South Park, Colorado

Lodgepole Campground

As summer begins to wind down in Colorado, I'm trying to make the most of the few remaining camping opportunities.   This past weekend I took a trip with a cycling club to the South Park Colorado Basin.   Although, these days, the area is probably best known for giving its name to the animated TV series South Park, it is also a great camping, fishing, hiking, and cycling destination.

Moose Sighting

This 1000 square mile grassland basin is located  60 miles SW of Denver at about 10,000 ft.   We camped near Jefferson, Colorado, at the Lodgepole Campground in the Pike National Forest.    This is a heavily forested area near streams and bogs, and on our first night, during a hike at dusk, we spotted a moose just a few hundred yards from our campsite.

The second day we were up early and rode the Gold Dust Trail that started at Boreas Pass.   This is my first year back on a mountain bike, and it is taking me a while to get the knack of riding the rocky trails and dodging the trees and bushes that seem to fly past even when I am white knuckling the brakes.  These downhill rides are a thrill, and the scenery is spectacular (when I'm not watching the rocks and stumps zip by).  The ride ended at Como, Colorado, where they were celebrating "Train Days".  So, we took in a tour of an old railroad round house and a slide show of the area's train history.  

Railroad Round House

The first day was all down hill, so the second day we stepped it up a notch and did an in/out ride from our campsite up to Georgia Pass and back.  This was a heart pounding, lung beating work out, especially as we approached the top of the pass and the Continental Divide nearing 12,000 oxygen deprived feet.    It was all worth it though - the views were incredible and diverse as we rode through tundra above treeline,  and then down through lodgepole forests, aspen groves, and shrub meadows.

View from near Georgia Pass

The weekend did not disappoint, and as we begin to see the first hints of the changing seasons, I'm already starting to sketch out tentative camping plans in the hopes of a long and warm Autumn.  With the many large stands of aspen groves in this area, South Park would also make a colorful Fall destination whether it be a day trip or an overnighter.

More photos are available here.

If you go:

The Lodgepole Campground is one of 3 primitive camping facilities located about a mile from Jefferson Lake.  There are 35 sites, a pump spigot for drinking water, and pit toilets.   There is no electricity nor showers at this campground.   Elevation is 9,900 feet, so expect chilly nights (it dropped to below 40 degrees during our stay), but it warms quickly once the sun comes out.  You can reserve a site through the recreation.gov website.  There is a one time $5 charge to enter the Jefferson Lake Recreation Area and daily camping rates are less than $15.  There is a small grocery at a convenience store in Jefferson where you can replenish camping supplies and purchase snacks.  Many more services are available in Fairplay, less than 20 miles from the campground.