Description

With 31 sites, Doane Valley Campground is a great escape in the Palomar Mountain area. Located in northern San Diego County, it's one of the few areas in SoCal with a Sierra Nevada-like vibe. One thing: some of the sites are known to be on a slight incline, so if you want to avoid that then look for the 1-8 loop.

Cedar Grove Group Campground, is close by, so you won’t have to worry about massive parties right next to your site. However, Doane Valley sites are somewhat close together, so you might have to get to know some of your neighbors.

Campsite area
Tent or RV sites
32 sites
Up to 25 guests per site
Up to 6 vehicles
No wheelchair access
Essentials
Campfires allowed
Toilet available
Pets allowed
Amenities
Potable water available
Showers available
Picnic table available

Activities

Offered near the campground.

Fishing

When’s the last time you tried your hand at some good ol fashioned trout fishing? If it was a while ago or even yesterday, the ...Read more

Hiking

Let’s get down to the real business of Palomar Mountain SP, and that’s the gorgeous multitude of hiking trails available for ev...Read more

Swimming

If you have the guts to venture out into the remote Barker Valley in the corner of Palomar Mountain, you’ll be rewarded with hi...Read more

Wildlife watching

OK, what’s a dense forest without some great wildlife accompaniment? It’s like a musical without music. Thankfully the musical ...Read more

Terrain

Natural features you'll find at Doane Valley Campground.

Forest
River, stream, or...
Swimming hole
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40 Reviews

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Hipcamper Stephanie
Stephanie M.
recommends this listing.
August 11th, 2022

Great campground. We had site 26 in Aug. There was plenty of flat space. We fit our 8 person tent with a porch and a 2 person tent easily. The area for the larger tent was in the shade all day. The rest of the site is in full sun in the early AM only. There’s a good amount of shade the rest of the day.

Bathrooms and showers are clean but there is limited privacy between the two shower stalls. Bring dollar bills for converting to tokens.

Almost every site has stairs. The stairs for 26 are not bad but the adjacent site 25 had tons of stairs and doesn’t have a lot of flat space.

There are lots of flying bugs. It’s worse in the AM and late afternoon. A small fan worked like a charm.

Hipcamper Ms
Ms D.
didn't provide a recommendation.
June 12th, 2021

Stayed here for the first time this weekend. Pros: really nice campground, cleanest restrooms I've ever seen at a campground, showers available, shaded sites, some decently private. Cons: the slope, looked like almost every site was on a slope too. You have to consider it when sleeping and cooking. Gets very cold at night, it was in the 80s in the day and mid 40s overnight. The flies were terrible. We used bug spray and candles and they were still swarming us. But the worst is that that there's not much to do unless you like to hike a ton. Would have been amazing if there was a swimming hole nearby, but with little kids it's not possible to hike miles in deep to swim. But overall a very nice campground!

Hipcamper Cecilia
Cecilia T.
recommends this listing.
August 18th, 2020

Due to Covid I have been dragging my husband to every campsite I can get us into all to avoid crowds and to practice social distancing while enjoying a bit of nature this was our 4th site we visited, By far my favorite over all , the trees alone made it my favorit nice shade far far far away deep in the mountain. nice size campsite oh & the stars wow breathtaking

Hipcamper Domanique
Domanique A.
recommends this listing.
April 2nd, 2019

Did a group camping trip here at the end of March:
- Drove past Lake Elsinore and saw the super bloom which was really cool
- Sites 1-3 are on the side of a steep hill. Fine for adults, we were super nervous with toddlers who weren't very stable.
- Site 1 fit a shiftpod + 2 smaller tents, very slanty ground
- Site 2 fit a shiftpod + 1 small tent, very slanty ground
- Site 3 only had room for 1 10x10' tent, had gnarly steps getting into the site, and the slanty ground wasn't too bad
- Site 31 was optimal - flat ground, space for multiple tents, and two long picnic tables for group meals
- each site had potable water, and the bathrooms were close and clean
- sites 4, 7, and 8 were in the middle, and ontop of each other

Hipcamper Michael
Michael C.
didn't provide a recommendation.
May 31st, 2017

Super rad campground, surrounded by trees and some awesome incline campsites. Felt like we had the wilderness as our backyard at our campsite. Great nature trail stemming from the campground as well. Will definitely be back!

Hipcamper Garrett
Garrett B.
recommends this listing.
April 20th, 2017

Excellent facilities. Restrooms, showers, and very clean and well maintained.

Hipcamper John
John P.
recommends this listing.
April 14th, 2017

Get directions beforehand, you may lose service as you get close.

Hipcamper Lia
Lia G.
didn't provide a recommendation.
March 20th, 2016

Nice clean campground- some sites are really small for a large tent and the parking of a large truck could be tricky. Also, some sites you need to carry your things up a few steps. It was quite and perfect

Hipcamper Jennica V.
recommends this listing.
October 21st, 2018
Hipcamper Amanda M.
recommends this listing.
November 8th, 2018
Hipcamper Michael & Stephanie G.
recommends this listing.
December 4th, 2019
Hipcamper Ms D.
has mixed feelings towards this listing.
June 12th, 2021
Hipcamper Evan C.
recommends this listing.
July 20th, 2018
Hipcamper Gwen F.
recommends this listing.
August 31st, 2018
Hipcamper Madeline F.
recommends this listing.
September 10th, 2018
Hipcamper Mike H.
recommends this listing.
October 23rd, 2018
Hipcamper Bradford G.
recommends this listing.
March 9th, 2019
Hipcamper Ashlyn B.
recommends this listing.
April 23rd, 2019
Hipcamper Gary A.
recommends this listing.
May 30th, 2018
Hipcamper Joyce B.
recommends this listing.
May 25th, 2018
Hipcamper Ian M.
recommends this listing.
May 20th, 2018
Hipcamper Megan  C.
recommends this listing.
May 16th, 2018
Hipcamper Staci J.
recommends this listing.
March 28th, 2018
Hipcamper Andrea L.
recommends this listing.
March 17th, 2018
Hipcamper Ellie H.
recommends this listing.
January 7th, 2018
Hipcamper Tricia C.
recommends this listing.
September 16th, 2017
Hipcamper Otis P.
recommends this listing.
September 6th, 2017
Hipcamper Vanessa F.
recommends this listing.
August 8th, 2017
Hipcamper Jowilla R.
recommends this listing.
August 5th, 2017
Hipcamper Randall G.
recommends this listing.
June 23rd, 2017
Hipcamper Will M.
recommends this listing.
May 31st, 2017
Hipcamper Anna S.
recommends this listing.
May 29th, 2017
Hipcamper Adam R.
recommends this listing.
May 7th, 2017
Hipcamper Matt B.
recommends this listing.
May 6th, 2017
Hipcamper Colby R.
recommends this listing.
April 16th, 2017
Hipcamper Marisol G.
recommends this listing.
April 4th, 2017
Hipcamper Lou L.
recommends this listing.
April 1st, 2017
Hipcamper Judy J.
recommends this listing.
March 26th, 2017
Hipcamper Angelo S.
recommends this listing.
March 25th, 2017
Hipcamper Destiny I.
recommends this listing.
March 8th, 2017
Park
Palomar Mountain State Park
State
California
Country
United States
Phone Number
(760) 742-3462
Directions
View on Google Maps
Official Website
View Website
Coordinates
33.344° N, 116.901° W
Unknown price
Tent Only: 18 Sites
(Up to 8 people per site)
Unknown price
Tent Only - Group: 2 Sites
(Up to 15 people per site)
Unknown price
Tent / RV / Trailer - Group: 1 Site
(Up to 25 people per site)
Unknown price
Tent / RV / Trailer: 11 Sites
(Up to 8 people per site)