Party and Camping Near Jefferson, Colorado

Flag Day Party and Lodgepole Overflow Camping Weekend
Date of Trip: June 17 – 18, 2006
Location: Jefferson, CO
Elevation: 9496 ft.

Flag Day Party

Great company, food, horse ball, and teepee interior decorating. Thanks!

Camping Location

The Lodgepole Campground is located in Colorado’s Pike National Forest. It is 3.75 miles North of Jefferson off of Hwy 285. When entering Jefferson on Hwy 285, look for the only intersection which is County Roads 35/37. Then, turn Northwest on County Roads 35/37. Follow the sign toward Jefferson Lake.

Would we Ever Leave Home?

We didn’t leave our home until 11:30 AM Saturday morning after a full morning of packing!

Expired Reservation

I made reservations at Lodgepole Campground in Pike National Forest. We really only wanted to stay one night. Since they required a minimum two night reservation, I made the reservation for the nights of June 16th and 17th. When we arrived at 8:00 PM on June 17th, we had missed a 24 hour arrival window for our reservation. So, we were without reservations and it was getting dark fast. The Lodgepole Campsite Manager suggested visiting the overflow camping area. The overflow camping area is located down a side road intersecting the main entrance to the park.

Camping in Overflow

On this trip, camping in overflow meant camping with no toilets and no picnic tables during a fire ban. We set up camp in the dark. One large cooler, a small cooler, and food box needed to be stored in the van due to Colorado law. To avoid attracting bears to camping locations, the law is a safety precaution. So, we packed all four of us and our food snugly into the van.

In the Van, A Spook?

The temperature dropped to around 30 degrees that night. We turned on the heat in the van several times. This required reaching over a couple of sleeping children to the dashboard to turn on the ignition. At one point, I heard rhythmic pounding on the van. My imagination was not thinking good things. It turned out I had accidently turned on the windshield wipers.

We Endured and Experienced

We woke up on Father’s Day. We survived a camping outing without the safety of a public camping area with site manager! The overflow area we picked had a rock campfire pit where we could lay our stove. About 15 feet from our site, was a beautiful, shallow, gurgling stream with little waterfalls. We watched in amazement as the off road vehicles and some low riding vehicles crossed that stream on a dirt road. The kids were instantly entertained by the sluice and all the natural features around the stream. By the end of the weekend, they all had names including penguin point. The daytime weather was sunny, warm and calm!

Recommendations

Know the campgrounds reservation policy if you arrive late. We had trouble finding County Road 35/37 on the way to Lodgepole Campground. At Jefferson, head Northwest on the only road intersecting Hwy 285. This should be County Road 35/37.