Cerro Alto Campground NFS- San Luis Obispo - Los Padres

[TenOC]

Planning a trip in May 2018.

I am looking for a place to spend 2 to 3 nights. We will be coming from Death Valley on our way to Hearst Castle and then to Sequoia & Kings Canyon. We will also visit the wine country in the area.

I read the information at NFS Info

6 campsite for 30 foot RV

There appears to drinking water. Does anyone know if here is a dump site.

Has anyone camped there? I could not find any reviews?

[profdant139]

TenOC, that sounds like a good route -- as I am sure you know, distances in California are longer than they appear on a map! So no matter how you sequence your destinations, there will be a lot of back and forth.

If you are heading from DV to the central coast in May, maybe stop off at the Carrizo Plain -- you can see the San Andreas fault up close (straddling it!!), and all of the stream beds are offset due to crustal movement. Plus the wildflowers are good to great (depending on how much rain we get this winter), and there is wildlife (antelopes etc.), and good boondocking and star-gazing.

You'd catch Highway 58 at Mojave and head west to Carrizo. And then 58 to the coast is not a bad road -- I have towed my trailer on it a couple of times.

Moving on to Sequoia, have you decided how much time you want to spend there? That is my favorite area of the Western Sierra -- we like it more than Yosemite. But if you are not a hiker, there is not all that much to do -- maybe three or four days' worth.

If you can live without hookups, I recommend Azalea Campground, up near Grant Grove -- it is big rig friendly. (I've forgotten what kind of a rig you now have, sorry to say.)

Also, Dorst Campground, near Lodgepole, is also ok for bigger rigs. Lodgepole Campground is less so -- the sites are smaller.

And there is good boondocking up near Big Meadows. Sometimes, the gates on the forest roads are open in May, depending on the snowpack.

[TenOC]

F-TROUP wrote:
Coming from Death Valley I'd do Sequoia and Kings Canyon then to the coast.

We want to do Sequoia and Kings Canyon as well as Yosemite. I thought DV -- Coast -- Sequoia -- Yosemite then SF would be best.

I welcome other thoughts.

[F-TROUP]

Coming from Death Valley I'd do Sequoia and Kings Canyon then to the coast.

[mrw8i]

Rocky2 wrote:
A good alternative is the Washburn campground of San Simeon SP, two miles north of Cambria. It is called primative, which they define as no flush toilets. The water has been turned off for the last year or so. It is up the hill from the original San Simeon campground which I have found crowded and noisy.

^^ This ^^

Mid-June 2016 we made reservations for Washburn - got there on a Wednesday, it was 95% non-occupied so lots of open sites to choose from - although the ranger will assign you a site when you check in. The ranger assigned us a very large site, and I was able to park the 35' 5th wheel with no problem. By Friday the campground was almost full - and a 35' 5th wheel might have been issue when trying to find a site it would fit in. Washburn is quieter than below. There was a water filling station below on the main road in the main San Simeon Campground.

You are about 10 miles south of Hearse Castle from this location - and only about 2 miles north of Cambria if you need groceries.

[maddog348]

Do a Google Earth search and look at the road in. Driven to it thru it - car - would not camp there. JM2¢ YMMV

[Cordelia]

We have camped there with our truck camper with no problems. The road in is one lane, not for longer rigs! Lots of poison oak, Fills up on the weekends, I would make a reservation if you want one of the longer sites. It has been very quiet at night for us. Never had any security issues.

[Rocky2]

A good alternative is the Washburn campground of San Simeon SP, two miles north of Cambria. It is called primative, which they define as no flush toilets. The water has been turned off for the last year or so. It is up the hill from the original San Simeon campground which I have found crowded and noisy.

[salem]

In May you shouldn't have much trouble finding a place in Morro Bay, which is just a few miles down hwy. 41. (west) We've driven through the park in question and did not feel safe. Now, their may be gobs of people who will respond and say it's the nicest park they've ever stayed in. For us, we did not like it. Try "RVParkReviews.com" and search Morro Bay. Good luck in your travels.

[Tiger4x4RV]

Campendium has 3 reviews (none of them mine), 2 of which say it is not a place for RV's.

I also did a Google search, which turned up some photos and some reviews. There was mention of poison oak and ticks, but those are everywhere in this area.

I drove in there once about 5 years ago, did not like it, and left. One lane road. The camp area felt much more closed in than I like. There is no dump station.

Some people like it, some do not.

Have you looked at San Simeon State Park? Great place. Two different campgrounds.