Are you looking for a place to stay in California Hot Springs with your horse? It's easy to find California Hot Springs campgrounds for horse camping with The Dyrt. You're sure to find the perfect site for your California horse camping excursion.
Keysville (formerly Keyesville) is a historic mining area that offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities. Set in rolling terrain amidst a blue oak and foothill pine woodland, Keysville is dissected by the lower Kern River. A little exploration can turn up a wealth of historic resources, including a variety of mining structures and features, a historic fort, and the famous Walker Cabin. Keysville offers commercial and noncommercial white-water rafting opportunities as well as fishing, recreational gold panning, and dispersed camping. A network of over seventy miles of trails provides for mountain biking, equestrian, and motorized recreation use.
All motorized use is limited to designated roads and trails. For a map of Keysville area designated routes, see https://www.blm.gov/documents/california/public-room/map/keysville-recreation-management-area.
7600-foot elevation. 41 campsites. Horse Corrals. Near Cherry Hill Road 22S12/23S10. Maximum RV length 22 feet. Special food storage rule in effect because this is black bear country! Check current fire restrictions before venturing out.
Located on the Pacific Crest Trail near the South Fork of the Kern River, Kennedy Meadows campground is surrounded by the South Sierra, Golden Trout, and Domeland wildernesses. It's a great place for camping near Los Angeles. Some of the 38 sites are shaded by juniper and pinion. Maximum vehicle length is 30ft.
$25 - $45 / night
$20 / night
Horse Creek Campground is located on the Kaweah River in the foothills of central California's Sierra Nevada Mountains. The Terminus Dam on Kaweah Lake is three miles east of Lemon Cove, CA.
Kaweah Lake offers boating, water skiing and sailing. Horse and walking trails are available during low water. Anglers can fish for largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, catfish and rainbow trout.
The campground is settled on the river in a broad, arid valley with few trees. Shade is limited.
The Horse Creek campground is 11 miles from Sequoia National Park's southern entrance station. Visitors enjoy viewing the inspiring Giant Forest Grove and mighty General Sherman Tree - the world's largest tree in volume. It is one hour more past the entrance station to reach 5,000' and the mightly Sequoias. __Note: Vehicles over 22' will not be allowed up Highway 198 through Sequoia National Park. It is a 1930s, two lane, switch back, road on the side of a mountain. __Larger vehicles need to use the northern route on Hwy 180 thorugh Sequoia National Forest to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park. In this area you can view America's Christmas Tree, The General Grant Tree and access the other areas. The Visitor Center is shared with the Forest Service and National Park Service.
$20 / night
Backcountry sites around this 9.4-mile round trip hike that climbs over 2,500 feet to visit the picturesque pair of high-elevation lakes.
Horseshoe Meadow is a vast 10,000 foot high meadow, surrounded by lodgepole pine forest. Getting there is an adventure in itself; the road to Horseshoe Meadow climbs over 6,000 feet, as it winds its way up from Lone Pine. Three campgrounds are located in the Horseshoe Meadow Area. Trails from Horseshoe Meadow provide access to the Golden Trout Wilderness and Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park. The road to Horseshoe Meadow is closed from approximately November to May due to snow.
$6 / night
Guide
If you like to be off the grid amidst the trees this is the place for you. We like to camp next to the creek. Fishing is plentiful and the air is great as long as there’s no fires near.
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)
ScoutVery pretty spot 😊 could hear coyotes At night. Warm showers 😁. All awesome except for the fact you have to reserve one night in advance 😔
Legend
We didn't camp here, rather we used this as the start/finish point for our 2-day hike to the summit of Mt. Langley. It was a convenient place to park, because you drive right up to the trailhead, and there are trash cans, bear boxes, and vault toilets. We stashed some extra toiletries in the bear boxes, rather than risk leaving them in the car. Toilets were pretty clean. Unfortunately, the potable water spigots were already turned off. The national forest website said they are off in the winter, but I didn't expect that already in early September. This is an equestrian campground, so there was some horse dung on the trails around the campground.
Scout
We were robbed from this location while out hiking and rafting for the day. Lost thousands of dollars in gear, clothes and personal items. Literally everything was gone, they plucked up the whole tent and took it all, nothing left but some tent stakes once we returned. The location is convenient to town and it is nice next to the river BUT BEWARE and don’t leave ANYTHING. We have a feeling it’s people who know the area and do quick grab and goes, not other campers.
ScoutClosed as of 6/30/23 (most likely temporarily)
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.
TravelerVery helpful
Scout
Most reviews here are dated. Campground has been abandoned for years so: no fees, busted up roads, no water, no trash, no bathrooms, no cell/wifi. Basically dispersed camping in an awesome location on concrete spurs/pads. Each site still had picnic table and fire pit. The mosquitos here are biblical at night so bring your nets and deet. Kern creek and trails right from campground. General store and Grumpy Bear tavern close down the road. Only 2 other campers here when I stayed in October. Great place as long as you are expecting disbursed camping experience.
ScoutWe visited this camp late July 2022, hot temperatures although nice breeze. Google map is not updated/ accurate since it shows lake bend is closer to campsites which is not. The drought have made it too far to my liking we had to drive 3 miles up where the river flows to cool down , restrooms facilities are not maintained regularly. There are 2 restroom facilities (with showers) for 75+ sites.. too many people waiting in line to use the restrooms . Security was excellent rangers were patrolling very often, drinking water was available on sites…
Guide
Great for tent camping, but no pull-in or flat spots if you're sleeping in your vehicle. I slept in the equestrian campground since those were back-in sites, but if there are horses you're not allowed to do that. The hike to the base of Langley was great though!
TravelerWent up during the winter and stayed the weekend The fishing was great The campground was empty and we were basically alone The camp was clean and bathrooms were good Hiking was awesome But it was cold and our diesel fuel froze overnight Found a general store down the hill and had a community pot luck for 5 bucks It was sone of the best family fun
RangerWe spent 2 nights here on our way to Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP. The spot was nice, right on the lake with nice mountain views. Sites were generally not level as it is situated on the hill down to the lake. Bathrooms were messy and half were out of order due to a maintenance project. The RV Dump station was also unavailable (same reason). During peak season I'm sure this is a great spot, but at the time of our visit it was a bit out of sorts. If we pass by again in the future we'll give it another try.
ScoutThis place is awesome and knowing that certain times of the year it actually goes underwater. So it's just knowing that ur camping on an actual lake is pretty damn cool. Plus it's clean. And the scenery is spectacular
RangerBeautiful spot conveniently located only a couple miles outside of town. Dumpsters and put toilets provided on both sides of the Kern River. A larger group site on one side and dispersed sites on the other. Great, reliable Verizon service. Road access is rough in some places, but passable in our low-clearance rig. Days are typically windy so tenters beware. Some of the sites on the dispersed side could use some TLC, but for the price you can't complain. Seems like a great fishing spot, and there do appear to be hiking trails in the area. Glad we made the trip out, if we pass it again we will definitely stay again!
TravelerThis is a small place with very few campers. Some of the sites (75, 76 etc..) look out on Lake Kaweah. It’s clean and well organized. Some highway noise.
GuideMany campgrounds close to each other but not on top. Cast meadow to the west is wonderful for morning walk with coffee. Hikes nearby from beginner to expert take you to alpine lakes.
GuideStayed here for a couple nights, the warm weather has been quite appreciated. No wind either. Lots are spacious and all have a great view. Supposedly the lake is full up to here at other times in the year. For now it’s quite the ways but you can see it far off near the dam.
TravelerIt has bathroom, shower, fire ring and a picnic table with shade. Got a little T mobile signal. Need to check in with the ranger when arrive.
RangerNice campground on the lake but too hot 100 plus degrees in the summer
Available depending on water level of the lake
Decent fishing and great for boating and watersports
GuideWe stayed here last May and was fully mesmerized by the view of the lake and the mountains. Nights were equally gorgeous as we watched all the stars. Will surely plan our next visit here.
GuideWe are working out way north through CA and Horse Creek was in a convenient spot. Site very clean and well managed and overall its a pretty spot. Only 2-3 large and dispersed bath rooms. A number of large groups around the site which looks fun but it felt more like an urban park than being in nature.
ScoutThe hike to Kennedy meadows campground was wonderful and scenic and the campground itself is in a nice location. The only downfall is the trail and campground is shared for horses and there is POOP EVERYWHERE. Somewhere midway through the hike there is a trail leading to Sharon Lake. Very isolated lake with lots of trout - they were jumping out of the water.
TravelerAfter a long drive on a forest service road we reached the campground. It's out there. We went in late summer after a particularly bad drought year but fires were allowed. The camp ground host was super vigilant and checked regularly to see we had a shovel and a bucket of water on standby. He ran a tight ship. (Kudos to him.) Little water in the stream and hot and dusty. Figure in a normal year this place is brilliant.
ScoutSo I've camped there at least 25 times. A lot of there information here is no longer true. It does sit beside the lower fork of the Kern River. The forest service hasn't managed it in years the guy who owns the Kennedy Meadows store is in charge. There's been no faucet water there in over 5 years. Pack it in pack it out. The outhouses are filthy no toilet paper the flys own them. It is a beautiful spot but is dispersed camping with a fee.
Legend
Along Hwy 178 towards Ridgecrest you'll find this campground that is small but quiet and clean. It is not for big rigs or RVs.
There are 2 sites with fire pits and covered picnic tables that could fit a large van at most. There is one other spot that is level but has no fire pit or covered table. Further back are several scattered picnic tables and tent spots. There are also 2 unisex ADA accessible pit toilet bathrooms which were quite filthy.
This is a stop along the Pacific Crest Trail. The scenery is an amazing mix of Joshua Trees, pines, chaparral, mountains and large rocks, some snow on the peaks facing north. It is close to the highway so there is some road noise and people stopping to use the bathroom. The road in is paved and narrow and potholed but passable.
There was no cell service with AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile.
There is a donation based drop box for camping fee so pay what you want or what you can afford.
Fires and charcoal grills are not allowed per sign at info board, camp stoves are ok.
RangerBeautiful meadow right before the trailhead! We had lunch here in the meadow, very beautiful.
Horse camping in California offers a unique way to explore the state's stunning landscapes while enjoying the company of your equine friends. With various campgrounds catering to horse enthusiasts, you can find the perfect spot to set up camp and ride the trails.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near California Hot Springs, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near California Hot Springs, CA is Frog Meadow Campground with a 4.5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near California Hot Springs, CA?
TheDyrt.com has all 13 equestrian camping locations near California Hot Springs, CA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
