Little Gem

We booked the two sites available on Charmon’s land to go camping. We had one trailer and two tent campers, 6 people in total. I think we are one of the first people to camp on Charmon’s land or she’s new to Hipcamp. Overall we had a great time and would recommend staying on her land, but I think the description of the property should be improved so you know what you’re signing up for as this site might not be for everyone.

Positives:
- property is right on the river
- each site is fairly large and can easily accommodate trailers which is nice for mixed groups
- the land is in a great location, close to trailheads and Estes park
- one of the sites has great free cover which was helpful when it rained for the tent campers

Downsides:
- the two sites are not next to each other, there is a trailer site in between them with a full time resident staying there, so it’s not ideal for groups or people wanting full privacy. Charmon owns all of the land so the resident may not be there in the future but it was a strange surprise for us to see him there and for him to be in the middle of the two spots. It would be more convenient for a resident to be on the end. Either way communication about the sites locations and a potential resident would be good for future bookings.
- the sites are right off of a moderately trafficked county road. We had our pups with us and we didn’t feel comfortable keeping them off leash given how close the cars were. However, the positive is the river noise blocks out any road noise which was awesome!!
- there are no tent pads, it would be great as a future improvement to have some cleared off pieces of flat ground to set up tents (not necessary just nice to have)

Again, overall it was a nice camping experience however the lack of communication about a resident on site and the site locations was a major concern for us. Both issues are fixable by the host in the future.

Charmon gave good directions on how to get to her place in our RV. We came in at night and were still able to find it. Problem was, there were two driveways. One driveway already had an RV and also had two cars parked in spots (possibly a more permanent resident). There was no way to access what looked like a fairly level RV spot next to the existing RV due to two trucks being there. So we went in the second driveway. We couldn’t find a place to get level. There is not a lot of space. This space doesn’t quite seem RV ready. We finally gave up after trying to turn the RV in a pretty tight spot. We just slept lopsided.

The Little Gem site has a really pretty creek on one side and the highway on the other. It’s not a big space. It is also not expensive so that is a bonus. We paid for two nights but only stayed one. We ended up at an RV camp the next night. The kids just needed more space to run around that wasn’t near the highway. Charmon was nice and answered all my questions. There is no cell service for Verizon within 30 minutes of the camp so download directions in advance. And if you need WiFi the Town Hall has free WiFi at the time of this review (we were still working so needed to check it periodically).
One last note-there didn’t seem to be any accessible trails from this spot but there was a really cool hiking trail about three miles up the road called West Creek Trail Loop. Download it on All trails as part of the trail is washed out and hard to figure out without a map.

The site is off the road, but it is right next to the stream looking up a mountainside. The 3 sites are spaced apart so you have your privacy. The area is kept up nicely. We were very happy with the site.

If you want somewhere cheap to stay near RMNP then it’s good, if you want privacy or peace and quiet it’s not for you. It’s right on the road and there is constant traffic so good luck finding a place to use the bathroom. We were less than satisfied and I even had to clean the campsite just to park my truck due to rocks the size of my head scattered all over the site. We were very unsatisfied and left 2 days early.

Response from Charmon, the Host, on July 6th, 2020

HI Joseph, I may need to change the listing so that it reads "it sits on the road" in the first sentence. I am so sorry you missed that in the post. And yes you are correct, there are rocks and even boulders in those darn ROCKY Mtns. I do own some property down in Louisiana however if you guys are interested in terrain with no rocks.

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Remove vote :(

The stream running next to the camping spot was amazing and there were lots of rainbow trout. Very well maintained by the property manager. It was quick walk to get into the charming small town nearby and a great trail called Crosier Mnt. You can’t tell well from the photos but the whole front border of the property is the road. We would definite stay again!

Great little spot! Right off the road, but little traffic and the creek made for a quiet stay! Great place to stay when visiting Rocky Mountain National Park. It was only a short drive, and worth it to be away from all of the people! Wonderful spot would love to stay again!

Beautiful and you can’t hear the road over the river. Just sit facing river and watch squirrels play. Beautiful rocks to look at. Peaceful

Cool spot for the money. Right off the road and right by the North fork of the Big Thompson (I think). Enjoyed a quick run up to Estes for the weekend and worked well.

It was a great stay! The information given after booking is very helpful. Having the stream so close to the site was a huge benefit! The road passing the site is a 25mph limit - we never heard a car pass during the night. Only downside is that there is a light that is automatically lit all night.