Cathedral Campground, near South Fork, Colorado, is a fantastic spot for those seeking a peaceful escape surrounded by nature. This free campground offers a beautiful setting with picnic tables, fire rings, and clean pit toilets, making it a comfortable choice for campers.

The drive to the campground is a bit of an adventure, with a long, bumpy road that rewards you with stunning views. Visitors rave about the nearby hiking trails, especially the trek up to Cathedral Rock, which is a must-do for anyone staying here. As one camper noted, “The road in is long, all gravel, extremely scenic,” so take your time and enjoy the ride.

While there’s no drinking water available, the nearby creek adds to the charm and provides a lovely backdrop for your camping experience. Campers have enjoyed the solitude, often finding themselves with plenty of space to spread out, even during busy weekends. One visitor mentioned, “It’s peaceful, not crowded,” which is a big draw for many.

Keep in mind that wildlife is part of the experience here, so be sure to secure your food properly. With its stunning scenery and serene atmosphere, Cathedral Campground is a great choice for anyone looking to unwind in the great outdoors.

.NO POTABLE WATER AVAILABLE Cathedral Campground is northwest of Del Norte and northeast of South Fork, on Embargo Creek. It was remodeled in 2010 and now has 22 sites. 17 are dead end spurs and 5 are pull throughs. Sites vary from 35 to 45 feet in length. This campground is located in a mature aspen and spruce grove with a beautiful view of Cathedral Rock to the north. Embargo Creek flows alongside the east side of the grounds. There is ample fishing in Embargo Creek and hiking/horseback riding/mountain biking on Cathedral Creek Trail #794, Embargo Trail # 792 and Fremont's Camp Trail #885. Motorcycles may use both Cathedral and Embargo Trails. ATV’s are not allowed on the trails.The campground is composed of two large loops along Cathedral Creek. The left hand loop features a large meadow and a few open sites. The right hand loop has a dense Aspen and spruce (including Blue) woods and a more rustic feel. Scroll down to Information Center for individual site details. John Charles Fremont's winter camp is nearby. He attempted an ill-fated expedition across the Rocky Mountains for a transcontinental railroad route in late 1848.

Cathedral Campground

South Fork, CO is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. South Fork is an adventure-filled destination for those who love the outdoorsy camper lifestyle. But it's also great for those who prefer to spend time near the city, exploring and sightseeing. Find the best campgrounds near South Fork, CO. Read reviews from campers like you and find your perfect campsite.

South Fork

The Best Camping Near South Fork, Colorado

Super pretty little campground. Far enough out of the way that you can usually find a site even though there aren’t a lot to begin with. But that’s what makes this campground so great. It’s peaceful, not crowded, has hiking trails, fishing, half the sites are on the creek AND it’s FREE!! 

Peaceful camping at its best 

We stayed here for one night at the end of August...we arrived around noon on a Friday and there were several sites to choose from. Its amazing that this campground is free! There was a wonderful trail to hike right in the campground...and at night, the stars were absolutely stunning! We can't wait to return! No host, so bring your own firewood and ice. Toilets were vault. 

Starry Night 

My family and I stayed here for 3 nights over Labor Day weekend and we loved it! It’s about 10 miles off the highway down a narrow, dirt road, and there were plenty of empty spots over the Holiday weekend. I highly recommend getting a campsite along the creek side (#5 was the BEST). Plenty of space for tents, lots of trees for hammocks, a fire ring, and a nice big picnic table at each site. The website said there’s only one vault toilet but there were multiple. The closest to us was next to site #7 (one for women &amp; one for men!). The creek was too low to fish, but there were great fishing spots in South Fork that we drove to. No drinking water is available, so bring your own! See my photos for the black bear we saw about 5 miles from the campground 🤩

Beautiful campground on the creek

We spent two night here and really enjoyed it.  There is a nice hike right from the campground.  The trail allows motorcycles but it doesn't appear they have been there much.  We didn't see any.  Usage would be light/medium I would say.  The road in is good for all vehicles but I question the length recommended.

  

Our 5th wheel is a short one and there we only a couple of sites we could fit.  I would think a 30' trailer would be about it.  There were a couple of dispersed sites on the way in that could have taken a bigger unit.  The road in is a one lane affair so a big rig would have an interesting time if they ran into some one going in the opposite direction.

Good hiking from the campground

The road there was sketch for my friends pulling a 30 plus foot trailer, but for us the road was bumpy but worth it.
We were the only ones at the camp spot for 4 days and even though it was early in the season and the bathrooms hadn't been serviced since November, they were well  stocked and overall a "C+"
There is tons of downed trees and wood everywhere for fires, but it doesn't burn the best (aspens).  It is a really beautiful spot.
There are a couple pull through spots and about 4 by the water.  If the 22 sites, like 18 are well shaded.

Very Nice, Shaded with water

Great campground! There was only 1 other campsite occupied on the Tuesday night we were there. I highly recommend taking a hike up to cathedral rock from the campground. This campground had the cleanest pit toilets I have ever seen. The road in is long, all gravel, extremely scenic. You don’t need a 4 wheel drive, it’s just rocky in some spots so take it slow. It was way colder at night that we expected. There is lots of bear scat around so keep your food locked up. There are bear proof garbage cans by the bathrooms. Phenomenal place to stay, I would definitely return.

Solitude and Beauty

Great location, easy drive on a road, would maybe have a  hard time turning into campsite with large camper.  Only negative is no water.  It's a really awesome free campground. Great stream. 


Free, no water supply , bear trash cans, toilets, 

Gorgeous camping area with wildlife, stream, picnic tables and restrooms. A long, 45 minute, bumpy unpaved road drive after the turn off but mostly worth it. Has been my favorite place to camp so far HOWEVER if you go during the colder months, be aware there are hundreds of mice and rats around. We had to leave in the middle of the night because a bushy-tailed wood rat jumped up into our engine bay and started chewing wires and other parts of our van. It took us almost 24 hours to get the rat out and had to be done with a trap because the rat refused to leave his new home. If you eat/cook outside at any point, they will surround you and destroy whatever they can. We did not leave any food out, just our sealed yeti and we still had problems. Bring rat traps! We had to drive all the way to Pagosa Springs to even find a place that had traps left and even then it was just glue traps. It was a nightmare. I would definitely go back but NEVER when it is cold. 

Photos of Cathedral Campground

Real photos from real campers