Looking for the best horse camping near Fortuna? Finding a place to camp in California with your horse is easier than ever. The Dyrt can help you find the perfect equestrian sites that are scenic and easy to access.
Facilities: 14 tent/trailer campsites with picnic tables, fire rings, vault toilets, no hookups. Potable water until October 31, 2016. Lost Coast Trailhead and parking area. Wheelchair accessible. No OHV access. ADA Access: Wheelchair accessible campsites
$20 - $45 / night
$35 - $50 / night
Lacks Creek is a recreational treasure hidden in the coast range and offers a wide range of outdoor opportunities. Ride your horse or bike along the shared use trails, or find your own secluded campsite with a view. Lacks Creek is located in California's northern Coast Range, approximately 15 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean. The area is in Humboldt County, approximately 20 miles northeast of Eureka. The management area includes 8,673 acres of BLM managed public lands 7,377 acres are within the Lacks Creek watershed, with the other acreage made up of contiguous lands. The management area is surrounded by large private land timber holdings, and the region contains some of the most productive and intensively managed commercial forest lands in the United States. The immediate area is sparsely populated with scattered ranches in adjacent Redwood Valley.
$38 - $45 / night
Cuneo Creek Horse Camp
$35 - $200 / night
$25 - $35 / night
A backcountry permit is required for overnight camping: https://www.nps.gov/redw/planyourvisit/backcountry.htm To prepare for any trip to this location, download the detailed Elam backcountry guide and map: https://www.nps.gov/places/elambackcountrycamp.htm
• When parking at trailhead, secure items of value and keep them out of sight; better yet, leave them at home! Lock vehicle doors, roll up windows, and engage anti-theft devices. • Hikers/backpackers only: 7.5 miles to camp from Orick Horse Trailhead. • Hikers/backpackers only: 3 miles to camp from Redwood Creek Trailhead. Note: Frequent vehicle break-ins at trailhead parking area. • Hikers/backpackers only: 6.5 miles to camp from Tall Trees Trailhead. • Pets (with the exception of service animals) and bicycles are not permitted on trails or in camp. • Redwood Creek may be impossible to cross during the rainy season and/or during high flow stages; two bridges over Redwood Creek are only in place seasonally, usually June–September.
Traveler
Don’t be confused when you arrive and head up the hill where you’ll find camping spots. Even has an area with picnic tables under the trees.
A great spot overall and a nice drive up. We were there when it rained all day one of our days and it didn’t affect the roads much.
We even pulled up our rear drop camper and had no issues at all.
TravelerPlus side is that it’s very close to downtown & camp host was great. Lots of old rundown RVs and junk lying around. Good for an overnight stop but would not stay long term.
TravelerI loved staying at lacks creek! I had good cell service with att and it was beautiful, quiet and serene. Hikes right by the campsites. Fire pit. No water at all though. Bring your own water. And no bathroom unless you drive like 3 miles down the other way and some of the roads weren't open due to landslides. I drove my honda civic all the way up there. There was a few points I thought I wouldn't make it but sure enough my good ol honda pushed through. Lol Anyways! Highly recommend! Just bring water! Lol
Guide
This is a great place to see an elk herd as they sometimes come grazing through the campground. The campsites were more spacious than other campgrounds we stayed at. The restrooms are ok, however take a light with you at night because the motion lights will turn off before you can finish your business. The showers are in need of an upgrade. Plus they are coin operated which was disappointing considering the condition. Very convenient beach access road is almost directly across from the campground entrance. Also, there are two areas to camp, the meadows with no shade and the woods with little sun. WiFi is free for 30 minutes each day or pay for longer periods and Verizon signal is weak Overall a nice place with friendly staff.
GuideVery special to see Elk roaming the campgrounds. Nice large campsites, clean bathrooms, and great service.
TravelerOther than the long bumpy dirt road this site was great! Easy to find and great views. Had pretty good cell service with AT&T. Very quiet
TravelerBeautiful area, cool drive in. But the map on here is misleading… Follow Pine Ridge Road all the way till you hit dispersed sites with picnic tables and fire pits on the right.
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TravelerClean, level, spacious campground sites, close together trees so you can hang a hammock, hilltop view, pristine feel. Deep grateful breath. Gaia happy here.
ScoutWhen you get to the area where apple maps says park and walk, just take the pine ridge or whatever trail a couple more miles up. you will pass a single designated camp site( was occupied when I came up). and a ways on past it you will find the Lacks campground! nice little campground and my only complaint is people! Please pack your trash out. the fire pits arent garbage containers. Fruit boxes to soup and beer cans were in almost every fire ring. That’s just irresponsible and is the kind of crap that leads to more and more of these places being closed?
Traveler
We were there at first with just a couple rvs there. By the end of the four days - it was filling up and was still quiet. The showers were nice. Ferndale is a gorgeous old Victorian town and you are still close to eureka and don’t underestimate the safety factor.
GuideSites are ok. Elk wander around the campground and in the meadow. Gravel and grass pads. Power did not work at our first site but host moved us over one site.
Traveler
Definitely an underdog beach campground! It is very hard to find anything online. But this spot is amazing. Its as close to a dispersed spot as you can find with just a few amenities. I guess I was the first one who wanted to share the spot, I added it to the app for you all!
GuideWe used this as a checkpoint in 2021 when traveling from Oregon to Southern California via HWY-101. The park is clean, and we had a great time walking around and resting between the legs of our trip. We arrived after hours and our stay information was available in an envelope at the main building. Here's a view from the back-in site 510. We would stay here again.
TravelerIt was great very peaceful. Only saw one person in the whole time I realize I’m probably going in the off-season thing I went in the middle of November.
GuideWhen we pulled in the herd was on the property . All our stay info was in an envelope hanging on the office porch . Clean warm bathrooms , coin operated showers .not a lot of other campers felt private and cozy to sleep with elk surround by redwoods
TravelerHad booked and paid for a site but when we arrived it was closed up and no record of my booking. We just found an empty space and parked up for the night. No info on facilities. Left early
ScoutGreat spot. The site is very secluded and well maintained. Note the gps coordinates take you to the right of the sign at the top of the hill after you turn off the main road. I would recommend going straight. Just follow it to the end. There is three fire pits and a bathroom. That is okay. But it will do. Note there is no trash can on site and the closest gas station is probably an hour from the camp site. After you drive down the dirt roads. They are a little road but any vehicle could make it.
ScoutLocated in the city limits mere minutes from just about anything you may need and very centrally located for many sea shore and forest park locations. Some nearby attractions include Eureka Historic District with many beautifully maintained Victorian Homes. You can Journey through forest, dairy land and Elk country to other beautiful locations like Ferndale and Crescent City.
TravelerAwesome pull outs on easy terrain. Lots of hiking and mountain bike trails too. Quiet, well maintained spots. Mosquitoes are bad this time of year so prepare well!
Can easily drive a van or pick up. I saw one large trailer here, but there are only 1-2 spots, as corners are too tight as you get higher.
Scout
First experience wasn’t to good. Tried it one more time for the benefit of the doubt. But The place is just a big parking lot, with some fire pits and a few tables at some of the sites. It’s super loud there late into the night and absolutely nothing secluded about your site. People were walking through our area the whole night.
TravelerBeautiful little campground bordering a secluded beach. Its about an hour and a half to drive through some pretty windy roads through the mountains once you get off the highway, but very pretty. The road can be pretty intense/unpaved at times so would recommend 4WD or AWD vehicle
ScoutThe samoa dunes is a beautiful spot and they do have bathrooms and showers available. $25 per night. Price isn’t bad but for not having hookups of any kind it’s just alright.
LegendI’ve driven by this RV campground at least 20 times in my life now and have ALWAYS seen elk. It has never disappointed. I wanted to bring my kids to see elk, so we booked a site in December. It was wet, rainy, and cold (at no fault of the campground lol) but we’re not fair weather campers and came prepared.
Lo and behold, ELK AS PROMISED! My kids were fascinated and very excited. We kept them a safe distance and followed the campgrounds rules and precautions about being near elk.
The campground is HUGE. There are over 500 sites so I can imagine how mobbed this place can get when the weather is nicer. We didn’t have any issues getting a site in the winter. It was rather empty with a few other RVs, schoolies, an van lifers around.
The restrooms were big and clean. Showers had plenty of hooks for keeping dry things dry.  
ScoutPleasant atmosphere with many beautiful sights, clean restrooms,campground and helpful terrific camp hosts ( :
GuideWe’ve only stayed here one night but Would recommend staying here. Pretty expensive and still had to pay for the shower, which was kind of dirty.. staff is really friendly tho.
GuideThis is a nice place to stay while visiting the Redwoods. Make sure you stay in the meadow portion, the forest looked dark and damp. Meadow spaces are spacious, although our rig is small. Bathrooms ok, pay showers. Cell service not good. Office staff ok (didn't seem too outgoing, but could have been the day). But the ELK, so cool!!! Also, a trip to Fern Canyon is totally worth it.
GuideNo cell signal. WiFi is iffy at best and you are only allowed an hour of WiFi a day unless you want to pay for a “package”. When a place advertises it has WiFi all qualifiers should be stated. The sites are not well maintained. Worst place I have been in 6 months of traveling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Fortuna, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Fortuna, CA is Mattole Campground with a 4.5-star rating from 17 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 10 equestrian camping locations near Fortuna, CA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
