La Vista - Lake Isabel

Summary

La Vista Campground, situated in the Wet Mountains along the Colorado Birding Trail, overlooks Lake Isabel, a 40-acre lake developed for recreation. Visitors can enjoy non-motorized boating, fishing, hiking and cycling/motorcycling along the Snow Slide and Cisneros Trails. Facilities provide RV sites with electric hookups, and walk-in tent sites with picnic tables, campfire rings, and vault toilets and drinking water. The campground is surrounded by forests, with cool summer days, and offers access to the Pike and San Isabel National Forest and nearby attractions.

Overview

La Vista Campground is situated in a meadow overlooking the west side of the 40-acre Lake Isabel. It is set along the Frontier Pathways and Historic Byway in the Wet Mountains along one of the Colorado Birding Trails.

Lake Isabel is one of the few lakes in Colorado developed purely for recreation purposes. Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, the lake attracts many campers who come to hike, canoe, fish and spend time bird watching. St. Charles Creek flows near the campground and offers additional fishing opportunities.

Recreation

Lake Isabel welcomes non-motorized boating and fishing. Brown and brook trout are stocked in the lake and the St. Charles headwaters reap brook trout.

Visitors can enjoy hiking, bicycling or motorcycling on either the Snow Slide Trail and Cisneros Trail. The 15-mile Cisneros Trail, also open to ATV riders, leads to the heart of the Wet Mountains, through forests and open, wildflower speckled valleys. Along the way, the trail connects to St. Charles Trail, which heads to St. Charles Peak.

Facilities

Walk-in tent sites are 15 to 50 yards from the parking spurs. RV sites come with electric hookups and all sites include a picnic table, campfire ring and access to vault toilets and drinking water.

Natural Features

Shady pine and aspen trees are scattered throughout the campground. At 8,600 feet, the area enjoys cool summer days, a welcome relief from the heat in the plains far below.

The Pike and San Isabel National Forest includes over a million acres of wilderness and over half of Colorado's mountain peaks that reach above 14,000 feet.

Nearby Attractions

A nearby lodge provides paddle and rowboat rentals, groceries and a restaurant. Golf courses are about 15 minutes away.

Charges & Cancellations

Cancellations

Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee. 

A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a campsite.

Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee.

No-Shows

A no-show visitor is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Staff will hold a campsite until check-out time on the day following the arrival date.

No-shows are assessed $20.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's rate, taxes and applicable add-on for a campsite.  

Refunds

Visitors may submit a refund request through their Recreation.gov profile within 7 days of the end date of their reservation. Refunds will not be issued after the 7 days has ended.

Refunds for debit or credit card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank or credit card used to pay.

For check or cash purchases, Recreation.gov will mail a Treasury check for refunds of cash, check, or money order payments to the address associated with the reservation. Treasury check refunds may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive. 

In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team or facility manager will refund all fees and will attempt to notify you using the contact information within the Recreation.gov visitor profile.