By:
Submission
This campground is located adjacent to Highway 14 in an open ponderosa pine setting near its namesake, Sleeping Elephant Mountain. The mountain and the inherent sleeping elephant is visible from the campground. The Cache la Poudre River is nearby but it is mostly on private land within the immediate vicinity. There are 15 sites each with a picnic table and fire pit. This is an older facility and will not accommodate larger RVs. Popular activities in the area include fishing, hiking and scenic driving.
Drive 10 miles north of Fort Collins on U.S. Highway 287.Turn left (west) onto Highway 14 and proceed 43 miles to the campground.
Open as of June 25. Campsite 14 is great and cozy. Clean vault toilets but no running water at the spicket.
Campground has been closed since the 2020 fire. But the sleeping elephant is always worth a stop.
What an absolutely beautiful place! One of my favorite mountains! There’s nothing special about it, nothing that separates it to much from other Mountains except it’s shaped like a sleeping elephant! About an hours drive from Fort Collins up through Poudre Canyon, you can’t miss the sign lol! I however couldn’t find a trailhead to this beauty! If there is someone please comment! I bushwhacked the majority of it and followed a few elk trails and crossed the poudre to get to the top! So route finding is a must! During summer the waters rip through here, us caution crossing, as for winter ice is thick and solid, use caution and know what to look for when walking on ice. The peak is roughly 9,100 ft. With an isolation of 1.7 miles its quad peak is Boston Peak.
First time camping here! Currently costs $16.50. The vault toilets were very clean and the campsites were nice and clean too. I really like the bear locker each site has. Some of the campsites are closer to the road and had less trees around them for shade during the day. The sites also vary in size, with some have a much smaller area to set up a tent. You have to drive to another campground to purchase bundles of fire currently. $9 per bundle.
The river is on the other side of the road. We ended up driving to a free day use area to check out the river though (some day use areas cost money). Overall nice campground, especially for the price.
