Clean. Safe. Helpful staff. Spacious sites. Lovely pool. Close to lots of fun LB activities!read more

Sheeeeeesh! So many negative reviews I had to come break it up with our groups positive experience…read more We camped here the last weekend of July for the Warped Tour music festival down the street. This was our first time camping in a park like this, we've only done some dry camping in the desert prior. I didn't know what to expect but was incredibly happy with everything. Booking online was easy peasy. Checking in was just as easy. Checkout was even easier as we didn't have to do anything besides pack up and go. Now our stay, we were a little worried on the size of the site as we had friends joining us with a second vehicle. Upon arrival we were ecstatic to see that our trailer, tow vehicle, and friends car all fit into our space and still gave us plenty of room to hangout. They had amenities like a bathroom/shower/pool, little market etc. We didn't have time for a dip in the pool but it looked well kept and nice. Our friends used the bathrooms and said they were standard campground showers. I didn't feel they were super necessary as the site has full hookups so I took a nice hot shower in our travel trailer. But hey, they're there if you need! The WiFi wasn't great, but it worked okay. If having high speed internet is important to you when traveling, get a hot spot on your phone or one of those spaceX satellite things. Anyway, we had a great experience, no issues at all. We already booked a site for next year as did a few of our friends!

The best of the best do recommend the best for me because I'm here on a date but beautiful sceneryread more

As a regular attendee to the Topanga Banjo and Fiddle Contest, I pride myself on planning the best…read moreway to enjoy the day which includes spending the night here. I had booked a site 3 months in advance and had forgotten that I'd rebooked a different site days later after I booked the first site in a quest for perfection. Upon arriving of course I had forgotten all of this and insisted to the park rangers at the gate that they had the wrong info. They graciously and kindly accommodated me regardless. Then the fun started as I realized not only were they right but I also insisted on the lesser enjoyable site. Hat in hand I had to return to the gate and 'splained myself. Enter Alexa. With charm, deference, humor and all around good vibes she settled the whole affair and made everything right. Good people need to be recognized. Alexa is def one of them.

You know those Karen's…read more Think twice about late check outs . " I don't care if it rains, you have to be out by 11.00" Make sure you check out on time. I personally believe Karen could have a better approach by not having a Nasty ATTITUDE at bringing up check out time to customers that being in revenue to city of HB. We're not children and we do understand rules and guideline. I've been called on a paid reservation- with people over staying and causing us to have a later check in. We don't make a big deal about it. We understand. Mind you park has several vacancy opening, Karen called me back to ask me if I wanted to re- book with her. I believe this is also not part of HB guidelines to book with a personal of HB. ( from what I was told in past )

Been here like 4 times - One of the best campgrounds we've been to! This is the closest we can get…read moreto waterfront living - it is right on the strand, lots of parking for people who want to visit you, good WiFi, water and electricity and an onsite dump station included in price. You can walk along the beach or cross the street for some food and cocktails, and there are public bathrooms available. The lot is gate guarded and the lady that works it is SO friendly and helpful - totally engaging and sweet. Plus the people that camp there seem to always be so nice.

This campsite cost $20 per night and has toilets that drop into the ground and a spigot for water…read more You'll need to bring everything else for your comfort and truck out your trash. It's about 45 minutes from the bottom of the hill off Sierra Madre Ave and San Gabriel Canyon rd. No cellphone service a mile from that intersection going north into the canyon. If you're going in two or more cars you should bring walkie talkies and that'll be useful when you look for a campsite if it's packed or all sites are taken. Drive around separately to locate a site for yourself. Some sites allow for single car usage and others allowed for three or more cars. The car that pays for the campsite doesn't need to buy the adventure pass but those additional cars do and it's $5 per day. As soon as you find a site. Park your vehicle there and trek over to the ranger station and tell them the Loop your on and the campsite # your at and pay the fee. They'll give you a piece of paper you attach to your site number so when the ranger comes by to verify they'll know you paid. They have trails to Crystal lake and around the campsite. Bring plenty of drinkable water especially during the summer months. Most campsites have shade but some do not. There are roughly 125 campsites in all. You can just go there for the day but you'll still need an adventure pass to park in the parking lot. The actual lake as of summer 2025 is low and not safe to swim in but you can fish and you'll need a fishing license to do that. You don't need a 4x4 vehicle to go up to the campsite as the roads are all paved. Come and check this campground out in your next adventure to your local mountains!

Crystal Lake campground bathrooms need help! Let me emphasize this...the bathrooms here need…read moreserious help. I love camping and I understand that the idea of maintaining a toilet may be difficult in a forest environment, but these facilities need either regular maintenance or should just be shut down. The smell is horrific, and the amount of flies in the bathroom feasting on the poop that is drenched along the rim and bowl of the toilets says to me that these spaces haven't been cleaned in months. I really enjoyed Crystal Lake itself and the grounds, but I highly recommend that people plan an alternative solution for bathroom needs. In my opinion it is required that you bring your own toiletries and I feel the best solution is to bring your own portable toilet tent. I noticed others had made this choice and if I had known, my 3 day trip would have been better. On one night, in the women's bathroom, someone decided to poop on the floor. I imagine pooping in the toilet was too gross for them. The level of abhorrence that person must have felt is truly undeniable.

Best firewood available in surrounding areas. Small sites but beautiful. When it's quiet at night…read moreyou can hear the waves.

Always an awesome time we have with family & friends! We have camped every year 20+ years! Now…read moreyou can reserve the actual sites you want online 6 months in advance! As Arnold says "I'll be back" :)

This is an amazing beach campsite. We stayed at #7, which I recommend for three reasons: 1. sandy…read moreground makes for better tent options, 2. there's more space here. #6 to the south is farther away and you only have the residents of #8 to the north passing by. 3. This site is a bit elevated from the water, which makes the dolphin and seal watching a bit easier. A lot of people recommend site #1 which is a cool site because it's in its own secluded cove, but it's very rocky there and views of the water are limited. We were there in early January and witnessed hundreds of dolphins diving and splashing in the kelp forests off shore. I have never seen anything like it. You will want to get a locker of water and wood for each day you are there. So two days, two lockers. Be sure to stop at the office in Two Harbors to get the lock codes for those lockers before you set out. Very special. I have also posted this in my review of the Trans-Catalina Trail, but be forewarned that if you want to take the trail to Parsons from Two Harbors, which goes over the mountains, it's VERY difficult and steep and not for anyone of below average fitness. That said, the views are incredible. The other option is to take the coastal road, which is farther in distance, but much flatter and easier. Enjoy!

We ended up doing a day hike instead of a single over night. After this hike we have a better…read moreunderstanding of what we need for this location. - you definitely need mats to sleep on! The beach is very rocky. - USE THE FOOD BOX at all times! We learned quickly. And good thing I had taken extra food for lunch or we would've been hungry - check the vacant camp site food boxes. We found fire wood, water, camp soap, pots, pans and utensils in our food box. We ended up leaving a brand new bundle of firewood and an unopened water container for the next campers. - definitely take an extra lighter lol you just never know We started our hike to Parsons Landing from the Banning House at 8:30am. The 2 hr hike was breathtaking. Beautiful, sunny, cool day in December. Couldn't get any better. We arrived and at Parsons Landing and explored all the sites since only one another site was occupied. Every sites has a gorgeous view, fire pit, food box and fairly easy to distinguish. We walked over to our secluded site... best site in my opinion. I look forward to camping out for a few days next time.

Nice beginner destination for a backpacking trip…read more Likes: + Great view of Altadena/Pasadena and the LA county. Maybe you can spot Catalina or the Disney fireworks at night in the distance. + Pleasant getaway from town. Quiet, peaceful nature ambience. + A couple firepits for roasting your food with friends. + Great Mt Wilson with access to the giant 60-inch and the 100-inch Hooker telescopes. A hike you can do in a day. A camping/backpacking trip you can do in day & night. + Trails are wide and well defined. Non-likes: - The water spigot here runs extremely slow. I recommend packing your own extra water. - Restrooms running low on toilet paper. - Cosmic Cafe only open Apr-Sept 10am-5pm, and 10-4pm late Sept-Nov. If you walk farther uphill about 1-2 min, you'll find the white lavatory. Restroom stalls are more spacious than the auburn one. The water fountain and the water spigot there run fine and strong.

What goes up, must come down…read more This hike was a moderate 3 mile hike up and around the San Gabriel Mountains, but so much easier to trek back down. Although we did an extra mile after missing the turn and ended up hiking a total of 7 miles; it wasn't too bad. I only hike about once a month, so I took a few breaks along the way up so it took us about 3 hours roundtrip. The hike starts at the Eaton Canyon Nature Reserve after parking on the street along Altadena. There's parking in a lot as well but I find it easier to park on the street than finding a spot during peak hours. We started the hike by following the Eaton Canyon Falls trail, then veered onto the Walnut Canyon trail, and then followed the Old Mount Wilson Toll Road the rest of the way to the campground. There's some shade on the hike but not much so I wouldn't hike this during the Summer. We did this on 12/2/18 in 64 degree weather and it was perfect. We saw some people that did a one night backpacking trip so it's an ideal spot to practice for longer trips. There are bathrooms but they were locked when we were there and there is no water. There are also lots of tables available so pack a picnic and enjoy the view. Directions I used. If you see a white bridge on your way back, you missed the turn like I did and just did an extra mile. https://modernhiker.com/hike/henninger-flats/

We always love camping here because it's the closest camping state park that is close to home and…read morethe beach. It is camping in a parking lot but you get electricity and water hook ups. You must be a self contained camper to stay here. PCH can get noisy with all the cars driving by but after a long day at the beach, you just knock out. The restrooms nearby are cleaned every morning and trash cans are emptied pretty often. So much to do, we always come back whenever we could get a reservation. That can be a challenge because booking is always full in the summer.

The young people at first gate were courteous, friendly and welcoming. We let them know this was…read moreour first time camping here. They explained how to get to the campground, but omitted some important information. Such as meeting with Camp Host who wasn't as friendly or welcoming because I made a stop, but I was looking out for little kids and pedestrians and not to be talking to anyone. He was pretty angry for not looking up for him. He gave us the bad news that the dump was out of order, and as the main gate fellows, forgot to mention that the showers use tokens and they are sold back at the entrance. Then, being so new at this, I was hesitant and doubtful about parking, but a nice young man helped me. The campground lost stars because of the dump being out of order and PCH traffic noise through the night. We have a small, basic trailer, so is not sound proof. Bring earplugs and close all your windows and vents. Hope you can sleep. The hook up is accesible and easy to use.

The smaller sign is first and then the big sign for Buckhorn Campground is shortly after and now…read morehas a small arrow pointing to the left. That's where you make a left onto a small road. Keep driving and you'll reach the campground.

No fires, stoves or grills. Not until Jan 2026, found this…read moreout the hard way. I didn't see much on the websites or reviews. I should have called first.