Agency-listedUSFSFee
Rainbow Lakes
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 40.01029, -105.56955
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this as a developed campground. Expect marked sites, a fee station or a reservation, and the usual campground rules. The dispersed-camping freedom of the surrounding forest does not apply inside it. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Rainbow Lakes
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 9,965 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Rainbow LakesNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Rainbow Lakes · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel4 mi
- GGrocery4 mi
- WWater5 mi
- HHardware5 mi
- MMechanic5 mi
- @Mail5 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- LLaundry11 mi
- ShShower11 mi
- DDump11 mi
- OOutfitter13 mi
- +Urgent care15 mi
- RxPharmacy15 mi
- PPropane16 mi
- AAir-up18 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 4 mi out.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Rainbow Lakes
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
9,965 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
40.01029, -105.56955
Cost
Fee
Nearby & resupply — around Rainbow Lakes · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureRainbow Lakes (water) · nearby
- Nearest townCaribou City · ~3.3 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~4.6 mi
- FuelGasamat · ~4.5 mi
- Propane / LPGAmeriGas · ~23.1 mi
- Dump station~11.3 mi
- GroceriesKwik Mart · ~4.5 mi
- PharmacyPharmaca · ~15.3 mi
- Hospital / clinicMiddle Park Health - Fraser Campus · ~13.0 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~4.6 mi
EV charging — from Rainbow Lakes · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.0 mi straight-line SE — GILPIN COUNTY GILPIN LIB L3B, Black Hawk, CO · ChargePoint Network · CHAdeMO, CCS · 1 fast port listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach45 within 25 mi · 257 within 50 · 377 within 100 · 434 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)16.6 mi — Boulder, CO - Tesla Supercharger, Boulder
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)3.9 mi — BVSD NEDERLAND E1 · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 420257 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Rainbow Lakes · Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletRainbow Lakes · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletRainbow Lakes · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletSourdough · ~2.7 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletBrainard Lake Day Use · ~4.6 mi N · USFS
Open Rainbow Lakes elsewhere
Other camps near Rainbow Lakes
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- USFS dispersed camp — CO~1.1 mi
- USFS dispersed camp — Boulder County, CO~1.4 mi
- Ruby Gulch Dispersed Camping~3.3 mi
- Gordon Gulch~3.6 mi
The unit that manages Rainbow Lakes
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Rainbow Lakes are set by Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is University Camp at 10,330 ft, about 2 miles away. It sits about 365 ft higher than this camp, so treat it as a guide rather than a reading for this spot. We do not repeat a depth here, because any number we stored would be stale by the time you read it — the station publishes today's.
How we know this — Rainbow Lakes
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
Developed FEE campground (not free) - review | auto:usfs-fee 2026-08-20: US Forest Service developed campground, agency coordinates, agency states a fee. No dollar amount in the agency record -- expect a charge and confirm the current rate before you go. Not field-verified.
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Rainbow Lakes
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Rainbow Lakes
Camping at altitude →When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →Gear & rig loadout →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →