Whether you're an RVer or tent camper, Allenspark, CO is a great place to post up for the weekend—or longer. There's so much to see and do, from exhilarating hikes or bike rides to exploring the local dining and shopping. Find the best campgrounds near Allenspark, CO. Read helpful reviews and tips to find the perfect camping option for you and your crew.
"Allenspark Dispersed Camping provides an exceptional spot to stay. Our spot was near the creek, the sound was beautiful. The only downside was absolutely no cell service."
"Fire ban was in effect when we went, but lots of fire circles available otherwise. Bring bug spray, the flies are bold."
"So the Gordon Gulch dispersed camping area has around 15 numbered sites that are ok... but if you keep driving further down 233.1 you will find many more unnumbered campsites."
"Prior campers have left some trash, bullet casings and obviously neglected to dig cat holes. After a quick clean up, the site was fine for my purposes."
$35 / night
"Best place to camp in Estes Park/Northern Colorado! Wooded sites mean privacy from your neighbors and shade during the day. Vault toilets are very clean, well kept."
"Very conveniently located, only a short drive into Estes Park. Lots of trails for hiking and biking in the park. Each campsite had a bear box, picnic table, and fire ring."
"The camp sites near the top of Longs Peak in the Boulderfield are worth the long hike (6 miles up steep terrain)."
"Amazing hikes and plenty of wildlife. The spaces are small but accommodate an RV or a single tent. Bear boxes and toilets close to everything."
"However, proximity to Boulder is a huge plus if you are looking for a quick and easy get away."
"Was desperate to find "something" after driving 11 hours that day, and normal paid camp grounds were full. HOWEVER I was pulling a smaller trailer, and that turned out to be a real issue."
"Drove out to this spot off Ski Road in Allenspark. Most spots sit on a creek that gives a good ambiance. Few spots need 4x4 or really good tires, but there’s a spot for everyone."
"Spacious site with a fire ring. Easy time finding, just follow all the arrows when there is a fork in the road."
$1 / night
"My son and I joined a friend from Longmont and headed to this trail to camp for a couple days."
"We went here with our 2 dogs for a quick overnighter-only about 45 minutes outside of Boulder. It was a Sunday morning and the lot was almost full when we got there around 9am."
"The atmosphere was serene, the weather was gorgeous (early July), and the campsites were well-maintained. Picnic tables and fire rings included. Some reservable sites have electric hook ups."
"Although not part of the National Park, this beautiful Rec Area shares a large border with one and your Parks Pass will grant your admission."
"Came here for my birthday a few years ago, and the scenery was absolutely breathtaking—mountains, lake views, the whole deal!"
"Stayed at campsite 18, had great views and nice weather, no water though but there is a lake down the road. 4x4 Required as roads were rough"
"No water source that I know of."
"We arrived at around 10pm on a Saturday night and were able to find a spot way back, but it did require AWD. The site was small, but secluded."
TravelerThis Rocky Mountain National Park campground is fantastic. I tent camped with my husband for 3 nights in Loop B. We saw tents and all sizes of campers many with families. Our tent site included a nice tent pad, picnic table, fire ring, and a shared bear box. The fire ban had been lifted and we could buy fire wood each evening-and ice cream! Clean bathrooms with flush toilets. This campground is very close to a number of trails. We hiked the Sprague Lake Trail. It’s 2 miles round trip and pretty easy. Breathtaking views. If you don’t hike, you can drive all the way to the Trail Ridge gift shop and cafe at the top. This park fills up quickly-amost 3 million visitors a year-so plan to get started early. We love RMNP. We will be back this fall!
GuideWe 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).
LegendSites: 46 20 sites FCFS
Reservation: 877-444-6777 or recreation.gov
Sites that fit tent, trailers, RV's
Open Mid May - Mid Oct
Firewood from camp host, picnic table, fire ring/grill, bear box at tent sites, pit toilet, water, trash, no electric, hookups, dump station or showers
Sites are very small
Great sightseeing to check out. Several historic mining towns and some great hiking trails. Views of the surrounding mountains are totally amazing.
AT&T and Verizon service but it is spotty.
The Mountain Pine beetle is decimating the forest and it is so sad to see. The forest service is working very hard to keep up with the removal of dead trees and it is creating expansive open area. The plus side of the removal is for solar. They are also removing the stumps thank goodness. Be very careful while walking in the forest for falling limbs or trees.
Directions: About four miles south of Nederland, Colorado, on Colorado Highway (CO) 119, watch for the entrance to Kelly Dahl Campground on the east side of the highway at mile marker 22.
LNT
Better than when you found it
Stay safe and happy travels
GuideI love this place. The campground is full every weekend between Memorial Day and Labor Day due to reservations made at recreation.gov up to 6 months and more than 48 hours in advance, and being so close to metro Denver.
The campground has 16 sites; 4 Walk-In, 1 host and 11 are reservable. Check in after 2:00 and check out by 1:00. If someone has a reservation, like a hotel, their site is held until 1:00 the next day because of the Forest Service rule that the campsite must be occupied the first night and they could have had delays.
The campground is at 9600’ and the last mile of the dirt road is a bit rough, but I have seen low profile cars and 42’ Class A motor home with a towed vehicle. Well water normally supplies the campground to faucets, but has not been productive the entire 2019 season and there are vault toilets. Each site has its own bear box and fire ring. The creek is less than 100 meters from the campground and fishing this year was poor... water level was low. Lots of great hiking and climbing in the area. About a 40 degree difference between day and night. During the fire ban, dispersed camping is limited to just a few areas so the campground is a great place to stay and you might still be able to have a fire in the fire ring. Privately owned cabins can be seen as you walk through the woods. Hell’s Hole Trail is a few hundred yards from the campground. I’m looking forward to going back there as host next year.
LegendThis campground is in the middle of Rocky Mountain NP. Our site was in loop D. The sites are a little packed but give you enough space to spread out. Each site has a picnic table and a fire ring with a shared bear box. The tent pads are level as d have plenty of shade. The bath rooms have no showers and are a little dated but adequate for a national park. It is centrally locates to bear lake and Estes Park. We will be back.
ScoutMy husband went to this campsite with a group of Scouts and took me and our 1 year old a few weeks later. I had never been backpacking up until this point because I was always intimidated by the experience. This was an excellent "beginner" foray into backpacking!
This semi-primitive campsite requires a permit from the Open Space Office of Jefferson County, CO. The permit is free, however you must pick up the permit in person at their offices. Be prepared with a valid ID. This is a popular campsite for Scout Troops, so calling ahead for availability is a great idea.
There is an exact address available on the website and at the Open Space Office that you can put into your GPS and drive straight to the parking lot of the trailhead.
My husband and I came in through the West Trailhead. It is a 1 mile, easy hike. The first 1/3 of a mile is dirt, the remainder is gravel. It is fairly hilly, but easy enough that we actually opted to push our Jogging Stroller with our kid the entire way (which is very doable) whilst wearing our backpacking gear.
The campsites are well maintained and quite spread out from one another. So although there was a group of scouts, a group of friends, and a bigger youth group who all hiked in, it did not feel crowded or noisy.
We brought our dog, as pets are allowed on a leash. We set up our tent on the graveled pad at each site and boiled up some soup on the provided picnic tables. The website as of 2018 will tell you that fires are permitted in the designated fire rings, however a permanent fire ban has recently been put into place (which is too bad!) and all the fire rings and wood piles have been removed from the area - so really, NO FIRES ALLOWED. The pit toilets are very accessible and clean. It is technically Bear Country, so bear boxes and trash cans are provided for the overall campground.
My favorite thing about our particular campsite (site 15) was the view. At night you can see all the city lights of sprawling Denver, but then have a perfect view of the sunrise in the morning. Witnessing the sunrise from this spot will always be one of my favorite memories. Seriously so amazing!
We hiked out the next morning, simple as that, but realized we had misplaced our car keys...after 2.5 hours of searching and walking back and forth between the campsite and our car, we found our keys in the bottom of our tent. So really, if I could offer one piece of advice, always know where your keys are! Despite this incident, the location was great and the experience worthwhile! And I feel like it gave me a good taste of what to expect when backpacking in the future, which is exactly what I was looking for.
LegendStatus: Open year round
Reserve mid spring through September 877-444-6777 or recreation.gov
weekend reservations recommended
70 sites including 10 walk-in tent 30 sites year round $24.00 tent sites $32.00 electric $64.00 double sites
Vault toilets, water during season ,tent sites have bear boxes, picnic table, fire ring/grill, trash no sewer or water hookups The campground has beautiful Ponderosa Pines but the Pine beetle is beginning to take its toil.
The back loop closes early fall. all sites have electric except the tent sites. There are 5 double sites. The campground can accept various size rigs. The day use area with a boat ramp and pit toilet with a nice size parking lot. There were a lot of people fishing from the shore. The lake is beautiful with small islands and rock formations. The road to and in the campground is gravel and rather dusty. Potholes
Directions: Drive 21 miles north of Fort Collins on US Highway 287. Turn left (west) onto the Red Feather Lakes Road (County 74E) and travel approximately 22 miles. Turn right (north) and travel another mile to signed campground entrance on the right.
LNT
Better than when you found it
Stay safe Happy travels
GuideQuiet campground- especially early in the season.
$22/night; Firewood bundles on-site for $9.
Each site has a picnic table and a bear box for food storage.
Bathrooms were clean. Sites are smaller and very close together. Little privacy if visiting during a busier time.
Sites 7, 9, and 11 have trails that connect back to Chicago creek just a short distance away. Hiking trails are close by to nearby forests land. No cell service.
GuideWhat 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 😀
Allenspark, Colorado, offers a stunning backdrop for tent camping enthusiasts, with a variety of options nestled in the beautiful Rocky Mountains. Whether you're seeking solitude or a chance to connect with nature, this area has something for everyone.
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