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Chilao Campground
3 reviews for Chilao Campground
The Good: Nice views, plenty of available spots even arriving at 7:30pm on a nice Friday night, cheap ($12 a night), pet friendly, no pet fees, feels like your 500 miles from LA even though it's only 40 miles out, no cell phone service.
The bad: No showers, frightening toilets, 2nd night stay had a large 'party group' being loud all night, no near-by supplies, CA-2 seems to be a favorite spot for 20 somethings trying to prove how bad ass they are on their crotch rockets, no cell phone service.
Overall a great quick night of camping right outside of LA. Just stay on CA-2 and it's about 30 miles past La Canada. It's the first campground on the left.
If you want to get away from it all, there are probably better campsites near Los Angeles.
Both nights over a weekend camping trip, we heard generation y'ers raving all around us. If gazing up at the starry night sky while hearing the rhythmic beat of techno in the background is for you, then this is your camp!
Saturday at 11am, one of the ravers came into our camp several times wildy and menancingly tripping out on some drug, followed by a friend of his who was making a very unsuccessful but good faith effort to desperately to control him. An hour later, thankfully, the sheriff and a medical crew with paramilitary gear came in to take the drugged-out man away.
While I think the encounter with the man tripping out was a freak thing, the raving is not. So be warned. Particularly if you have kids!
On the positive side, we met up with a great group of people so we were able to enjoy the wonderful great outdoors, only 30 miles from LA. There are many pleasant little hikes (some even shaded), and it served a good basecamp for mountain biking.
Pop up tents are highly advised. There are some shady spots, but not enough in the summertime.
I just returned from a long weekend of camping at the Chllao Campground in the Angeles Forest. Just off Route 2, past La Canada, only an hour away from the city, is a dusty little camping haven that feels like a secret in a big city such as LA. The campgrounds are first come, first serve and cost only $12 per night per site. Each site includes a fire pit and a picnic table. They also provide latrines and a water spigot. The latrines are disgusting, sparking many a gross converstation about latrine monsters, but what do you expect.
We opted for a camping site in the LIttle Pines campground. The site that we selected was quite large, actually it was two sites side by side, and there were enough trees around the perimeter to provide some shade. Thankfully, we also brought two canopies that were indispensible throughout the weekend. It was HOT up there, even at night. I didn't need my fleece, even at midnight. And my +20 degree sleeping bag was more for decoration than anything else.
The hikes are plentiful and quite nice. The views aren't spectacular, at least not any we saw, but all had nice vistas with views of the forest. The hikes range from easy to difficult, and provide a good range for different levels.
The sun was hot and unrelenting, so if you're thinking about heading up, definitely bring sunscreen. Lots of it. At least SPF 40. I didn't need my bug spray because it was too dry for mosquitos. Beyond that, bring some good food and good company, because you won't be plugged in as long as you're there. It was a welcome change for me and my computer-centric life. Now that I'm back, I'm on my computer Yelping about it. But hey, isn't that part of the fun?
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