The first and only time I've been up this road was in 2006, when Ryan took me on a romantic hot springs date.  I'd love to tell you that I went back with him 12 years later, to fondly collect campground photos and reminisce about the days when we were first dating.  But I didn't.  At this moment in our lives, Ryan and I had three little kiddos under the age of five.  On my best days, I remember to brush my teeth.  So, no, I did zero discovering and exploring with Ryan on this trip.  Instead, I stayed home with the kids while Ryan returned to the scene of our very first eastern sierra camping adventure together.

Buckeye Campground is located just outside of Bridgeport (which has some of the best ice cream cones at Jolly Kone).  After eating a hamburger and topping it off with a cone, you can get to the campground by taking either Buckeye Road or Day Creek Road.  Unless you have an off-road vehicle, take Buckeye Road - both roads are dirt, but Buckeye is a little wider and better maintained.

The campground is situated on a ridge between Buckeye Creek and Eagle Creek.  There's easy access to the creeks from any of the campsites; however, only a few have a view of the river.

This campground is first-come, first-served, but don't worry too much.  Unless you arrive on a Saturday in the middle of peak camping season, you're pretty much guaranteed a site.

The campground consists of 4 paved loops; the parking spurs are also paved.  The camp hosts get rave reviews.  Most campers are eager to keep them as besties (but with no cell phone reception, it's a hard relationship to keep going).

All of the sites have some level of shade thanks to Jeffrey and Lodgepole pine trees.  None of the shade would be considered dense.  The amount of available flat and clear land for tents varies quite a bit by site - some have next to no room and are taken over with sagebrush, while others have enough space for an 8-person tent.  The majority of sites have space for a two-person tent.  (Check out the 360-degree photos here.)  What the campground lacks in tent space, it makes up for in privacy and space between campsites.

Now for a big important tip - bring your own water!  Although water spigots are available, the water is non-potable.  There aren't signs on the water spigots explaining this, so be aware.

Click here to see our 360 photos of the campsites and to-scale maps.

What to Bring:

• Drinking water
• Headlamp (to walk down to Buckeye Hot Springs at night)
• Hiking shoes
• Fishing pole

In the Reviews:

The average Yelp rating of this campground is 4/5 stars.  The major downfall people note is the bumpy gravel road to get to the campground, which can be impassable when wet.  Jeff Green wrote a great article about his one-night stay at Buckeye Creek Campground in 2014.  Not much has changed since that time.

Activities:

• Buckeye Hot Springs (not to be missed) - read more here.
• Fishing - rainbow trout are planted at the bridge that crosses Buckeye Creek
• Hiking - a trail starts at this campground and heads through Buckeye Canyon and into Hoover Wilderness.
• OHV riding
• Horseback riding into the Hoover Wilderness from Trumbull Lake.

Favorite Camp Sites:

• 31, 32, 34, 35, 64, 54, 59