Difficult Campground

We stayed here for two nights in Sept 2015. Very pleasant campground. Had a table and a fire ring. Our site #46 was more isolated then others with bushes all around. It was fairly flat but I did move one tire up on a rock to make it more level. Vault toilets were very clean. The camp hosts told us multiple times to use the bear lockers. We did! We think we went past a bear who was making very lowed noise in the woods just off the road. It freaked us out. Bring bear spray!

They closed on Sept 30th, I believe, for winter.

There are water spigots in about 4 spots.

You can walk down to Aspen (about 4.5 miles) mostly on a very nice trail. We walked down and back and it was a super pleasant adventure. We was the John Denver memorial in the park in Aspen. We were told there is good boondocking up on Independance pass off Lincoln Road (road?). There is a campground off this forest road and then a bunch of boondocking after that. The road has been worked on and you no longer need a 4x4 to get to the boondocking - we were told.

No Cell service on Verizon.

Wonderful remote private camping sites. Only 10 minutes from Aspen but feels very remote. Just beautiful.

I have one word for Difficult Campground: DREAMY! I mean, my gosh, this is a great spot for exploring Aspen!

Campground: The sites are nicely spread apart for privacy and space. I saw lots of moose and deer around camp. The Aspen forest that fills the campground and valley is healthy and gorgeous, given this and depending on your set-up/site your solar might be blocked for some of the day. The only other downsides I observed is that some of the sites would require moderate to significant leveling. Also, there is zero cell service.

Location: The location is pretty ideal. Less than 10 minutes to Aspen by car. There is a perfect bike trail that goes from camp straight into town in about 25 minutes (if you’re fast). There is hiking and river access straight from the campground.

Super clean campsite (with clean vault toilets) no service but all the spots where surrounded by trees so it felt very private! We were there in September it was cold in the morning but once the sun came out it was beautiful! Only a 10 min drive into aspen. This is a reservation only campsite but if you can find an empty spot then you pay day by day! Would absolutely come back!

Wonderful campground. So much to do within an hours drive that we could have stayed another week. Maroon Bells, Ashcroft, many, many wonderful trails. And almost the whole campground is in an aspen grove with the Roaring Fork river next door.

Stayed in September and loved the fantastic fall colors. 10 minutes south of Aspen, close to many great hikes and Maroon Bells.

We never saw a campground host. Be sure to book in advance on recreation.gov

Campground is set in the middle of an aspen grove. Our site offered privacy and close to the river. The highlight of this campsite is the amazing easy bike/hiking trail into aspen. Relatively flat. Our 5 and 9 year olds did it there and back without too much whining.

Omg! This forestry campground was gorgeous. Little hard to get to and difficult to maneuver around, but I guess that’s where they got the name! Would not recommend if you’re not confident of your driving and backing abilities as there are tight turns and lots of obstacles to work around. With our parks pass we paid $15 per night, without it, the price was $30 per night. Came in without reservations, but was able to squeeze our 40ft rig into the only site left in the park! Lucky us! The park hosts were awesome! Sites were private, lots of aspen trees, and a trail down to the water! No hookups! No cell service! Was able to use our generators to charge our batteries but temperature was nice in July so we didn’t need A/C! Would definitely stay here again!

We had site 17 and it has zero shade. Be prepared based on the weather.

Bathrooms were clean.

Site wasn’t the most level, we used all our blocks to get level.

Fairly private with the trees.

Bears are very active, be sure to use the bear box and follow the recommendations.

Dry camping but you can use a generator during the day. Many of the sites are difficult to get into, especially if you have a larger RV or trailer. Site 35 is close to the river. Camp hosts were friendly and helpful. Each site came with a fire ring, bear box, and picnic table. All of it seemed fairly new. Due to the elevation, our 2300 watt generator was not able to power the AC but it could handle everything else. Lots of chipmunks and birds to watch!