons of flies, very active during the daytime, but went away during the evening. The vault toilets were the cleanest I'd seen (For vault toilets) and the staff came through the campgrounds several times a day.

Jackson Lake is a short walk from the campgrounds. It has a nice day use picnic area with coal grills, picnic benches, and four vault toilets (in pretty poor condition). The lake was pretty small and had a stagnant smell to it. Lots of people were fishing, and a few people waded into the waters. I saw people in rafts / kayaks later in the day. The area was covered in fleas so careful with pets.