Packsaddle

this campground is a great location geographically for many lakes, trails, & the saddle. It's on the PCT so many thru hikers pass by in part to pump water at the fantastic artisan spring here.

Campground was overall quiet, even on a busy holiday weekend. Our site, #16 was a real disappointment however. Online it does not show that this site is actually just a widening of the road surface. The picnic table is was back in the trees and you can't pull a trailer or RV anywhere near it. This should be a tent site only. In addition the ONLY water source in the entire campground is behind site 16, so because you must camp in the road, there is a steady stream of people walking through your space all day and sometimes all night. In addition, we brought horses and it said online that site 15 and 16 shared the 4 corrals. This is not really accurate. Site 15 is about 20 feet from the horse corrals, the corrals are actually BEHIND site 15 so if you stay in site 16, you have to walk through site 15 to take care of your horses. This is not an equestrian only campground, so literally anyone could camp 20 feet from your horses if they reserve site 15 (think family with small children, aggressive dogs etc. etc.). They should either make 15 and 16 equestrian ONLY or else move the corrals to a central location, or better yet, get rid of site 16 because it's pretty horrible anyway.

My family and I drove 2 1/2 hours to this campground and when we arrived someone else was set up in our reserved and paid for site. It was posted this spot was reserved so we were confused why someone else’s tent was there. We didn’t want to drive home, the ranger station was very far, and there is no camp host to help. So we decided to wait in hopes they would return and hopefully be understanding people. We waited over 2 hours in our car for them to return and when they did thankfully they were civil and packed up their items. We did find out they were site hopping from fellow campers. This was the first time we had been here and our first time with no host, the scenery was beautiful but I am cautious to return.

Packsaddle is a great location. we were in site 2. Bathroom is very new pit style with 2 stalls. well equipped and managed. main issue is water access - only water is from a hand-pumped well source mostly intended for the horses. and the dust level. all the roads are gravel. sites are well spaced so you do not feel crowded. the sites in the back loop are larger. would recommend those for anyone looking to use Packsaddle. walking distance to Packer Lake and the back-side access to the Buttes. it is a 5 minute drive in and out to Gold Lake Highway if your visit is mostly to enjoy the Lakes Basin hikes.

The campsite I reserved and paid for was not marked and was already occupied when I arrived.

First time at Packsaddle Campsite for a weekend hunting trip in mid October. Shared the site (and forest) with lots of mountain bikers. Enjoyed our campsite (#06). Secluded with several flat areas for our four one-man tents. Only complication was I reserved the campsite online several weeks earlier and couldn't recall if I paid using the credit card - printout didn't indicate and payment. Paid the daily cash fee while there, then later at home found out I paid online as well. Turned out to be an expensive stay at Packsaddle. Had a great time regardless!

It’s a nice place for every a every year trip

The campsites are very small and not level and some are very close to the neighbor. Easy access to lake and trails.

Enjoyed my 4th Annual Camping Trip at Packsaddle!!

Overall a very nice camp. Bathrooms were well maintained with TP for the entire week I was there. They remained clean and did not smell any worse than you average pit toilet. Mosquitos at camp were very mild and while we did have some hungry meat bees around meal time they were manageable. I've had much worse. Camp has a large parking area for nearby hikes. Creates a lot of open space near camps 1-4. Camps 1-4 appeared to have the most flat space for tents and were well shaded but other spots looked shaded too. Some of the camps in the other loop seem to have limited flat tent pads but did have some interesting layouts. There was a large group up in that loop that was apparently up until 2am few nights but could not be heard from our spots. Nearby Packer Lake has some plant growth in it that makes it not the best swimming lake. But.. you can drive to all nearby lakes pretty quickly from this location. It was nice and quite at night and pleasant in the mornings. Stayed in tent until 8:30 comfortably. I'd go back for sure.