If you're looking for a place to pitch your tent near Rio Grande National Forest, look no further. Find the best information on tent camping near Rio Grande National Forest, including sites, reviews, and tips for getting the most out of your camping experience. Whether you're looking for a quiet, dispersed site or an established camgpround with amenities, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect place to pitch your tent.
Stunner campground sits at 9700-foot in elevation beside the Alamosa River, two miles below the top of Stunner Pass. There are 5 campsites with tables, fire pits, a vault-type toilet, and adequate parking.
There is no water supply, so plan to bring your own. Firewood is limited. Convenient trailer spaces available. The Alamosa River is nearby for fishing. Unfortunately, naturally acidic water severely limits fishing in the Alamosa River between Stunner Campground and Terrace Reservoir. Big game hunting is possible.
The ghost town of Stunner is just east of the campground. This was a mining town that failed, due to nonproducing mines and transportation problems. Parts of the town are private property, so pack out all your trash and observe posted no-trespassing signs.
Tewksberry Trail makes a gentle ascent over scenic Meadow Pass between Cattle Mountain and Demijohn Peak. Throughout the trail, spruce, Douglas fir and aspen stands shade the pathway. Interspersed with the trees are open grassy meadows. For the first 2 miles, Tewksberry Creek meanders near and occasionally crosses the trail. A few Non-Forest Service System foot and horse trails depart from the main motorized trail. All ATV’s and Motorcycles must stay on the main motorized trail. If you wish to explore these non-system trails, park your ATV or motorcycle a few feet off the trail, and hike them.
Access to the Weminuche Wilderness
Off Cow Camp is a small cabin located in a high elevation meadow at 10,500 feet on Burro Creek near an off-highway vehicle trail. The cabin and barn were renovated in 2010 and a vault toilet was installed. Visitors may reserve the cabin for a maximum of fourteen nights to allow others the opportunity to rent the cabin.
The surrounding area offers many recreation opportunities, including hunting, hiking, off-highway vehicle riding, horseback riding, mountain biking, snowmobiling, backcountry skiing, and fishing.
There are meadows, aspen groves and spruce/fir forests near the cabin. At 13, 200 feet, Bennett Peak sits southeast of the cabin. Fitton Guard Station is located 400 yards upstream from Off Cow Camp and is available as a rental cabin to the public.
The Burro Creek off-highway vehicle (OHV) trails connect many miles of OHV trails and forest roads in the area. The trails are also used by motorcycles, mountain bikers, hikers and horseback riders. During the winter, snowmobilers and backcountry skiers use the area near the cabin.
$25 / night
Scout
Everything was as described. They are open during the winter. The showers were hot and clean! Lovely views to wake up too!
Scout
Had no issues, pretty close to town, highly recommend. T-mobile works from here
Scout
There were about 4 spots clustered together right after the second bridge (a little over 2 miles from the main road). i took the right fork after that towards the rainbow springs trailhead and didn’t find anything else, but there might be more spots if you take the left fork after the second bridge instead. at the end of october the paid campground you pass by is closed for the season, no water and vault toilets are locked
Traveler
This spot is pretty open with room for a small rv or tent camping. Area Code It's a short drive up to Poage Lake at the top of the mountain and also a short drive to Beaver Creek Reservoir down the mountain.
Traveler
The sites are spacious and well-maintained, providing a perfect blend of privacy and community. Area Code The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful, making check-in a breeze.
Scout
area is pretty rocky so i would be careful with a ground tent. We stayed in our van and it was great.
GuideParked on edge of flat in trees close to creek. Nice ambient noise. Fire rings, metal and stone. Plenty of room. Two vault toilets were clean plenty if TP. Lots of trails, bridge over creek, lakes are near by foot.
Traveler
Easy drive up 160 from Pagosa. Pitched the tent in the afternoon and headed to town for a soak.
Room for a couple cars and several tents. Not PERFECTLY flat for the tent-folk.
View is killer - we hit it at about peak color.
Guide
Stop here just for and sleep stop overnight. Road is well maintained. Several places to pull off the side of the road or actual sites too. We have a 35' 5th wheel and had no problems menivering the area. Nice lake with a parking lot at the end the turn around at if you wish to take the road all the way to the end.
Scout
Unfortunately the gates go this campground were locked!
ScoutI recently had the pleasure of staying at Big Meadows Campground, and it was an unforgettable experience! From the moment I arrived, I was struck by the stunning natural beauty surrounding the campground. The sites are spacious and well-maintained, providing a perfect blend of privacy and community. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful, making check-in a breeze. Other then this you can find me here!
https://www.carmatec.com
Guide
We had site 22 which is away from the stream. Quite steep front to back. Level side to side. We were at our limit of ability to level the TT. Almost every site is big and well spaced. The whole area is treed with TALL lodgepoll pines with a few TALL ponderosa pines as well. Absolutely stunning. If you need solar, this is not the place. Otherwise it’s lovely.
Traveler
There are 20+ campsites along FR667. Some can accommodate RVs, some only tents. We parked a popup at the 1st campsite past the bridge near the trailhead. 2 waterfalls are close, Pagosa Springs is 30ish mins away. Our kids tubed down the creek. Lots of ATV traffic, some bikes, but overall quiet.
ScoutNo water sources within walking distance. The lake is aways away. It's a pull off on the dirt road that's big enough to fit a small camper on the side of a cliff with high exposure. No cover for thunderstorms.
Guide
I stayed here for one night and was pleasantly surprised. It’s surrounded by tall Lodgepole pines that offer awesome shade and privacy from neighbors. Bathrooms were clean. Camp hosts were friendly. It sounds like there is a lot of bear activity so tent camping could be a concern. There were mostly RVs.
TravelerDown a dirt road, you get to where you make a turn, and immediately you’ll start seeing unimproved site. The better sites appear to be closest to that turn, but if you keep driving you’ll find plenty of sites not within earshot of anyone else.
One think I noticed with ATT service you’ll get 2, sometimes 3 bars by my location (below). As I drove the road I was seeing mostly 1-2 bars.
Bring your own everything and enjoy the peaceful and quiet!
Guide
Grate spot on the river No cell service Someone has left trash
Traveler
Nice quiet area outside of Pagosa Springs. Lots of flat spaces, road is bumpy with some potholes, but not bad at all for BLM. 1-2 bars of Verizon LTE depending on where you are. We parked fairly fair up the road, no traffic.
ScoutWe had no trouble finding available spots out here on weekend nights, tons of open spaces to choose from. It rained quite a bit during the nights but never got muddy enough to get stuck anywhere. We had some surprise cow guests stop by in the morning! Lots of fun biking nearby!
Scout
Incredible spot, river is incredibly cold even in August. Most sites have river access: Wildlife is abundant. Air is cool. One of the most beautiful spots I’ve ever camped at. The only downside? The F’n ATVS. Disrespectful to other campers and stir up SO much dust, also just out right dangerous? Because of this the road is full of washboards. Folks out here apparently also do not care to pick up their trash or have any common curtesy of how to leave a campsite. Very unfortunate:( PSA: clean up your trash and pack out your used toilet paper…. 🤢 We stayed at 3 different sites. Sites get better the further along you go, road is rough but nothing a standard 4x4 vehicle can’t handle. (We have a Toyota Tacoma) There are hiking trails/ ATV trails too. We will definitely be back. Great spot during the week when there’s less traffic!
Scout
We enjoy tenting in relatively primitive national forests and usually avoid private campgrounds. But our friends recommended Last Resort on the River, and we were pleasantly surprised. The tent sites are separated from the RV sites in a forested area along the river. We shared a campsite on the river that had lots of trees and plenty of room for two tents and a canopy. Several other tent sites are carved out of the brush along the river. This makes a very nice setting with lots of privacy. The sound of the river is soothing and there was very little sound from the road.
It was a short walk to the amenities of the campground. There is a picnic shelter where we sat out a rainstorm, a very nice bathhouse for showering and washing dishes, as well as a comfortable indoor sitting area and another outdoor area with chairs and a fire pit. Ice and firewood are available at the office. Rich delivered them to our site. There are also some ice cream treats there and a few snacks. There is a fishing pond and a volleyball court. The rabbit hutch would have entertained the kids, if we had any with us.
There is no cell service, but the wifi was excellent and reached our campsite on the river. My wife was able to participate in a Zoom meeting from the picnic shelter where there was a convenient electrical outlet for her computer.
Rich is continually upgrading the property. He was very responsive and always willing to help. We highly recommend this campground.
Guide
Overnight with One of my dogs had a great time very nice no bugs dark night
Scout
This little campground is so beautiful and clean! We had an awesome end site. The host was very nice and gave us the rundown on all of the amenities. Sweet little rocking chair porch. Would definitely stay again.
Guide
Love the spot got very busy at night bugs everywhere
Guide
Great camping area, stayed here for just one night. There was plenty of camping areas along the river. About 8 spots. Some were large enough to handle RVs. Others you might require four-wheel drive.
Ranger
This place is clean. Lots of extras here. Green grass and leveled parking. Bathroom was good the shower was hot. The heater was on in the morning was a little too warm. The train tracks never bothered us. I definitely recommend this place.
GuideNice area, seems like 3+ camping areas, I stayed here for about 4 days. Some fire pits and good views on the drive up. Road was not busy. Verizon signal was spotty. Most of the time I did not have any signal.
Tent camping near Rio Grande National Forest in Colorado offers a serene escape into nature, with stunning views and a variety of outdoor activities to enjoy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Rio Grande National Forest?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Rio Grande National Forest is Turkey Creek Road with a 4.4-star rating from 15 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Rio Grande National Forest?
TheDyrt.com has all 30 tent camping locations near Rio Grande National Forest, with real photos and reviews from campers.
