Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

We stayed here one night while visiting Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Campground is clean, very big rig friendly. Easy to maneuver. The pool and playground were clean.

Peaceful park near Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Sites clean with water and electric. Nice wildlife viewing. Some bathroom stalls and a shower out of service but all building very clean and new.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Outside of Montrose Colo a few miles. South Rim CG is at 8200 elv. Loop C is all FCFS and only $8 nite senior rate. Loop A and B are all reservation and in addition Loop B has electric hookups.

Only three stars as the sites are tight and most are not easy setup for larger RVs. and most are side pull in so vehicles are passing you very close by and not good for kids and dogs. CG is in dense oak shrubs. Only one water spigot in C loop and sign notes no RV fill-up. Dumpsters at the CG pay station parking area.

No TMobile cell up here so my Starlink RV setup is working great.

We were thrilled to find this primitive camping area right by the river. There are fifteen spots, 7 of those have drive in access, the other 8 are a park and walk down a small embankment - but oh, what a setting - set in a grove of trees, it was beautiful. There are picnic tables, bathrooms and the roar of the river to sleep next too.

This campground is right at the edge of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, but because you take a steep, twisty ride down to the river, the elevation went from over 9000 to under 7000, a welcome change if you aren't acclimated to the altitude. We set up our OzTent on the upper level (the drive in section) and took a walk. The historical displays are well done, be sure to visit the Visitor Center at the National Park to get the rest of the story, and regardless of your age, pick up a Junior Ranger book and earn your badge.

We will definitely go back, just for the scenery.

Overall, our family enjoyed our stay. We reserved a campsite for our 31' travel trailer at the end of May. The location was beautiful and though it was right off of the highway, we felt very safe and the campground was quiet. The staff were very friendly, however, it was difficult to access them since the office was usually closed and unless you saw them working out in the campground you didn't know where to go to find someone. The grounds were very well kept, clean laundry, shower, bathroom facilities. The only issue we had with the campsite was that there wasn't alot of gravel so when it rained our site got very muddy. RV rugs were not allowed so we ended up tracking alot of mud into our camper. Be sure to bring quarters for the laundry, there is no quarter machine and since the staff can be difficult to locate I didn't have an opportunity to ask if they have any to exchange. Close to Montrose and Black Canyons of the Gunnison National Park, easy access to these and highly recommend checking them out if you stay here!

This campsite is just west of Gunnison, CO and east of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It is in the Curecanti National Recreation Area where there are multiple campgrounds and dispersed camping sites. This review is on the Curecanti Creek campground on Morrow Point Reservoir. You can locate this campsite on the map in this link https://www.nps.gov/cure/planyourvisit/maps.htm . This campground is alongside the Gunnison River in a canyon; it is beautiful and perfect for SUPing, kayaking, swimming, and fishing. This is a free campsite and is not reservable, so come claim your spot early in the day/weekend.

First thing you should know is this is a pack in or boat in campsite. When I camped here, I parked at Pioneer Point and hiked the Curecanti Creek Trail down the canyon to the river. The trail from the top to the water is just under 2 miles. It is a beautiful trail that follows Curecanti Creek. Be aware that there is a 900 ft elevation change from top to bottom; the trail is steep. The group I went with managed to hike with all our gear; none of us are avid hikers but are in our 20s. I wouldn't recommend bringing small children along, but I do recommend bringing your dog! If you want to boat in, I know that you can launch any type of car top boat at Pine Creek (refer back to that map).

Once you get down to the river there is a small campsite and very small beach area. There is room for maybe 2 tents. There is also a bear box, fire pit, and apparently a vault toilet according to the NPS website, but I don't recall there being a bathroom. Our group was too big to fit at the campsite, so we went back up the trail about a mile because there is actually another campsite up the trail that has a fire pit with a grate, a picnic table, and enough room to fit 5+ tents. I definitely recommend stopping at this campsite if you have a large group, it's a shorter haul with all your gear. This campsite is to the left of the trail and to the right of the creek. There is also another campsite called Blue Creek (refer to that map again) across the river from the first campsite I mentioned. That one is right on the river and had more space; probably enough room for 3 tents. I'm not sure what else it had because I never went over there. You would need to haul down a boat to get across the river to reach that one though.

I do recommend bringing some type of boat/raft/floatie so that you can explore the canyon. We hauled down an inflatable paddle board and paddled to Chipeta Falls (on the map) which is just east of the campsite on the river. Although the water is cold, it is calm and easy to paddle or swim in. Overall, this campsite is a little work to get to but the beauty is worth it! Not to mention, the stars at night were awesome for star gazing.

The Gunnison KOA is in a beautiful setting with large trees that is about 75 yards from the river. The spaces are generously sized, although the camping sites could use power outlets. They are very kid and pet friendly; and have a dog park. There is a friendly donkey who roams the grounds, so make sure your 4 legged friends are okay around bigger animals. The bathrooms are clean and functional. The same could not be said for the dishwashing station that is outdoors. It is in horrible condition, including a dripping faucet. Also, be aware that you are very close to the river and there is a mosquito and moisture problem. Even with these minor problems, this is still a great place to stay.

This campground is on NPS land, so there is a fee ($16 in season+ water/$8 off season no water) that can be paid at the nearby ranger's station on the honor system. All 13 sites are in a single loop at the end of the road on the North Rim and are all first come first served. Pinyon and juniper offer shade and some visual privacy, however sites are all close so there is little audible privacy. Pets are OK if leashed. There are nice sized BearSaver boxes at each site, plus a fire ring and large picnic table. Vault toilets and potable water are both in the center of the camping loop, where you can also find other tables and lots of shade. Chasm trail begins near the end of the loop and there are great views of the canyon a short distance from all sites. Beware: drought year, so lots of yellow jackets - they swarm vehicles in search of water! Also, water is a limited resource brought in by truck to this canyon, don't be wasteful :)

We did a hike in camp site. We crossed the river and hiked up. They have little wheel barrels that you can take your stuff up with. The site was spacious. Plenty big for having some fun. They don't allow anything on the trees, no hammocks, no hanging trash bags, no pets tied to trees, nothing. They do provide a solid bear cabinet to keep food in. The views are astounding! We ended up biking what we thought was a bike trail, turned out it was not so we tackled stairs on our bikes but the views were well worth it. There was a playground and several fishing ponds in addition to the river. There was a bear when we were there. It crossed the river but we didn't see it we were told by the ranger. Definitely use the bear cabinet. Interestingly, the ranger told us (which we weren't very bear savvy) that even the clothes you cook in should go in the bear cabinet. Don't take any of that in to your tent. They can smell it and may greet you during the night. Great place to be.

Campground Review

This campground is tucked back a little ways. We had to go through a cattle gate, it's not always closed but this trip it was. Rule of thumb, leave it how you found it, but there are two campgrounds back there so it's ok to open the gate and go through. The road is narrow and a bit bumpy, at times a higher clearance vehicle is nice but I think I've seen cars back there too. The campground is right on the river, there is a boat ramp, however the water has always been pretty low when we've been to this area. This is our first time in this campground, we've stayed farther down the way before. Once you get there, there are plenty of campsites. We have never seen more then 2 campers there (us and one other this trip) but there are a good 12 or so campsites. Maybe more. They have fire pits, most have grills. Plenty of space. A couple were a little tighter but I've never seen it full so you usually have pick of the sites. They aren't numbered but if you head down the first turn to the right and make the loop, we stayed right after the loop on the other side. It was a huge site, had a small trail that went down to the river where my kids and dogs played. They found frogs and snakes and enjoyed cooling off. While there are poisonous snakes possibly around, this was a small rat snake. Looked to be some good fishing spots, a couple eddies and big rocks that fish could be hanging out behind, but we didn't have poles along.

The mosquitos can be quite bad. During the super heat of the day they were there but not overwhelming, but by the time it started to cool slightly, they came out in full force! In fact, they are the reason for the dropped star and for our early turn in for the night.

There is currently a stage one fire restriction, it still allows campfires in established rings and for the grill usage. Just make sure your fire is fully out before you leave it.

There is plenty of shade to be had and hammock use would be possible. You just have to battle the mosquitos. Which leads in to my product review…

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - today I am testing Green Goo's Bug Be Gone. I am always skeptical of "natural" bug sprays, very few of them work. I was pleasantly surprised that this stuff worked. My husband had nothing on and I had the green goo on and the mosquitos eventually drove him to spray while they did not land on me. Also, being all natural it is safe for people as well as pets. So we sprayed down both our dogs. Our younger, slightly more apprehensive dog wasn't too sure about the sound or the smell but our older dog didn't have a problem with it. It seemed to keep the bugs at bay for the dogs and they weren't itching as the night went on. Definitely would recommend this product.

AVOID THE BOULDERS IN THE ROAD, will scratch car, do a diagonal dance up the path and you’ll be fine.

I drive up in a sedan and almost made all the way to the lake. Ended up parking half a milf from the lake and hiked the rest of the way. Good think I have a backpack and just couple luxury items.

The campsites were way too close together. I don’t know why ??? It’s not necessary. Everyone came out and just hung out at the lake anyways . I would have ratheres a more private site where I can play music and let me cat roam more

The lake was beautiful and the sunset hits it so hard it glows. Also that crazy mountain village that collapsed and is now rubble is trippy unique

We just got home from a 3 night stay. The resort was clean and Linda was very nice in checking us in. Friday night however I assume it was Allen that was very rude, disrespectful and unprofessional. We were sitting by the fire pit with friends. After having to find the firewood and build the fire ourselves. (The owners are supposed to do it nightly). Our friends had their dog leashed and laying under their chair. Apparently dogs aren't ok in the fire pit area. You can see from the attached photo this is not clear at all. Either way we were the only ones there and the dog was not hurting anything. Suddenly this man comes in, brings a sign with him that says no dogs on the grass, holds it up in front of us and loudly says "Can't you read?!". We promptly apologized for the misunderstanding and our friend took the dog to the camper. I can only assume this was Allen because he did not introduce himself or tell us who he was in any way. Just rudely insulted us and then proceeded to tell us he wanted us to leave right now. Well it was late, dark and we paid for our space and had no intention of leaving. The next night the fire pit had plywood covering it saying it was closed. So we could not enjoy a fire on our last night there. If this was Allen, he was rude, unprofessional and insulting. Nobody deserves to be treated that way, much less paying customers who were doing nothing wrong other than possibly misunderstanding the misleading signage. We will not be back and would not recommend! As a business owner myself I know how to treat customers and this isn't it!

Ccampground is small, but hot spring are awesome. Hotsprings are included in price. Dogs aloud at campground but not in the pool area.

Our family camped at Black Canyon last July and LOVED IT. I wish we would have stayed more than just a few days. We had deer around our campsite (we had to have our dog on a leash because at that time of year the deer have babies and get fiesty. The deer at our campsite didn’t mind our dog and just seemed curious.) The views on our hikes were breathtaking and we even saw a little bear! There are hikes for all ages, many as you drive around the top are short walks to the edge to look at the views. I also recommend going to the visitors center while you are there.

Pretty campground with grass at the sites, a river a short walk away (there's a good portion of the campground with riverside sites, but limited for larger rigs). We were up by the highway, so the traffic was loud and the neighbors were fairly close. Not too terrible, and nothing a fan couldn't drown out at night. Could not park our tow vehicle at our site, but got a spot nearby across the road. We had some long term neighbors that let their dogs poop around our hookups, so the day we left was a nightmare. But that's not the campground's fault. They just need to enforce dog cleanup a little more maybe.