Best Equestrian Camping near Palisade, CO

If you have ATVs, dirt bikes, horses, etc. this is a great place for you. It’s just 4 miles off of I-70 but still secluded. It is a designated OHV area so no worries about people stopping you from ripping around and exploring.

That said - I’m a quiet camper and prefer to avoid OHV areas calling them Obnoxiously High-noise Vehicle areas. I’m kidding, obviously. Seriously, everyone enjoys the outdoors in their own way and I don’t begrudge anyone their enjoyment. I took the chance and it was very quiet while I was there. Only one couple other than me that I’m aware of.

The weather was mild in mid-April during my stay - got to about 70 during the day and around 40 at night. It was windy during the day but it is a very open space and it is western Colorado. When the wind died down, the mosquitoes came out and they were persistent. I hiked around and they weren’t just at my campsite. There is a water treatment facility in the area and just down from the main camping is a treatment pond so I’m guessing that’s the culprit.

The road in is unpaved once you leave the small town but very easy. I base those sorts of claims off of the VW Jetta Scale - the vehicle I had for 8 years before my current vehicle. There are a few low creeks crossings but the beds are small and both were dry when I came through. Even if they had water, I still would have crossed if I were still in my Jetta. The roads were washboarded so don’t bring the nice china.

The pull offs are plentiful and large. Most could hold a few trailers or several vehicles and some have fire rings. I did not have a fire because the fire danger was too high (ALWAYS CHECK BEFORE HAVING A FIRE). The road is a loop so just follow it around until you find the spot you want.

The space is wide open and surrounded by 360 views of mountains. Sunset and Sunrise were great but - for you photographers - the light changes really fast so scout the compositions you want ahead of time.

No wildlife that I was aware of aside from birds and our mosquito friends. I didn’t hear coyotes, I didn’t even see deer tracks. Just horse and tire tracks.

Oh, on the way in there was a sign that said “Private Property, No Trespassing” and it looked like it was for the road going in; however, the other signs revealed that it was for the area around the water treatment plant. There isn’t a lot of signage, just one saying it’s an OHV area and one saying it’s a Limited Use area. Other signs are just to protect the sensitive areas.

Easy to find with Google maps. Plenty of open space. 15min off 70.
Dirt road, a bit bumpy, but we easily pulled our 21ft Micro Minnie and it was doable for almost any vehicle. We didn't go to far up into the sites so I can't speak to further in. Rolled in at midnight and was still simple to find in the dark.

This was a beautiful place to camp. There were a few places along the road you could stop and camp. We stayed at the farthest site out because there were other campers at the other sites. All sites could fit more that one camper if needed.

Beautiful sunsets and sunrises at this location. The road leaving up was doable for our low clearance Winnebago solis.

Apple map directions are spot on. Lots of room - I chose to go up a rutted road a ways, for privacy. There was one camper at the flat bottom. Check weather for rain chance if you don’t have 4x4.

Great views! We camped just south of the pin but there are several spots to pull over with fire rings along 123 rd. There wasn’t much shade but we set up a tarp and it was fine. Bring lots of water and sunscreen but worth it! If you keep driving there are some better spots. Definitely recommend high clearance 4x4 for the further spots

Great spot! Clean! Lots of room! The other sites are pretty spaced out. There are toilets and a water faucet near our site. Rained on us a bit the first day so the name definitely fits! 4x4 would help get to the sites! Especially on muddy days!

Mud springs is a small campground tucked away on top of a national monument. To enter the monument, there is a fee, but if you are going to mud springs you can tell them that and not pay the park entrance fee. It's up on glade park but kind of off the beat and path. The road was wet from recent rain and a small stream flowed down the washboard surface. The park itself is small but nice. Quiet. A bit muddy when it rains. We saw deer in the morning. We had a nice tent pad and firerings. Room for hammocks. It's a good place with pit toilets. But it's quiet. We did have a couple things walk through our site, we weren't sure what they were but it put our dog on high alert. One had a bell so that was strange. The other we aren't sure of but our dog watched as whatever it was walked past the tent. There weren't many people there so it probably wasn't another camper but some sort of critter. There is also a fresh spring that you can collect water from I think. We looked at it but didn't opt to collect any water. Lots of trees though which is nice. It seems to rain in July there, although they go through severe droughts and then all of a sudden, rain for two days. But both times we've gone in July, it has rained.

It’s absolutely beautiful here. But don’t do what I did and go here in March. The spring must have leaked all the mud on to the road. Because it was bad. But it was great.

Quiet area for a quick stop overnight. 3 pull through spots great for a camper or smaller RV plus a couple of back in spots with rock fire rings. Near town and close to i70.

Note: there are several coyotes in the area. Be sure to keep an eye on your pets.

Very easy to get to via the 139. The drive in locations are level and the sites are easy to reach with a camper van.

However, what surprised us was the amount of empty gun ammunition laying around on the campsite. As a European this might be more confronting than for a USA citizen, but it made us feel a bit uncomfortable. The sound of people doing target practice nearby also didn't help. Furthermore there was some burnt couches and chairs dumped on site 1 which contributed to the site feeling a bit sketchy.

Overall, we hade a fine overnight stay.

Turn left right before mile marker 8 on 139. Plenty of big, open pull-offs with wide open views of the area including Highline Lake at certain spots. Came late on a weeknight and only saw one other vehicle. Minimal noise from highway. Awesome!