Upper Oso Campground, Santa Barbara, CA

Upper Oso Campground is located in the Santa Barbara Ranger District, Los Padres National Forest (37 min north of Santa Barbara, CA) with an elevation of 2,368 feet. There are a total of 19 campsites. The campground is normally open from mid May to the end of November. 3 sites can accommodate RVs and trailers between 32 and 45 feet. All sites are currently reservable. Reservations can be booked up to 6 months in advance. Fees range from $40.00 to $45.00. Some amenities include swimming. Activities include biking, fishing, horseback riding, hiking trails.

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Campground Capacity (Next 30 Days)

Campsite Reviews (28)

4.0 out of 5

5 star		46%
4 star		25%
3 star		7%
2 star		11%
1 star		7%

@TalithaU596537 · Camped on Nov 24, 2022 at Campsite #4

We loved our visit to Upper Oso! The sites are well spaced apart and there’s plenty of shade. The creek had a little water if you hike up stream a bit. The Aliso trail is walking distance if you want a beautiful hike with views. We did get woken up by OHVs taking the access road, but they came and left quickly. There are flush toilets and the host kept them very clean. Some sites are a distance from your vehicle, so if you sleep in your van, like we did, or have all your gear in your car take this into consideration.

@EmmaB2001331 · Camped on Oct 29, 2022 at Campsite #10

Nice campgrounds. Great escape from the city. The host was lovely. Lots of flies and mosquitos during the day.

@JuanaO8458114 · Camped on Aug 28, 2022 at Campsite #6

Amazing place, beautiful and peaceful. Fully recommend it.

@GLENNL5639297 · Camped on Jul 27, 2022 at Campsite #10

Filthy campground, piles of very fine dirt… blowing around. Someone needs to sweep every campsite. Host looked like she had a rough night when I arrived around 3 pm. She was not dressed appropriately and told me to not bother her before 10 am if I had any problems. There were various used plastic water bottles around every water spigot filled with water and standing out in the sun. I don’t know who filed all those old plastic bottles and put them around every water spigot but it was a complete waste of time, who wants old stagnant warm water that has been sitting in the sun for days? I will never go back to this campground.

@RobA1549283 · Camped on Jul 19, 2022 at Campsite #11

Toilet only fair Pit toilets could be better. The road in makes it good because it is not for big rigs Good site It was HOT

@JoeL7648618 · Camped on Jul 9, 2022 at Campsite #10

The campgrounds are worn, restrooms are filthy and the asphalt on parking pads are covered with dirt and weeds, causing Camp Host to make threats about parking on dirt. The fact that the Upper Oso Horse Campgrounds (and others on Paradise Road) are still not open, after over 4 year closure, is a shame and just mismanagement on the part of the Santa Barbara Ranger District. STOP MILKING THE COVID SITUATION, GET OFF YOUR REAR ENDS AND GET BACK TO WORK.

@DavidE7840041 · Camped on Jun 21, 2022 at Campsite #10

We really enjoyed the campground and especially Sunny, the resident host. She kept everything clean and especially the bathrooms, which were decorated to feel welcoming. We will definitely be coming back.

@JeffE4586179 · Camped on Nov 24, 2021 at Campsite #5

We stayed over the Thanksgiving break. Got there on a Wednesday afternoon. Only about half the sites were occupied. By Thursday afternoon, there was only one other family in the whole campground (and the host). The crossings to the horse corral side were washed out. That may have had something to do with the vacancies. We hiked a bit on the local trails, but most of the time, just hung out at camp. The sites a pretty spread out so we had no problem throwing the disc around. We brought the dogs this time (their first camping adventure). We have two German Shepherds. I tried a new tether system that you put in the ground. It has two 20-foot leads and the attachment point is on a ball joint, so they don't get tangled. I tested it at home before we went to make sure there wouldn't be any problems. One of the dogs can get aggressive with other dogs. In the yard, it worked perfectly, but the camp site soil is super sandy. They were able to pull it out a bit. We ended up attaching them to the built in camp stove pole. The nearby trails are used heavily for mountain bikes, dirt bikes, quads, and horses. They use the road that surrounds the site to access the trailhead, but everyone was polite and courteous when we encountered them on the trail. The toilet hut had one working toilet. The other side was out of order. The working toilet was a bit wobbly but made it through the week. If there had been more guests, there might have been a wait. The water from the spigot was not potable, so we went through a lot of the water we brought in. Almost all sites had a ton of shade from the oaks. There are hundreds of holes (gopher?) in the ground so watch your ankles. The site is in the middle of a valley surrounded by steep faces. You have the feeling of really being isolated. The road to the site from Paradise Rd is single-lane, bumpy, with patches of gravel, and potential water crossing which I enjoyed better than camping right off of Paradise Rd.

@JeffE814 · Camped on Nov 24, 2021 at Campsite #5

@Elizabeth31927 · Camped on Nov 20, 2021 at Campsite #7

The location was great, near Santa Barbara, with hiking right from the campground. The host, Sunny, was also great. However, the road to get there was terrible. The main issue was the motor bikers. Not only were they very annoying during the day zipping along through the campground, but we were woken up multiple days at around 4:30 and 5:30 AM by the motor bikers. It ruined the experience for us.

@ElizabethS970 · Camped on Nov 20, 2021 at Campsite #7

@BiankaA245 · Camped on Oct 30, 2021 at Campsite #5

Sunny the campground host was the best! The campground was quiet, the restrooms were okay and the water spigot was just fine too. Beautiful area.

@BiankaA9636691 · Camped on Oct 30, 2021 at Campsite #5

Sunny the campground host was the best! The campground was quiet, the restrooms were okay and the water spigot was just fine too. Beautiful area.

@DomN222 · Camped on Oct 17, 2021 at Campsite #10

The campground was great, though a touch treacherous to get to. The host Sunny was fantastic and very helpful and accommodating. Somehow despite the motor bike and ATV parking and trail access the grounds stayed nice and quiet. Look out for all the squirrels though, they are too curious.

@SeanY682 · Camped on Oct 9, 2021 at Campsite #5

Our camp host Sunny was very nice and helpful. There was a problem with the water so it wasn't drinkable - not a huge inconvenience, but a little nonetheless. End of summer is sooo dry though. I'll try going there in the spring next, although with this drought everything may still be parched and yellow.

@GenaB359 · Camped on Aug 18, 2021 at Campsite #13

The host, Sunny was friendly and helpful. My campsite was very clean. The restroom (the continuous presence of "smears" in the toilet in particular) was pretty gross, but I guess that is to be expected at a campground. I had really noisy camping neighbors and the coming and going of ORVs at all hours prevented a good night's sleep at night and peaceful conditions during the day, so hiking was my best option. The trails were very good.

@AdrianaF373 · Camped on Aug 16, 2021 at Campsite #13

comfortable and friendly staff.

@JosephV740 · Camped on Jul 29, 2021 at Campsite #6

Staff were awesome!!

@RemiA863 · Camped on Oct 16, 2020 at Campsite #11

Host was very nice and helpful. Access road to upper oso could be improved however.

@MariahT232 · Camped on Oct 16, 2020 at Campsite #10

Site #10 was a great location with shade! Camp host was the best! Close to the red rock swimming hole which was really nice.

@DavidI929 · Camped on Sep 3, 2020 at Campsite #10

We had a great time despite the terrible heat during our visit. Sonny is such a gracious host and also very welcoming to us on this trip as well as our previous visits to this campsite. It would be nice to have access to the upper loops that are still closed down. Any idea as to when this matter will be resolved?

@DanielleJ535 · Camped on Aug 30, 2020 at Campsite #10

Family camping trip for the ages. We had so much fun we decided to make this an annual trip

@HelenJ748 · Camped on Aug 11, 2020 at Campsite #13

We were at site 13 and I'm not too sure if it's because so many people had used these areas so much but it had an infestation of gophers, wasps, small flies, and some mosquitoes. These were all present especially around the table. Therefore we ended up washing down the tables by ourselves even before we could get our gear out, let alone start cooking. We were awoken at 5am by someone getting ready to motor bike or dune buggy around that area. He was pretty loud and talked for about 20 minutes before starting off.

@JoshuaS985 · Camped on Jul 31, 2020 at Campsite #11

Loved this campground. Just far enough off the main road that it was nice and quiet. And our site was perfect. However, lots of offroaders and dirt bikers came very early (around 5 am) both days. Wish the staging area for the dirt bikes was further from the campground.

@MariaElenaM633 · Camped on Jul 24, 2020 at Campsite #7

Very shaded and very spacious

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