Bear Lake Campground (Co)

Overview

Bear Lake Campground is located in the beautiful San Isabel National Forest at an elevation of 10,480 ft. Views of the nearby Culebra Range Mountains with aspen and spruce forests offer campers a genuine Colorado experience.

Recreation

Indian Trail #1300 begins at the north end of the campground providing direct access to a 23 mile multi-user trail system available for all-terrain vehicle, motorcycle, bicycle, foot and horse. A quieter well marked trail system between Bear Lake and Blue Lake is open to foot and horse traffic.

Facilities

This rustic campground has 14 campsites, each with a table and fire ring. An on-site camp host offers firewood bundles for sale. Vault toilets and drinking water are available. No electric or septic hook-ups are available.

Natural Features

A tributary of the Cuchara River runs through the campground. Bear Lake is 1/8 mile from the campground, and Blue Lake is one mile away. Both of these small lakes are stocked several times during the summer providing for good fishing.

Contact Info

For facility specific information, please call (719) 489-2034.

Nearby Attractions

The nearby mountain town of Cuchara offers shopping and visitor information. The town of La Veta offers a grocery store, gas stations, and shops. The Spanish Peaks Wilderness, 15 miles from the campground, is a popular hiking destination.

Charges & Cancellations

Cancellations

Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee. 

A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a campsite.

Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee.

No-Shows

A no-show visitor is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Staff will hold a campsite until check-out time on the day following the arrival date.

No-shows are assessed $20.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's rate, taxes and applicable add-on for a campsite.  

Refunds

Visitors may submit a refund request through their Recreation.gov profile within 7 days of the end date of their reservation. Refunds will not be issued after the 7 days has ended.

Refunds for debit or credit card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank or credit card used to pay.

For check or cash purchases, Recreation.gov will mail a Treasury check for refunds of cash, check, or money order payments to the address associated with the reservation. Treasury check refunds may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive. 

In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team or facility manager will refund all fees and will attempt to notify you using the contact information within the Recreation.gov visitor profile.

Camp site features

Across 13 camp sites:

  • Picnic table: all 13 sites
  • Pets allowed: all 13 sites
  • Longest RV: 36 ft
  • Largest party: 8 people

Fees

Extra Vehicle Fee $10.00

Directions

From Colorado Highway 12 south of the Town of Cuchara, take FSR 422 5 miles west to the campground.

Stay Limit

Check in from 2 PM, check out by 12 PM.

Reviews

53 reviews
5 stars
39
4 stars
9
3 stars
3
2 stars
1
1 stars
1
Elizabeth R
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 3 months ago
Wonderful hosts. Beautiful space including lakes, aspens, trails. What an honor.
Robin K
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 3 months ago
We camped at Blue Lake last year and had an amazing experience. Bear Lake was just as amazing! We love it here. There are a few flat spots for RVs, but most are best for tents since they are smaller. Love that you can just walk to the trailheads here. The vault toilets are always clean and they even had sanitizer in there! The camp host, Scott, is amazing and always goes above and beyond!
David R
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 3 months ago
The camp host was the best. They were having a problem with a bear prior to us arriving. We got to watch the Dept. of Wildlife set a bear trap and caught a big Black bear. It was the not the camp raider so the took him and tag/released him the next day somewhere. They returned as we were leaving to try of the camp raider. The latrines were very clean and free of flies and order. Wish to commend the camp host for his diligence for the week we stayed.
Ann H
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 3 months ago
This was a pretty campground with nice sites. We wished we had better information on hiking trails right out of campground and nearby. Overall it was great.
kelley r
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 4 months ago
Scott and his wife are fantastic hosts. Happy to have returned this year. Great trip!
Amy O
Loop:Bear Lake Campground (Co)
Site:
Reviewed 4 months ago
Beautiful views! Like others have said, it can be windy and the shade is also limited, but we loved easy having access to the lake and beautiful hiking, and the stars at night could not be beat. Can’t wait to come back!
Availability

See the Camp Sites section below to find detailed booking availability.

Reserve

Season dates

Walk In season

May 28, 2027 – Jun 10, 2027

First come, first served

Peak season

Jun 11, 2027 – Sep 11, 2027

Reservable online

Walk In season

Sep 12, 2027 – Sep 25, 2027

First come, first served

Walk In season

May 28, 2028 – Jun 10, 2028

First come, first served

Peak season

Jun 11, 2028 – Sep 11, 2028

Reservable online

Walk In season

Sep 12, 2028 – Sep 25, 2028

First come, first served

Camp Sites

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