Best Tent Camping near Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

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!

We originally had a tent site in Elk Ridge, but our friends with an RV couldn't get a site on that side of the park for the same dates.  Rather than have the 8 kids between us so far apart, we decided to get a tent site in Pa-Co.  We got #294, primarily because the tent sites are about 50 yards from the parking lot, and with 6 of us we haul a lot of stuff.  294 was one of the closest to the parking lot, with the downside it was also closest to the pit toilet.  If it was just two people with a couple backpacks this is a great location as you don't have any car noise and you're not hauling much, but for us it was a pain.

It was a beautiful view of the river from the site.  Sites are small and fairly close together but it was a quiet campground.  The bathroom wasn't a problem except for a couple of hours when it seemed like someone left a door open and the wind was blowing our direction.

Our tent is massive, and too big for the 10x10 space for tents at the site so we had to do some moving around but made it work.  I'd bring our smaller one next time.  The tent campground is well maintained and quiet, and the weather is great in the summer as the river keeps it cool.  The RV site our friend has didn't have a lot of trees and was close to the highway, so for just hanging out ours was preferable.  

Unfortunately the showers at the shower house about 100 yards away were closed due to COVID, but the weather is cool and dry mostly so not a big deal.  The shower house and laundry were very well kept, and the campground hosts were very friendly.   Firewood was $5 and I believe ice was only $1.  

The park overall was great.  We drove to the other parts to rent paddleboards and had a great time - very reasonably priced.   It worked well as a base for side trips, as Ouray and Ridgway were easy to get to, as was Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP.