Everything to Know About Ridgway State Park
Everyone knows that Colorado is a beautiful state filled with beautiful state and national parks. And Ridgway State Park is arguably one of the most beautiful! The alluring San Juan Mountains line the park and the clear lake creates a stunning display of Colorado beauty.
And you won’t be bored here! With 14 miles of picturesque hiking trails, a 1000 surface-acre lake, and nearly 300 campsites, there is something here for everyone.
However, if you are looking for nearby adventure, there is excellent hiking, biking and off-roading in San Juan National Forest. You are mere minutes from the Million Dollar Highway and less than an hour from Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
Whatever draws you to here, let’s dive into the details and take a look at everything to know about Ridgway State Park!
Important Links
Camping Reservations – Make Reservations Here
Hiking to Island Lake – Nearby Hiking
Hiking Journal – Never Forget the Details of Your Favorite Hikes Again!
Camping Journal – Never Forget Your Camping Trips Details Again!
Location
Ridgway State Park is a great place to unplug and enjoy some time on the lake or on the trails. But it’s also a great place to easily access the San Juan Mountains and the corresponding mountain towns.
Ridgway is a little over 2 hours north of Durango, CO and 1.5 hours south of Grand Junction, CO. And if you want to visit the famous mountain towns of Silverton, Ouray, and Telluride, you’ll be within an hour of all 3 of those beautiful towns.
Fees
Just like all of Colorado’s parks, Ridgway State Park has a fee to enter. Whether you walk into the park or bring a vehicle full of family/friends, there is a fee.
Daily Fees
- Vehicle Fee: $10 per vehicle (covers all vehicle occupants)
- Walk-In Individual Fee: $4 per person
Unfortunately, even if you are camping here, the daily fees DO still apply. For example, if you intend to camp at Ridgway State Park for 5 days, you will be charged $10 per day ($50 total) when you arrive. This is in addition to the camping fee you have already paid.
Yes, this does add up quickly! But there is a way around these daily fees, assuming the math makes sense for you and your family. Check it out below!
Annual Park Passes
Colorado State Parks offer several park pass options to help save you money. They offer the following passes.
- Family Pass for $120/year
- Vehicle Pass for $80/year
- Aspen Leaf Pass for $70/year
- Keep Colorado Wild Pass (Residents Only) for $30/year.
Each pass is good for 12 months from your purchase and allows you and a car-full of guests to enter the park for free. It also waives all daily fees if you are camping in one of Colorado’s 42 parks.
If you intend to camp for more than 8 days in a year, or visit any state park more than 8 days in a year, the vehicle pass is a great option. We bought the vehicle pass and it saved us quite a bit of money in 2025!
Each of these passes can be purchased in advance or in the visitor center of most state parks. For all the details, you can visit their Park Pass website.
Three Areas of Ridgway
In Ridgway State Park there are 3 areas. There is the Dallas Creek area, the Dutch Charlie area and the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk area. There are hiking trails that connect each area, but besides that you will have to drive to visit each area.
But which area is the best for you?
Dallas Creek – Day Use Area
In the Dallas Creek Day Use Area you will find a wide open swimming beach where you can swim, rent paddle boards, and fish from the shore in this No Wake area. There is also great fishing in the Dallas Creek (feeds into the reservoir) and a picnic area with easily accessible roads. You will also find a few short trails here.
Dutch Charlie Area
In the Dutch Charlie area you will find not only the boat ramp and boat marina, but also a sand beach, a No Wake zone, and plenty of picnic tables to go around. There is also a decent size playground and a place to rent SUP boards.
This area also is home to most of the hiking trails, the visitor center and the Dakota Terrace and Elk Ridge campgrounds. There are 187 campsites (most with electric, and some walk-in tent sites) in this area and 3 rentable Yurts.
Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Area
And finally we have the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk area which is home to 80 Full Hook-Up campsites and 15 walk-in tent sites. There are 2 fishing ponds, multiple pavilions, and a few hiking trails here as well.
What To Do in Ridgway State Park
There are over 3,000 acres of beautiful land and lake in Ridgway State Park. And with such a large park, you could spend any amount of time here and enjoy your stay.
Within these 3,000+ acres there are plenty of ways to spend your time! Starting with camping under the stars, there are nearly 300 campsites for tents, campers and there are even yurts. You can simply relax around a fire here, or use one of their campgrounds as a homebase for exploring the area.
Ridgway State Park is home to the 1000 surface-acre Ridgway Reservoir and offers the perfect lake day experience! You can enjoy time in the water by swimming on one of the park’s beaches. You can enjoy time on the water by boating, kayaking or by taking out the stand-up paddle board. And of course there is always fishing from the lake or the lake shore.
And back on land there are 14 miles of hiking/biking trails with plenty of wildlife to see or photograph. No matter how long you stay here or however you choose to spend your time, you will love a day, a week or even a weekend in Ridgway State Park.
Hiking
Ridgway State Park is surrounded by the San Juan Mountains, which makes for some stunning hiking within the park. But the best part about being surrounded by these mountains instead of being in them, is the hiking is pretty easy.
Don’t get me wrong, you’re still hiking at 7,000 feet of elevation. So if you’re coming from lower altitudes, the air will still feel a little thin to your lungs.
But the trails themselves are fairly flat and the many trees do offer some much needed shade. You’ll still want to pack plenty of water and quite a bit of sunscreen, but Ridgway is a great place to hike without murdering your legs or lungs.
All Hiking Trails in Ridgway State Park
There are 14 miles of hiking trails in Ridgway State Park. Below are the areas where you will find these trails. Remember, if the trail is listed as 2.5 miles, but it’s an out and back trail, don’t forget to double the total miles!
Trails in the Dallas Creek Area
- Dallas Creek Nature Trail – 1 mile
- Marmot Run Trail – 1.8 miles
- Cookie Tree Trail – 1 mile
Hiking Trails in the Dutch Charlie Area
- Forest Discovery Trail – 0.6 miles
- Scenic Overlook (below Visitor Center) – 0.2 miles
- Wapiti Trail – 0.6 miles
- Sunset Ridge Trail – 0.7 miles
- Skyline Loop – 0.3 miles
- Twin Fawn Trail – 0.7 miles
- Secret Spot Trail – 0.2 miles
- Pinyon Park Trail – 0.6 miles
- Mule Deer Meadow Trail – 0.5 miles
- Porchupine Patch Trail – 0.2 miles
- Mear’s Bay Trail (paved) – 1 mile
Trails in the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Area
- Enchanted Mesa Trail – 2.5 miles
- River Walk Trail – 0.2 miles
- Oak Leaf Trail – 1 mile
The Best Trails
Within the park there are some great trails, but here are a few that we hiked while we camped here. I highly recommend the Enchanted Mesa Trail! The Cookie Tree Trail was also beautiful and worth checking out.
- Enchanted Mesa Trail – 7 miles – 800 feet of Elevation – Out and Back
- Uncompahgre Riverwalk – 10 miles – 685 feet of Elevation – Point-to-Point
- Oak Leaf Trail – 1 mile – 70 feet of Elevation – Loop Trail
- Cookie Tree Trail – 2 miles – 250 feet of Elevation – Out and Back from Visitor Center
Boating
In the Dutch Charlie Area there is a 4 lane boat ramp where boats of varying sizes can be put in to enjoy the lake. All boats must be inspected before entering the water. This is to help prevent invasive species from ruining this beautiful reservoir.
There is also the Marina in this area, where you can pay to have your boat float during your stay. As of July 2025 it will cost you $30 per night to be tied off at a Buoy or $35 per day to be in a slip.
Kayaks, Stand Up Paddle Boards and other small crafts are also welcome here. Life Vests must be worn by all children under 16.
Picnic Area and Swim Beach
You will find picnic tables in all three areas of the park. However, if you are looking to swim or enter the water, you will want to go to the Dutch Charlie Swim Beach or the Dallas Creek large beach area.
Camping
Camping at Ridgway State Park can be done in a variety of ways. From a tent that you have to carry to your spot, to a RV/Camper on a Full Hook-Up spot or even one of their 3 yurts. There is something for everyone’s comfort level and budget. So let’s take a look at the 3 different campgrounds within Ridgway.
There is the Dakota Terrace Campground, Elk Ridge Campground and the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Campground. Each area has some beautiful views and a variety of reasons to stay in one loop over the other. But let’s take a minute and explore the reasons to camp in each loop.
Dakota Terrace Campground (Dutch Charlie Area)
Going numerically, campsites 1 – 79 are located in Dakota Terrace Campground. There are 3 loops (Loop A, B and C) in this area. All of these sites have electric hook-up, a fire ring and picnic table. If you want water you can either use the spigots spread throughout the loops, or you can fill up at the dump station on the way in.
Loop C is the closest to the water, but is also closest to the highway, so you will get more noise here. There is a very nice bathhouse and showers in between Loop A and Loop B as well as a playground in this area.
Sites 10, 12, and 14 are Yurt sites that you can rent. The Yurts will sleep up to 6 people on a full size futon and 2 sets of twin bunk beds. The yurts have electricity, with a small fridge, a microwave, and overhead lighting. However, this is still camping at its core as no linens, cookware, or bathrooms are available inside the yurt.
Elk Ridge Campground (Dutch Charlie Area)
Next up are sites 80 – 187 in the Elk Ridge Campground. There are only 2 loops in this section (Loops D and E), but these loops are much larger than those in Dakota Terrace.
Sites 80 – 150 and 161 – 187 have electric hook-up, a picnic table and fire ring. In between the 2 loops is a bathhouse with clean showers and multiple restroom stalls.
Sites 151 – 160 are walk-in tent sites that have a tent pad, a picnic table and a fire ring. These sites are exactly what they sound like and have an assigned parking spot for each campsite where you will then have to carry in your gear. So pack light!
Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Campground (Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Area)
And last but not least are sites 200 – 294 in the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Campground. These sites are a mix of full hook-up sites in Loops F and G and Walk-In Tent Sites in Loop H.
Loops F and G contain sites 200 – 280 and are all full hook-up sites (Electric, Water and Sewer). Each site has a picnic table, a fire ring and some have a shaded/covered area included with them. There is a bathhouse with showers in between the loops available for use.
Loop H contains sites 281 – 294 and these sites are walk-in tent sites. They each have an assigned parking spot and then you will walk several hundred yards to your site. Each site has a tent platform, picnic table and fire ring.
At the end of the day, you will enjoy camping here regardless of which campground you stay in. However, it is worth noting that there is a price difference between each way to stay. So let’s take a look at the prices and your budget.
Price Comparison
**Disclaimer: The prices are Ridgway can and will change based on holiday, weekends, etc. These are the prices as of July 2025 and they are just to give you an idea of what you will be paying to stay here**
Walk-In Sites
- $28 per night
- $196 per week
Electric Sites
- $36 per night
- $252 per week
Full Hook-Up Sites
- $41 per night
- $287 per week
Yurts
- $90 per night
- $630 per week
Again, these prices are just to give you an idea of what you can afford. Either way you stay, camping at Ridgway State Park is still going to be cheaper than any hotel in the area.
Things to do in the area
As previously mentioned, Ridgway State Park is close to excellent hiking and several must-see mountain towns. You are also close to the famous Million Dollar Highway. And within an hour of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
While we were camping here, we drove the Million Dollar Highway, stopping in for a beer in Ouray and Silverton. We also made our way over to Telluride during the week. Here we had a beer and rode the free Gondola between the town and the resorts.
As far as hiking goes, we hiked to Ice Lake and Island Lake in San Juan National Forest. You can read about those hikes here! We also did several trails in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park as well as drove the scenic drive around the park.
Conclusion
Overall, Ridgway State Park was the perfect place for us to relax around a campfire, float on the water, and have easy access to many mountain towns. This little state park packs quite the punch and might be the best place we stayed in all of 2025.
The beautiful mountains and lake that make up Ridgway State Park make this a Colorado must-see state park.
As always, if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me at averagewildexperience@gmail.com and I’ll do my best to help you plan ahead.
-Happy Hiking and Camping!
Megan C.
Avid hiker and traveler around the US. I've been hiking consistently since I was 18 and I can't wait to teach you my tips, tricks and hiking hacks! Travel and hike with me and my camera.
