Review of Campsites Josey's Mogote Meadow and Pinon Park in Colorado

Colorado is home to some of the most beautiful campgrounds in the world, and I have had the pleasure of visiting most of them. Two fabulous to try are Josey's Mogote Meadow in Antonito and Pinon Park.

Josey's Mogote Meadow consists of a large field that can take any sized rig (except for sites 8-16, which are restricted to 55 feet in length). 40-ft wide sites are in a rural location with trees on all sides. Some houses to the north of belie the proximity to human habitation, but do not damage the scenery overly. End site 27 is set slightly apart from the others, and has a large open space to the west. Sites 1-7 are situated along the entrance, and therefore receive more traffic than other sites. The laundry facility is slightly cramped and hot (it shares the building with a furnace and has no windows). The men's and women's restrooms are separated- the men's being out in the middle of the park and the women's being in the same building as the laundry facility. These facilities are quite clean and comfortable. This is a fine campground in a great location.

To get to Mogote Meadow from the junction of highway 285 and highway 17, go 4.8 miles southwest on highway 17. Turn right at the sign into the entrance. The office is immediately on the left.

Pinon Park campground has just completed some renovations, and is therefore absolutely immaculate. The brand new individual restrooms are clean, spacious, and extremely comfortable, as is the new laundry facility. Anyone who frets over questionable restrooms may want to stay an extra few days to luxuriate in the clean an comfortable facilities. The park itself is in a wilderness setting, not too far from Navajo State Park, which offers lake recreation. Both back-ins and pull-throughs are grassy but open sites 14-26 offer no shade at all, making them slightly less attractive. Admittedly there is not a lot of shade in this area to begin with. Tenters, on the other hand, will delight in the trees offered for the tenting area. All tent sites have water and a grill, and the sites are a mix of grass and dirt. Campers of either stripe will be happy to stay in the park, which offers great views of the reservoir to the east. The RV experience would, however, be improved with the addition of more shade overall.

To get there from highway 151 in town, go .2 miles north of Navajo State Park- look for the sign on the east side. Turn east into the driveway, then, at the T intersection, take the 2^nd left into the campground. The office is the brown building ahead and to the right.