Pleasant Valley RV Park

The RV park is tucked away off of Hwy 50, literally surrounded by mountains. Check in was quick and easy and we were escorted to our river view site. Our site was a back-in towards the road. The park has lots of trees and is very quiet, with the exception of the occasional donkey from the homestead across the street. We didn't mind at all. The sound of the river was nice and there were chairs and a swing on the bank to relax and take it all in. The laundry room was clean. I'm only giving 4 stars on Site Quality. We liked the site, but giving 4 stars because we had to plug in at the next site over due to electric issues at the box. Other than that, everything else was great and we would definitely stay again and would definitely recommend. Very nice people! Verizon coverage is pretty much zilch. I couldn't get coverage until I got near Salida. You can sometimes get Wi-Fi up near the laundry room.

The views of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains were beautiful at sunset and when the clouds rolled in. Salida is the next town West, which is about 25 minutes away. Wonderful downtown, great eateries, and the River Walk. Hiking trails not too far away. There aren't really any services in Howard, so if you are coming from the East (say Colorado Springs), you can stop in Canon City for groceries/gas. You won't find any in Howard. You will find groceries/gas in Salida. Mojos and Robins are great breakfast options in Salida.

We love this park. We have enjoyed getting to know Josh & Nicole, Charlie & Laura. This location is quiet, easy to get around and Charlie is so good at parking you in the spot, there's never an adjustment needed. All the spots are good, but if you can get a river spot, there's nothing better than waking up to the mountains with the river below you.
They have a long section of riverbank you can fish and several little places along the river to sit and enjoy where you're at.

I reserved my site in January for a first of September week stay, with the owner. I am disabled and she reassured me that there was easy access to the river for fly fishing. The picture on their website shows easy access to the river. So I reserved a site that she picked out and said it was a few steps down to river. When we arrived these are the problems: 7-10 steps down and then another 3-4 steps down. The handrail was loose and unstable and the top rail was off half way down the first set of steps. This is not safe for a disabled person. Most of the riverbank was weedy (high weeds) along their property line making it impossible to fish. There was about 20 feet of cleared space. Plus the pictures of the river that looked wade able were across the river and not legally ours to fish. I was very frustrated with the false information the owner and website pictures gave. Also when we arrived the host said "we didn't have any shade but we picked out the space". Right, no shade but the owner assigned our space in January. Space was hot. Ok and the spaces are very cramped together. Plus too many rules...good grief. We drove to the Wi-Fi hotspot as we had some issues to take care of online. The hostess immediately drove over to us and told us we had to move our vehicle, no parking there but we had to walk to the Wi-Fi hotspot. My husband explained I was disabled and she argued with him. We had a reservation for 7 days but left this terrible rv park the next morning.

No Verizon cell coverage.

Small patch of grass at each site not for usage. Full hookups were quite nice. Space backs up to river with a very beautiful nice view and sound of river flowing. Fishing was possible nearby at the common area. Campground hosts were very friendly and experts at directing our parking of camper. Many sites appear to be occupied for the summer season by southerners escaping the heat of Texas. We would stay in the future if the owners actually opens the restrooms and showers which are listed as available in the website listing. We had to travel 4 miles to use public restrooms in the state park. No attempt was made to provide even a portable restroom for use at this park. Rates were not reduced to offset the elimination of restrooms and showers. Another camper advised me that the restrooms and showers have been closed for 2 years. Laundromat facilities in the restroom building were operational in spite of closed restrooms.

My wife and I ran across this campground by accident on a day trip to Salida a few months ago. We’d not heard of it before but followed the signs and got the phone number. When we called, they had a riverfront site available and we snagged it. Our campsite was the third site from the office along the river. Nicole got us checked in and Josh and Charlie (camp host) showed us where our site was and led us to it via their golf cart. Charlie gave good directions while I backed in. All the utilities were perfectly located for our rig and the site was perfectly sized for our 30’ Class A as well as our TOAD, a 2017 Jeep Wrangler 4-door. By the way, there’s no need to disconnect your TOAD outside the park. There’s a large flat surface in front of the office. Our view across the Arkansas River was just breath-taking. Mornings were spent drinking coffee outside while the river roared by. We even saw the occasional kayaker or fishing raft go by. The dog park is a short walk from the campsite along a gravel path. It’s nothing fancy, but is along the river an good sized. There’s a putting green, horse shoe pit, and area for children to play on the other side of the office. Finally, if you turn right out of the RV Park, CR 47 goes under the railroad bridge (don’t worry, no trains anymore) and dead ends into CR 45. Take it either direction for a great and secluded walking route and some awesome sunset views. There’s very little traffic on this road.

We had noticed in the reviews that Verizon service was non-existent but figured the advertised WiFi would suffice. We’d planned on spending the first evening in camp mapping out our hikes for the weekend. Unfortunately, even though the WiFi signal was strong, internet service through the WiFi was too weak to do anything. We spent the following day in Salida buying supplies, to include an AT&T Hotspot. The AT&T signal strength was so good, we were able to map out the rest of our weekend adventures using it. Honestly, this was the only part of the experience we didn’t enjoy. Everything else was awesome. Oh, and there was no TV reception, which wasn’t too big of a deal. We brought DVDs just in case we got really bored. Just be prepared if internet and TV is important to you.

Bottom line: We’d definitely stay here again. Now that we know what’s available and what’s not, we can better prepare for our stay. Hopefully, you can too.

This park is hidden off the hwy and full of mature trees. You cross a great looking metal bridge coming into the park. It is very quiet other than the great sound of the Arkansas River running right by it. We splurged on a River site for a small additional cost which we loved but almost all the sites are desirable. The owners have put a great deal of effort into adding landscape plants, rocks and wood timbers to provide beauty and character. They also provide places for the dogs and your children to play. Wifi was fair but ATT cell was more than adequate to provide Internet connection. This was one of my favorite places so far. I liked its relatively small size along with its clean attractive character

First, I can not say enough good things about the owners. They are hardworking, caring family and it shows in the park and the way they treat their guests.

No, the sites are not paved. No pool or Pickleball courts. However, this is right on the river and only 15-20 minutes from Salida. Tons of outdoor things to do.

We were in the second row off the river. River front sites are more expensive but oh what views.

Full hook-ups and good AT&T service. No Verizon or anything else I’m guessing. They have WiFi but it is slow.

This is a rustic, small, well kept campground.

If you like to play Pickleball, Salida has a very active and welcoming group.

Only word of caution. There is only on way into the park and you have to go across a small county bridge. I believe it was rated for 14 ton. Like others, we just held our breath and went across.

Don’t just show up, it’s a small park. Make a reservation n

The only downfall of this campground is the absence of any cellular service. I guess this should be expected considering how remote this part of Colorado is. When I say you are off the grid, even the TV in our Airstream was able to pick up any network channels so we were forced to spend time doing other things. Not a bad thing! Especially considering the fact that our site backed up to the Arkansas River and we caught fresh trout every night to eat. The camp host are extremely friendly and helpful. There are several trailers that stay at this campground because people use this place like a time share and come down from Denver, etc. to stay and fish.
The closest little town with anything (groceries, etc.) is Salida, CO. Not a bad little place that has a Wal-Mart and a terrific brewery/bar called Soul Craft. If you are into IPAs I recommend the Hazy IPA. It's delicious!
Another place that's close is Royal Gorge Bridge (30-45 minute drive). Pueblo, CO is about 1 hour from this campground and is probably the closest place that resembles a fully stocked city with everything you may miss from civilization. Oh, if you need cell/Wi-Fi service we were able to get our Verizon Jetpack to work perfectly when we went to Royal Gorge Bridge. The campground has Wi-Fi but don't expect it to work that great.
Overall, this was a great campsite with the quiet ambiance of the river flowing and spectacular views of snow capped mountains in the background. We would definitely stay here again if we were ever in this area of Colorado again.

First the management is very accommodating and friendly. I just didn't love this park, partly because I had a site that was wedged in between two other trailers with very little room outside. But if you get one of the outside sites, this would be a good park. It seemed to me that a lot of seasonal campers come here and for a good reason, it is a good park especially if you get one of the river loop sites. Also saw a lot of ATVs so if that is your thing, come here and get an outside loop site. The RV park itself is clean and the bathrooms were clean although there was only one for women and men. But they were clean and nice. Easy access to river for fishing and they have a great walking trail outside of the park that you can take your dog on a hike