Camp Colorado Camping Vacation Information

Camp here and don’t forget the water for your campfire!!! Help us keep Colorado mountain safe while you are camping, hiking, biking, and enjoying our great outdoors.

The participants, known as campers, get away from civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or more nights, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, a primitive structure, or no shelter at all.

Camping as a recreational activity became popular in the early 20th century. Campers frequent national parks, other publicly owned natural areas, and privately owned campgrounds.

Camping describes a wide range of activities. Survivalist campers set off with little more than their boots, whereas recreational vehicle travelers arrive equipped with their own electricity, heat, and patio furniture. Camping may be an end unto itself, but often it is done in conjunction with other activities, such as hiking, swimming, and fishing. It may be combined with hiking either as backpacking or as a series of day hikes from a central location.

A Few Ideas

• West Chicago Creek Campground
• Echo Lake Campground
• Guanella Pass Campground
• Thousand Trails 2678 West Chicago Creek Road, Idaho Springs, CO (303) 567-4517

Campfire Cooking

Campers span a broad range of ability and ruggedness, and campsites are designed accordingly.

Many campgrounds have sites with special facilities such as fire rings, barbecue grills, bathrooms and utilities, but not all campsites have similar levels of development.

Campsites can range from a patch of dirt with a sign marking it to a level, paved pad with sewer and electricity.

RV Camping

On the side of high amenities is camping in recreational vehicles (RVs), essentially wheeled houses. Many RVs are quite luxurious, featuring air conditioning, bathrooms, kitchens, showers, satellite TV and even Internet connections. RV campers may choose these devices because they consider tent camping uncomfortable and inconvenient. In the United States, some campgrounds offer hookups where motorhomes are supplied with electricity, water and sewer services. Some retirees and self-employed people sell their homes and live nomadically in their RVs, often moving with the seasons.

Tent Camping

Those who seek a rugged experience in the outdoors prefer to camp with only tents, or no shelter at all (“under the stars”). Tent camping commonly employs an automobile to transport equipment to an established campground (this practice is called “car camping”). Other vehicles used for camping include touring bicycles, boats, and even bush planes, although backpacking and using pack animals are popular alternatives. Tent camping attracts young families because the children tend to enjoy it, and because gear is inexpensive and rugged. Tent camping sites often cost less than campsites with full amenities, and most allow direct access by car. Some “walk-in” sites lie a short walk away from the nearest road but do not require full backpacking equipment.

Backpacking

Backpacking is a very mobile variety of tent camping. Backpackers use lightweight equipment that can be carried long distances on foot. They hike across the land, camping at remote spots, often selecting campsites at will if resource protection rules allow. Backpacking equipment typically costs more than that for car camping, but still far less than a trailer or motorhome, and backpacking campsites are generally cheap.

One form of bicycle touring combines camping with cycling. The bicycle is used to carry the gear and as the primary means of transportation, allowing greater distances to be covered than backpacking although less capacity for storage.

Winter Camping