Buckingham Campground

**Campground Review **

I came upon this campground in an effort to squeeze in one last big fall hike before the Colorado winter (aka snow) settled across the Front Range Mountains. My research led me to the Fourth of July Trailhead and adjacent Buckingham Campground, just west of Boulder, Colorado. Our plan was to car camp at the campground the night before hiking to ensure that we would get a good parking spot at the trailhead and an early start on the hike. We arrived after nightfall and were very surprised to find that we were the only people there, despite many online reviews describing how crowded this area got on the weekends. The lack of other cars and light made it quite difficult for us to differentiate between the campground and the trailhead parking, so we drove around for a bit and finally settled on a nice flat spot that was relatively free of snow. While driving around looking for a spot, a giant mother moose and her baby crossed the parking lot which was such a cool (but slightly terrifying) surprise! We were sure to find parking far away from the direction that they were wandering towards. 

Overall, the campground didn’t offer much. We visited quite late in the season and there was a lot of snow on the ground, so it was really hard to tell where the actual designated camp sites were. I am guessing that it is better maintained during the summer. While there was a bathroom, as my photos show it was unfortunately quite dirty and full of trash. The location totally made up for any downsides of the campground though! When we woke up the next morning we were shocked by the beautiful views seen from every direction. The parking lot began to fill at dawn and there were only a few spots remaining when we started hiking around 8 am. We hiked two of the trails from the campground, Arapaho Pass and Diamond Lake, both were absolutely amazing and some of the most beautiful hiking I have done in Colorado. I would highly recommend hiking, backpacking, and/or camping around this area to anyone visiting the Colorado Front Range! 

A word of caution-The road to this campground can be fairly rough in some spots and was made more difficult by the snow on the ground when we visited (mid-October). A high-clearance vehicle is definitely needed and something with 4WD would be necessary if there is any snow or mud on the road. Check trail conditions and road closures prior to setting out to this beautiful destination!

**Product Review **

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, sometimes I have the opportunity to test some great products! At this campground, I tested the [RoM Pack](https://romoutdoors.com/product/rom-pack/). This unique backpack comes with quite a cool origin [story](https://romoutdoors.com/our-story/)from its’ inventors, so I was very excited for the opportunity to test out something so innovative. When the pack arrived, I certainly was not disappointed. Unfortunately, quite a few early snow season storms delayed my attempts to get out in the field to test it although once I finally got the opportunity, it was totally worth the wait! 

This pack is nothing short of versatile. It not only serves as a backpack with optional removable outer pockets, but can also be used as a blanket and a wearable poncho!! Seriously, this thing is so cool. I could probably go on all day about the reasons I was impressed by this product, but for the sake of those reading, I decided to narrow down my top 3 favorite features of this backpack:

1) The material. The designers of this product clearly have been in the woods a time or two. The pack is made out of a water resistant and super durable material on the outside but the other side is a thin polar fleece. This feature was really important as we went camping in the snow with it. 

*   As a backpack-this means everything inside your pack is protected from the dirt and the elements.  I had no fear of my gear getting wet when I set my pack down directly in the snow.
*   As a poncho-the inside is warm and soft while the outer material keeps you dry.
*   As a blanket-although this product is lightweight, it is surprisingly thick and well insulated. We had to camp directly on the snow one night, so I laid down the blanket on the floor of my tent to use as an extra layer of insulation below my sleeping pad. It really added some much appreciated warmth! 

2) Did I mention all of the pockets?! I am a bit of an organization freak when it comes to camping, so I really appreciated how many places there were in this backpack to store and then easily access all of my things. 

3) The versatility. To me, this seems to be one of the major selling points of this incredibly innovative product and for good reason. Not only is it a high quality backpack, but it can also serve to provide two essential things while adventuring in the outdoors-warmth and protection. You can leave your extra layers and picnic blankets at home when you have this backpack to cut down on weight and gear. Additionally, switching between the uses is really quite easy and well explained in [this video](https://youtu.be/PvwvzAsaRPU)for first time users. 

Overall, I was really impressed by the RoM pack. I will definitely be following this brand in the future and can’t wait to see what other novel products come from the genius behind [RoM Outdoors](https://romoutdoors.com/)!

Ranger Review of RoM Pack at Buckingham Campground

First off, this campground is a little strange. It is owned by the City of Boulder so campers have to follow the open space and mountain park rules, as well as state alcohol laws. Only 3.2% beer is allowed and no glass. This campground also goes by two names. Buckingham, the actual name, and Fourth of July campground, the name it has in Google Maps. There are only 10 sites at this campground, but it is free and first come, first serve. The campgrounds only have picnic tables, that's it. There are toilets at the Fourth of July trailhead, which are right by the campground. Overall the campsites aren't much. The only reason you'd camp here is to get an early start on one of the trails from the Fourth of July trailhead, which is what I did. I did the hike to Diamond Lake, a 5 mile round trip hike to an alpine lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness. The hike was beautiful there were waterfalls, wildflowers, and dense forest. I know that you can also backpack and camp overnight at Diamond Lake with a permit.

Buckingham/Fourth of July Campground

We came here in early July to hike up South and North Arapahoe Peaks (and Diamond Lake for warm-up). The sites are nice right next to a creek, with very few mosquitos. Make sure to stay close to the designated areas (fwiw, Rangers monitor the site). No campfires were allowed and they are no fire rings, so I assume that the fire ban is typical rather than the exception. Bear-proof food storage is provided at each site.

We made it up the dirt road in our little Honda Fit but that was touch and go at times, and required some careful driving. 99% of the cars at the campground and trailhead were 4x4s. 

The location is great with plenty of trailheads right next to the campground. But that also means that site is very busy. The trailhead parking fills up as early as 5am. It wasn't much of an issue in terms of loudness, but it does mean that the only two restrooms are also used by hundreds of hikers each day …

There are no trash bins (i.e., pack out whatever trash you produce), there is no drinking water (except for the creek if you have filters), all sites are walk-in though parking is just a few meters away (one is ADA accessible with parking right next to the site). With Google Fi (Spring) we had no cell reception (we lost signal even prior to the start of the dirt road, so many miles before the campground). Sites are in the shade below trees, and there are picnic tables.

Overall, I'd visit this place again, just because of the convenient access to amazing trails and scrambles. Trails to Diamond Lake (10km out-and-back) and Arapahoe pass were quite busy, but not unpleasantly so. The trail up to the Arapahoe Peaks (13km out-and-back to South Peak) was \*much\* less busy though we still saw about 8-10ish groups throughout the day (took us 2:10h up to South Arapahoe Peak, about 30-40 minutes to traverse to North Arapahoe).

Great location, sites next to creek, but very busy

What an awesome site! Bear boxes and concrete picnic tables. There are only 5 campsites here and one is handicapped only. That and the next site, where I stayed, are right off the dirt road. There are 3 more sites past the barrier which are more secluded but require schlepping your stuff farther. 

Fourth of July trailhead is busy and parking fills up fast in the morning. The hike is breathtaking in beauty; the wildflower covered mountain meadows are glorious! It’s possible to backpack in and stay in the rough. I met several groups who’d done just that. Buckingham campground, however, makes a great base camp if you prefer, like I do, car camping. 

No fires allowed, of course, but a Ranger once told me as long as it has an off switch it’s okay. I brought my gas ring and was pleasant warm drinking tea and listening to a light rain hitting the awning as twilight turned to night. 

The one consistent drawback was airplane noise every few minutes. There’s a flight path right above. While I saw plenty of people in the trail the campsite was secluded and quiet, especially at night. Dogs on leash are welcome and there’s a vault toilet 😀