Bothe-Napa Valley State Park

We camped at the Bothe-Napa Valley State Park campground in early October with easy access to nearby towns for great food and fabulous wine tasting. The campground drive is paved, our campsite pad was stone with plenty of space, privacy, and shade trees. Table and fire ring at each site with nearby water and trash containers. The rest rooms were very clean and had hot showers for 75 cents - 3 minutes. Beautiful nearby trails in the forest. Overall, a great experience.

Beautiful park with sites that are spread out and not too close to other campers. We stayed at site #41, it’s a wow with rolling creek and a private trail head that leads to the water and a bench overlooking the creek. Very peaceful when we stayed in March and we got good cell service with Verizon. No dump station or hookups. However, there is potable water available away from individual sites. Camp Host was friendly and helpful. We had excellent weather.

Ideally situated between Calistoga and St. Helena, Bothe-Napa is a cute little gem if you are traveling by camper or tent. We were in site 4, semi-level; i would pick sites 8 or 11 for very level surfaces. But we got pretty good with leveling blocks for our van. Bathrooms clean, water spigots available, no other services. Cell reception 2 bars T-mobile. Quiet. We enjoyed despite the unseasonable rains..

Our campsite was comfortably private -- we could see other campers through the trees, but there was enough foliage and distance where it wasn't noticeable. We needed about 4-5 inches of leveling blocks on one end for our site. Food storage box had seen better days. We kept everything in our camper so it wasn't an issue, but the cabinet wouldn't have kept any animal out.

It was a busy weekend at the campground, but it never felt crowded. Trails in the park were well maintained and walking along the river was nice. Easy to drive in and out of the park.

I'll definitely be back to this park for a weekend getaway to Calistoga. Some of the best wineries in the valley are within minutes of the State Park while it still being a little hideaway. Most people were in vans, small trailers or tents, although did see a Class A that had a large enough spot, although not all that level. Site 15 is next to the camp hosts who were super friendly but enjoyed loud movies in the afternoons on their outdoor system.

We really liked our campsite, however, the favorite site was theoretically booked. That would have been nice to have, so I should have asked because no one was there that night. We were there in April so the Ranger Station was not occupied, otherwise I would have asked.
We were still backing up to the river; it was also the time for poison oak so be careful to wipe off your shoes and not touch them- it would be challenging with kids or pets.

Even so, we would return again as it is fairly secluded with nice showers and restrooms. Potable water is available too. This park is most likely not appropriate for motorhomes and large trailers. Our trailer is 22 foot and backing into many of the spaces could be challenging, let alone going down the narrow main road to the different sites.

The Rangers were very congenial and informative. There is a shuttle that can take you into Calistoga, but we drove in.

8-21-18 update. I was there for an upcoming job and to pre run the road for access. It was clean. Staff lives on site.
Visitors center.
Pool $5. Open on weekends.
Showers $1 for 3 minutes.
$35 per space. Looks to have some hookups but not all.
NO Fires June - October.
Yurts from $55 M-Th $70 F-Sun.
Cabins $150 - $225.
Firewood $10 for some unknown amount. I would guess not much.
Day use $8 per car
Extra cars at your spot add $8 ea.
I uploaded a picture of current prices and the trail we will be working on replacing an underground pipe. It’s a fish thing. Even though you can’t access the creek. The creek is plugged with dead trees and debris. While it might be nice for a night or two if going to the vineyards the hole place is overgrown with manzanita and scrub oaks.
Don’t take this the wrong way but It’s ripe for a major California fire. No guns allowed.

My best friend and I visited some of the Calistoga wineries to celebrate our 21st birthdays and staying at the Ritchey Creek Campground in Bothe-Napa Valley State Park was an amazing choice.

The Good: This location is impossible to beat. Calistoga has no airbnbs or hostels, so if you're traveling on a tight budget (as people our age often are!), this is by far the cheapest place available. The facilities were quite well-maintained: spaces are set up with a large picnic table, fire pit, and recycling bin, and the bathrooms were well-lit and easy to find, equipped with sinks, and pay showers. The staff were extremely accommodating and helpful as well. Best of all was the easy and CHEAP transport from the campground to the wineries and downtown area. An on-call shuttle is available from http://www.ridethevine.com/calistoga-shuttle for $1 cash per ride. We went up here expecting to have to Uber around and were thrilled to find a cheaper, more convenient option.

The Bad: Nothing about the *campsite* gave us troubles, but trying to book a site through ReserveCalifornia was a nightmare. The website enforces a 3-night minimum stay that the State Park does not. We ended up doing a walk-in self-registration instead without any trouble, but we were here during November–I doubt that we'd have gotten a space so easily in the peak season.

Overall, nothing about the campground disappointed. I wish we could have stayed longer to check out some of the hiking trails and the historical pieces in the park itself. I highly recommend this campground to anybody looking for a cheap way to see some of the coolest vineyards in wine country.