The nearest campgrounds to Yorba Linda are not real campgrounds but paved RV parks in Anaheim that cater to Disneyland visitors. Canyon RV Park in Anaheim, however, is just 10 minutes west of Yorba Linda but inside the wilderness preserve of Featherly Regional Park. The park's 140 mostly small RV sites have full hookups. Cozy, knotty-pine cabins share the serene, tree shaded setting in the riparian zone of the Santa Ana River. The private RV park allows some dogs but not all breeds. Fire rings add to the campground feel, while a store and bathhouses with hot showers add comfort. Swim in the pool or pedal on the adjacent Santa Ana River Bikeway, and on the trails in Yorba Linda.
Head to the hills -- the San Jose Hills, that is -- north on Route 57, known as the Orange Freeway, and you'll arrive about 20 minutes later at Frank G. Bonelli Park, a Los Angeles County regional park also known by the name of its large reservoir, Puddingstone. The year-round campground's RV and tent sites overlook the lake, which has boating, swimming and fishing areas. The 25 tent sites, each with a fire ring, sit in the wilderness area of East Shore RV Park. RV sites have full hookups and lawns. Campers have access to hot showers, restrooms, a market, laundry room and swimming pool. Hiking, guided horseback rides and many other activities await, along with Raging Waters, one of California's largest water theme parks. Dogs are not allowed in the wilderness tent area, but are welcome in the RV campground.
About 35 minutes southeast of Yorba Linda at O’Neill Regional Park, you can pitch a tent or park your RV under sycamores and coastal live oak anytime of the year in Trabuco Canyon. Hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians enjoy the trails in Trabuco and Live Oak canyons. A playground and grassy area provide a place for children to play near camp. More than 70 standard campsites accommodate tents and RVs, some up to 100 feet, and are supplemented with group sites and an equestrian camp. Before retiring, enjoy the stars and your campfire. An interpretive center, guided hikes and restrooms with showers sweeten the deal. Leashed dogs are welcome but not on wilderness trails.
On the Orange Coast, with its sun-baked sands, pleasure boat harbors and secret coves, you can park an RV at the beachfront campground of Bolsa Chica State Beach, 35 minutes from Yorba Linda. Adjacent to Huntington Beach's Dog Beach, the campground allows dogs. At night, bonfires blaze. In Laguna, at Crystal Cove State Park's Moro Campground, pitch a tent or park an RV at one of the 58 sites perched above the Pacific Coast Highway on a bluff overlooking the 3-mile sandy beach and nearly crystal blue water of its underwater park. The beach, restrooms, showers and canyon trails might make up for the campsite fee, which is $50 at time of publication. Crystal Cove State Park, about 45 minutes from Yorba Linda, also provides backcountry camping. Moro Campground took first place for best campsite in the 2012 Orange County Register's Best of Orange contest.
