Best Tent Camping near Palomar Mountain, CA

Stone Creek Campground in San Jacinto Mountain State Park is the perfect getaway for coastal Southern California residents. It is a few hours out of the major metro areas, but close enough to get to for just a night or two. 

Located near Idyllwild, this is the smaller, less rowdy campground associated with the tourist town. There is also a camp right in town if you're looking for shopping and bars, and a few more further up hill.

Stone Creek has about 35 sites. The outer ring sites are huge, and most of them are fairly private especially the loop to the right of the entry. Our site was #7, and after thoroughly campsploration it is unquestionably the best for individuals. If you're in a group rent the inner ring where the backsides of all the sites run together.

We were trying to get away from people, from the pandemic, and spend some time doing something normal. Stone Creek was perfect for that. The only human interaction was having to check -in at the entry with a ranger. They wore a mask, and we spoke through a window in the ranger shed. They did have to hand me a parking pass, but after that we were on our own.

Site 7 is extremely large, and extremely private with multiple flat spots that could accommodate tents, two large picnic tables, multiple spots for hammocks and a fire ring that has seen better days. We could see a car across the loop, but couldn't actually see other campers without effort from where we set up the tent or even the fire ring.

This particular site extends back over a ridge and downhill. It was so private back there we strung up our camp shower next to a giant boulder for a shower without feeling like we needed to set up a privacy shade/curtain.

Camp is just high enough to prevent most bugs, but there were a few flies and mosquitos. The vault toilets were clean, and well stocked with TP and antibacterial soap. There were three on-site. One in the middle of the center ring which was the busiest, but none of the solar lights were working making it difficult to find in the dark. No obvious trail. The other we used near the entrance was well lit, had a wooden path and seemed to be forgotten by most other campers.

Multiple hiking trails led out of camp including one right from next to our site that led to multiple other trails heading up San Jacinto Mountain. The trails were a mix of gravel fire road, dirt trail and a few sandy areas through the flats. They were mostly well-signed, but one sign was down causing us to miss a turn so…bring a map. They're available at stands at the front of camp. Trails are…vertical unless explicitly labeled as short scenic hikes.

There were warning signs for snakes, mountain lions, plague-infected squirrels and bears, but all we saw were deer. They didn't seem to consider bears a serious threat as there were no bear boxes or locks on trash cans. However, having bear-proof (Ha!) food storage is important.

We really have no complaints about this place, and will definitely be back to explore more trails.

Pro-Tip: It is a windy, windy road up into the mountains, and people travel too fast. We saw some serious accident sites when people were traveling too fast, and caught up to a slow moving camper around a curve. Drive carefully.

Pro-Tip: We had full phone/wifi service here. We didn't want or need it, but if we were working from the road this would be an easy stop to set up.

Pro-Tip: Outer ring is more private. Inner ring better for groups.

Pro-Tip: In the summer add 5-10 degrees to the temperature which is taken from a higher elevation weather station.

Just south of Palomar Mountain Observatory (a must visit) Fry Creek is a heavily wooded (oak, fir, pine) campground in a narrow valley surrounded by steep forested banks.

The campsite is really an extension of the Palomar Observatory Campground across the site with a shared camp host (who pretty much sucked during our visits). That site is much better for stargazing, but this one is just as pretty especially in the fall with changing oak leaves. All of the sites are heavily wooded and in a valley with steep walls. That's important because it seems to amplify sounds from the other campsites. No matter if you have good camp neighbors but if your camp neighbors starts setting up a portable chainlink fence for a cadre of dogs they are training...There are some more segregated sites near the back of the camp loop.

There are bathrooms and showers (peak) and even though the sites are near each other they are really private. They each have fire-pits and picnic tables. The sites are decent sized with nice flat spots for at least two tents.

There is a decent hike that loops around the camp with plenty of elevation changes and incredible forest smells. The trail is fairly easy to follow and despite being short is moderately challenging. It takes about an hour at normal pace. Head across the road and you can take the trail all the way to the Palomar Mountain Observatory. It's meandering and plenty of elevation changes. At the top the Observatory Museum has nice bathrooms open to visitors. The museum is free.

Campsites are $15/night.

Tamarisk Grove Campground is about 20 minutes south of Borrego Springs. It sits next to the highway but there’s minimal traffic so it isn’t terribly loud. There are tent sites as well as primitive cabins. Each site has a fire ring and table. There are also flush toilets and paid showers. There is no potable water at this campground - be sure to bring your own. The cabins are simple structures with platforms for sleeping. There are no amenities in the cabins - no electric, no water, no mattress, no linens, etc.

The campground is across the street from both the Cactus Loop and Yaqui Well trail heads. We recommend the short Cactus Loop hike over the Yaqui Well hike. Go at sunset to catch the cholla cacti backlit by the sunset.

Tucked on the outskirts of Mission Viejo is an oasis of green grass and groves of the twisting and searching limbs of Coastal Live Oak trees.  If you stuck me in the middle of this park, I’d never know that I was miles away from the sprawl of suburbia of a major metropolitan area…shhh don’t tell anyone.

There are 3 campgrounds within this regional park -- one soley dedicated to RV's that require electrical hook-ups (Ortega Flats), a group campground (San Juan Meadow), and another which is a mix of tents and off-grid RVs (Live Oak).  This review is specifically for the off-grid Live Oak Campground which s aptly named because you’ll find yourself enjoying the ample shade of these amazing arbors, but plenty of sun to run our solar powered system.  

The campsites can be reserved but there is plenty of room for first-come first-served travelers as well.  The sites offer enough space to tuck away a tent in the corner, or set up the longer trailer, as well as the typical picnic table and fire ring.  Plenty of port o potties are scattered throughout the campground and served the large groups gathered here on Easter weekend.  We indulged in making a fabulous brunch of Wood Fired Waffles to celebrate the holiday!  As of April 2023, they were still experiencing a well water issue, so no water was available from the faucet, but the river running through the park was useful for obtaining water to wash dishes.

Hiking, biking and horseback riding trails meander throughout the park. The campground borders on a small creek for fishing, but is off-limits to wading and swimming because of the instability of the opposite bank. Keep an eye on the kids!  Be sure to check out the volunteer-run Nature Center on the property which is full of great information about flora, fauna, and native history.

The closest store for firewood, and groceries is just a few miles back toward town.  And, the closest beach is just about 30 minutes away, so a great option for a day trip.

We decided to stay at a campground closer to home (Oceanside) coming back from Palomar Mountain. We were just looking for a place to stay for one night. We showed up and every campsite was stacked on top of each other. We asked if there were any other options so we circled the entire campground and ALL the sites were super close to each other. The RV section didn’t look like camping, people live there! With that said, most of the RV’s look like junkyards. So much stuff/junk everywhere. The lake isn’t pretty or swim-able. Don’t let the pictures on their website fool you, it’s crowded. I didn’t take pics myself, but I got them from their website and circled in red where people would be camping. We decided the 45 minute drive home would be better than staying there even for one night. The receptionist was late coming back from her lunch break & wasn’t helpful when we wanted our money back when we didn’t even stay there. One of the worst campsites I’ve ever seen & I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who knows real camping.

I was really excited to head out to this campground/ site because it was a close drive from my home, but far enough away to get up in the mountains.

My sister, her 3 kids, and 2 dogs jumped into the car and headed out towards Idyllwild, CA. Though this is techincally condisdered Pine Cove, CA, it is only about a 10 min drive away from the adorable town of Idyllwild! The campsite had room for 1 car, and was allotted 8 people. A long picnic table and a campfire ring with a grill opition! We set up a hammock in the front, a slack line on the side, and a dog run behind our campsite! We took the kids on the nature walk and they loved it! Big brother read the signs about the pine cones to his little sisters! We went into town as well and bought a big bundle of local fire wood at Mountain Mike's off Cicle Dr. for only $10. ( The best firewood ever ) We mostly just hung out at the campsite for the kids to run around and be kids! They made some friends with some neighbor campers, so all 5 kids ran around having the time of their lives!

Summary:

Pros:

• Close to Idyllwild
• Clean site(s)
• Clean bathrooms
• Camp hosts were very nice
• Fire rings w/ grill
• Picnic Table
• Non potable water faucets
• Privacy between sites on the back side ( where we stayed )
• Hiking trials out of the campground
• Nature walk off the campground
• Dumpsters for trash

Cons:

• No bear bins ( but there was not too much of a warning for the bears there )
• The bees ( the ones that like your food )

We went to Culp Valley in April just in time to explore the Anza-Borrego State Park during an especially rainy desert season. There were wildflowers everywhere and despite high heat during the day it was so bad you felt like you were in the desert. It's a beautiful time to explore. There is a small city just outside the park where you can get any need supplies, lunch or do some antique/thrifting.

The campground is just West of the state park and at a higher elevation. The sites are first come first serve, and best of all they are FREE! The ground is sand and rock, and outside of clean vault toilets there are no amenities. We had a decent spot with three tents set up and brought our own fire ring. No fires allowed outside a fire ring/pit you bring along. It's a smaller campground and is well known in SoCal but if you arrive before afternoon you'll usually find a spot.

Because of it's location on hill it is subject to gusty winds. Keep that in mind. You will get dusty and check the weather so you set up camp facing away from the wind or you'll get a full tent of sand. The night we were there most recently they broke wind gust records which was unexpected. It was a long night of whooshing wind coming up and over the desert hills before slamming into our tent at speeds nearing tornado strength. That sucked but that was more our fault than the campgrounds.

It's less of a leisure camping spot and there were no big RVs the times we visited. There is a reservable state park campsite nearby if you need more amenities.

This area is know for it's stargazing and the night sky in the desert is incredible. The lights from the nearest town are blocked by the rock.