Two Buttes Reservoir State Wildlife Area Dispersed Camping

Firstly… Take the other reviews seriously!
Also, if you have Apple Maps, DON’T FOLLOW THE APPLE MAP LINK ON CAMPENDIUM. Follow directions to these coordinates: 37.63534° N, 102.55434° W and go right down the grassy dirt road that looks like it has a fence across it (it doesn’t). The road (B) is smooth-ish until the last 1/4 mile or so, but it’s nothing compared to the road the map link will send you to on the opposite side of the reservoir. I pull a 23’ Wolf Pup with my V8 Nissan Titan, and my bf drives a full skoolie. We followed the directions on the other side of the water and both nearly lost our a$$es.
Now that we know what it takes to get here, it feels good to sit still and look at the ducks swim the glass water at sunset, but I wouldn’t recommend this for low clearance vehicles (or anyone without 4wd if there’s rain/weather). We noticed ruts and a whole mess on the dirt road from the last poor soul that had to navigate that road after a good rain…
Be advised: there are several cactus at the camping spots. We covered them with wood or dug them up and threw them over the cliff, but not before our dogs found them.

All I can add to the last few reviews are these tidbits…

No Verizon, so remember your way back out. The myriad of dirt roads can be a little confusing.

Those dirt roads were some of the smoothest I’ve ever driven, until they weren’t, so be careful and aware that more agile vehicles may be barreling around that next turn you’re coming upon.

We didn’t stay, because massive biting flies.

We also really didn’t stay because a gargantuan black storm was just building up the devil’s all hell on the horizon. Lucky for us we high-tailed it out of there, as we ended up watching the storm from Syracuse, KS and it was a whippersnapper of a sumvagun.

Finally, when we were there — August 2023 — the lake was full enough that 20 or so trucks worth of local kids were boating and fishing and having a blast.

We found this Boondock spot while traveling through CO. You travel a pretty rough dirt road for a few miles until you come to the reservoir. We parked & camped close to a boat ramp. It wasn’t until sun rise that we realized the reservoir was completely dry. There is a spot across the dam called the Black Hole that apparently was/is a cliff diving spot. A 20 year old was being searched for while we were there after jumping in the water, and unfortunately he did not survive. Other than the search & rescue vehicles & the helicopter that was spotlighting looking for the boy; This was a good, quiet place to camp. But please do not cliff drive. This map makes it look like the reservoir is still full of water & it is not.
No water access & no hook ups. The land was beautiful though.

We traveled to the listed coordinates with a 19’ lightly off road travel trailer. The dirt paths were not much of a challenge for our truck but the terrain was as rough as we’d ever go with the travel trailer. We checked several areas near listed coordinates and ended up at 37.636542, -102.557818. This is a small turn around with a clear view 360 degrees of pan handle. AT&T is great, Verizon has no service. It’s very quiet and many miles of dirt roads to get to. But this is what I wanted….free, quiet spots on a road trip to be unplugged (“unplugged” as I write this at camp on my iPhone:-). I’d probably skip this place in the future but it is a great location for our planned route so here we are.

I heard that Two Buttes Reservoir had water; but now the water is mostly gone again. I used to fish this lake when I was younger; so I thought why not take a road trip to Baca County? I found live minnows at a little bait shop in Hasty, CO, after spending the night in my car a little ways past the first right turn by the Colorado State Wildlife Preserve sign (after you turn East from 287, South of Lamar). The night wind was super cool; and behind the night-time silhouette of Two Buttes Mountain were these constant flashes of lightning, with no audible thunder. The night sky was lit up with stars, until the moon came up in the eastern sky. The next morning, after procuring legal minnows, I returned to the Black Hole, behind Two Buttes Dam. I got one bite. After that, a bunch of people came and started jumping into the next pool of the Black Hole, down from where I was fishing with my minnows. The fish never bit again for about an hour; and the heat was about 100 degrees, so I took off. I started driving through Baca County and somehow saw a sign for another CO State Wildlife area called Turk's Pond. It funny because the whole time I was growing up in SW Kansas and SE Colorado, I never heard of Turk's Pond, and yet there it was. Turk's Pond is allegedly full of Bullhead Catfish. The sign there says 'No Overnight Parking;' but I am planning another trip where I fish at Turk's Pond during the day and then go crash over by Two Buttes at night. I want to wait until the heat chills a bit, though. I loved the seclusion of Turk's Pond and the cool night breeze and free camping access of Two Buttes (with just a fishing license) and no park pass needed.

It’s a little ways out and you have to drive slow but well worth the drive.Private property signs seem to be inside entire property but very visible. The road double backs on its self a couple times so if going in after dark drive slow and careful There is a lake you can swim and fish in. Beautiful views from every angle. Restrooms were pit toilet but very clean. Hand pump water well with nice cold drinkable water. The bugs are hungry and plentiful so bring bug spray! Can get very windy at times Has fire pits no tables

Don't be fazed by the wind farm and cell tower on your way in. By the time you get to the reservoir, the skyline is clear of all machinery, and there are some gorgeous rock formations.

Some roads along the loop are fenced off as private, and some of the wire has been cut. It's hard to know what's what, but we camped freely and the others we saw did the same. We had to clear some weeds and build a fire pit, and there are plenty of places to do so. There were a couple of houses in view. Some seemed unoccupied.

The reservoir itself is pretty and we saw several flocks of pelicans fishing throughout our stay. The water is a murky green up close and it's fairly cold. Didn't seem very deep. Would have been fun to canoe, but be careful where you approach the water because the sediment quickly becomes like quicksand near the shore. Also seems like a good place to fish. Saw lots of them biting at flies.

At night we heard some people partying and we also heard a dull mechanical whirring that lasted until morning. Not quite sure what it was—perhaps irrigation pumps from nearby farms. There are also a couple of stray power lines scattered around.

A hidden lake that I'm glad we found! It was beautiful site with decent rd getting in and out of. I wouldn't suggest extremely large rvs to try it but my teardrop got in and out no problem. To the right of the boat landing is where we stayed there are posted signs all to the left....no sure what that's all about but we had a good time. Not sure if it's like this all the time but the wind was extremely harsh for our stay.