Bonney Crossing

Had a great time camping at Bonney Crossing. We were there for 2 nights and didn't see a any other people. The campsites are all well spaced out parallel to a nice clean looking river. We stayed in the off-season, so that is probably why it was empty. I would expect this campsite to be packed during the summer.

All the campsites had fire rings and there was plenty of scrap wood to be found. The campground had a bathroom that was as clean as one could expect during the off-season.

I will definitely camp here again.

Bonney Crossing campground is located in the Eastern most side of the Mt Hood National Forest. Our campsite provided us a quiet relaxing two nights of camping. Site is located just next to Badger Creek and the Badger Creek trail. Kids loved spending time exploring the creek and cooling off in it. Campsites are first come first serve and only has 7 established sites. Campground is, "primitive" so you must bring your own potable water. Site does have an accessible pit toilet.

I absolutely love this place. The campsite is clean with no over growth. Sleeping next to the water is calming and the hikes are top notch. The road down is a little sketchy but as long as you go slow it's well worth it.

Campground Review

An open, relatively unused campground next to a sleep-calling stream right in between the last forested part of Mt. Hood National Forest and the dryer, sage-bushy eastern side of Oregon. This is a fabulous go-to campground because the drive south of the Dalles produces spectacular mountain and open landscape views. Horses are welcome here; we chatted with a friendly rider. The best part is being maybe a hundred feet from Badger Creek Trail, a versatile, climate-variety hike that sports a good stopping point at Pine Creek about 6 miles in, then to Badger Lake another 6 miles beyond that. For backpacking, it was quite nice to hike in a bit, prop up a small tent and just blend into the forest as night floated down to meet us.

Product Review

As a ranger for the Dyrt, I get to test stuff, in this case the Gregory Mountain Paragon 68 Backpack. I thought my old backpack was handy and easy, but this Gregory pack upped the ante.

Top reasons I like this pack:

1. Comfort - the most welcomed feature is that no matter how I packed it, the bag was balanced and solid on my back. I liked all the extra ways to make it sit better, like extending the length of the backpack straps themselves through a strap on each that connected to the main pack.
2. Padding - there was wicking and padding everywhere, and because of #1 on this list, no part of my body got sore or squished. The pack has a firm aluminum backing, upping the even feel.
3. Portability - it holds much more that you think, in a more streamlined way too, if that makes sense. The main material is slickery, making it easier to put things in and take them out. While I didn't prefer the top and bottom section to only be separated by a square piece of material attached at four corners (having the sections completely separate and zip open-able is what I'm used to), I can also see that cloth-like square as easily removable, quickly opening up more storage possibilities.
4. Versatility - there's a smaller string pack inside, for little side trips in the event you'd like to leave the main pack behind. Of course, we took that out right away and now it's in a different location at our place. So we like it already. ; )

Great camp area. Hear and see the water from half the sites.