South Bay Campground

South Bay Campground is Horsetooth Reservoir County Park’s largest and most comfortable campground. Located at the southern end of Horsetooth Reservoir’s 1,900 acres, it offers shoreline camping and access to one of the larger water parks in the Front Range corridor, frequented by 500,000 visitors annually to camp, hike, swim, paddle, kayak, and boulder. The park, being close to Fort Collins, is an attractive playground with easy access.

Several camping options are available at South Bay. Sites are broken into several clusters, each offering a different assortment of camping styles. On the east side of the campground, seven cabins are available for reservation, boasting two beds and a tent pad for extra visitors. Set away from the shore on an adjacent loop, eight RV sites offer full hookups. The remaining sites, broken into three clusters and huddled near the shore around the reservoir’s southern tip, offer electrical hook-ups.

Campsites at South Bay Campground are level, large, and many are right on the shoreline. The campground is sparsely vegetated, and campsites are open and exposed to neighbors—there’s little privacy here. However, the best sites offer some, if minimal, shade. Well-maintained amenities include token-operated shower facilities, picnic tables, and fire rings.

Horsetooth Reservoir is a premier bouldering area. There is ample fishing for a number of species in the reservoir, and the parks department stocks the reservoir regularly. The park boasts an aggregate 81 miles of trails to hikers, runners, and mountain bikers.

​Note: Sites S3-S45 and S74-S81 are open year round. All other sites are open from early April through the end of October. Call 970.619.4570 for seasonal date specifics.