Ponderosa Campground, Blue Mesa Reservoir, Colorado

 

Ponderosa Campground

Ponderosa Campground in the Curecanti National Recreation Area:

This is Upper Ponderosa, there is a middle and a lower also that are down closer to the reservoir, but this upper one has horse corrals. The two corrals are wooden and very large, like small pastures. They each have a water trough and there is a spigot that you can attach a hose to next to the troughs. There is another frost free spigot next to the bathroom. The water comes from a solar powered well, when I was there (early May) there was no water running. There are 7 spots, most of which are not long or wide enough to accommodate a big rig. I fit into site #1, but I am not that long. Sites #6 and #7 are wider so someone could unhook and park side by side. Some of the spots are level and some are not.

Ponderosa Campground.

There is a bear proof locker, and garbage and recycle bins. There are picnic tables and fire rings, and cell service depending on where you are standing. There is a hitching rail, loading ramps and the camp is first come first serve. It's $20 a night and you can scan and pay online or use the drop box.

This camp is on county road 721 on the way to Soap Creek Horse Camp, the road is gravel but in good shape.

Trails are minimal, you can ride on the other side of the reservoir, or across the road and back south about half a mile, there is a dirt road that will lead you to a nice loop past an old abandoned ranch, through some aspens, and will eventually pop you out above Soap Creek Campground, at which point you would have to ride Rd. 721 back about 2 mile back.

GPS COORDINATES TO PONDEROSA CAMPGROUND

Transfer Horse Camp, Mancos, Colorado

Transfer Horse Camp

Transfer Horse Camp:

The main road is paved almost all the way to the campground. This is a cute, but small, and not completely level loop directly across from a people campground. When arriving do not turn when you see the Transfer sign, the horse camp is just a little farther up the road on the left. There are five spots, most of which cannot accommodate really large rigs, but if you are good at maneuvering, spot #3 is the biggest. There is a grid of steel corrals with feeders, one large one, and four that are smaller. The spots and the corrals have some light gravel. There are picnic tables and fire rings, although at the moment #2 does not have a picnic table and #5 has two picnic tables. There is one hitching rail, one bathroom, and a manure bin! First one I’ve seen since I’ve lived in Colorado. It’s $24 a night. I didn’t have cell service, but there might be some intermittently. The elevation is 8920. The people campground directly across the street has a well house with a spigot on the side of it, with potable water, and it wouldn’t be too far to haul from there. There is also a creek that runs under the road and it is easily accessible, if it continues to have water during the summer, which it might not. The Chicken Creek Trailhead is directly next door. There are quite a few trails to explore, I was just hiking in the area, minus my horse, so I have not ridden there….yet. This is a first come first serve camp, except for sites #1 and #3 which are reservable on Recreation.gov.

GPS COORDINATES TO TRANSFER CAMP