Rio Grande National Forest · Colorado
Overview Big Meadows is located in the San Juan Mountains in south-central Colorado, about 11 miles west of South Fork. The campground is lightly wooded with spruce trees, creating a beautiful meadow atmosphere. The Rio Grande National Forest spans 1.
Sites at Big Meadows Reservoir Campground (South Central CO) are reserved through Recreation.gov. Sites here can be reserved in advance through the official system, and they are claimed fast — cancellations then trickle back all season, unannounced, at any hour of the day or night.
| Total sites | 47 |
|---|---|
| Site types | Standard, Group |
| Location | Del Norte, CO |
| Book through | Recreation.gov |
| Official listing | Recreation.gov |
Because sites are booked months ahead, a steady share of reservations get cancelled as trips fall through. Each cancellation instantly returns that site and those nights to the official calendar — first-come, first-served, no waitlist, no announcement. Refreshing the booking page yourself, every few minutes for weeks, works in theory. In practice, the people who get these sites are the ones who hear about the opening first.
itOpened scans the Recreation.gov calendar for Big Meadows Reservoir Campground (South Central CO) around the clock. When a site matching your dates and your vehicle opens, you get a text with a direct link to it. You book it yourself, in your own account, at the normal price. We never book, hold, or resell — your fee pays for monitoring, and openings are first-come, so speed is the whole game.
| Mogote | Cancellation alerts available |
|---|---|
| Elk Creek Campground (Rio Grande Nf) | Cancellation alerts available |
| Thirty Mile | Cancellation alerts available |
| Aspen Glade (Rio Grande National Forest, CO) | Cancellation alerts available |
| Cathedral | Cancellation alerts available |
| Lake Fork(Rio Grande Natl Fore | Cancellation alerts available |
| River Hill | Cancellation alerts available |
| Marshall Park | Cancellation alerts available |
| Rock Creek (Rio Grande National Forest) | Cancellation alerts available |
| Rio Grande | Cancellation alerts available |
| Comstock | Cancellation alerts available |
| Rio Grande Off-Season Campgrounds | Cancellation alerts available |
| Ivy Creek | Cancellation alerts available |
| Alder Guard Station | Cancellation alerts available |
| Brewery Creek Guard Station | Cancellation alerts available |
| Carnero Guard Station | Cancellation alerts available |
| Duncan Cabin | Cancellation alerts available |
| Elwood Cabin | Cancellation alerts available |
| Fitton Guard Station Cabin | Cancellation alerts available |
| Off Cow Camp Cabin | Cancellation alerts available |
| Platoro Cabin 1 | Cancellation alerts available |
| Platoro Cabin 2 | Cancellation alerts available |
| Stone Cellar Guard Station | Cancellation alerts available |
| Upper Crossing Guard Station | Cancellation alerts available |
Page data refreshed 2026-10-29. Site facts come from the official directory listing for Big Meadows Reservoir Campground (South Central CO); cancellation statistics come from our own scanning logs.