Best Equestrian Camping near Penrose, CO

My grandson and I stayed there in June for 4 days in a 34ft travel trailer in a pull thru long enough not to have to unhook. The sites were large and plenty of room for my slideout and not too close to next site. About 30 min from Pueblo and 30 from Canon City on Hwy 50 just east of Hwy 115 Full hookup and good WiFi Also had 30 OTA channels. Beautiful sunsets of the mountains Hwy 50 close by but traffic was not loud enough to disturb us Horses on the property as well as a swimming pool and very friendly staff Very nice experience and only 40 min from Colorado Springs or Royal Gorge.

The Cabins are for locals or people working in the local area and are only available for monthly rent, The tent areas are in direct sunlight with no shaded area and overpriced at $25 a night regardless of what time you check in checkouts at 11:00 am, The Bathrooms are reasonably clean, however scary hag lady comes in as if on crack running around looking like a mad woman, somewhat scary, the horse stalls are disgusting.

The campground won't accommodate fifth wheels only horse and rv up to 30 or so. Many of the sites in the 30,s up are useless other than a van. Tent sites are not good. Very uneven pads. The 40,s are much better and all mostly tents. The sites below 30 to 1 are pretty nice. Must say the hosts for the new concession explorUS were doing a bang up job.

One of the nicest camp spots I’ve been to. Very accommodating and clean! Only downfall is that it was a bit of a drive to many main attractions in Colorado, but it was worth the drive.

Great Campground with all the amenities. Sites are fairly close together, but not a problem for me. Everything is exceptionally clean. You must check in before 6pm. Downtown Colorado Springs is minutes away and close to attractions. Plus you can take advantage of on base shopping and more.

Our third time staying here. Opinion - best FamCamp in the system. Love the ability to base from here in the Colorado Springs area and branch out for all adventures you can imagine.

Campground is clean. Friendly staff. Level spots. Though not exactly private, plenty of pine trees to make you feel you are in the woods. City water was clean/no smell/good pressure, though paperwork says a regulator is mandatory.

Down side = the routinely travelled train tracks with mandatory horns. Regardless, we would return without question.

It's a quick drive from Colorado Springs and tons of trails! Usually pretty quiet except for holiday weekends. We actually drive past the campground into national forest for free dispersed camping and to ride our atv. We've never stayed at the actual campground so I can't provide any information there. But, if you camp in national forest make sure not to park more than one car length off of the trail. Did not know this and was educated by a passing ranger.

We ended up at Colorado Campground on a whim. We arrived in the early afternoon on a Friday and were greeted by a friendly camp host. He told us we could drive around and select any spot without a reservation tag. There were only a few left and we chose 79. The campground has many pine trees and the campsites are large. We had 7 people, 3 cars and two large tents and plenty of space. Initially, I was afraid it would be too noisy due to the large number of people camping, but it was actually pretty quiet. There’s an easy path to Manitou Lake where lots of folks were fishing and boating. The vault toilets were as clean as you’d expect. 

There were, unfortunately, many cigarette butts around our site but that is my only complaint.

What a trip. A couple of friends and I decided to camp and hike in the San Isabel National Forest. We camped at a site toward the trailhead of the Mount Harvard trail which was beautiful. The ground was a bit uneven so sleeping didn't come easy but all else was fine. After climbing to the summit of Mount Harvard, which was significantly harder than expected, we decided to hike the Colorado Trail. We camped at a site just south of Rainbow Lake that was picturesque but a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

Significant takeaways are as follows: Make sure you camp at a location with a natural water source, and always filter or purify your water. Be careful with how much you pack because the trails have steep inclines and you have to haul it all to where you decide to camp, which can be very far from the car. And make sure you have good hiking shoes.

Colorado campground is situated outside of Woodland Park (10 minute drive) and right next to Manitou lake.  This is a great area central to the Pikes Peak wilderness area so many trails are nearby and activities while still being close to civilization if you forget something or choose to eat-out.  The CG itself is large, but the sites are well spaced apart...it is a primitive CG with picnic table, fire-pit and gravel pull through or back-in spots.  There are water spigots, vault toilets and garbage cans equally dispersed throughout.  In the summer they have an educational series also on the weekends of various nature/wildlife "seminars" that are great for the kids in their small amphitheater, although i don't know how frequent they are scheduled.  As others have stated its a short walk to the lake for fishing and canoeing if you choose.  The CG is well maintained and hosts are friendly.

I absolutely love this area of Colorado. It's breathtaking no matter which direction you look. Decent campground that was a bit too big for my taste. I agree with another reviewer: choose your site wisely! Dirty vault toilets. Water spigots that were almost all dripping (some almost running). I believe it should be posted at time of reservation if there are STEPS involved to set up camp. This site had maybe 10 steps, some in desperate need of repair. As a senior solo camper, this was challenging.  This site was not my choice but the only one available for my time-frame (right next door to the camp host and on the main/incoming road). When we were there, no availability of firewood from camp host, but a load did arrive while we were there. Really noisy campground (plenty of barking dogs), PLUS,a helicopter was doing a training mission two of the days we were there and flew directly over the campground, low-level, 3-5 times each day. 

No bear boxes. (there was a hiker/bear interaction on the Venable trail on June 17th.)

Positives were wildlife, scenery, wildflowers, awesome hiking both directions out of the campground, nice fellow campers (those we met).

In hindsight, I would have been really upset if I'd paid full price.

On my last trip to Colorado I had crossed paths with this campground and vowed that this time I would make it a stop on my journey. I love the location and though it is in a decently traveled area it is not close enough to the road to hear any traffic. The location is great for having that Colorado forest feeling for sure with towering pines and great spacing around the campground itself. 

While this campground does have a formal campground host on site there is a fee station and no money changes hands in person. The host also mentioned that the location is patrolled by forest service rangers to add a bit of additional accountability and safety. As a solo traveler who many times travels during off season or off days for travel this brought me a very settling feeling to know.

 The campground itself does not have connections of any kind, however there are a few water spigots(non drinking) throughout the camp for usage and also vault toilets for usage. Price point is fair at$17 and during the early portion of the camping season this location was pretty quiet. A few scattered campers were present but even if this was a full site it would still allow for plenty of spacing between campers with large parking for each and sites which are both deep and wide. 

All the locations included a picnic table which looked shaded, I did not see many spaces of full sun around camp at all in fact. There were also fire rings and marker poles for each site where you can hang your receipt for camping. 

Unlike many campgrounds I visited in this region where pine needles or leaves were everywhere, this one was very clear. Even downed limbs had been collected by rangers and host to keep the sites open for usage which was very nice. Though I didn’t see any marked pad sites at this location the ground was nice and even in most of the sites for a tent or many had large enough area for RVs of various sizes. I did not see any pull through sites however. 

This location they do recommend you reserving online before coming to camp, however they did have envelops for payment as well. I can see how online reservation would be very important during busy season and I truly believe they are trying to move to an exclusive online pay system for sites like this and others. I think this will prevent some of the box theft which has occurred around some of the more remote or unattended sites. 

I loved how quiet this camp was, how open it was and that it provided great access to the wildlife area which was only a short drive up the road. 

TIPS: 

• Prepare for your stay ahead of time by bringing everything you could need to camp this includes firewood and water. 
• Bring your own toilet paper. Though the site is maintained and has a host the paper is not guaranteed to be stocked so remember to come prepared.
•  If you have solar you are wanting to use pull up a map in advance to find the best location because of the shade.

Had to get off the road due to wind! They got us right in to their well run campground. Great dog path and running area, showers and laundry. Nancy is super friendly!

We've been staying at this campground for several years as we travel between Arizona and Wyoming. The owners are so helpful, and the park is immaculate. Fantastic views, country feel, and safe. There's a seasonal pool, walking trails and a HUGE fenced dog park. Most spots are pull thru, and it's worth the short, easy drive from I-25.

The campground is great for any size rig. Quiet. So neat to see pronghorn in nearby fields as we sat drinking coffee. Nancy is so accommodating. She is a pleasure. Would highly recommend.

Great people stay in this park. Happy hour at 4pm. All pull-through.

Water system needs work; well water has rust and sediment, be prepared!

We don't usually stay at RV parks, but we really enjoyed our over night stay at Haggard's RV Park. My wife called it an unexpected gem. Nancy, the owner, was very welcoming and set the tone for the visit. She suggested some sites and we found one that was perfect for us with beautiful views across the prairie to the mountains and a spectacular sunset to boot. Nancy came around offering ice at one point and, later, watermellon. There is a nice dog park on-site. In fact, the best we've seen while traveling. Our older greyhound, who usually just follows us, actually did a few laps. Nancy's attention to detail was evident in the way she decorated the bathhouse to create a more personal, at-home feel. Haggard's is on our list of campgrounds to return to in the future.

When our boondocking plans went south, Nancy accommodated us on a late Sunday night without a reservation. She was kind and pleasant even though I’m sure she was tired and didn’t feel like showing us to our site. The place was super clean, very charming, and with much attention to detail. Would definitely stay here again!