Agency-listedUSFSUnpriced · confirm
Thistledown Campground
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · CO · 37.99325, -107.70070
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 Thistledown Campground
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 8,767 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Thistledown CampgroundNIFC · 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 Thistledown Campground · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- GGrocery3 mi
- HHardware3 mi
- @Mail3 mi
- OOutfitter3 mi
- EVEV fast charger3 mi
- FFuel3 mi
- DDump6 mi
- LLaundry6 mi
- ShShower6 mi
- RxPharmacy7 mi
- WWater7 mi
- +Urgent care11 mi
- MMechanic33 mi
- PPropane54 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 3 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 — Thistledown Campground
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service
Elevation
8,767 ft
State
CO
Coordinates
37.99325, -107.70070
Cost
Unpriced — no source gives a price; assume it may cost something and confirm before you go
Nearby & resupply — around Thistledown Campground · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureCanyon Creek (river) · nearby
- Nearest townThistledown · ~0.1 mi
- Drinking waterDrinking water · ~2.1 mi
- FuelConoco · ~3.3 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~6.1 mi
- GroceriesOuray Grocery · ~2.6 mi
- PharmacySunshine Pharmacy · ~7.2 mi
- Hospital / clinicTelluride Regional Medical Center · ~7.4 mi
- HardwareOuray Hardware and Mercantile · ~2.6 mi
EV charging — from Thistledown Campground · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger2.9 mi straight-line NE — HION NETWORK OURAY PL2 · 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 reach4 within 25 mi · 15 within 50 · 77 within 100 · 156 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)9.3 mi — Mountain Village, CO - Tesla Supercharger, Mountain Village
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)8.9 mi — TMV HERITAGE GARAGE, Mountain Village, CO · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Also listed, not counted aboveNACS-only Level 2 — Element 52 Residences - Tesla Destination, Telluride, 7.5 mi · NACS (Tesla) · hours: 24 hours daily. Open to Teslas only. · AFDC lists it “Free”
- 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 260039 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Thistledown Campground · Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests · CO — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- Vault / pit toiletThistledown · at this camp · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAngel Creek · ~0.7 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletNa-Gach · ~2.9 mi NE · USFS
- Vault / pit toiletAmphitheater · ~3.0 mi NE · USFS
Open Thistledown Campground elsewhere
Other camps near Thistledown Campground
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Angel Creek~0.7 mi · fee
- Amphitheatre Campground~2.9 mi · fee
- Corkscrew~4.1 mi
- Ouray County~4.4 mi
The unit that manages Thistledown Campground
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Thistledown Campground are set by Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
Snow, and when this opens
The nearest automatic snow station is Idarado at 9,780 ft, about 4 miles away. It sits about 1,013 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 — Thistledown Campground
Source
OpenStreetMap contributors
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.
Agency page
fs.usda.gov — the land manager's own page for this site. Fees, seasons and closures are stated there first; if it disagrees with this page, it wins.
How it was placed
auto: drive (road/trail right there)
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 Thistledown Campground
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 — Thistledown Campground
When the high country opens →Winter vs summer roads →Finding water out here →First-night troubleshooting →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 →