Everything about the campground is GREAT. The location is CLASSIC. West Marin is BEAUTIFUL.

And for families who want a quick trip over Golden Gate Bridge to introduce their children (or adults!) to the great outdoors, their first camp, nowhere is more convenient and instantly gratifying. 

However! You are going to probably experience some of the most ridiculous first-time campers with no sense of camping etiquette you have ever met in your life. I put up with it, for kids—- and now I have great stories— but I’d never go back as an experienced camper. 

Example A: Finally things quiet down and everyone is asleep, 2 or 3 am. A woman starts SCREAMING BLOODY MURDER, every single headlamp comes on, other people start screaming too, thinking it’s a bear attack. The ranger, where the F are they? 

We literally WALKED OVER toward the screaming banshee, that went on for a few bloodcurdling minutes. Do you know what we found? This complete nincompoop was surprised when we stooped down to her tent and said, “What’s going on?”

She was defiant, and her “companion” looked dazed. She said, “I just had a bad dream, what’s the big deal?” 

I said, “Well, you can’t do that here, if that’s what it is. You’re going to have to stay up the rest of the night, to make sure you’re not screaming, or leave now. You just devastated  about 200 people, and children are crying everywhere, thinking there’s a bear.” (Not). 

I think Sam T should have a big sign that says, “This is not Spring Break. This is not a place to work out your family trauma. This is not a garbage fight. This is not your narcissistic b.s.” 

You might think, “oh just one bad time.” Well, that was the ultimate, but no, i went there dozens of times because the Kidds loved it, and we could live in SF and start camping in about a half hour. 

Okay, now I feel like a curmudgeon. More good people who know how to camp SHOULD camp here, because peer pressure and good community is the only thing that works. I did my time ! now it’s up to you!

This is just an extraordinary place, Death Valley. Takes you out of yourself and your sense of human history completely. 

The motels and campsites were always subpar. They act, to this day, like only hardened stoic geologists would want to visit.  This campsite is actually better than the so called “motels’ available. It’s not a great place, but BRING ALL your creature comforts and you’ll be thrilled to be in the middle of the all the hiking and road trip thrills. 

I am writing this in fall of 2024. That means you should book Xmas 2025. Or else, really stay somewhere else entirely and expect a drive. 

And yes, when you have the winter blues in January, this is just an incredible visit.

This is tragi-comedy: I was invited to a wedding in Santa Barbara. It was summer and the most fleabitten motel prices were astronomical. I began to look at campsites within driving distance, I was desperate. Booked Catchuma and thought, hoorah, I’ve defeated the tourism trap. 

Well… from the moment I arrived . . . I really could not care less about the wedding. My god. I think I’ll leave it at that. 

Bring binos. Boat, bring your canoe/kayak.

This campground must be the “first camp out” for so many Northern California kids, at least of my generation. It was the first time my family drove for HOURS (“are we there yet?” And then the result was spectacular. The river vibe, the rope swing, the ancient redwoods, the dappled sunlight, the bbq. And yes, there’s a store nearby in the middle of nowhere to pick up whatever you need. 

It really is family-lovely. Your kids will make friends with the others. If you can plan an extended stay, do it!

Recently, I just drove around the grounds, on my way back to SF, just for fun, and I thought, wow, I’m ready to experience this place as a childless oldster. I want to bird my ass off. I want to go offseason. All of it!

I know we all rant here about how, “if you can go outside school holidays, you’re in for a real treat!” The most popular places, like Pfeiffer, can be nuts in the high season, although socially, that can be fun, too. 

However, I have had the nicest times in the Winter here, truly. Christmas, Thanksgiving, special moments. The winter sun and sunsets are extraordinary. The Big Sur community, chill and awesome without all the tourist pressure. 

Another fun fact… sometimes, when I have come back from a backpacking trip in the area, I will book a day or night, even if I don’t SPEND the whole night, because the showers are SO GOOD. And you know what’s it like to want a decent shower after you’ve been in the muck a few days.

I’m probably giving this an extra star for nostalgia. I camped here decades before,  before it became a more modern campsite, and it was formative. I’d suggest LATE summer, like August, or better yet, after Labor Day. It’s the warmest, nicest time. Or when the Elk are in mating season! LOL. Or spring, when the Lupin arrives. There are also INCREDIBLE day trips into California’s interior, Indian history, little known parks and trails everywhere. Bring all the yummy foods you want… you’re not going to be near a grocery store. Feel a side of California few know about.

I didn’t enjoy this campground for years — I’d always drive home, to my cooler coastal home. It is WICKED hot in the summer. But one time, I joined my daughter, who did have a summer reservation, and I changed my mind! They have a pool! The kids are thrilled! There are beautiful tucked away campsites in the shade, by a creek. Really enjoyed cooking in the evenings outside and settling in. By day, of course, the trails are wild, like a moonscape. In spring, it’s a wildflower fantasia. 

I was selfishly a little sad when Pinnacles became a national monument, instead of a regional secret. But I’m so glad they got the money, they deserve it! Note: I discovered it because my kids were in rock climbing classes in town, and “this” was the field trip. So exciting to see their first climbing and bouldering outside.