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Horse Thief

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USDA Forest Service
7Supported overnight records
1Published site categories
7Sites with a reported party limit
A useful starting point, not a fit guarantee. Site-specific warnings are absent from this export. Published lengths may include a tow vehicle. Check the official site page for current notes, restrictions, approach and configuration before booking. No live availability is shown.

A closer look at the campground

Overview The Horse Thief Campground, located at Trappers Lake in the White River National Forest, offers a natural setting for stock users adjacent to the Flat Tops Wilderness.  The campsites are set aside for stock users only, with corrals, long spurs for large trailers, and an RV Dump just up the road. The Flat Tops Wilderness area provides miles of riding within this historic wilderness area.  Trappers Lake is in the wilderness, so motorized, mechanized, and any kind of wheeled cart is prohibited; this goes for bikes and game carts on the trails as well. Recreation Trappers Lake is known as the Cradle of Wilderness. At approximately 302 surface acres, the lake contains a strain of native cutthroat trout and the Colorado Parks and Wildlife operates a spawn collection station at the Cabin Creek inlet during May and June. Trappers Lake lies completely within the Flat Tops Wilderness; motorized boats and wheeled carts for boat transport are prohibited. Facilities Horse Thief Campground (Elevation 9,700ft) has 7 single first-come first-serve sites with corrals . There are long spurs to accommodate large trailers (max length 60ft). The campground is equipped with picnic tables, fire grates, vault toilets, trash disposal, bear boxes, and potable water. Limited shade is available so shade shelters are recommended. An RV dump station within the TL Campground complex. Electrical hook-ups are not available. Natural Features The Horse Thief Campground at Trappers Lake is located adjacent to the Flat Tops Wilderness, offering a natural environment with many pothole lakes, surrounding glacier carved mountains, and access to trails and wilderness areas. Wildlife frequent the area and moose, elk, deer, marmots, pine marten, and an abundance of birds may be seen. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (801) 226-3564. Nearby Attractions Fishing Access: Trappers Lake, Little Trappers Lake, Wall Lake, Fraser Creek, Lake of the Woods Trail Access: Little Trappers Trail #1814, Carhart Trail #1815, Trappers Lake Trail #1816, Wall Lake Trail #1818, Island Lakes Trail #1842, Chinese Wall Trail #1803, Deer Lake Trail #2021, South Derby Trail #1857, Himes Peak Trail #1877 Charges & Cancellations Once your reservation start date has begun, neither the Recreation.gov Contact Center nor the campground manager will be able to modify your reservation.

Full operator-supplied campground description · Scroll within the panel for more · Amenities may be shared by the campground, not present at every site

How much is documented?

Reported fields across the 7 supported campsite records here. A reported value can still need interpretation; missing values remain unknown in the planner.

Party limit
7
Vehicle limit
7
Vehicle length
7
Driveway entry
7
Shade
7

Bars show counts, not a quality, accessibility or suitability score.

The campsite mix

Equestrian Nonelectric
7

Operator directions

From Meeker, take Colorado Highway 13 east for 1 mile, then turn right on Rio Blanco County Road 8 and follow this for 39 miles to Trappers Lake Road #205. Turn south on Trappers Lake Road #205, and continue for 10 miles turn right at the bridge near Trappers Lake Lodge. Horse Thief Campground is approximately 1 mile further on the right.

Campground-level source text. Confirm the current route and road conditions with the operator.

THE ACTUAL SITES

7 published campsite records

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Raw published values are shown below, including zeros and ambiguous text. They are not validated capacities. The planner keeps missing, zero and questionable dimensions unknown.

View all 7 published site records
Select a site number to check its official current details
SITE / LOOPTYPEEQUIPMENT LIMITSPEOPLE / VEHICLESDRIVEWAYELECTRIC / SHADE
Site 1
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 2
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 3
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 4
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 5
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 6
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No
Site 7
Horse Thief
Source updated: 2025-12-07
Equestrian NonelectricNot reportedNumeric screening only10 people
1 vehicles
Back-in
55 (raw length)
Not reported
Shade: No