Del Norte Dispersed Camping

Incredible spot, river is incredibly cold even in August. Most sites have river access: Wildlife is abundant. Air is cool. One of the most beautiful spots I’ve ever camped at. The only downside? The F’n ATVS. Disrespectful to other campers and stir up SO much dust, also just out right dangerous? Because of this the road is full of washboards. Folks out here apparently also do not care to pick up their trash or have any common curtesy of how to leave a campsite. Very unfortunate:( PSA: clean up your trash and pack out your used toilet paper…. 🤢 We stayed at 3 different sites. Sites get better the further along you go, road is rough but nothing a standard 4x4 vehicle can’t handle. (We have a Toyota Tacoma) There are hiking trails/ ATV trails too. We will definitely be back. Great spot during the week when there’s less traffic!

easy to get to right on the river. got the last spot late on memorial weekend. a lot of 4 wheelers but sidnt bother us! we stayed an extra couple days it was such a great spot!

This has about 3-5 spots depending on how others park. It is low ground so if it is raining a lot, be prepared to dig a trench around your tent. The back spot is the best but you would not fit a trailer back there.

We had no problem getting to these sites with our Chevy camper van. Road is bumpy and rutted but nothing your average passenger car couldn’t get to (IMO). There are about 4-5 sites right at this pin for Del Norte dispersed. Most were filled when we got here on a Tuesday afternoon in May. They were also pretty close together and not too private. We continued on for prob less than a mile and there were LOTS of private, beautiful sites right on the river, starting just after the coal creek trailhead turn off. So so beautiful and peaceful. We camped right after the Coal Creek Trailhead turn off and it was one of the best sites in our opinion. You could continue about another mile beyond that and find lots of sites. You will then come to a “high clearance vehicle” needed sign and the road does get a bit more rough but not considerably and we felt it was still very passable in a car. Another mile beyond the high clearance sign you come to an East Fork Ranch sign denoting private property for the next five miles, so prob best to find your spot before here. River was cold and rushing with snow melt but lovely to camp by! We would for sure come back again.

Road closed to dispersed camping is closed

Title says it all. I got about 2-300 yards into the dirt road before the snowmelt caused everything to turn into mud.

This entire area is quite beautiful and I hope to return once again to get the full experience, that's why the 4 stars.

We wanted to stay at Del Norte but the road up to it was too unsettling for our car at the time. Instead, we tented right around East Fork Campground. There was a sign saying it was closed but there were plenty of campers still in and around the site. It was very windy that night but otherwise, it was a perfect place to set up our tent.

There were plenty of available campsites the majority of which had access to the river. It was relaxing with the exception of the occasional can am with music blaring. The road is rough in some spots but I never saw a section a car wouldn’t be able to do.

It’s not the best dirt road getting in but I was able to make it quite a ways up in my Nissan Altima. The sites are scattered along the road that follows the river. Beautiful views and great trails to hike. I found a spot that was a peninsula, surrounded by the river. Very primitive camping. No facilities, so bring water and be prepared to take your trash out with you.

Great spot! Lots of dispersed camping along the river. Fishing, hiking and swimming all right there. Great views of the Mountains. The star gazing at night was amazing. Great to see everyone packing out there trash. One of the cleaner and quieter camp areas I’ve been too in a while.

It can be a little bumpy going in, but its well worth it. We did alright in a HHR. We camped right on the river, got some amazing starlight, and one of the coldest nights of our adventure. (remember you're in the rockies so bundle up) Our neighbor dog was a klepto and stole ALL our pupper's bowls and toys in the night. :P The site marked is only the first one, there are a ton of sites, just keep going up the mountain. There is one in particular called Stunner Campground that is also free; it was our original desitination, it was just a long haul up that hill. There's plenty of exploring and fishing opportunities all along this road.

Here's a clip of the road in and a little of the site itself.