Twin Lakes Dam Dispersed Camping

This area is below the Twin Lakes dam along a pretty stream. It's an easy access Forest Rd just south of Hwy 82 that will fit any sized rig. Thus, this can be a ridiculously crowded place in the summertime.

I stayed here one Fall weekend with about 5 other RVs (about the most it should handle for boondockers who respect each other's distance). Pleasant temps during the day, but cold at night (you're at about 9000 ft here).

Verizon signals were good (unlike some other boondocking areas nearby). There are some nice hiking and mountain biking trails, and lake access not too far away.

A great place to camp for a few days if you can avoid peak weekend crowds.

This location seemed ideal when I first settled into my site. It was easy access, along a scenic creek and I had the,whole area to myself. I enjoyed the site for several days until summer arrived.

This area receives a lot of, traffic from people accessing trails, camping, and fishing. There were a number of other campers who moved into adjacent sites for a day of two and then moved on. One afternoon a group of boys and adults pulled up in the adjacent site. The boys would not stay out of my campsite, even after speaking to the adults. They left that night, thankfully. However, the next day (unrelated) I had a Goal Zero solar panel stolen.

Verizon service is OK, but inconsistent at this site. Speeds varied throughout the day. I could, only get consistent speeds with a booster.

Like other sites in this area, dust prevails. There was a ton of broken glass left around the fire ring and site, in general.

I would stay here, again, if there were no other sites open, but there are much better sites up on the hill near Lakeview or up along the road going up the mountain at Lost Canyon.

We only stayed three days. Lot's of traffic, rigs coming and going, etc. The stream was pretty as were the views. But solitude this place does not offer. Okay for a few nights but for longer term, we'd find another spot. Beware: This camp is at about 9400 feet. You will get dehydrated, it will be ten degrees cooler than 20-30 miles down the hill and you may get altitude sickness (as one of our party did). Come prepared and you'll do fine but if you get sick, just move down the hill.

We stayed here for an entire week with only a few campers coming in and out, who only stayed one night. It definitely got into freezing temperatures but as long as you have some blankets, you should be fine. There was alot of people driving by going into the reservoir but not very noisy. Overall, we loved the site and enjoyed being right next to the river.

Didn’t want to drive in the dark to where we were ultimately going and reading the reviews of “right off the road” and “easy access”, we were sold.

Pulled in, did one small loop and parked. The leveling gods were on our side as I think this was the first time ever we were perfectly level.

Left in the morning so didn’t really explore but easy access, yes. Looking around the area it seemed reasonably clean. Fire pits present, although a state wide fire ban is in effect....and beautiful morning views. Plenty of room for multiple campers.

We scouted a few places around and the car camper/resident numbers were off the charts. I counted 20 different camps where about 4 should be.

Some time this may be it but...

We actually didn’t have a set plan to stay here and found a site nearby through Campendium. When we arrived to that site with our Sprinter Van around 7pm, it was full so we took a stab in the dark and followed the dirt road which led us to an oasis with people spread out nicely. It was hard to find a spot that late in the game but some cool people said it was okay to be their neighbors. We backed our Vandalorian up to the lake and started to set up. It was a beautiful night! There are NO RESTROOMS here so thankfully we had our camper toilet. We woke up the next morning with PRIME real estate, inflated our Paddleboard’s and enjoyed the Fourth of July to the fullest. It was our first trip overnight as a family and was absolutely unforgettable. The drive up from Canon City area was gorgeous and the drive home through Leadville was perfect.

We stayed the weekend after July Fourth and figured everyone would be home and not camping. We were wrong. We got there around 7pm on Thursday 7/8/21. There was a considerable bit of traffic and the spaces west of the dam on the reservoir side were largely full unless you were a tent camper. For RVs east of the dam was ideal. We explored the west side but it was tricky with a trailer to get back there. I explored the area the next day with my truck and there are great tent camping spots further back. We grabbed spot right on the river and it was great. There was a couple of trailers there but those people seemed to be going to work every morning in some sort of construction.

There is a T-Mobile and AT&T cell tower visible from the location so service shouldn't be an issue. Verizon is back in Leadville and service south of town was fantastic on Visible. The biggest issue at this spot was a small bit of road noise. We're in a trailer and didn't notice it while sleeping. The neighbors had some generators but they were all respectful and turned them off at a reasonable time. We had someone park right next to use on our first full day but they were fantastic and ended up chatting about where we were going and our trailers. Great people.

We left our trailer all day to hike Maroon Bells in Aspen and we left out a gas fire pit, cellular modem/router on a flag pole on our trailer, ground solar panel, and a camp stove on our table with chairs and no one touched a thing all day.

This is our second time at Twin Lakes and we will be back. Spent the week before and the week of July 4th tucked away in the far back area of the dispersed camp ground. Got there Monday before the 4th weekend to ensure a good spot and it paid off. Enjoyed the Interlaken trail several times as well as a few dips in the chilly lake. The historic Interlaken inn and Dexters cabin at the end of the trail are well worth the easy hike to get there. As mentioned before the weekend of the 4th was packed but by Wednesday the spaces began emptying again. The road in and around the camping area is quite treacherous. We witnessed an oil pan puncture as a low clearance vehicle attempted a knoll that was a bit to steep. The road can be traversed by low clearance but it takes patience and close attention. Hopefully the road will be graded soon, but if not that’s okay too. There are zero amenities here. Bring whatever supplies you need for the duration of your visit. And remember to pack out your trash as well as your dogs droppings! Not just bag and toss to side of trail! Happy camping!

I arrived on a Friday midday and there was no problem finding the prime spot available. Please keep it quiet and clean for the rest of us. Thank you for your cooperation.