Whether you're a tent camper, an RVer, or just passing through, Hartsel, CO has a lot to offer. Discover secluded campsites where you can reconnect with nature. Or maybe you like to bring your family and friends along. Either way, there are Hartsel campgrounds just for you. Get the dirt on all the best camping near Hartsel. Browse campgrounds by amenities, site types, and more.
$5 - $15 / night
"Did see a Porsche, but they did not drive all the way to the end. People drive up to camp and to park to hike the Quad."
"most reasons to head out to the kite lake area are to try and summit 4 fourteeners in one day. Mt. Democrat, Mt. Lincoln, Mt Cameron, and Mt. Bross."
"Rock fire pits, wood around. No water, garbage, nor toilets. Cool temps, road in is rough go slow. Nice shady trees. First few spots you encounter left, then right seem ok."
"We drove a couple of miles up the decently maintained dirt road and found the second dispersed camping spot and decided to set up our roof top tent for the night. "
$18 - $270 / night
"It got a bit chilly at night, two layers, smartwool socks, a Carhart beanie, sleeping pad plus a medium temp sleeping bag kept me semi warm in our tent."
"Our family of 5.5 (I’m 20 wks pregnant) tent camped at site 065 at Prospectors Ridge . It is the furthest walk in site but the view IS AMAZING."
"Found this spot at about 7PM on a Friday night near the Breckenridge end of the Boreas Pass Trail (39.451441,-106.014294)."
"This this is a long Winding Road up the mountain that has many nice places to pull over and Camp right off the road. Some are a bit further back than others. Most are accessible to any vehicle."
"State Wildlife Area"
"Dispersed camping only is allowed along the trail but be sure to follow the rules about how far away you need to be from the trail and river (1/4 mile)."
"After a nice meal in nearby Buena Vista, Co, we headed out on the 7-8 mile drive to the trailhead. Now 7-8 miles on a CR isn’t always the same as a similar distance on a paved road."
"A lot of spots the further up you drive towards trailhead. Found a spot right next to the creek with room for several cars and framed in by trees. Sounds of water is awesome."
"If you go up 24 toward the South Elbert trailhead, you’ll find lots of dispersed camping options for everything from RVs to tent camping."
"A few spots allow you to pull off and set up a tent with great views. The site we stayed in was about 50 ft from the trailhead and could accommodate a group!"
LegendWe stayed at the Gore Creek Campground last summer 2017 on a drive from Southern California to Denver, CO. We took highway 15 through Nevada and Utah, and connected to Highway 70 in Utah to Colorado. To budget this trip, we tried to camp most of the way out and back to California - we saved our Airbnb rentals for Denver, where I️ was competing in Pole Theatre USA, an international pole dancing competition. We wanted to find a spot to camp for the night that was close to highway 70 and not toooooo far outside of Denver - Gore Creek Campground was the spot. It’s about 10-15 minutes outside of Vail, and about and hour and a half outside of Denver.
Campsites at Gore Creek are reservable ahead of time on recreation.org - we planned this trip about 6 months in advanced so had no problem reserving a site for one night on a weeknight. This campground is fairly small, however, with fewer than 30 sites, so I️ imagine it fills up quickly during the peak summer months. There are mostly drive-in sites in this campground, but there were some neat walk-in sites in a loop beyond the drive-in sites.
Gore Creek is a beautiful wooded campground that sits next to Gore Creek. There are a few ‘riverside sites’ in the campground, that were 60 yards or so from the creek. We had our pick of the sites that many months in advanced, so we chose site 9 as it appeared to be well secluded and close to the river - both were true! The area is densely wooded, so the sites have a lot of privacy, and the sound of the river is relaxing and peaceful at night, and drowned out most of the noise pollution from the nearby highway.
Each site has a fire ring and picnic table. The camp hosts were extremely kind and welcoming, and kept the grounds and the vault toilets very clean. There is NO WATER available at Gore Creek, so make sure to bring in plenty of water for cooking, washing, and drinking.
WARNING: You ARE in bear country - be bear smart and safe and use your bear box! We had our own bear box in our campsite - I believe each site has its own food locker. Try to lock all of your food and toiletries inside the food locker - they are large, and we have always been able to fit our big cooler into locker. If you do have to leave a cooler in the car, I was once told by a ranger in Yosemite NP that bears can recognize coolers when peering into car windows - he suggested putting put a towel and gear over your coolers when keeping them in the car overnight in bear territory.
There is a lot of beautiful hiking trails in the Vail - Gore Creek area. We did not have much time to explore as I️ had an appointment in Denver in the afternoon, but the area is absolutely gorgeous.
CAMPSITE SPECS
Fees: $25/night
Plumbed Toilets: NO - vault
Water: NO
Showers: NO
Picnic Table: Yes
Firepit: Yes
Cooking Grate: Yes
Shade: Yes
Cell Service: Yes
Trash: Yes
Animal Bins/Food Lockers: YES
GuideThis campground used to be free when I first found it years ago while visiting the Royal Gorge. Since the city has invested money into fixing up the campsites with fire rings, tent pads, and what seems to be pretty good county road maintenance, it’s definitely understandable why they charge a fee.
No water is available. There are vault toilets.
There are NO bear boxes.
Rules worth nothing (according to the sign upon entering camp):
There’s lots of hiking and mountain bike trails near the campground, which brought lots of mellow mtb riders in during my stay.
Because of the rules/amenities, i felt the price was a little steep as others have mentioned. However it is clean, close enough to Cañon city that you can go to town if needed, but far enough away to “unplug” from the world in a beautiful location. Overall I’d recommend visiting this campsite! I’ll happily return.
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.
RangerThis remote campground might pose some access challenges for larger rigs. Clean pit toilets, no showers, no laundry. Fresh drinking water and dumpsters are available. No dump station in campground. Mixture of river and non river sites. Plenty of room and privacy between sites. No mobile phone coverage, no wi-fi, no amenities within 30 miles of the campground. 2 campground hosts on site. Small reservoir lake nearby for fishing and canoeing. Hiking and fishing nearby. Each site has a picnic table, fire ring and bear box.
GuideReally gorgeous camping spot with easy access to tons of different outdoor activities. Tent sites are very well maintained and very beautiful. Walk-in sites are very close to parking, I would barely consider them walk-in sites. My only complaint is that the tent pads are made of gravel and therefore extremely hard to properly stake down tents.
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.
TravelerI gave this a 4 star because of the crowds.I backpacked to a high alpine lake called Kroenke Lake in the Collegiate Peaks wilderness area near Buena Vista, CO in August to catch some high country Cutthroats. This is a very popular hike during the summer. Camping can be congested but there are enough trees in between spots for some privacy. The designated camp sites we kept very clean by the previous visitors. There was not any trash in or around the fire ring that I often come across in other areas. The people that have previously visited, practiced leave no trace with the exception of the designated fire ring. The scenery was beautiful with a gorgeous lake with peaks of granite in the background. All of the people on the trail were friendly and courteous. It does get congested on the weekend being so close to Buena Vista and Salida. If you go little further, you can escape the congestion. I would highly recommend this hike to anyone looking for a weekend backpack trip.
TravelerSome friends and I camped here in early October. It got a bit chilly at night, two layers, smartwool socks, a Carhart beanie, sleeping pad plus a medium temp sleeping bag kept me semi warm in our tent. The hikes we went on were beautiful and the restrooms were clean and close to our site. Because it was a last minute reservation we ended up in the RV section of the campsite so it was a little nosier than neccessary. We saw the park ranger ride through about every half hour to hour during our weekend stay. I would defintely stay there again!
GuideGreat campground right on Colorado Trail section 6. Family friendly with vault toilets, potable water, and very nice campground hosts. Currently under a fire ban due to the dry conditions but don’t let that discourage you! The campground is right off the highway so there is some traffic noise and a few of the spots are close together but overall a great campground, easy location, and perfect for backpacking!
Nestled in the heart of Colorado, Hartsel offers a variety of tent camping options that cater to outdoor enthusiasts seeking adventure and tranquility in nature.
Frequently Asked Questions
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Hartsel, CO is Kite Lake with a 4.3-star rating from 13 reviews.
TheDyrt.com has all 72 tent camping locations near Hartsel, CO, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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