Great campground in Gunnison National Forest. It is on Forest Service Road 706, off county road…read more12, between Paonia and Crested Butte. There are 15 campsites (FCFS) plus a small parking area for day use. CR 12 and FSR 706 are not paved, but any vehicle can travel the roads. The highlight of the campground is Lost Lake, a pristine alpine lake at 9600' elevation. The Beckwith Peaks are in the background. If you paddle across the lake (SUP or kayak - no motorized water craft) you get a stunning view of the Ruby Range. (No Ruby Range photos since I didn't bring my waterproof phone case this trip). The lake is dammed and is filled with snow runoff. Even in midJuly, the water was COLD. No chance in h e l l I was going to let myself fall off that SUP! But midJuly was prime time for the wild flowers. Lupine. Queen Anne's lace. Wild rose. Pentsemon. Sneeze weed. Cow parsnip. Fire weed. Absolutely stunning. I'm told the lake is stocked twice annually with rainbow trout. But I don't fish so can't verify. I did see lots of fishermen though.

This campground was relatively easy to access, on a gravel road well-maintained. The camping spaces…read morewere not too crowded in on each other, and plenty of trees for shade. There are picnic areas with grills, bathrooms, and access to the lake for recreation. Plenty of trails for hiking by foot, or with horses. This place makes for a great one-day or multi-day visit.

My husband and I were on vacation and needed a place to setup our tent. I called Valley Sunset and…read morewas told that they had closed the tent camping area but for one night they would let us stay. Here's what that one night got us. As far away from any of the amenities as possible. Trains running by in the middle of the night. Highway noise at all hours. No fire rings to make a fire to cook on, so had to eat out. This doesn't even come close to the raw sewage smell that came in every time someone flushed their toilets. Plus, we were charged $15 per person for this favor.

We stayed here 3 nights. Centrally located to both Black Canyon of the Gunnison Natl Park and…read moreColorado Natl Monument. Staff very friendly and helpful. Quiet except for the trains that ran just outside the park a couple of times a day, but I kinda liked that. Very close to Walmart and Safeway. Pool was closed. Didn't use showers or laundry so I cant comment on them. Very reasonably priced. Would stay here again.

If you are looking for a peaceful campsite, be mindful of the time of year you visit…read more This campground and area of Colorado are one of our favorite places to relax and vacation. Things have been changing over the last few years here. It was good to see they now have signs in different areas around campsites as where to walk, and where not to walk. They had a special program at the amphitheater on the Saturday that we were there, but they did not allow dogs, so I was unable to go. (I think different national parks and monuments handle this differently, as in Capitol Reef, in Utah, we have been invited to their night events when camping by the presenters themselves.) On recent trips, we have seen some strange things. But this past weekend (during an early and cool part of summer,) we were left stunned by some of the fellow campers. Originally, we booked on recreation.gov to camp for several days. When we arrived, we were able to move to the C section, which is no generators, and is generally more peaceful. Usually, most people are very respectful of other campers. There were young boys at the campsite next to ours who were very loudly discussing how they were killing ants with charcoal briquettes. Later, the father tells them to bury the briquettes in the dirt. The charcoal thing was a bit worrisome with the dry branches all around the campsites. Another night, at 3 AM, a young child is screaming and crying. A few minutes are understandable. This went on for over a half hour. While this campground and area will always be very special to me, camping in my own backyard in the suburbs is more peaceful than camping here during the summer.

This campsite is super cute. We got there super later than expected so we couldn't enjoy too much…read more You can see so many stars it's beautiful. So glad they had a very clean bathroom with running water and flushing toilets. We came about midnight and I accidentally set my car alarm off, sorry to our neighbors lol, we made a little more noise on accident just cus it was really dark. Loved the camp site would def go again. Oh and be careful driving up at night very windy roads.

THE GOOD: The host just couldn't be nicer or more helpful. LOTS of open, nicely maintained lawn…read morespace. Good individual lawns at most campsites. Easy in and out and backing into the spaces is pretty easy. Quiet with lots of mature trees for shade. Surrounded almost exclusively by horse pastures. Relaxing! THE BAD: Not much. No fire pits at the campsites and we like a fire in the evenings. The WiFi doesn't cover the vast majority of the campsites. We like camping here but need connectivity for remote work sometimes. Wish the owners would make that investment and extend the WiFi coverage. We camp here two or three times a year and would likely be more, and for more nights, if there was WiFi. Perhaps if they put in fire pits they could make enough money selling firewood to partially pay for the WiFi?

Great place and very friendly people. I stopped here for an overnight stop in 2017 and the managers…read morewere very friendly and accommodating. Made me feel right at home. This year, 2019 I did not stay at the park but I did ask if I could stop and fill up my camper with Portable water and again they were very friendly and accommodating. I'll be back in the future.

I didn't have the highest expectations going into our trip to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National…read morePark. I didn't know too much about the park and was a bit disappointed that we had to nix the plans to do our large hike in the North Rim of the park. That being said, BCGNP far surpassed all expectations on just our very first overlook - Tomichi Point - within minutes of driving into the South Rim. I was not prepared for the sheer beauty of the canyons. The South Rim is so very different from the North Rim, so if you only have time to go to one, make sure to do your research. The South Rim is much more developed, more popular, has plenty of tiny hikes and overlooks, and brings the easy, classic beauty. The South Rim drive is an easy 7 miles and features 12 overlooks with the longest hike to the overlook being about 0.5 of a mile. And most of the hikes are more like walks. Stunning views, perfect for sunset. You'll also find the BCGNP visitor center on the South Rim drive. The North Rim is much more underdeveloped and less visited. We visited in the late afternoon and only ran into one other group of people while driving their scenic North Rim drive. I believe it's about 4.5 miles, and it is unpaved - that being said, we drove it in a Toyota Corolla without any issues. These overlooks are equally gorgeous but give you a different perspective of the canyon. You'll find a lot of the bigger hikes in the North Rim. While we weren't able to fit one into our schedule, we did do part of the North Vista Trail to see Exclamation Point - wonderful hike, wish we had been able to do the full trail. Overall, I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I visited Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but it definitely wasn't how breathtakingly beautiful this park is. 100% worth a stop, and if all you do is stop at their overlooks, you will still get to experience so much beauty.

Beautiful national park that can accommodate hikers, climbers, and those who prefer to enjoy an…read moreoverlook instead. There are a couple dog friendly trails and the overlooks are all suitable for dogs on leashes. Support your national parks and park rangers!

Didn't sleep at all. I stayed a week, and it actually got worse on the weekend... There are several…read moreissues with this place, but the trains that run between 1am - 5am, compounded with the illegal drag racing (EXTREMELY LOUD BURN OUTS) will scare anyone out of a deep slumber. As far as the office staff, they are as clueless as teenager at a fast food chain. They know nothing of the area, such as the #1 attraction of river rafting or tubing, nor are they willing to help. They appear to be a bunch of retired people who are just working enough to get a free stay for a month or two, and don't really care. Unfortunately, summer is the hottest part of the year, and the on site water park feature for the kids, was out of order. In addition, the pool hours are cut off at 8pm. This is not convenient for people who are on vacation, and paying for the use of such amenities. Not impressed at all.

Open but wouldn't let us reserve a tent site. I'm aware it's October but it was 75°F out today. But…read moreyou can revert them in the summer when it's much colder! What an odd rule. I wouldn't come back here again because of that.

I am so happy that the government designated these areas to be a National Forest. I didn't have a…read morechance to go into Gunnison National Forest. Woah what a wild ride my trip was, where do I start. My friends and I had the idea to take a hiking trip in the Rockies, and I don't exaggerate that Uncompahgre is the best place to go. The other popular destinations like Estes Park get over crowded by hikers and tourists which in return drives up the prices fast. Well, Uncompahgre is free to go and you can even camp for free in the area for 14 days. My crew decided to tackle the most challenging hike we could find, Mt. Sneffles from the Blue Lake Trail Head. This monster of a hike is 14 total miles and over a mile of elevation gain. The trails starts with a lovely four mile trek through the forest at the bottom. You get to see the river pretty constantly and a waterfall at some point. At the top of the tree line are The Blue Lakes and they are absolutely gorgeous. Honestly a great hike to turn around at the third of three lakes. We however decided to continue and hike the ridge line. A solid 1000 foot elevation in around 1.5 miles, this is not for the faint of heart. An extremely rewarding view is waiting at the top of the ridge line. You stand at one of the first ridges and get to see peaks extending far off into the distance. The last 1000 foot elevation was insane. It was one of the hardest activities of my life. A solid mile of bouldering and actual climbing all while at elevations of 13,000 feet. If you make it, you will be 100% rewarded with the best views of your life. Great National Forest. I wish I live here cause it is so vast and unique there is new stuff to do everyday. Top place to go before you die. Add it to the list.

This is not the national park. Please do your research on the address before you come here to camp,…read morehike or fish.

Just wanted to warn campers and fisherman to stay clear of the camp host. Very grumpy!read more

We had an amazing time this morning doing the half day kayaking tour on the Gunnison River. It…read morejust so happened we were the only 2 people signed up, so we effectively had a private tour. I kayak quite a bit, but mainly on flat water, so the guide (whose name I sadly cannot remember) gave me a lot of paddling hints and taught me a lot about reading water conditions and how to approach water features. I will definitely be putting her advice into practice at home. My husband, who is less experienced, also had a wonderful time. I could not recommend this experience more!

We had the BEST time on our half day family rafting trip on the Gunnison River while we were…read morevisiting from AZ. Daniel and Gordon were both wonderfully friendly people to work with and get to know and made the whole experience so easy and pleasant!! We had our 11 year old and 3 year old with us (and 3 adults) and we weren't sure how the kids would do, but they absolutely LOVED IT!! They even jumped in the water at one point AND even got to help row a bit. :) We cannot wait to go back to CO and spend more time on the river. If you do a rafting or paddleboard trip, make sure to stop in Paonia for some yummy ice cream after at Ollie's! :)