Salida East Campground — Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area

Salida East is a 25 site campground run by Colorado Parks and Wildlife through an agreement with the Bureau of Land Management. Unfortunately, that means you pay $7/day for a "day use" pass (or purchase an annual pass for $70) in addition to the camping fee of $10 or $18. The price of a site is on the post at the site. A site with a picnic table, fire ring and tent pad (on pebbles) is $18\. It's $10 if the site only has a fire ring.

I thought the sites were not reservable, but then I saw some upcoming reservation tickets on a few sites. This campground is part of the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area. Look for that area on the Colorado Parks and Wiildlife website to make a reservation

There are no hookups and no potable water at the campground, but there are vault toilets and a couple porta potties. There is no place to dispose of trash. Haven't had that happen before!

This is really just a camping spot. I'm not sure why a day use fee is necessary because there is nothing else to do there unless you have a boat. There's a boat ramp. There is nothing else to do in the campground.

Being next to the Arkansas River is nice and being able to look at mountains in the distance is nice, but the sites are on gravel/dirt. It's adequate for a one night stay close to Salida, but I wouldn't want to hang out here during the day. You can use the pool and shower at the aquatics center for $5.

One more thought - BLM has Colorado River campgrounds in Utah with beautiful views for $10/night. They turned this site on the Arkansas River over to Colorado, so it's $10/$18 plus $7 for "park" access. Kinda greedy in Colorado and not impressed with Colorado park sites. We'll try to stick with federal sites.

A place to sleep conveniently located near Salida, but that's it

Clean, tidy and good amenities. A little far from the grocery store and the town’s internet was down so cash transactions only at many stores. Great little stores and creative culture. 

thriving little town

I was hoping to go here to see some people launching their white water rafting, however that was not the case when I was visiting. Despite being open year round there was not a lot of activity going on when I was there in late October during midweek. The surroundings were amazing, however I opted to not stay because a cold front was coming in to push through some snow, probably the reason why people where not rafting.

The sites for camping were nice, there were many campgrounds to choose from along the area and sites were large and spacious. Most importantly they were reasonably priced at only $18\. Part of what makes these camps be able to not close their doors seasonally is their vault toilets, with no running water at camp they do not have to worry about pipes bursting or issues relating to this so camp can keep going.

Sites are equipped with traditional picnic table, fire ring and grill and there is a changing area at the campground too just to get out of the gusty winds and provide a bit of shelter for getting cleaned up each day.

The Salida campground does have a boat ramp and launch right beside camp and fully backs up to the river itself so you have amazing views from any campsite. You really can't lose with this place!!

TIPS:

* Come prepared there is limited cell service here and no store on site so you will be needing to go to town if you forget anything.

* Check weather conditions, though open year round you will want to prepare if cold fronts are passing through as this area is already a bit cooler being so close to the waters edge.

Great Pricing Open Year Round

This CPW campground is right off Highway 50 and is easy to pull in and out with a trailer. For how busy the campground sites  and roads are, the campground is surprisingly quiet. Epic Mountain Views and awesome Arkansas river access make it a great spot for a trip to the area. Salida is a short drive or good walk from the campground, and a lot of restaurants and shops are less than ten minutes from the campground. 

No water or trash service, but port-a-Johns are scattered throughout the campsites and vault toilets on the west side near the ramp exist for day users and some campers. Campsites are close together and do not offer much privacy, but the cost is less than the nearby RV parks and private campgrounds. We were in site 1617 for a two night stay in summer, and found the campground packed Saturday night and dead by noon on Sunday. Fishing and rafting is just feet away, and there are numerous recreation options to choose from in the area. 

Very little shade on campsites and many sites are in a parking lot on the east side of the campground. There is a nice trail that takes campers down to the river, and plenty of access for fishing. Since they fire ban had just lifted, our fire pit was not maintained, but it wasn’t difficult to clean out. Hot during the day and cool and night, and overall a good experience. 

Great Location and Views






It This camp is 2 miles south of Salida, Co. Good place to reprovision.  Most sites have shade. The River and D level sites are on the river.  Staff was friendly and helpful. Some of the camp facilities are affected by Covid restrictions. Sites are very close together. Beautiful location but $$. 