Onion Valley Campground

Just returned from an amazing weekend at this campground. 3^rd week of june daytime high, 75, night low, 55. Breezy with some gusts. Upon research, we took our chances and arrived late morning on a Friday, to get one of the last walk up sites large enough to hold our big tent… Bill the host is a great guy and keeps the grounds in great shape. Each site has it’s plus and negatives, ours was it was right next door to the parking lot, and Bill’s place, so many people came up to us thinking we were the hosts.
We were treated to a great afternoon hike up to Golden trout lake, very «ambitious» hike with lots of rocks and not well marked. The lake was more like a beautiful meadow. (5 hours including about 30 min. at the lake.) We encountered a couple groups of folks that missed the sign for the Kearsage Pass at the fork in the trail, and they had to turn back and lost a lot of time/​distance due to the error. That sign should be bigger, and more visible.
Our full day hike was up to the Kearsage Pass, along the beautiful lakes and scenery, although the last stretch before summit is a stinker, I thought I was in good shape till this hike… (8 hours, including about 2 hour stopping/​fishing time) Tip, bring lots of water, and/​or tabs, snacks, sunscreen, and bug repellant. It was a pleasure to give the PCT backpacker/​hikers a ride up/​down the mountain from Independence, and our final morning hosted a weary young man to a bowl of fresh cut up fruit and breakfast. Looking forward to another visit next summer.

Love onion valley! It it probably the most amazing campground I have ever been to! Bill the camp host is the best host I have ever met! We were in the middle of a thunder and lightening storm and he checked on us several times! He did an amazing job cleaning the vault toilets. Also, all sites are cleaned and raked before you arrive! I can’t wait to go back. One caution, some sites are on the smaller side and don’t lend themselves to larger tents. Love love love OV!

Awesome campsite nestled in below the mountains. The views are so beautiful. There’s running water at the nearby bathrooms, which was super convenient. We had walk in campsite 22, and it had a fire pit carved into a rock that prevented wind from getting to the fire as well as a grate. Walk in means you can’t drive to the site, which I didn’t know, but we preferred it since it was more secluded. I had to reserve this campsite 4 months in advance and grabbed the last spot for mid-​August. Plan ahead and book this! The hike up to Kearsarge embodies the Eastern Sierras perfectly.

This place has to be one of my favorite places to camp of all time! The 360 degree view is amazing here and not to mention the views from the hiking trails to Robinson Lake, Kearsarge Pass, and Golden Trout Lake are also amazing! The campsites and bathrooms are clean. And best of all, the campsite host, Jake, is really awesome & friendly too. My fiancé and I have come up here 4 times this summer and every time we have a blast. The temperature at Onion Valley Campground can be a little tricky though. I usually use the
site and you’ll be able to search by coordinates. Also, you don’t have to bring your own firewood because they sell it here and it’s at a reasonable price. Plus you won’t have to waste any space in your vehicle to bring up wood.

WEATHER ADVICE — IMPORTANT: This place was outstanding like everyone else’s comments show. However we had to leave early due to an unfortunate weather issue. When Googling «Onion Valley Campground Weather», all the search results show inaccurate weather. Most searches show weather for the city of Independence (alt of 3,900 ft), and the title says «Onion Valley Campground» (which is 9,600 ft.) This really messed up our trip. We packed and planned for 40 – 60 degree weather like the forecasts showed and ended up with 18 – 35 degree weather, a huge snow storm and 65mph winds that broke the tent. We were cold, snowed in, wet and had to leave early. Made for a great story and we made the best of it but not ideal. Check more accurate weather reports that specify altitude and mountain conditions.

We’ve been using this campground as our last stop on the way home from the Reno Air Races for the past 19 years. The campground was in the best shape we’ve ever seen it, cudos to the camp Host for doing a great job in maintaining the site and the heads; very friendly and helpful also, My Thanks.

Wow, James made this trip so much more enjoyable. He was so nice and the perfect Camp Host. He was very knowledgeable about the trails, and the whole area. The Campsites were about the cleanest I’ve EVER seen in my life. I could not believe my own eyes when i saw how perfectly manicured the site and even the parking spots were every morning when i woke up. It was like looking at a Japanese Zen Garden.
Thanks James.
Jerry

My husband and I pulled in late at night and was amazed. River goes thru the campground and the sky is so clear that you feel like you can touch the stars. We did not spend time around the campground during the day. It was just a place to take a break in our trip up to Mammoth but the mountain with the morning light looks tempting. Maybe our next trip will be just there :)

James, the host of the Onion Valley Campground was excellent. James was friendly, helpful, and very knowledgable of the fauna that surrounded Onion Valley. In particular, the bathrooms (pit-​type) were the cleanest, odor free I’ve ever experienced – particularly important for the ladies of our party. James even took the time to tutor my wife on the edible variety of wild onion plants the valley is known for – a really out-​of-​way kindness on James part. On the way home we stopped at the Mt. Whitney Portal, beautiful but crowded – Onion valley was so much more peaceful.

We found this campground 3 years ago via a friend prior to hiking Mount Whitney. We returned again this year, staying from 6÷19−6÷21, as always this places is great. This year the Camp Host is James. This guy is awesome. His Job is to take care of the campground. He goes above and beyond. He really is a great guy that just made this place more amazing. Kearsarge pass hike and Robinson lake hikes are highly recommended. If the owners of the concession happen to see this you got a good man watching out over this campground. I cannot emphasize this enough.

This is the best campground ever. James, the campground host, keeps it immaculate, raking each site after every use, cleaning the bathrooms everyday, making trips up and down the hill to take pct hikers back and forth. He is friendly, knowledgable and helpful. His dog, Isabelle, is also charming. The location is spectacular. I would go back in a heartbeat.

Had a blast camping here! The drive up was a bit steep but so worth it. The camp host was very friendly and wants everyone to have a great time. He also kept the bathrooms very clean. A great jumping off point to explore the John Muir Wilderness.

Had a great time at Onion Valley campground! We were pointed up there by a friendly gas station attendant down the hill in the little town of Independence. The camp host is a hoot, there were plenty of unreserved spots to pick from (some with car spots others were walk-​in only), clean utilities, friendly folks, great views and gorgeous hikes. We’ll definitely be heading back!
…$ 16 cash is the nightly price, if that’s helpful to know :)

Thank you fellow Unilocalers. The reviews for the campground on Unilocal were the most helpful thing I came across when researching my stay at the onion valley campground.
The campground is located high, high, high up in the John Muir Wilderness of the Sierras at 9,200 feet. You will leave the desert far behind you as you travel up, up, up, on a winding, sometimes scary, road to reach the oasis that is Onion Valley Campground. The surrounding scenery of the campground is gorgeous. Aspens, Lodgepole pines, tall pointy grey mountain peaks, several waterfalls, and a nearby stream. Could you ask for anything else? Absolutely Gorgeous!
When we first arrived our hearts sank as we didn’t have a campsite reservation and we came upon a huge parking lot filled with cars. We thought for sure we were going to be out of luck. Whew! All those cars were actually backcountry backpackers utilizing the trail to hike towards Whitney. We lucked out at 8pm on a Thursday as we snagged one of two remaining campsites.
Campsite #5 was a lovely and surprisingly large site. There were 2 plots for tents. Since there was only two of us we were stretched out in luxury. Only bummer about our site was we had to park our car in the parking lot as there was no dedicated space for it directly in front of our site but it wasn’t a horrible inconvenience as it was only short walking distance away. The campground host gave us exactly 7 minutes to park in front of our site and unload or things… he jokingly said we looked like trouble makers so he was going to time us… least I think he was joking when he said that.
The facilities were clean and well organized. The restrooms are pit toilet’s and they were well maintained. Because we were so high in elevation the area does get bear activity so you must be conscientious about putting everything in the provided bear bin and about cleaning up after yourself if you cook. We didn’t encounter any bears but several deer wandered through our site. The deer are pretty oblivious to you as they munch away on the surrounding shrubs. If you didn’t bring enough water there are several spigots with running water that is drinkable and I’m sure the water quality is amazing considering its most likely sourced from nearby streams.
The campsites are conveniently located near several trails which are great for day hikes. The trail to Kersarge pass is almost 3,000 feet in elevation gain and about 5 miles one way. It passes by several lakes which we stopped and fished at. The fish in the lakes are the special Golden Trout. We didn’t catch anything but it was a nice way to slow down and enjoy the scenery. We started our hike at 8:30 and because of all our stops we didn’t get to the pass till about 5:30 We ran into a friendly solo backpacker who hiked straight through and he started at 1:30 and arrived at the pass same time we did.
The Robinson lake Trail was another hike we did which was a completely different experience than our hike to Kearsarge pass. This trail takes you up past the waterfall that you see from the campground to a large alpine lake far above. It is close to a 2,500 feet gain in elevation but it isn’t well maintained and it is very very steep. It’s like they didn’t take the time to stretch out the trail with switchbacks so you end up walking directly up a mountain. It was a fairly quick way up to the lake and definitely worth doing especially if you prefer a bit more solitude. We only encountered one other soul on this hike whereas everyone and their mother was on the hike to Kearsarge pass.
Overall a great campground with fantastic access to beautiful hiking trails, alpine lakes, waterfalls, streams and fishing. Great for a quick couple of days in the Sierras to recharge.

Nice, high altitude trailhead campground conveniently located near the Kearsarge Pass trail. It’s a great place to camp the night before your backpack trip. You can acclimate to the high elevation here. It’s a restful camp. Pretty quiet at night.
The campsites are a little on the small size, even for backpacking tents.
The camp host, Dennis, is cheerful and hospitable.
It’s a steep drive to this location from Independence-​town. Make sure your car can handle the task without overheating!

Just returned home from a great time camping up at Onion Valley over the 4^th of July weekend. This outing was a make-​up from last year’s Memorial Day disaster! This time, the weather was beautiful with temperatures around the upper 70s to low 80s. The evening was a bit cold but still tolerable with a jacket.
This weekend made up for the blizzard conditions I endured last year at Onion Valley. I basically concur with all the positive reviews below. This camping experience has set a new standard for all future camping.
Kearsarge Pass Trail is well managed and easy for the fit hiker. But, for the not-​so-​fit, it’s still a bit of a challenge – especially up at 9200 ft. Kearsarge Pass is an moderate hike that consists of a bunch of switchbacks all the way up to the lakes. Our hard-​earned tax dollars has been well spent on maintaining this trail.
The vault restrooms are very well kept, with the cooperation of all the respectful campers. Bring a bucket so you can carry water back to your campsite. Washing hands, feet, dishes, cleaning fish, etc. is not permitted at the water spigots. For absolute privacy, campsite #2 cannot be beat.

First week of October 2012. Water spigots all turned off.
Clear sunny weather, frigid at night (low 40s) and windy. Too windy for campfire, so we laid in tent 7pm-​7am. Going out to pee at night in the freezing wind was a bummer.
Warning, Robinson Lake trail is not good. It’s a tough scramble directly up, lots of steep bolder steps, not a switchback groomed trail. Going down, we were constantly amazed that we went up it. Robinson Lake was small but very pretty. Caught three tiny fish and threw them back.
Most visitors park and backpack over the pass rather than car camp and day-​hike.
Observed no mosquitoes, no squirrels, no bears, few campers. It’s a very steep narrow curvy road to the campground, you better have good brakes!

Onion Valley is beautiful. It’s about 20 minutes up the mountain from independence, and the drive is lovely.
The campground is a good size — there are maybe 15 or 16 sites, varying in size. Sites 1 — 4 are tiny, and I have no idea how you’d ever fit 6 people in them, even though the reservation site says that’s how many they fit. If you’ve got 6 people, book 9, or 13 — 15. Those sites looked huge.
Each site has a really big bear locker — the biggest I’ve seen at a campsite, actually. We fit coolers and food in one bear locker for 9 people and there was still room to spare.
The bathrooms are vault toilets, and they’re really well maintained, which was a relief — usually those things smell so awful. Ew.
There is a hike to Robinson Lake from the campground, that starts between campsites 8 and 9. It’s about 2 miles up a steeeeep mountain and it’s not very well maintained. This is definitely no nature walk. The lake is beautiful if you make it up there.
There’s another hike up to the Kearsarge Pass. The trail head is near the campground parking lot, and it’s about 4.5 miles up to the Pass. This hike is definitely not steep like the Robinson Lake hike — it’s not difficult at all in comparison, actually, but it’s still not easy. The hike switches from greenery/​lakes to rocks every so often. It’s really strange, but it’s beautiful. You’ll pass 3 lakes on your way up to the Pass, where there’s another lake.
I went to Onion Valley at the end of September and it was about 70 — 80 degrees during the day, and below 30 at night.

We stayed at this campsite since it was right next to the Kearsarge Pass trail head. The campsite is smaller than I anticipated with just one drive through loop. We got there late at night and found out that our site #8 did not have up front parking so we didn’t set up camp that night and just slept in the car. Next morning I met the camp host who was really nice and offered us to pick any available campsite. We picked #14 which is a great site since there was plenty of shade from the trees (only a handful of sites were well shaded). The views from #14 were fantastic, we were able to have full view of the mountains from our picnic table. I posted a few pictures as well. Also wanted to point out the toilets are non-​flushing they are more like port a potties but not as stinky. That might scare some folks but doesn’t bother me.
We hiked two trails the Robinson Lake Trail which was pretty steep and not well maintained. The Kearsarge Pass Trail was amazing since the scenery would gradually change rocky mountains to lush green lakes. Would definitely do the Kearsarge Pass Trail again.
Overall we had a safe and pleasant trip would camp here again but wouldn’t do reservation since there was an extra fee for reservation and you don’t get a sense of how big the campsite really is or how shaded it is until you get to see it. Bringing a checkbook and doing the drive up seems to be the best and most convenient option here plus you get to pick your ideal site. Don’t forget to bring your Citronella candles to ward off the mosquitoes.

Onion Valley is the best High Sierra camp that I’ve stayed in so far that is accessible by car. Whether you’re acclimating for the Mount Whitney hike or want to camp for a couple of days in the Eastern Sierra, O.V. is a great place to do it.
When getting ready to hike Mt. Whitney, O.V. is a superior choice to say Whitney Portal or Horseshoe Meadows because there won’t be as many people in the camp and no one will be waking you up in the middle of the night to start their ascent of Whitney. The whole time I stayed at O.V., every one was quiet and respectful of the quiet hour time. Also, being situated at 9200 feet, it’s an even higher camp than W.P. In my honest estimation, O.V. is the hands down winning choice based on the beauty of the place. There’s a bunch of different flowers to look at when you walk around, a creek that runs through camp and pretty views all around (see pics).
Onion Valley also has the standard amenities: pit toilet, water spigots, bear lockers, fire wood (fee), etc. If you’re a hike-​in person, there’s plenty of spots for you too.
The only real downside to the campground is that there are a bunch of mosquitoes around that spawn in the creek. Depending on the season you stay, this problem can be avoided entirely. Remember to keep all of your food in the bear lockers… there are a bunch of critters around. Oh and if you are a light sleeper and you don’t like the sound of water… again, there’s a creek that runs through camp.