Onion Valley Campground, Independence, CA

Onion Valley Campground is located in the Mt. Whitney Ranger District of the Inyo National Forest (4 hrs 5 min northeast of Porterville, CA) with an elevation of 9,605 feet. There are a total of 10 campsites. The campground is normally open from mid May to mid September. 8 sites can accommodate RVs and trailers between 16 and 25 feet. All sites are currently reservable. There is a fee of $27.00 per night.

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Campsite Reviews (131)

4.2 out of 5

5 star		59%
4 star		21%
3 star		5%
2 star		7%
1 star		7%

@JonasD6CB906CB · Camped on Sep 6, 2024 at Campsite #20

The campground is great. Hike to Kearsarge pass is tough but rewarding.

@MichaelD829846 · Camped on Aug 28, 2024 at Campsite #19

Great campground

@timG9124892 · Camped on Aug 26, 2024 at Campsite #25

The campground is beautiful and extremely well situated to launch yourself over Kearsarge Pass. It was clean and the vault toilets were in good condition. However, the walk-in sites (with no parking) are in bad shape. Site 25 in particular barely has any flat ground to pitch a tent on and the bear box is on the verge of falling down the hillside.

@ErinD7039230 · Camped on Aug 20, 2024 at Campsite #6

My reservation was not posted at the campsite, and another party was unpacking their gear into the site when I arrived. The website describes the site as having a back in parking space, which it did not. There was no parking for the site. I had to unpack with my car in the road, then move my car to the area for pack-in camping.

@JudithR5038CF0 · Camped on Aug 19, 2024 at Campsite #6

The campground is gorgeous and we loved our site! However: there is still no potable water. And the site reservations are completely screwed up. We had reserved 2 sites on recreation.gov months ago; upon arrival we found one of them showing an "OPEN" sign, and at the other the sign showed other peoples' names for the site. Other campers were having the same problem. This is unacceptable!!

@jocelynlC051FB · Camped on Aug 18, 2024 at Campsite #29

great and clean campsite with picnic table and bear box at each campsite. easy access to water, flowing through by parking and by hiking Robinson lake hiking trailhead/campground. beautiful scenery!

@stevenb5011158 · Camped on Aug 5, 2024 at Campsite #24

Campsite 24August 5-7, 2024.No host. No potable water, but a nice creek nearby for filtering. Bathrooms were OK for vaults. Firewood was sold out, so we purchased some from one of the gas stations in Indepence. (FYI, both of the gas stations in town sell firewood).Campsite was moderately overgrown; tent sites were cramped for 3-person North Face VE25. Campsite felt secluded, but you had to walk along two other campsites to access the bathrooms/parking lot/trailheads. Some campsites were not identified well, which was especially confusing since the area was overgrown.Picnic table top was very slanted, because the table was partially sunk into the ground enough that we couldnt lift it up to level it.Beautiful hike up to Gilbert Lake from here.

@ErinJ45BF5C60C · Camped on Aug 1, 2024 at Campsite #20

Love this little campground. There was no running water available which we were prepared for, but would be nice if there was water.

@HarveyK98FD9EE · Camped on Jul 29, 2024 at Campsite #23

Trails were in good shape particularly considering the heavy snowfall of 2023. Please tell those that actually do the trail work how much their efforts are appreciated.

@CathyB3119916 · Camped on Jul 23, 2024 at Campsite #14

1. The site I had reserved was occupied by someone who said they had it reserved for 2 nites. Rather than make them take down their setup I found another 'open' site. To be fair this may have been more of a rec.gov double booking issue than a campground issue...2. I was planning to stay my 2 nites at this 'open' site but the 2nd nite ppl in a mini motorhome said they had it for my 2nd nite. So I had to find another 'open' site. It's extremely inconvenient to have to move every nite.3. Was extremely disappointed that there is no host & no water. Also all the signs/placards for the individual sites were at least a week out of date. So if you're just driving up there is no way to know if a site is taken or not. Also if a placard is in the 'open' position, the same thing....you don't know if someone going to drive up & kick you out!...4. If there was a permanent host keeping reserved dates up to date, it would eliminate alot of confusion as to what's occupied & what isn't...5. There needs to be a reassessment of the allowed vehicle length. 2 very large luxury travel 'mini' motorhomes, I mean a small motorhome, these are not the sprinter type or van sized vehicles, tried to drive around & needed a shoehorn to fit into the sites they had chosen. The sites at this CG area small & hard to maneuver into plus the roads are not in great shape. Even tho these vehicles may have met the 22' max length, as far as I'm concerned they are too oversized for this CG. & why do these ppl need a site anyway??? They have a rig they can stay in the parking lot!!6. In conclusion, the original site I had paid 2 nites for I did not spend either of my paid nites in. But since I had already paid for 2 nites, I certainly did not pay to stay in the other sites I ended up occupying...7. In general, what happened to FF sites that if you drive up that day, find a FF spot, you can stay up to the allowable time limit? You should be able to stay in that site & not have to move...

@TracyS2333570 · Camped on Jul 19, 2024 at Campsite #3

Neither water spigots are working.It was clear that the manager hadn't been there in a week. The garbage cans were overflowing. No reservations were posted at the sites. People arrived only to find that someone had taken their site. One such person had to find another site and then got booted from there when the person who reserved it showed up. It was chaos.It actually is a pretty and very quiet campground, though.

@KarenM8822647 · Camped on Jul 17, 2024 at Campsite #4

nice site for car camping. small site works for only one tent - fine. stream nearby, pit toilets.

@DavidL8659169 · Camped on Jul 15, 2024 at Campsite #20

Pit toilet was a mess and no TP available in dispensers.No water available.No on-site host to address concerns.Poor value relative to price.

@LindseyB902967 · Camped on Jul 14, 2024 at Campsite #3

Beautiful campground, numerous trails right near parking lots, perfect altitude for acclimating. You can see and hear 2 waterfalls and a nearby creek running through constantly. Wonderful green noise : ) Road to get to campground is steep grade but in great condition. Did Kearsarge Pass from here and it was a great experience. Only downfall was that the restrooms/pit toilets had no toilet paper the 3 days I was there. Thankfully I had my own. Otherwise clean, quiet, and beautiful spot to start or end a backpacking trip : )

@Frederick43582 · Camped on Jul 10, 2024 at Campsite #25

Loved this site! Lovely views, and a great location at the start of the Kearsarge Trail for my day hike to the pass. As others said, it is an uphill walk to the site. But I had packed lightly so that was OK.

@JeffV8927367 · Camped on Jul 8, 2024 at Campsite #2

Site #2 is badly overgrown. You will get scratches on your vehicle. The tent sites are not even close to level; you will be sliding down a hill. The picnic table has a seriously warped top making half of if it unusable.

@JeffV8927367 · Camped on Jul 8, 2024 at Campsite #5

This is a beautiful campground but is not being maintained properly. Many sites are overgrown. You will get scratches on your car. Only one of the restrooms was open by the site and it had no toilet paper. The parking is a challenge and not maintained. There is no water as well.

@AlfredoR9B2B84 · Camped on Jun 26, 2024 at Campsite #1

Siempre es hermoso!!! Visitar onion Valley campground lugar lleno de paz y tranquilidad

@TimR4117159 · Camped on Jun 25, 2024 at Campsite #1

Camp site was good.

@DouglasF277421 · Camped on Jun 24, 2024 at Campsite #26

Date June 24th - 28thSite 26Great site - drive up. Spectacular views of sunset coming over the pass. This is a busy campground - lots of PCT and JMT hikers coming and going. No water - bring your own. Great access to Kearsarge and Rae Lakes area. Cheers

@MarkD7704923 · Camped on Jun 24, 2024 at Campsite #14

Great place to camp and acclimate for those starting a hike over Kearsage pass. No running water when we were there (6/25/24) and the mosquitoes were a bit pesky but overall a nice campsite with easy access to the trails.

@seanyF52D6E03C · Camped on Jun 20, 2024 at Campsite #12

very nice area , great hike

@SaraM7513074 · Camped on Jun 14, 2024 at Campsite #1

Love this campground!

@JenniferK63850 · Camped on May 30, 2024 at Campsite #20

Gorgeous campground, well laid out with nice spacing between sites, clean restrooms and refuse space. Have camped here several times now. Site #20 is our favorite!

@ErinG7052184 · Camped on May 25, 2024 at Campsite #2

This campsite is beautiful on its own, though the access to Kearsarge Lakes was our biggest motivator for the reservation. 10/10 would recommend this camping location on its own! There is a waterfall view, a creek that runs through the campground, beautiful trees and peaks around you, reasonably priced firewood available, and clean vault toilets. This spot is a great place to spend time in the Eastern Sierras!

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