Horseshoe Meadow Campground (recgovnpsdata)

While the Horseshoe Meadows area is incredibly beautiful and has trailheads for some of the major hikes in the area, the actual campground is confusing and poorly laid out. Horseshoe Meadows campground, not to be confused with Cottonwood Campground which is a mile to the north, is a walk in campground that is $6.00/night and the sites are difficult to distinguish from each other especially at night. The bathrooms have pit toilets and are well stocked with toilet paper but have no running water. If you hike South of the campground you can see the actual horseshoe meadows. On the west side of the campground is the Trailhead that will take you to Cottonwood Pass and the PCT.

great scenery with a large area to hike without even going up any significant elevation from the parking area. a few pit toilets and picnic benches. area is well kept. bear boxes available. Road is in good condition. lots of trails.

Absolutely a must hike. Starting from Horseshoe Meadows, Cottonwood Pass is the gateway to the northern part of Golden Trout Wilderness and provides access to the Pacific Crest Trail. Small streams meander through tree-rimmed meadows in this wilderness area named for California's state fish, the Golden Trout. Options for loop trips of various lengths branch out from Big Whitney Meadow. Following the Pacific Crest Trail north into Sequoia National Park leads to Crabtree Meadows and the headwaters of the Kern River. Moderate hike to Cottonwood lakes but Ever so beautiful!! Don’t miss it.

I first camped at Horseshoe Meadows a few years ago when I was doing some hiking on the PCT and JMT. At that time, I appreciated the darkness of the nighttime skies but had no real camera gear with me in order to take pictures. During the summer of 2018, while wrapping up an epic road trip through the American west, I was determined to get back to the southern Sierra to camp here yet again, this time with full photo gear. I was only able to stay for a single night, but with the help of some of my adjacent campground neighbors, I was able to snap a couple of quick pics to document the beautiful summer night skies. This photo was taken on 9/7/2018. Thanks to my LA-based "models" for this shot, who agreed to stand motionless for the 25 second duration of the shot. Horseshoe Meadows is not the darkest place in the lower 48, but it's VERY dark and the skies are a satisfying punctuation to a great camping experience in some of the most beautiful mountains in the world. The drive up is with it too!

Beautiful. Great for acclimating to higher altitude. $12/night self registration at the drive in sites. $6/night self registration at the hikers' walk-in sites, which also have parking spots. Low to no cell signal. This campground has at least two popular trail-heads for hiking... via Cottonwood Pass to the Pacific Coast Trail or from California Golden Trout through Cottonwood Lakes to Army or New Army Pass and up to Mt. Langley. There are also local trails that are well maintained.