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The Caribou Townsite is five miles northwest of Nederland. There are 11 numbered, designated campsites located along the National Forest System Road 505, which emerges to the north and west from Five Points. See the "At A Glance" section below for important information. A four wheel drive high clearance vehicle is recommended. There are no facilities in this area. Camping is permitted in designated campsites only (click here for a map). The Boulder Ranger District Motor Vehicle Use Map displays National Forest System routes open to motorized travel and is available online and at the Boulder Ranger District offfice. This road is open seasonally. For current information on road openings and closures, check the Road Status Table.
From Nederland, follow Colorado Highway 72 west for 0.5 miles from the traffic circle. Turn west on County Road 128 and follow it five miles to Five Points (identified by the five-way intersection; loosely-organized parking area and gated roads). Numbered campsites are scattered along both segments of NFSR 505 and its off-shoots within 1.5 miles of Five Points.
This is part of the Arkansas River Headwater Recreational Area. All of the locations have no water, electric or dump. There is none at any of the campsites and the toilets are compost (out house) style. However, we were right on the river and the mountains are beautiful. It was our first boondocking experience and it went very well.
Nice plcae to camp. Tent or camper. Make sure you book correct site. Our camper was 32' long and barely fit with our tahoe also.
This is just not worth it. No natural shade except a couple sites near wetland area so hello mosquitos. Obviously you cannot live without a canopy. The river in this area is fast moving and hard to access from the banks so you're not walking over to get your feet wet and relax. There is one area to enjoy the river at the end of day use area but the biting flies were awful. It's super windy through the campground, no fires windy. Second time in my life I ended a trip early but couldn't wait to leave this site.
This is a great campsite. I have come here two years in a row and stay one night and raft the next day. Each campsite has space for a tent that is all gravel, a picnic table and a metal fire pit with a grate to cook something. There is good space between each campsite. There is a bathroom too on site, no running water. You can walk across the highway and there is an overlook over the water. This is where the five point rapid is. There is an eddy that is sandy where you can get in river, just be careful to not go out too far and get sucked into the white water. There is no phone service here. I often see big horn sheep from my campsite up the hill.
Great basic campsite! You can access a swimming area under the bridge, with a rock wall that slows the current. We stayed at site #1004 and it has a raised gravel tent platform a bit uphill from our picnic table and fire pit, and it was a beautiful campsite.
