Ryan Park Campground

Felt quite lucky that there were two spots available on a holiday weekend. First spot was very unlevel, on a hill. Second spot was a pull through and perfect. Some bugs. The Moose trail that joins with other trails and circles the park is gorgeous right now. Fill of beautiful flowers and high flowing creeks.

Some spots along the creek would have good ambient noise.

People need to know and teach their children campground etiquette. The walking and running through other’s spots is not cool. Especially when we were in the middle of getting set up. Safety hazard and impolite to boot.

Water tasted weird and glad we didn’t have to use it. Would filter for sure.

Nice place, pretty nice views, not horribly buggy. Reserved in advance and found the spot easily enough. A 25ft travel trailer and pickup. There are two loops, recommend selecting from 1-17 as these seemed much more level than the other loop. Most of the lower loop was filled with tent campers. A pit toilet in each loop but stocked with paper so kudos for that. We saw a water spigot in each loop and it was potable. There were two or three open spots FA the weekend we stayed. Some were filled during the day with trucks who left around 7pm but came back in the morning.

Large sites, no water yet as they need to test it. No time on when that will be completed. Lots of beetle destruction, piles of cut down trees at every campsite, not sure why they didn’t remove them.
Stop at forest service station in Saratoga for hiking and 4 wheel trail information. It’s called the snowy mountains for a reason and many trails not open.
Went to silver lake a short distance further on 130. CG closed as patches of snow in the CG. Walked around the lake, boggy but doable, lots of mosquitoes. Saw lots of fish.
Stopped at Hacks in Saratoga, they offer float trips and fishing information.
We paid $50 for a shuttle putting in at Treasure Island and exiting in Saratoga, we have an inflatable kayak. The Platte river is low at this time but still floatable.
Don’t miss the Grand Encampment Museum. Tours and one of the best museums we have visited and we visit many. Donation suggested at $5/person.
No maintenance seen being done on the overgrown grass.

We have been going to Ryan Park for 24 years and tent camped there for the first 15. Beetle kill really decimated this area and much of the Snowy Range. Like most places these days this campground now has many ATVs, people flying drones, loud/crying children, off-leash dogs, construction generators and inconsiderate people. I guess even the moose I used to see every trip has had enough as she was nowhere to be seen.

The good? Water on-site, good cell service (is that a good thing?) and some privacy on the easternmost sites. Plus, it is $5 with the senior discount. The camp host is a good guy, but has no real authority. Toilets are the cleanest I have ever seen in a forest campground.

The history of the place as a POW camp and CCC work camp make it a really interesting are to me and I will probably continue to go, but no more between Memorial Day and Labor Day. My iPhone said 3G, but my iPad said full LTE. Either way I could send texts and read emails. I did not try streaming video.

I made a reservation 2 weeks prior to the 4th of July weekend. While I noticed one or two other campgrounds along 130 this is the only where you can make reservations. If you chose not to make a reservation, the rate is $10.

Campsite 29 was pretty good. Adjacent to VERY clean vault toilet and dumpster. The dumpster had just been emptied so no flies or smelliness the weekend we were there.. However, no water. I had read a blog that said no water and brought water. The reservation site shows water available but for some reason not this year.

Unfortunately the sites are not the bests for tents in my opinions. Very rocky - no tent pads. We have cots so it didn't matter. But it did take some searching to find a good spot to pitch our tent.

We brought one bundle of wood but ended up gathering a lot of wood from the campground and nearby.

We heard the nearby creek but we were further away from the road than others on the other loop (group loop was closed). They got more highway noise. But they did have more shade and trees. #29 was probably one of the most open sites as several trees had been cut down.

I'm a T-mobile user and had pretty decent roaming coverage (3-4 bar) at this site.

We did a drive-through to check this out. It's the only campground in the Snowy Range that's right off Hwy 130. It's a large, typical Forest Service campground, with lumpy parking spots. We counted 7 pullthrus, most sites close to each other; #7 is a back-in with more privacy. 2-seater pit toilets on each loop. In 2016 they're drilling a new well, so no water available. Saw several big rigs there.