Upper Mill Creek Campground: "making the best of our worst spot" Top 5 Page for this destination Rocky Mountain National Park Hotel Tip by richiecdisc

Our second and final night in Rocky Mountain National Park's backcountry was spent at Upper Mill Creek. This was a dark and unpleasant spot and a sad way to finish up our 27 days in the backcountry of US National Parks in the summer of 2008.

It was good that we arrived so late as we basically just ate dinner and got in the tent. We had spent some time at Mill Creek Basin Campground not all that far from here and were glad we did. If I was to do this circuit again, I would prefer to camp there as it was more open with nicer views.

Unique Qualities: Upper Mill Creek is located in a very dense new forest so the trees are very thin and closely packed together. It allows very little light through especially late afternoon. Mill Creek provided your water source and it was more pleasant down there so not a bad idea to take your meals closer to it. We actually walked to Bierstadt Lake for breakfast in the morning as it was not too far and was on our way back to complete our three-day circuit.

Comparison: least expensive
Directions: Upper Mill Creek Campground is reached by a variety of trails, the shortest of which is from Holloway Park Trailhead. It is only 1.7 miles but rises steeply for 800 feet. We hiked about 5.5 miles from Odessa Lake, not counting a side trip to Spruce Lake.
Price: less than US$20
Theme: Campground