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A dark green Toyota pickup with a roof tent parked in tall dry grass as mist closes in.

Forest Service campground

Lodgepole

Forest Service campground in Pike and San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands, Park County, Colorado. 10.2 miles from Blue River.

Reserve on Recreation.gov
Managed by
Forest Service Pike and San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands
Sites
33 25 standard non-electric, 8 tent only non-electric
Longest rig
35 ft The longest vehicle any site is listed for
Hookups
None listed
Reservations
Recreation.gov
County
Park County

Overview

Lodgepole Campground is a creekside destination with incredible Colorado mountain views. The campground is located 3 miles south of Jefferson Lake, one of the highest elevation lakes around, capping 10,685 feet elevation and bordered by steep 12,000 foot peaks.

Fishing in both the creek and lake offer promising catches of trout. Another noteworthy aspect of the campground is its access to the Colorado Trail.

Recreation

The best hiking, biking and horseback riding experience is on the epic Colorado Trail, a 471-mile trail that extends from Denver to Durango. Also accessible from the campground is the West Jefferson Loop Trail, a foot path that extends for 11 miles and reaches the Continental Divide.

Rainbow, brown, mackinaw and brook trout can be found swimming in the creek. For those who prefer fishing by boat, Jefferson Lake has a boat ramp. It is a no-wake lake.

Facilities

Lodgepole offers more than 30 reservable campsites. Parking aprons are gravel and dirt and the max RV length 30 feet. Amenities include picnic tables, vault toilets, drinking water and grills.

Natural Features

Lodgepole sits in a valley along Jefferson Creek facing Jefferson Hill at the high elevation of 9,900 feet. The single-loop campground is surrounded by groves of aspen and mixed conifer trees. Jefferson Lake, spanning about 182 acres, has deep, cold waters and freezes over in winter.

Nearby Attractions

Visitors enjoy Fairplay, Colorado, a ghost town that was once a frontier boom town. The South Park City Museum contains 34 authentic buildings with 60,000 artifacts.

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

The land around Lodgepole

The ringed pin is this campground; the others are its nearest neighbours. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see the way in. The federal record’s point for it sits at a very different height from the one the agency describes, so the pin may be off: trust the directions above over the map.

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.

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