Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Campground

Location is really what drew me to this campground. To be within 45 minutes of Telluride (30-45 min), Ouray (15 min) and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (45-50 min) was perfect for us since these were the places were wanting to see. While the woodsy part of me wanted to say in Elk Ridge, the part of me that knew we had some dry camping ahead and we wanted to be spoiled with full hookups won out and we stayed in Pa-Co-Chu-Puk. After staying here and exploring the 3 different campgrounds, I liked Elk Ridge better, but I did really enjoy being along the river, having full hookups and having a paved pad.

The 1 star ding was for the $7/day extra to stay here and the fact that I just didn't get warm fuzzies about Pa-Co-Chu-Puk (I know, purely subjective and based on preference). The river is beautiful, the ponds are nice if you fish, the playgrounds were loved by my kids, the nice laundry room was convenient, the river walk was relaxing. All-in-all, it's a good campground and consistent with our limited experience at other CO state park campgrounds. The staff weren't overly friendly, but not rude. The grounds and campsite were clean and well-maintained.

We were a little confused with check-in. Pa-Co-Chu-Puk is about 2 miles North of the main entrance so go straight there if you're staying in this campground. All of the sites I believe in Pa-Co-Chu-Puk were paved and level pull-thrus. About 1/4 are river-front and if you want to stay in one of these, I advise you to plan way ahead and reserve as soon as they come available. While these sites are river front, you're not ON the river. The sites sit about 20-30 vertical feet above the river. It's still nice to see the river (when you walk to the edge...there's bushes in the way) and hear it. There is very little shade here...so good if you need TV reception, bad if you want to hang a hammock or feel woodsy. While there's no amazing mountain views from here (you can see a smidgen of them in the distance), there is a great view of the rock wall across the river that is quite enjoyable to visually explore.

The campground feels very safe and I had no trouble letting my kids roam around without worrying about them. It was fun going to the main part of the park and checking out the teepee and views overlooking the lake. The kids will enjoy the hill-side super slide near the beach.

We'd stay here again for sure, but probably stay in Elk Ridge to get more of a woodsy, campy feel. Check out our blog linked in the "blog" column above for a much more detailed review.

This was my second stay at this wonderful Colorado State Park, in the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk area. These are full hook-up, concrete sites. The sites are level and spacious. There is not a lot of privacy, due to the terrain, but there is plenty of space so you do not feel you are in your neighbors' business.

The fees for Full Hook Ups are $30 site fee + $7/day park access fee.

Verizon service is strong enough to do Skype video calls at this CG.

The rangers and hosts do a nice job of keeping things reasonably quiet in this large CG and they are visible, often. Since this is so close to the road, it is nice to see the high level of security. The park staff are all friendly and helpful and seem genuinely glad that you have come.

This CG is right next to the river and offers lovely distant views of the San Juan Mountains and Owl Creek Pass. There is a pleasant nature walk adjacent to the CG and nice fishing close as well. In the evening, we heard what I believe to have been foxes. Wildlife is abundant in this park.

This CG can get warm in the summer so the option to have a/c is very nice.

The bathroom and laundry facilities at this CG are awesome!

The location is the lynch pin that makes this park such a great place to camp. I use it as a base location for photographing around the San Juan Mountains.

This is on the high end for a public lands CG, but it is worth every penny.

This park is clean with space between the sites. Nice firepit and BBQ. Laundry facilities were reasonable and worked well. The only downside is no cell service for Tmobile or Verizon.

Wish the state would put wifi in or contract it out, If you go into town you can find wifi.

Awesome state park

We stayed at Pa-Co-Chu-Puk portion of the Ridgway State Park. While close to the highway, this section is in a low spot behind the damn. There is a nice restroom and laundry facility onsite. Spots are large, but surrounded by high grass (protected). The chipmunks and deer are fun to watch in the mornings and evenings. Plenty of room to walk the dogs around the camping loop. River and fishing ponds are very nearby. Overall a clean and quiet park. We couldn't stay here longer because I work full time. Without our weboost cell booster, I would have been unable to work. The booster increased us from no signal to 1-2 bars. It was enough to limp along for a week, to work.

We’ve stayed at the main campground, as well as the Paco Camground. Both are excellent. If you love flyfishing (as we do), the Paco is the way to go. Nestled alongside the Umcompahgre River, there’s 2 miles of C&R Gold Medal Trout water. The campsites are spacious, clean, and offer full hook ups. It’s not too far to Ridgway for supplies, a beer, and an excellent Thai place. Ourayisa Short Drive as well if you need to soak your bones. This is one of our favorite parks in the entire Colorado system.

This state park is top notch! The water is currently off in the lower campground due to possible freezing in the forecast. The top loops are $24 and the bottom loops are $28 because they include a sewer hookup. The bottom loops are in closer proximity to the river for fishing access. Two negatives: 7 per day entry fee for CO state parks. This is not included in the camping rate so 28 + 7 per day. The 7 dollar fee is waived if you buy the annual 70 state parks pass. Which we were pretty much persuaded to do based on our number of nights here. Verizon and ATT reception at the lower campground is 1 bar LTE without a booster. We love this area and Ouray, CO is one of our favorite places! The hot springs are not to be missed!

We stayed in the Pa Co Chu Puk Campground (the northernmost camping loop in Ridgway State Park) for a few nights at the end of a 10 day trip where we boondocked - and it was nice to end the trip with full hookups. We had a nice, private site along the river - so the sound of the rushing water lulled us to sleep at night. Our site was a bit narrow (which we knew, based on the description of the site in our reservation) in that there was a tree that kept us from extending the awning - but it also gave us more privacy than most sites had. And the trees at the site also provided us with shade during the day that we could set our chairs under. The swim beach was closed due to very low water levels in the reservoir, so we took our paddleboards down to the very south end of the reservoir (the Dallas Creek day use area) and found a spot we could sit along the shore & launch our boards. Easy 15-20 minute drive to Ouray, and the nice little town of Ridgway along the way. With the current fire bans prohibiting folks from enjoying campfires, the campground was very, very quiet in the evenings and mornings. We didn't have any kids with us, but they hold kid and family-friendly activities quite often, and provide a schedule when you check in. The camp hosts were friendly and very visible and helpful.

We stayed on the lower loop, above the river. Very quiet, but I think the upper loop would be much noisier, because it is next to the highway. Being there off season was nice. Nice pull through and clean sites. If you need cell service or antenna tv, forget it, but it’s well worth it. We loved this place! The only negative thing,I can say about this place, is it’s a pain to pay and check in. If you have cash, you need pay the 24 bucks for camping in one envelope and 7 bucks for the day use in a separate envelope. If you want to pay with credit card, you have to drop be a few miles up the highway to the info center, at a different campground, before 4:30 and pay. The state of Colorado makes paying for a campsite, the hardest part of staying at their campgrounds.

We very much enjoyed our stay at this lovely Colorado state park. The spacious sites are arranged around loops and most are parallel with the road. Sites on the exterior of the loops tended to be a bit more private than ones on the interior of the loops, but all were pretty good. The sites have nice sitting areas with picnic tables, grills, and fire pits. We were in the full hook up Pa-Co-Chu-Puk campground in Loop F. As for the park's other two campgrounds, Elk Ridge and Dakota Terraces, those have more trees and some sites were a bit more private, but they were W/E only and site quality was quite mixed. Check the details of available sites carefully when booking.

The park itself has a number of nice walking trails as well as access to the reservoir and a beach. Additionally, it is located just down the street from the little town of Ridgway, and within very easy distance of Ouray and Telluride. The location offers visitors a nice combination of quiet solitude and access to all the normal conveniences. It was hotter than we expected it to be, so be careful of mid-summer visits if you're not a fan of super warm weather.

Also, be aware of the daily fee Colorado State Parks charge. If you're staying in the system more than 7 days, it is worthwhile to get the annual pass.