Best Campgrounds near Palmer Lake, CO

It’s a beautiful area for a day hike, but as a campsite it’s explicitly “no camping allowed”. Plus, the actual geo-location listed here is past a gate on a private road (with private homes) so it’s just not a camping situation.

But so worth it. There were other spots along the road on the way up but most were taken or uneven. I ended up at the top of the mountain and the view is gorgeous. Gets a bit windy and definitely colder but a great site to spend some time at. There is evidence of some parties and broken glass so watch out for that but mostly clean and taken care of. Some traffic coming through but nothing loud or obnoxious. Definitely recommend going slow on the road, the bumps are pretty bad. Enjoy!

This was a great site! Trails everywhere, lots of beautiful sites. Some have mountain views, others are more covered by trees. I stayed in a loop site that was super cozy. All sites have fire rings and plenty of dead trees/branches in the area to gather for firewood.

A beautiful and peaceful place to chill out! The spots are plenty spaced out from others. Just a heads up that many of the spots aren’t flat for parking or even for a tent.

Awesome camp spot. Met a friendly dog and a random turkey. Beautiful scenery.

Stayed here for a month and a half with electric only (full hook up spots for extended stays were already taken but that was okay). Staff is extremely helpful and accommodating. They have extremely clean bath houses cleaned daily and coin0op laundry (office has quarters available). Along a gorgeous walking path to the mountains, within immediate walking distance to multiple breweries and restaurants, and extremely accessible to the mountains. Love it here!

Sites 8 & 9 are extremely unlevel, but the other sites are pretty fine.

Super close to Denver and offered through the City of Lakewood. The sites are for tent/RV and have electric hookups. Beautiful area. There's a few playgrounds within the campground and park area, with access to trails to the lake, a boat launch and boat rental, equestrian stables, and archery. You get a bench and fire pit at your site. Only drawback might be the bathrooms have no night lighting and you have a dumping station instead of sewage hookups. Also water is available but not at the site. But all in all a really great find and affordable for the area!

Great spots in here! Lots of shade in the morning at our spot. We were by a dirt road and did have a few vehicles drive by but not bad. There is bear scat, not old and not new, in the area but no wildlife was seen.

These are blm campsites. There are pit toilets right when you cross into blm land and a sign that explains that you have to camp in designated areas. Like most blm locations there is a 14 day max.

We got our 19 foot travel trailer into a spot with icy conditions, but the road does get quite a bit rougher if you keep going in. Great T-Mobile and Verizon service (2+ bars of 5g)

I started camping this area a couple of years ago and have been coming back several times a year. Over 30 dispersed campsites along a moderately smooth dirt road. Sites are spaced well apart, some sites are covered in trees while others are wide open. I haven’t seen one there yet but it’s good to stay BEAR AWEAR. Sites are clean. I camped at sites 15, 18, 22(twice), 26 (twice ), and there’s two sites close to Wellington lake that I’ve stayed three times . Yes it’s a good place to camp and only about a hour from Denver. My visits were between May to October. Only a fire ring is provided,everything else you’ll need to bring……AND PACK OUT when you leave so the next camper can enjoy the site like you did.

My first experience was a couple of years ago (2022) I paid for three days camping . It snowed and was unable to camp….no refunds… The following year I bought 6 day passes to go fishing and only used 3. They said no refunds….. told them to keep the money and give the passes to the next three people who came in and wanted one….they said that they couldn’t do that.. So, I still tell people about how beautiful the place is…..and I also tell them that they WILL keep your money no matter what happens…. I’ll camp in the dispersed camping sites on the road that takes you to the private over priced campground….. Oh by the way…it’s catch and release. So, if you want fish for supper you better bring your own.

If you want to get into the Park, suggest you go EARLY, EARLY, EARLY in the day. Traffic backs up all the way from the Entrance on Parker Rd to the Entrance Booth on weekends and holidays. Plan on an hour OR MORE to just get to the booth. Once the capacity for the Park is reached, you will not be allowed in.

Nice Swim Beach with brand new Bldg. Many covered Picnic sites, but again, you MUST arrive at the break of day to secure one.

Please plan to pack your trash out. Seems to be a severe shortage of dumpsters or trash cans and people leave behind huge bags of trash - or, sadly, just trash strewn around. Please respect our space!

Campground is usually fully booked all season. Reservations can be made six months out. Two week limit.

I live close to the Park and visit every month of the year.