Saved Account Join
A gravel road curving into a high mountain valley at first light, the peaks catching the sun.

Forest Service campground

Happy Meadows

Forest Service campground in Pike and San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands, Park County, Colorado. 8,808 feet. 24.6 miles from Fairplay.

Reserve on Recreation.gov
Managed by
Forest Service Pike and San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands
Elevation
8,808 ft USGS elevation model, at the mapped point
Sites
7 7 standard non-electric
Longest rig
35 ft The longest vehicle any site is listed for
Hookups
None listed
Reservations
Recreation.gov
County
Park County

Overview

Happy Meadows Campground is situated along the South Platte River near the Eleven Mile Reservoir and Eleven Mile Canyon. Excellent fishing, tubing, and hiking await visitors.

Eleven Mile Canyon is rich in natural resources and historic significance. Originally called Granite Canyon, the towering gray walls rise 500 feet above the river.

Recreation

World-class trout fishing is a major attraction on the South Platte. Visitors can also venture to Florissant Fossil Beds to view fossils and petrified redwoods. Eleven Mile Canyon and the Tarryall Valley offer scenic drives with impressive views.

Facilities

Happy Meadows offers seven reservable RV campsites. Each site has a picnic table and a camp fire ring. Drinking water from a water pump and a vault toilet is available.

Natural Features

Campsites are a short walk to the lovely South Platte, a major tributary of the Platte River that runs through Colorado and Nebraska. As part of Pike Forest, Happy Meadows enjoys abundant and varied wildlife, seven peaks above 14,000 feet, called fourteeners, and miles of great trails.

Nearby Attractions

The town of Lake George is just 3 miles away, offering a general store, fish tackle and bait shop, and cabin rentals.

The description, directions and fees are the Forest Service’s own words, from its record on Recreation.gov.

What people do here

  • camping
  • fishing
  • hiking
  • kayaking
  • tubing

The land around Happy Meadows

The ringed pin is this campground; the others are its nearest neighbours. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see the way in.

Map layers

Layers
Base map
Legend

Federal land, by managing agency

  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
  • US Forest Service (USFS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • US Fish and Wildlife (USFW)
  • Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
  • Department Of Defense (DOD)
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
  • Other Federal
  • State
  • Local
  • Alaska Native Lands (Patented or Interim Conveyed)
  • Alaska Native Allotment

Federal campgrounds, by agency

  • Forest Service
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • National Park Service
  • Army Corps of Engineers
  • Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife and others

State and local land (USGS PAD-US)

  • State land
  • County and city land
  • Regional agency or district
  • Land trust or conservancy

Gaps with no tint inside public land are private parcels, often old mining claims and homesteads. They are not open to the public.

Dashed clay lines on the base map are unpaved tracks from OpenStreetMap. They show what exists on the ground, not what is legal to drive.

Select any point to see who manages the land.

Boundaries are approximate and land status changes. This map is a planning aid, not a survey or a statement of access. Confirm routes, closures and camping rules with the managing office.

Nearest campgrounds

Camping near

Source: Recreation Information Database (Recreation.gov), record updated February 25, 2026. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Seasons, fees, water and fire rules change; the managing office has the final word.

Join Overlanding Life
Saved Account

Start with a region

Browse the directory