Stanislaus River Campground

We don't camp here but come to swim late in the season when the flow has slowed significantly. It is easy to keep an eye on your little ones and best part is there is a secret swim hole nearby. Won't give it all away but if you want to camp here it is a good option for the family. There is fishing in this fork of the stanislaus river as well. Nearby lakes will keep you busy.

Very serene and absolutely beautiful. Especially midweek.. pretty much have the place to yourself.. you can hear the water, and everywhere is a beautiful view

We loved it. You get a "Lazy River " experience going down the river coming from the board information entry. The water is perfect temperature its very shallow and gets up to waistline deep (5'6). The campsite has 23 spots; 1 had caution tape on it and one the table was broken. But I had Spot 1 and its very spacious we car camped for over night and had fun. The trees gives alot of privacy and it was quiet for the most part. I and another site played music til about 10pm and it got quiet after that. We used the provided grill on the pit (yes we clean it before use) the food came out good. Everyone there thats been there for days are really friendly and helpful. ALSO the water pump needs to be lifted 3x before water comes out and BRING A PEN. An bug spray

You'll find Stanislaus River Campground about three miles down a paved road off of Highway 4 at an elevation of about 6,300 feet. The entrance road to the campground is a little rough at the time of this writing (July, 2023), but the dirt road through the campground is in good shape. All the campsites are situated on the right side of the road as you go in with the river on the left. There's a turn-around loop at the end of the road, but passing traffic can be tight in places. We stayed mid-week in July and had a selection of sites to chose from on Monday afternoon. Many of the sites offer shade, but a few are open and could be hot in high summer. There are three pit toilets and two hand-operated water pumps (non-potable water), but one pump and one toilet were out of order. A port-a-potty unit was set up as a replacement. Very aggressive mosquitos pounced on us as soon as we opened our car door. We had a variety of repellants, but found them to be only moderately effective. The campground has a lot to offer. There's a wonderful swimming hole near the entrance and the river babbles along just loud enough to be soothing. The camp host was great: she kept the bathrooms stocked with toilet paper and even supplied air freshener in them. The grounds are far enough from the highway that there is no traffic noise at all. Still, we will not be back. By the middle of the week, the campground had filled to capacity, and we realized just how closely the sites were spaced. At that point, privacy was lost. Our neighbors were friendly and the grounds remained generally quiet, but it still felt quite cramped. It's good to note, too, that the day use portion of the campground was very active. Busses full of kids arrived daily to swim in the river. If your idea of high-country camping is solitude and communing with nature, this is not the place for you.

Awesome camground. I think there are only 12 or 16 campsites first come first served. The scenery is awesome and there is a little sandy beach area along the river safe for small children to play in. About half a mile down stream is a hidden gem. I don't wanna give it away so you'll have to see for yourself. Fishing along the river is very good. The way we set up is with very light tackle, a salmon egg and small hook. Let out some line, throw it up stream and let it flow down. Even the smallest pools hold fish. My cousin does great with his fly rod. The restroom's do not have flushing toilets but were kept clean everytime we've gone. There are a couple of water pumping stations to collect water and bring back to your site if needed. The insects are not a big issue but last year (Aug 2016) there seemed to be a yellow jacket problem. I'm saying a swarm that was unbearable at the last 2 sites nearest to the river. Call ahead to see if it's still an issue or stop by the rangers station on the way in and ask. Only a 10/15 min drive to Lake Alpine. You will not be disappointed.