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See photos and get details about camping in beautiful Lake Arrowhead, California! Updated January 8, 2008. Related info-- HOME :: Latest News :: Overview: Southern California camping overview :: Beach Camping: Dockweiler Beach Camping :: Doheny Beach :: Huntington Beach camping :: Newport Beach Camping, :: San Diego Beach Camping :: Santa Barbara beach camping :: Ventura Beach Camping :: Desert Camping: Joshua Tree NP Camping :: Lake & Mountain: Lake Arrowhead Camping :: Big Bear Camping :: Lake Elsinore Camping :: Lake Jennings Camping :: Paso Picacho Campground :: Road Trip from SoCal: Big Sur Camping :: Lake Arrowhead CampingWake up to fresh, pine-scented air!
Do you love stepping outside your tent or RV in the morning to take a deep breath of fresh, pine-scented air?Though it's hard to believe, you CAN have such an "alpine" camping experience right in the Los Angeles metropolitan area! In fact, you'll think you're in Colorado's Rocky Mountains when you go camping in the San Bernardino National Forest. (The Mountaintop District of this US National Forest is located in the tall mountains that you can see "behind" the cities of San Bernardino and Redlands as you drive past them.) Though the mountains APPEAR to be covered with "just some more brown California chaparral," once you get up into their heights...and back into places which can't be seen from either Interstate 10 or I-15...you'll discover a whole new world! Gorgeous towering pines are simply "everywhere." The air is fresh and smog-free. Birds sing in the trees and fish swim in the lakes. It's a setting just right for a superb family campout. To your left, you see a picture of an evergreen-enshrouded campsite in the National Forest Service's Dogwood Campground, which is located near Lake Arrowhead, California. On this page we'll be talking about the beautiful Dogwood Campground first...and then, we'll talk about the popular Silverwood Lake SRA campground not far from the Lake Arrohead area. First, to get an overview of the San Bernardino National Forest/Lake Arrowhead/Big Bear area of Southern California, you may use the following link to view a
Forest Service map of the San Bernadino Mountains,
which shows Lake Arrowhead right in the center of the map. As you can see, Lake Arrowhead sits amidst an entire region brimming with forests and outdoor fun for you and your family to enjoy! Beautiful Dogwood CampgroundA superlative place to enjoy Lake Arrowhead Camping
Do you like camping in areas which SEEM very remote, but which are actually quite accessible to many family-style activities? If so, then you'll enjoy camping in the US Forest Service's Dogwood Campground. The Dogwood Campground is located off the main highway through the Lake Arrowhead area, the National Scenic Byway called "Rim of the World Drive" (California Route 18). Situated away from the noise of the busy highway...nestled down a narrow, but nicely-paved spur road...the campground truly feels "away from it all" when you're within its boundaries. You can enjoy the wonders of nature along its hiking trails and via Friday and Saturday night ranger programs.On the other hand, a short 10 minute drive will take you to the shopping pleasures of Lake Arrowhead Village, where you'll find cute little boutiques (and even some factory outlet stores) to explore. At Lake Arrowhead Village, you'll also be able to dine at a number of different restaurants, take a cruise on the beautiful Lake Arrowhead, or stock up on necessities. You'll never be far from roadside assistance, nor be out of the range of cell-phone service...an important factor for many safety-minded family campers. In the Dogwood Campground photo to your left, you can see the smoothly-paved spur road leading from Highway 18 into Dogwood's camping loops. Many family camping enthusiasts enjoy Dogwood's clean restrooms, which feature flush toilets and showers with cold and hot running water. (Save the pit toilets for when the kids get older. When you have babies, toddlers or pre-schoolers, it's REALLY nice to have the "clean" home-like bathrooms available.) In the picture of a Dogwood campground bathroom (just below,) you can see one of the attractive restroom-and-shower buildings which are scattered throughout the campsite area. As you can tell from the photos on this page, each campsite has its own picnic table, parking space and fire ring. At times, there will be a no-campfires ban in effect. Though this is disappointing to many campers who love to eat a meal cooked over the coals, it's entirely understandable. There have been severe and devastating fires wreak havoc in the Lake Arrowhead several summers in recent history, and the area just can't "take any more" of this type of catastrophe. When the campfire bans are in effect, you won't be able to use a charcoal grill, either; only camp stoves will be permitted for cooking. Dogs must be kept on a leash no longer than six feet in length. This is not only true in the actual campgrounds, but also along Dogwood's hiking and nature trails. There is a limit of 2 dogs per campsite. Quiet Hours are observed from 10 pm until 6 am at Dogwood. Generally speaking, though, the guests who use Dogwood Campground are considerate and you shouldn't encounter excessive noise. Weekends and holidays throughout the summer often find the camp grounds full-to-capacity, and then the noise level will be higher than during the half-empty midweek days. Even so, you probably won't find the noise level to be excessive. The bulk of Dogwood's guests are families and nature lovers. Also, if you're tired of the noisy trains and/or planes passing by your campsite (like there are at some of Southern California's beach campgrounds,) you'll be quite pleased NOT to find any train or plane noise at Dogwood! Dogwood Campground is open from May 1 through October 31 each year. Dogwood's elevation happens to be above 5,600 feet...so it does snow and get plenty cold during the winter months! For this reason, the campground does close during the cold-weather season. (For a year-round camping opportunity not too far away...at a lower elevation...see the section about "Silverwood Lake SRA Camping" below on this page.) The Dogwood Campground address is: 28104 Highway 18, Skyforest, CA 92385. This location is near the intersection of Hwy 18 (aka Rim of the World Highway) and Daley Canyon Road. You may use the following link to view a map to the Dogwood Campground in Southern California's San Bernardino National Forest. The Dogwood Campground phone number is 909/336-6717 (this is the Dogwood Entrance Station.) You may make camping reservations at via the entrance station phone number, or at ReserveUSA.com. If you'd prefer, you can also get information about the San Bernadino National Forest and/or the Dogwood Campground by calling the Arrowhead Ranger Station, telephone number 909/382-2782. Map of Dogwood's campsites: You may use the following link to see a campground map of the Dogwood Campground on the Reserve America website.
Silverwood Lake SRA Camping
What if you don't care about camping up in the pines...you just want to focus on having some watersport fun? Or, what if you'd like to do some winter camping, and find that other campgrounds near Lake Arrowhead are closed? Answer: Try camping at Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area! At an elevation of around 3,300 feet, Silverwood Lake sits below the pines...although you can see them looming on the mountains above from the lake. Water activities are the major focus here...as you can tell by the Silverwood Lake pictures to your left and right. You can swim, water ski, jet ski, wind surf, zoom around the lake in a power boat, enjoy the sandy beaches, and fish. If you tire of enjoying water-based fun, you can participate in Silverwood State SRA's land-based activities, which include hiking and biking along trails, wildlife and bird watching, picnicking, and enjoying the visitor's center. Of course, you can always take a lovely mountain drive, visit the scenic nearby town of Crestline, or journey over to Lake Arrowhead Village to enjoy the shopping and restaurants there. Family-oriented campers will be glad to know that Silverwood Lake offers flush toilets and showers with hot and cold water, amenities that make camping with kids much easier! Restrooms and shower buildings are scattered around the campsite, as are spigots for obtaining water. The Silverwood Lake SRA phone number is: 909/389-2281. This is the Silverwood telephone to use for questions about the state park itself. If you need to make Silverwood Lake camping reservations, the phone number to call is 1-877-444-PARK, which is the Reserve America telephone number. If you will be bringing a boat to Silverwood Lake, you'll also need to make reservations for your boat! Boat reservations, like the camping reservations, may be made at the Reserve America website or at the Reserve America telephone number. 
Directions to Silverwood Lake SRA and campground: The easiest access to Silverwood Lake SRA is via Interstate 15 heading northward from San Bernardino, California. The correct exit for Silverwood Lake is plainly marked, both with the name of the park and the number of the highway...which is California State Hwy 138. As you can tell from the photo of CA Hwy 138 to your left, you'll travel eastward from I-15 through yellow-brown California chaparral scenery. The road is only 2 lanes wide, and makes sharp, serpentine turns throughout the journey. Use the following link to view a
Yahoo map of the intersection of I-15 and Ca Hwy 138,
which is a map of the Interstate 15 exit which you'll need to take.
Map to Silverwood Lake SRA: To see a roadmap to Silverwood Lake SRA which shows the actual location of the lake (and which you may use if you're planning to come from another route besides I-15) use the following link for a Google map to the Silverwood Lake and campground from the Silverwood Lake SRA website.. Silverwood Lake camping map: To view an interactive map of the Silverwood Lake SRA campgrounds and campsites, use the following link to a campsite map of the Silverwood Lake campground. This is an interactive map. You'll first see an overview of the many camping loops at Silverwood Lake. From there, you may choose to look at whichever camping loop you prefer in detail. This map is a part of the Reserve America website, and once you find your ideal camping site, it would be a wise idea to go ahead and make your reservations. Silverwood Lake is an extremely popular Southern California campground, and its a common occurrence for this camping ground to fill up to its capacity during the summertime, on holidays, and on weekends when the weather is good. Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area website: You may wish to use the following link to view the Silverwood Lake SRA's website, which is actually a section of the California State Parks official website. 
NEXT PAGE OF CAMPING SECTION ---> Use the button above to take a fun, photo-filled tour of CAMPGROUND PAGES on this website. Follow the woodsy brown buttons & you'll end up back here at this page! Backwards Links: BACK HOME :: Back to beginning of "Camping" section :: Back to top of "Lake Arrowhead Camping" Select a different California Camping page: Overview: Southern California camping overview :: Beach Camping: Dockweiler Beach Camping :: Doheny Beach :: Huntington Beach camping :: Newport Beach Camping, :: San Diego Beach Camping :: Santa Barbara beach camping :: Ventura Beach Camping :: Desert Camping: Joshua Tree NP Camping :: Lake & Mountain: Lake Arrowhead Camping :: Big Bear Camping :: Lake Elsinore Camping :: Lake Jennings Camping :: Paso Picacho Campground :: Road Trip from SoCal: Big Sur Camping ::
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Lake Arrowhead's Dogwood Campground is open to all types of campers---tents, RV's, vans, pop-up campers, pickup trucks with shells, fifth-wheels, etc. You can choose your level of "rustic-ness" and level of creature-comforts. For those with RV's, try a site with electrical hookups...or one of the "extra wide" spots. Or, take your tent and "rough it" under the stars. Have a physical handicap or mobility limitation? At the Dogwood Campground, you'll find spots especially for those who have a government-issued handicap license or placard. The handicap spots appear similar to any other campsite, but feature more paving...making it easier for those using walkers or wheelchairs to get around their camping site with ease.
What are some of the camp rules at the Dogwood camping ground? The rules here are pretty much the same as you'd expect to find in any developed US National Park Service campground. No firearms or weapons of any type may be used with the camping area. (This includes sling shots, bows and BB guns.) There is no law against having them inside your car or RV, but you may not use them.
The 136 campsites at the Silverwood Lake campground welcome tents, RV's, camping trailers, pop-up campers, vans, pickup trucks with camper shells, etc. RVer's should note, though, that there are no hookups available at Silverwood Lake camping sites. Each campsite contains a picnic table and fire pit.
