Prewitt Reservoir South Dispersed Camping

While heading towards Denver from the northern Midwest, this is a great stop to break up the drive and get some rest. I did not think it was crowded at all, but I did stay on a Sunday night. It’s a quick drive from the highway to the trail head; but I did some winding around to find a good spot away from the few people I saw here. I feel safe enough to recommend it for those traveling through, but I wouldn’t recommend it as a final destination trip haha

Came here in early June and this place was packed (arrived Friday around 3pm). Found a distant camp spot away from boat launch and restrooms and someone still just drove right into our camp spot to go fishing.

Guess it’s not a huge deal this is a very popular fishing spot just don’t think you are coming here to get away from people like I did :-).

Make sure you have your fishing license.

I stayed here in late June but unfortunately I wasn’t feeling well during the time that I was there so I wasn’t able to fully appreciate the area or even go fishing. There are probably 100 or more places where you can camp around this lake and it was extremely crowded when I was there but fortunately I arrived at a good time and was able to get a good site near the water. There were some flies and mosquitoes but nothing unusual. And yes, you do need a Colorado fishing or hunting license to access this area along with a Colorado state parks pass according to the wildlife officer that I spoke to when I first arrived. I believe that is a new rule that is just now going into effect for the state wildlife areas, also known as SWA’s, in Colorado. I did not experience any issues with my dog running around through the sage brush as another reviewer had mentioned. Perhaps I was there at a different time of the year. One interesting thing to note is that right before dark on the first day I arrived I was outside and there were toads all over the place. Apparently they bury themselves in the sand during the hot day and then come out in the evening to forage for food. It was rather funny and my dog enjoyed chasing them. They were not a nuisance of any kind.

Pros:
•Easy to find
•The lake is beautiful
•Birds everywhere - there was a large flock of pelicans on the lake that were fun to watch
•Walmart is just 30 minutes away (this fact became important, read on)

Cons:
•You must have a permit to access property. We went to the closest Walmart and got an out of state one day fishing license for $17.
•There are a lot of people and rigs here, some of which look like they call it home. Dogs barking, generators running, people yelling at the dogs barking, local teenagers stopped through to swim in the lake, make out, yell profanities at each other. The teens thing probably wouldn’t have been mentioned but they parked at the campsite next to us and their behavior bothered my nine year old daughter so much she wanted to leave.
•The campsites are more like wide spots on the road so unless you get a site at the very end of the road, traffic coming and going is an issue.
•The pit toilet was disgusting. Unusable really. We chose to use our backup relief methods.
•There was a funky smell. Might have been the flock of pelicans. We were downwind from the large flock.
• Bugs - gnats, mosquitoes, flies, ticks - bring the spray.

It was an okay night. The permit thing was a little bit of a surprise to me because, although there is another review that mentions it, that review was further down in the list and I didn’t see it until I was already having to figure it out.