CAMP DIARY: CHILAO CAMPGROUND
Review of Chilao Campground in angeles National Forest
Quarantine has me going back to year-old to-do lists!
Anyone else? As of this writing, due to COVID-19, California is under a “safer at home” order, accompanied by the rest of the country practicing social distancing through the end of April. Los Angeles, where I live, has taken it a step further and closed all local parks and trails. Seeing as I can’t travel (even locally), I’ve taken the isolation time to go back through blog posts that I had every intention of writing, and for one reason or another never happened! My hope is that these posts can give both you and I something to look forward to. I can’t be the only one making plans on how I’m getting outside when this is all over!
So, with out further ado, I hope you enjoy my review and guide of Chilao Campground in Angeles National Forrest. Please let me know if it’s added to your camping list, or if you end up visiting, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
As a quick disclaimer- this campground and everything I am recommending is currently closed. Please do not attempt to camp or hike in these areas until it is safe and advised to do so.
Deciding to stay at chilao campground
In the midst of planning and saving for our trip to Havasupai last year, Charlie and I decided to keep our 2nd Anniversary plans local. And thats the beauty of LA! We can drive an hour and a half outside of the city and be in a whole new world. Our Anniversary is at the beginning of April, making it a bit of a wildcard for weather, especially up in the mountains. For example, this year, we are still experiencing tons of rain, meaning there might still be snow in the mountains. Last year, we got fairly lucky! The days were in the mid to high 60’s, making us confident we would be fine overnight to head into Angeles National Forest. Previously, we had stayed at Buckhorn, and really loved it, but figured it would be a good time to try out a new campground. We knew Chilao was one of the larger campgrounds, so we hedged our bets that it was too early in the season for the campground to full.
Overall, I would camp here again, but would favor Buckhorn over Chilao. I think Chilao is a good back up option if Buckhorn, which has less than half as many sites, is full.
included in this diary:
Chilao Campground Review
General Info
Booking
Sites
Amenities
Things to Do Near Chilao Campground
Trail to Mt Hillyer and Horse Flats
Chilao Visitor’s Center
Newcomb’s Ranch
Field Notes
Tips for visiting
Bucket List items for future visits
chilao campground:
If you’re looking for forest camping right outside of Los Angeles, Chilao Campground is a great option! Chilao sits an hour and a half’s drive from downtown Los Angeles, making it a popular getaway for Angelenos. Located in Angeles National Forest and right next to the San Gabriels, Chilao offers lots of sites, surrounded by lovely San Gabriel views. This campground is most popular in the summer months and holiday weekends. There are 80 sites divided between two loops, so a good chance you will find something here. Keep in mind lots of sites means lots of campers, making it one of the busier and probably nosier campgrounds in Angeles National Forest.
How to Reserve:
You don’t! Both loops are first come, first served.
However, you will need an Adventure Pass to camp. They are $5 a day, or you can purchase one for $30 a year. I opt for the annual pass and picked it up from my local REI.
Sites:
There are two loops at Chilao, totaling approx 80 sites. The first loop is called Little Pines, and the second loop is Manzanita. Sites are $12 per night and 2 cars per site. You will fill out an envelope, put in the appropriate amount of cash and drop it where marked at the entrance. You will tear off a coupon from the envelope to display at your site. See the picture of our coupon displayed at our site above.
We stayed at site 9 in the Manzanita loop. This site was at the edge of the loop, almost at the bottom of an incline, and offered quite a bit of brush, giving us some more privacy than other sites. If we go back, I would like to find one higher up on the incline, on the outside of the loop. Those seemed to have more desirable views!
Amenities:
Toilets: Vault toilets available. I believe there are six through out the campground. Our site was pretty much in between two and it only took us a few minutes to walk to either one.
Trash: Be sure to dispose of any trash! Receptacles are placed all through the campground. Leave it better than you found it! I was fairly shocked to walk around the campground and see as much trash as we did. At one point from our loop we could see down into a valley and noticed a mini fridge?! We didn’t see any rangers around, but we did make note of this to the visitor’s center when we visited the next day.
Firewood: Only purchase in the area.
Water: Potable water is available, but should be boiled for 5 minutes before use. I would recommend bringing your own. Charlie and I use this collapsible water cube that we bring with our own water from home.
Things to do near chilao campground:
Hike to Mount Hillyer
You can find my hiking guide for Mount Hillyer here! This trailhead was about a half way between our campsite and the visitors center, maybe half a mile. We decided to drive to the trailhead, and park in one of the 4 parking spots available. For those not staying at Chilao, you can park at the visitor’s center and then walk to the trailhead. This hike was less than 4 miles round trip, and I would rate it as easy/moderate. The trail will take you through piney forest, and eventually out into a large bouldering area. We really enjoyed climbing up on the boulders to take in the view. We also came across mountain bikers and bouldering friends.
Chilao Visitor’s Center:
We followed signage from our campsite towards the Visitor’s Center and had a super pleasant walk! It was close to a mile and a half for us coming from our site. The walk is well shaded, and we passed by a group campground as well as a large picnic area for day use. The building itself is a super unique looking dome! Our first day, it was closed by the time we arrived, but the second day we came back there was a ranger. Inside there were many educational items, I could tell a lot of kids and groups come to learn here. We always like stopping into visitor centers to chat with the rangers, learn about the area from an expert, and take in any tidbits or things to do I might not have found online.
Newcomb’s Ranch
Newcomb’s Ranch is a another half mile from the Visitor’s Center out onto Angeles Crest Highway. Charlie and I love stopping here on our way out from hikes or camping. Its a fun stop to grab some food and a beer as reward after a hike, or before making the trek back into the city. Newcomb’s Ranch is popular with bikers and car enthusiasts, and we enjoy the people watching and meeting we can do here! The menu here is simple American fare, but you can count on a good burger or sandwich.
field notes:
Tips For Visiting:
In the summer and popular weekends, arrive early! This campground has plenty of sites but is first come, first served.
For sites with more shade, bee-line it to Manzanita loop.
To Do’s for Our Next Visit:
Devils Canyon - challenging 6 mile hike through a wooded canyon.
Bouldering near Mount Hillyer! We encountered a few different groups of bouldering baddies on our way up to Mt Hillyer. Most of them come through Horse Flats campsite, but as of this writing that campsite is closed. I believe parking is allowed along the highway, and you can hike in.
Gear:
Tent: For car camping when we’re looking for a bit more room, we use this Coleman 4 person tent. We’ve had ours for a handful of years, so we own an older version of what is linked below. Its affordable, easy to set-up and durable. We expect many good years with this tent!
The tent pictured in this post is our REI Passage 2 backpacking tent . We got this in 2017, so the version linked is the more recent model. Incredibly sturdy for how easy the set up is. Love this tent as well.
Camp Stove: Again, for car camping we bring this propane stove. It has 2 burners so we can make some more involved meals. If you only need to boil water then I highly recommend a jet boil. No doubt it’s a more expensive investment, but worth it. If you don’t have the cash and arent backpacking, the coleman gas stove will work just fine!
** keep in mind you will need to purchase gas for which ever stove you choose. I am not linking propane or jet boil fuel here because its expensive to ship. I know Walmart has Coleman propane and REI has jet boil fuel.
Camp Chairs: Charlie and I really enjoy sitting around the campfire at night! The sites all have picnic tables but we enjoy our time so much more when we can sit by the fire keeping warm and talking. We like these ultralight folding chairs as they pack up super tiny and are easy to put together.
