Free Camping Collection
Dispersed Camping
Blue Lake Dispersed Camping- CLOSED
About
National Forest
Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forests
NOTICE 5/26/2022: The Blue Lake Campground has experienced significant damage as a result of trees being blown down on some campsites. The campground will remain closed until the area can be made safe for visitors again.
Blue Lake Campground is a developed campground with reservable and first-come-first-served sites. Available attractions: Lake and stream fishing. Blue lake is approximately one mile from the campground and the tributaries of the Cuchara River run through the campground.
For trail use, from the campground, take FSR 436 1.5 miles to the non-motorized North Fork Trail #1309. FSR 436 continues to old mine and saddle approximately 500 vertical feet below summit of Trinchera Peak. Access to the Indian Trial #1300 Trailhead at Bear Lake campground one mile further up FSR 422. This trailhead is a multi user trail system and accesses 23 miles of motorized trails available for ATV, motorcycle, bicycle, foot, and horse use. There is a 3/4 mile non-motorized trail between Bear Lake and Blue Lake.
Fee Info
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Access
- Drive-InPark next to your site
- Walk-InPark in a lot, walk to your site.
Stay Connected
- WiFiUnknown
- VerizonUnknown
- AT&TUnknown
- T-MobileUnknown
Site Types
- Dispersed
Features
For Campers
- Alcohol
- Pets
- Fires
Gorgeous Lakefront Slumber/Adventure
Incredible spot to car camp right at the base of the trailhead to lower, middle and upper lakes + Mount Sneffels! The flowers in July were amazing in the higher elevations and the weather was just right. We saw dear, marmots and coyotes, too! Highly recommended on a week day if you can swing it!
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Fantastical location
This location is beyond words. We are a truck team of three and we headed up on Sunday afternoon. We planned to camp at the trailhead and not the lake itself. There were plenty of spots open at the time but we nabbed one next to a small stream. Ample room at the spots and good distance from each other which reduced the neighbor noise. The scenery was stellar. Because they were finally getting loads of rain, we did have a pesky fly problem in addition to the mosquitos but it did not deter us from staying the whole week. No, you will not have cell reception there. Yes, the road gets a bit rough. Ideally have a vehicle with higher bottom clearance. Yes, this area is quite busy so getting a spot is hit and miss. I highly recommend this area for an immersive Colorado nature experience.
Better to backpack to lake vs camp by car
We came here the Saturday afternoon of Labor Day weekend, and had planned to camp by our car. The area was completely packed with cars and people already set up, and we found it difficult to find a spot. We drove around for about 30 mins, saw some cars and trucks blocking off sections to certain areas (as they wanted to reserve the areas and keep them somewhat private), and ended up camping in a muddy, suboptimal spot.
The next morning, we did the 3.6 mile hike up to the Lower Blue Lake. The hike was great and the lake is gorgeous. There were a lot of tents set up right near the lakes. Would highly recommend backpacking up and camping by the lakes instead of car camping
Location
Blue Lake Dispersed Camping- CLOSED is located in Colorado
Directions
To get there from La Veta, drive south on SH 12 for 13 miles to FSR 422. Turn right onto FSR 422 and follow it for 4 miles until you reach the Blue Lake Campground.
Coordinates
38.036 N
107.897 W