Cleveland National Forest is an ideal place for camping adventures of all kinds. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in, as well as sights to see and explore. Find the best campgrounds near Cleveland National Forest, plus reviews and photos from other campers like you.
"They have icecream a little store and a cozy little bar for the grown ups. There was a guy there redoing the fire pits on his own time and paid for the materials himself."
"We live/work out of the RV during the Covid pandemic, so we bought a cell booster and WiFi relay, but even they couldn’t make any use of the provided WiFi."
$45 / night
"You can fit two 10' x10' canopies to cover the bench table, and fit 2 individual tents (4-6 person) OR a bigger 12p tent however you decide to position it. It has its own Fire pit."
"The lake with all the blow up toys was a blast! The section we were in only had a volt potty but there were showers there in another section. Every site has a picnic table and fire ring."
"I had a reservation at Wilderness Lakes, and I was a day early, so they let me in! Off to a good start! Full hook-ups, laundry and showers about 50 yards away, no matter which way you go."
"This campground is part of the “Thousand Trails” RV time share co-op. We are non-members and lined up our weekend stay a few weeks in advance."
$39 - $50 / night
"Tented in spot #6, it has a steep driveway downhill but the spot is super private and has a beautiful view of the lake."
"They clean the fire pits out etc. Some of the 40 series sites are very secluded and have excellent lake views."
$29 - $35 / night
"Great walking around the trails and lake. 8 minutes from a super Walmart if you need anything. Other campers are next to you, but not right on top of you."
"Nice, clean, county park. Big spots for RVs with water and electric hookups. Dump station on site.
Spots are not huge, but big enough, and if you have an RV it can feel plenty private."
"There is a nice lake to go to about 20 minutes up the road, lake Henshaw. Only reason I’m giving it 4 stars is because the crazy ruts on most the campsites to pull into your site."
$10 - $30 / night
"Each site has a fire pit, water and a picnic table(old)."
"We found a nice shady spot (90° day) and set up near a few fire rings before reaching the upper campground."
$55 - $1088 / night
"Very cute set up tent sites are right next to road but it’s not to busy of a road. They have a basketball court one, lake for fishing or swimming and paddle boats to go out on the lake."
$24 - $100 / night
"The missus and I decided to do a midweek overnight escape and chose Dos Picos Park due to its close proximity.
Great little campground with partial (electricity & water) hookups."
"Great county park. Quiet and well maintained. Pay showers. $29/ night. Pets welcome. Fire pits and picnic tables at each site. Tent camping available as well."
LegendReally beautiful beach very clean with large bathrooms hot showers food nearby first come first serve shade structures. Camping on the beach also cabin rentals available through del mar beach reservations
ScoutThe tent had nice cots and plenty of space for my wife, myself, and our little son. He had a BLAST with all the farm animals and hiking around the trails. The tent is up the hill away from all the noisy animals so it is very private and peaceful. Plus the view is beautiful!
The outhouse worked great for us, it is just a bit of a hike down the hill from the tent. The cabin is much closer to everything, so if you are planning to stay there you won't have to walk as far.
Some of the animals are roaming free (it is a farm). Our son LOVED that but just be aware if you are not comfortable with animals.
Karen, the farmhand, helped us out with everything we needed and provided a fire pit, firewood, lounge chairs, trash bins, and a canopy. We bought eggs fresh from the farm and cooked them over the fire for the full experience!
The weather was perfect in May, cool in the evenings but totally comfortable with some warm jackets.
RangerThis campground is so picturesque! It has a camp store, cabin rentals, and camping spots 10 feet from the sand. There are tent only, partial hookup, and full hookup sites available. Other amenities include playground, bathrooms and showers, a baseball field, and even a large gathering hall! The only downside to this location is that it is for military only, but this keeps the crowds down. The ocean wildlife is so cool, and at low tide you can see octopus, starfish, and all kinds of small fish/crabs. The views are spectacular!
GuideThe missus and I decided to do a midweek overnight escape and chose Dos Picos Park due to its close proximity.
Great little campground with partial (electricity & water) hookups. Don't know if the tent only sites have these. On-site dumping available, if you need it. Ok(ish) flushing restrooms and showers available. Better than a pit toilet!! Plenty of shaded spots with some mature trees around the campground. Firepits and picnic tables on each site. Trails all around to hike as well as a catch and release pond on grounds. Rangers were pretty adamant about quiet time starting at 10 pm. Rangers were super friendly, too.
One little gotcha, for me at least. There's no smoking of any product nor e-cig use allowed on the grounds. I personally look forward to enjoying a cigar around the campfire at the end of the day. Bummer but not a deal breaker.
TravelerA little something for every type of camping. Cabins, paved pull through & natural dirt & grass. Friendly staff to check us in gates close at 10:pm your provided with a security gate code to get back in if your out late.
Lots of families with children, fishing for catfish in the little lake which is shaded with trees and plenty of tables to picnic by the lake. Playground plus lots of grassy areas. We stayed in the natural area with hook-ups everything worked great.
Neighbors were nice, cute set ups with twinkle lights and people enjoying outdoor fire pits. Campers we’re playing music, laughter echoes through camp ground but nothing too loud and all quiet later.
We drove over to the Mission Inn (8 min drive) enjoyed lunch. Their is a pedestrian only shopping area with a Saturday farmer’s market plus lots of restaurants.
The campground sells firewood plus has a little store. Would stay again.
TravelerFantastic park. Well kept, beautiful surroundings with hiking trails, big and private spots and clean bathrooms. Camping cabins available. The second interior RV loop is way nicer and more private spots than the first. We were site 37 and it was great. Both electric and water hookups in all RV spots and campground dump station on site. Julian and Winona are fun day trips. Calico Cider in Wynona is an A+.
TravelerMy wife and I stayed here in early May 2021. This was our second time at Paso Picacho after visiting here a few years ago. We were even more impressed this time around. I can't say enough about this place. The grounds are serene and well kept, the atmosphere is relaxed and most of the campers were very respectful. The campsites are huge, if you know which ones to nab with an early reservation, and the staff there are just the most delightful people on earth.
On our first night there, a couple of huge pickups showed up to the spot right above ours at midnight, and they blasted music, partied, and screamed at the top of their lungs often (for whatever reason), and we couldn't sleep. We were super bummed and had thought it was pretty much going to be an awful trip. However, we talked to the campground host and the staff at the entrance, and they were super understanding and helpful. They said that they know people come here for peace and quiet, and that they take it seriously when any campers violate their quiet hours rules.
The camp host hopped on a cart right away and sped away to the offending sites to give them a talking to and made sure to mention that if they violated the noise rules again, they would send in rangers and have them booted out of the campground. It worked like gangbusters! The rest of our trip was amazing, and we didn't hear so much as a peep from the neighboring sites (it was a big group) all weekend. The camp host followed up with us afterward and said that we could come by his site anytime and tell him if the other campers were loud again, even if it was 3am in the morning. He said, "It's no trouble. That's what I'm here for."
Awesome, awesome, awesome. The fire pit worked out great, and we were able to cook all of our meals on the grill that comes with it using the cast iron skillets we bought. They had plenty of wood for sale at the front, as well as ice. The wood price is a little steep ($8 per bundle), but all that money goes back into the park. Knowing that, it actually felt good paying them for the wood rather than buying it elsewhere.
The trails were well kept, and the views were fantastic even with the fire damage. We got to do everything that we wanted to do and then some. We even had time to go to Julian and do some shopping - check out the Cider Mill for some delicious treats!
As far as campsites go, our site (#30) was so, so great. We researched a lot online beforehand (campsitephotos.com was helpful along with this site, Google reviews, and Yelp), so we had a pretty good idea of what the site was going to look like. But it was even better than the pictures. It was a huge site with plenty of room for 2 tent pads. The picnic table and fire pit were positioned just under a huge, climbable tree that gave us plenty of shade while we were there. The only downside to this site is that it was very close to the bathrooms. That actually bummed me out a bit when we first arrived, but it ended up not being much of an issue at all. The traffic to and from the bathrooms was very light, and the section of the bathroom building facing our site was all showers, which barely anybody used. There is also a lot of bushes and tree cover in between the site and the bathrooms, so we barely saw anybody the whole time we were there.
Reading reviews online is what helped us find such a great spot, so I promised myself I would walk the grounds and post all of the good site numbers online when we got back. So here they are, at least in my opinion:
Top Three
30: our site- the best!
70: easily the 2nd best site on the grounds- very private, secluded, lots of bush cover, fire pit and table are far from the road- the only downside to this site it that it has very little shade, so bring a canopy or tarp to setup your own shade situation. Other than that, this site was incredible. We will probably check this one out when we go back here in the fall.
85: My pick for the 3rd best site on the grounds, although my wife disagreed. This site is surrounded by forest, trees, and bushes on 3 sides. If you don't count the front facing view, it is one of the most secluded sites in the campground. It is on the outside of a bend in the road, and there are no other sites to the left and right of it. I personally prefer a"bathroom bush" close by to save myself from having to walk to the bathrooms in the dark, and this place has tons of'em. The downside here is that the front of the campsite faces 2-3 other sites that are right across the road. If the site were a house, basically the"front door" is wide open to the campers across the way. If you had a bad group camping across from you, it might be not so fun. However, you can park your car in such a way that it would block out some of that wide open space in the front, making it more private.
Honorable Mention
44: my wife's pick for 3rd- big site, lots of shade, secluded, a little too close to the neighboring site on the left side(facing the site from the road) but nothing but road on the right side
8: Nice, big site that is not close to other campsites. Private, secluded. Lots of trees and shade. The downside to this one is that it is right across from a cabin. Depending on the campers using the cabin during your visit, that proximity to the cabin might be a bummer. However, there were no big parties at the cabins while we were there.
51: Good site, lots of trees and shade. Semi-private.
54: Good site, lots of trees and shade. Not all that private- kind of open and on a little bit of a slope.
20: Just kinda okay. Trees and shade but not very private or secluded. Good if all of the above are booked.
ScoutVisited the last 2 weeks of August. Great place for family and kids. Affordable. Campsite #295. You can fit two 10' x10' canopies to cover the bench table, and fit 2 individual tents (4-6 person) OR a bigger 12p tent however you decide to position it. It has its own Fire pit. Different campgrounds for all chosen methods (Tent, RV, Glamping, etc..) There's restrooms you can use. There's showers you can pay per use. The swim zone isn't too far from this campsite, 5-10 min walk w/ no accessories. If you have little ones, you can take them with a wagon but I'd recommend just driving your car with a few items to the zone. Bring your own shade for this campsite, your own water too. The marketplace is near the entrance BUT they only sell individual waters (No 48 pack types). You'll definitely hear your neighbors snore at night after a long day LOL.. quiet hours are from 10pm - 8am. Overall, this is a great spot. If you're lucky to snag other spots with trees covering you then great but this is still a good campsite. Happy camping! ... Oh yeah, T-Mobile no service up there (apparently Verizon, AT&T do)
GuideGreat county park. Quiet and well maintained. Pay showers. $29/ night. Pets welcome. Fire pits and picnic tables at each site. Tent camping available as well.
Cabin camping near Cleveland National Forest offers a perfect blend of nature and comfort, allowing visitors to enjoy the great outdoors without sacrificing the comforts of home.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular cabin campsite near Cleveland National Forest?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular cabin campground near Cleveland National Forest is Temecula-Vail Lake KOA with a 4.4-star rating from 20 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 61 cabin camping locations near Cleveland National Forest, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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