Meadows Campground

Wifi: Verizon - 6.47 down, 1.76 up / ATT - NONE
Cost: $10/night
Noise: Wilderness Serenade

Originally we were set to boondock at Forest Road 302, but the road was so rutted we couldnt safely get our motorcycle to the end of the road to scout it out. Meadows Campground, at the top of one of the mountains outside of Steamboat, was nearly empty on a Weds. We were able to take prime picking of spots, and after running speed tests around the whole place, we picked Site 8, which also happened to be one of the few pull throughs. Almost none of the other spots had any real upload speeds, and while the speed we are getting is enough to do emails, there isn't much more bandwidth. There are a few pit toilets (well maintained) but no water or electric. There is a dumpster at the beginning of the campground so all of your garbage needs are taken care of. About 30 minutes to Steamboat, it was a beautiful place to camp up (though next year we would go sooner as it gets to below freezing at night).

Rating: A bit stronger wifi and we would stay longer.

The normal rate is $10.00 and for the seniors $5.00. The host is friendly and he keeps the pit toilet spotless. Trash pick up is slow probably due to low budgets and he takes the surplus to trash to town and it is not in his job description.

The sites are ok but some are close to each other. The internet is excellent and new tower has been installed not too far from the campground.

Access to the campground is easy.

I find the Colorado folks to generally enjoys the outdoor life and find them to be very knowledgeable and considerate.

This campground has all the features of the best national forest campgrounds: very large sites that are well spaced out, scenic natural surroundings, and several hiking trails right in the vicinity of the campground. As a bonus, it is also within a 15-20 minute drive of Steamboat Springs, is easy to access because it is just off Highway 40, and has decent internet service. For us, the two big negatives were persistent and annoying flies that made it uncomfortable to sit outside and the fact that locals seem to use the meadow right at the turnoff from 40 as an informal shooting range. We eventually got used to hearing gunfire every evening, but it was a bit disconcerting at first. We thought the road noise was minimal and a big improvement over sites across the street at Rabbit Ears West.

While some sites are only suitable for small rigs or tent camping, the majority would work for RVs and about 1/3 of the sites would work for large rigs. The campground experienced a major bark beetle kill and many trees were removed, so during our stay there were several sites that had more than enough open sky for solar power generation if one chose carefully. The remaining trees are tall and cast long shadows! Our site, #13, was about 50 feet long and relatively level with plenty of sun in the middle of the day and the afternoons. Even though the site is on the interior of the loop, because of the site spacing and a hill in the middle of the loop we felt we had plenty of privacy in the 1-14 loop.

Be aware that this campground barely offers any services. There is no potable water. The vault toilet appeared clean, but the aforementioned fly infestation made it very unappealing to attempt to use it. The garbage dumpster was overflowing throughout our visit so we ended up taking our trash with us. For us, the $10/night was the fee for an established level site on a normal road with a picnic table; otherwise it was a boondock situation. We were happy with that tradeoff especially considering the great location in proximity to Steamboat.

Even though you are quite close to HWY 40, the noise is not such an issue.

We arrived around 4pm on Friday and we practically had the place to ourselves - BUT most spots were full by later in the evening.

We chose spot 16, which was a few sites in on the first loop - it backed up to a sort of "forest island" separating it from other sites, and it gave the kids a lot of space to roam around in without disturbing anyone else.

The site is very close to downtown steamboat and makes for a perfect base camp if you want to explore activities around there.

There were quite a few active fires just south east of us, but this camp ground seemed to be clear of smoke etc.

I had no cell coverage on TMO.

Came in late Saturday afternoon and weren’t sure if we would find anything. Found this fabulous spot that’s almost level, has a great view of openness and so relaxing. Love the wind in the pines. Can hear a little noise from the highway but we just pretend it’s the wind. Wish we could stay longer but have to get home. We were in a 30 ft motor home and it fit well, as did our toad. Some places are smaller so we were gladthat this was open!

We arrived at the campground mid week in mid June. The gate was open, but it didn't seem quite ready for guests - there were no pay envelopes, and when we checked at the camp host site, it turned out the occupants had just selected that site to park in - they weren't camp hosts. We detached our toad and drove around to find a site. Even though we're 43' and the campground indicates a maximum size of 40' (we didn't know that), we were able to navigate it successfully. We found a site at the top of the hill where we got good internet signal on our MiFi device (with cellular booster) and good sun for solar panels. For the first several days there were only 2-3 sites occupied; over the weekend, as many as 10-15 were occupied. No water, no dump, but great boondocking location.

We arrived on Thursday before Labor Day weekend and had our choice of sites. We chose the recently re-opened loop 1-14 because it was a little farther from the highway. The noise from the highway is pervasive, although it is duller on that side of the campground.
Most sites are partially shaded by tall firs, even though they have cut down significant dead trees. Privacy between sites is pretty good, and our site (14) backs to a large meadow which looked like it had great wildflowers a few weeks before.

By Friday night, the place was full, and yet we didn't feel crowded. Overall, it was a group of pretty mellow campers. Site host was present but not intrusive. She kept the place neat and clean.

Bonus that it was only 20 minutes to Steamboat.

Another great option if you feel you need to stay in an established campground in an area full of free camping spots. Meadow Campground, unlike Dumont Campground nearby and ironically, is nestled in a bunch of trees. Large rigs may have a hard time finding a spot (but there are some) which gives this campground a more of a feel of tenting and small-rig camping.

No water, no cell, but toilets and trash are provided.