Camper submitted image from Cayton Campground - 1
View All
Camper submitted image from Cayton Campground - 2
Nature
Camper submitted image from Cayton Campground - 3
Roads
Camper submitted image from Cayton Campground - 4
Signs & Maps
Camper submitted image from Cayton Campground - 5
Camping

Established Camping

Cayton Campground

9 Reviews

About

National Forest

San Juan National Forest

Overview

Cayton Campground is located along the San Juan Skyway (Colorado Highway 145) and the Dolores River. Visitors enjoy the area for its great fishing, hiking and scenic driving opportunities.

Recreation

The Dolores River is a popular fishing destination that can often be crowded on summer weekends. Anglers will find rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout. The area boasts some excellent trails. The Colorado Trail follows the ridge across Bolam Pass. The Lizard Head and Cross Mountain Trails near Lizard Head Pass lead to alpine basins surrounded by 14,000-foot peaks. The Barlow Creek Road continues past the campground and crosses Bolam Pass with spectacular views. Road conditions near the pass often limit travel to four-wheel drive vehicles. The route eventually connects with the Hermosa Park Road, behind Durango Mountain Resort, and leads to U.S. Highway 550.

Facilities

The campground offers 27 single-family campsites, many of which are situated along the river. Eighteen sites offer electric hookups. Each site is equipped with a picnic table and campfire ring. Vault toilets, drinking water and a dump station are provided.

Natural Features

The campground is situated near the banks of the Dolores River, in a grassy meadow surrounded by fir and aspen trees. At an elevation of 9,400 feet, campers should expect cool evenings.

Nearby Attractions

The Priest Gulch Trailhead, 11 miles southwest of Rico, leads to the alpine country west of the campground. The Bear Creek Trail, 14 miles south of Rico, heads southeast into the La Plata Mountains. Other nearby trails include the Calico National Recreation Trail and the Rico-Silverton Trail. Highway 145, which runs between the campground and Telluride, offers some of the most majestic scenery along the San Juan Skyway, including views of the "14ers," which are peaks over 14,000 feet.

Charges & Cancellations

Cancellations Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee.__ A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a campsite. Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee. No-Shows A no-show visitor is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Staff will hold a campsite until check-out time on the day following the arrival date. No-shows are assessed $20.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's rate, taxes and applicable add-on for a campsite.____ Refunds Visitors may submit a refund request through their Recreation.gov profile within 7 days of the end date of their reservation. Refunds will not be issued after the 7 days has ended. Refunds for debit or credit card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank or credit card used to pay. For check or cash purchases, Recreation.gov will mail a Treasury check for refunds of cash, check, or money order payments to the address associated with the reservation. Treasury check refunds may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive.__ In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team or facility manager will refund all fees and will attempt to notify you using the contact information within the Recreation.gov visitor profile.

Suggest an Edit

Is Cayton Campground sold out?

Quickly grab cancellations!

Learn More

Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site

Stay Connected

  • WiFi
    Unknown
  • Verizon
    Unknown
  • AT&T
    Unknown
  • T-Mobile
    Unknown

Site Types

  • Tent Sites
  • RV Sites
  • Standard (Tent/RV)

Features

For Campers

  • Trash
  • Picnic Table
  • Firewood Available
  • Drinking Water
  • Electric Hookups
  • Toilets
  • Alcohol
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sanitary Dump
  • Pull-Through Sites
  • Big Rig Friendly

Rent an RV near Rico, Colorado

Find RVs Nearby

Reviews

Add Review

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

56%
23%
23%
0%
0%

4.5

out of 5

9 Reviews

Sara T.The Dyrt PRO User
Reviewed Sep. 9, 2023

One of my favorite campgrounds

Such a beautiful place! Wildflowers growing all along the dirt road of the campground. River was high & fast rushing, nice to listen & fall asleep to. Firewood was available for purchase. Toilet was clean. We hiked up to Hope Lake as suggested by cashier at gas station in Rico. A bit to early to see the lake in all its glory, August would have been better. Yet, we loved our time at Cayton Campground!

Site?
Month of VisitAugust
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Sara T., September 9, 2023
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Sara T., September 9, 2023
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Sara T., September 9, 2023
  • (7) View All
Greg L.The Dyrt PRO User
Reviewed Aug. 9, 2022

Nice CG in a canyon

Nice CG but in a canyon next to hwy so some hwy noise. Two loops, loop A has 20 sites and is the electric water hookup loop and for larger RVs and TTs. Loop B is has 7 sites with several FcFS and has no hookups. CG has vault toilets, dumpster, water spigots and an onsite CG host. Low price on loop B (non electric) would be $13 senior. Note that there is NO cell signal here at least for my TMobile phone, but some sites with open views to north would work with Starlink.

Month of VisitSeptember
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Greg L., August 9, 2022
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Greg L., August 9, 2022
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Greg L., August 9, 2022
  • (18) View All
Rebeca H.
Reviewed Jul. 6, 2022

Secluded campground near Rico and Telluride

This was a nice campground in a great, serene location by the Dolores river. Would go back!!!

Site11
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Rebeca H., July 6, 2022
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Rebeca H., July 6, 2022
  • Review photo of Cayton Campground by Rebeca H., July 6, 2022

Location

Cayton Campground is located in Colorado

Detail location of campground

Directions

From Rico, travel northeast on Colorado Highway 145 for 6 miles. Turn right (east) on Forest Road 578 (Barlow Creek Road). The campground entrance is a half-mile further.

Address

San Juan NF
Rico, CO

Coordinates

37.7713889 N
107.9772222 W

Open in Google Maps