pinyon flats campground

If you are there to visit the sand dunes, this is the place to stay. There are clean bathrooms, though no showers on site. Not every site is suitable to tents. We made a reservation in the upper loop, so ensure we had a site (and given how far away from everything else this is, that was smart), but when we got there we switched to the lower loop as there were spots available.We walked out (and up the dunes) and were glad to be close by. That was not an easy walk. We were lucky and the water was flowing through Medano Creek - allowing us to cool our feet a bit. The campground is well maintained, and super quiet at night. The best part is that it is PITCH black. We saw the best view of the night sky here out of our whole trip (better than Natural Bridges and Canyonlands and other dark sky sites). Best viewing of the Milky Way I've ever seen. As a campground, it's simple, nothing fancy. But the sites have bear boxes, are well defined, and managed to fit out 2 tents.

We had never camped here before and site #34 is a back-in site with unobstructed views of the dunes. We were next to the trail that leads straight down to the creek an the dunes. The heated bathroom (with running water) was a very short distance away. Wonderful place to stay to see the dunes!

This is a well maintained campground and the only place to stay inside of the park. The campground hosts were also very helpful. Views are great as well

We stayed 3 nights and loved it. The view from our campsite was great. There are many options from open with views and shaded. The trail to the visitor center (1.3 miles one way) was a pleasant surprise as it was up on the hillside and away from the road.

We usually disperse camp, so it is very hard for me to get used to not having privacy at some capgrounds.We were at site 81 for Loop 2 (Loop 2 is reservations only), and while it wasn't the most exposed site, it wasn't the most private. Next tie I would opt for #45 or #62. Neither of those sites have other sites behind or in front of them, only on the sides. While 45 is mostly by itself, site 62 has a great view of the dunes while still being private. The bathrooms aren't pit toilets and have running water and mirrors but oddly, no hand washing soap! Not even hand disinfectant. Oh, well, I had some with us, so it wasn't a huge deal. The ground itself is beautiful with paths outlined neatly by rocks and is very picturesque.The dunes are one of the best places I've been to in Colorado, and it is awesome to camp so close to it. I recommend this campsite. However, I would look into Zappata Falls campground next time as it is only a 10 minute drive from the dunes, and is less crowded and quieter.

I love this area! Pinyon Flats is great for when I camp solo. I feel safe and enjoy the rangers quietly checking in on folks. Most spots are great, but hands down #64 is the tops! I come here at least twice per year and consider it a home away from home. It can be a bit noisy when people bring children, but just take a walk! A trip to Mosca, Crestone, or any of the sleepy towns is worth it. Stop by the hot spring pool in Hooper!

Loved the shade, and easy camping. Lots of great educational opportunities for kids and families. Spring and early fresh water creek flow great for hanging out at the bottom of the dunes. Bring scarf and googles for spring windstorms on the Dunes, also closed shoes, as sand is hot on Dunes. Be careful of patches of quick sand further up creek. Great drinking water at campsite also. Bring earplugs incase someone is firing up their RV generator as campsites are very close together.

Camped here for four nights last weekend and had a great time. Campground is beautiful and clean. All the sites were nice and big and had a great firepit, picnic table and bear box. Our site didn't have any trees, so it was pretty windy. The first day we camped, our site got so windy around noon that our tent poles snapped. My husband was able to repair them, but we semi-collapsed the tent whenever we left our site for the rest of the time we were there. The weather was warm and very comfortable, even at night. There was a full moon last weekend and it was so bright, I thought it was morning when I woke up in the middle of the night. Great star gazing- we were able to see Saturn and Jupiter with our telescope. Very family friendly atmosphere. All the campers were respectful and quiet after dark. Can't wait to come back again next year. Make sure you make reservations in advance- we couldn't get reservations and had to wait around until someone left- luckily, we didn't have to wait long. A lot of campers only stayed one night (Friday), and many campsites were empty by Saturday.

We just spent one night at Pinyon Flats last week and liked it a lot. Many sites have nice views of the dunes and you can watch the sun setting behind them. It was extremely windy when we were there and had to steak our tent in really well and tie off to some nearby rocks. The wind also made it difficult to keep a fire going to cook on. Not sure if this is a normal occurrence, but something to consider - may be best to get a site with more trees to block the wind. The sites were spaced well and most offered a decent amount of privacy.

We stayed in Pinyon Flats July 2010. Our camp site was #67. I would consider it the be a medium sized campsite yet one of the largest at the campground. They have built small walls that enclose the area so you really cannot spread out beyond the boundaries. We had a gorgeous view of the sand dunes. There was very little shelter from the sun. Make sure you hike to Zappata Falls if it is hot outside. Another negative was the fact that we had brought our dog and there were theses little cacti everywhere and he kept getting "pokers" in the pads of his feet. Also, there were thousands of these little red ants that kept biting him. Although they never bit any of us. The bathrooms were nice and clean. They also had bear boxes.

We camped in Loop 2 at Site 64. It had a fantastic view of the dunes and of the sun setting at night. We had plenty of space for our tent and our Xterra. The campground was pretty quiet and had a great little store that we could walk to in order to purchase ice and firewood. The bathrooms were easily accessible by any site and had flush toilets and sinks with running water (not hot). There was also a dishwashing sink outside the restrooms.OVerall, it was a very relaxing experience. Fantastic deal at $14 per night. Since we have a Interagency Annual Pass from the National Park Service, we got a discount and only paid $7 for the site.

Awesome campground - We came Friday morning @10 am and paid for the last two campsites. Won't come late again or we will have to camp elsewhere. We were greeted at dusk and dawn each day by the honorary campground rangers aka 5 female deer. Very pleasant hosts. Let us take their photograph each time they passed within 30 feet of our camp. We even had a formal inspection of our grate on Sunday morning by the head honorary park rangers (doe), we were pleased that we passed with flying colors. Restrooms were cleaned daily, park was quiet at night. Sand Dunes were gorgeous by day and wicked by night. Hint-- go to the dunes early in the am or else there is no parking at visitors center. Enjoyed our stay thoroughly, even stayed an extra day. Didn't even need to bring firewood, they had a real park ranger drive thru the loops twice daily selling firewood. They even have a convenient store for beer and ice not very far away. Lots of shade. Well worth going back to, over and over again. Next time we will take more memory chips for the digital camera, photography was excellent. Take summer and winter clothes weather changes dramatically during day and night. Lots to see. This campground is grandchildren friendly, so bring lots of kids. Henny Colorado Springs, CO