Best Tent Camping near Meeker, CO

General: A mix of pull-thru RV sites, back-in van sites, and walk-in tent sites. We called about two weeks prior and were happy to secure a site on a Saturday at the very end of April. This campground is located right on I70 so you will definitely hear highway noise (and occasional train noise). The sites are stacked on a hillside and as would be expected in an RV park, there is little separation/privacy between sites. The road in is a bit rough but so were many of the area roads after a harsh winter. 

Site Quality: Sites are gravel. Site 55 was just long enough for our 18-foot van to fit. Not all of the van sites had picnic tables, but our site had a table where we could set up our camp stove and we ate inside our van. It also looked like there was a gas grill that might be shared for the van sites, but we didn’t inquire about it/use it. We had a fire pit but didn’t use it. Fires are NOT permitted in the RV sites and although there was a sign indicating a fire ban, you could speak with the office to see if fires are currently permitted in designated campfire pits. 

Bath/Shower house: Was very clean and nicely appointed. Did not use the shower. 

We chose this campground knowing we would hear highway noise, but it was a convenient location for our hike to Hanging Lake the next day. Craig was very welcoming both on the phone and upon our arrival.

Established campground with basics like a fire ring, picnic table and vault toilets. No water. If you are wanting a few days away from everything and willing to drive on dirt/gravel roads to get here, it is an awesome place to camp. Bring everything you need because there are no quick trips to a store out here. The river that flows into the lake is adjacent to campsite #1 and makes for a great night of sleep. The view waking up to the lake with the snow capped mountains in the background is truly a Colorado experience if that is what you’re looking for.

Quiet place with the sound of a babbling river running along the edge of the camp. They have a few pull throughs, several large back in and a few smaller back in sites. They also offer a large open field for dry camping. No showers, but, a few porta potties around the camp. Fire rings and picnic tables at each site. The water spigots are housed in small insulated enclosures. The sewer connections are varied distances, extensions are probably needed. Our sewer connection has a small uphill to it, but still slightly below our tank bottoms. Good space between sites, some are quite remote from others. On location camp host was swift. The WiFI was poor even with the camp half empty. I walked around and did some speed tests around the camp, best speed was 500kb. No Verizon service, decent TMobile service.

This campsite is (I believe) in Gilpin County and offers very nice views from several trails nearby. The drive to get there is stunning (Peak to Peak Highway), and the campground sits right off the road. There is road noise because it's so close to the road, so if that bothers you, beware. Because of that, and the fact that the spots are built into a hill on the side we stayed on, I give it 4/5. Some may like it as it may in some cases offer a little extra privacy. We have an RV and set up shop in the parking pad which had a set of stairs up to a fire pit, picnic table, and a flat tent area. Not as popular as some other sites along P2P, and you can reserve in advance. Because of the location, the site is probably going to rate really high with people unfamiliar with the Front Range. For tent camping or those up for winging it on the chance of a walk up spot, check out Rainbow Lakes or Pawnee @ Brainard Lake a bit further North on P2P first. No hook-ups.

Rifle Falls is a very small, year-round campground (13 electric sites and 7 walk-in tent sites) but it is very popular for day use. In fact, we waited until after 6 pm on the day we arrived to walk the 1.5-mile path to see the waterfalls and caves because it was so crowded on a Sunday afternoon that it required a ranger to direct traffic. We took an additional walk there on Monday morning and it was quiet until around 11 am, when the crowds started to pick up again. 

There are two vault toilets and they were not very clean, likely due to so many non-campers using them. Seven of the RV electric sites are back-in (1-3 and 10-13) and the remainder are pull-through. Not a lot of physical separation between the sites but the sites are large enough and spaced far enough apart. The tent sites are spaced a very decent amount apart with lots of trees between them and carts are provided to bring your stuff to your site. 

In addition to your camping fees, an annual or day-use pass is required to enter the park (applies to all Colorado state parks). 

The main draws to this park are the waterfalls and caves and both were definitely worth a stay in this park to see them.