Upper Clearwater

Small dispersed campground with a restroom. Huge spots with 3 lucky ones right on the river. Arrived about 2pm during the week and plenty of free spots and still empty spaces for the few days we were there.

We were the only ones at this campground the first weekend in December. Got to the location about 9:45pm Friday night in the pitch dark so we were especially glad it wasn’t busy. We took spot 1, which in our opinion is the best location right on the river. During the high season some of the other spots might be better, though, since spot 1 is close to the entrance and the pit toilet. There are 6 spots, one of which is pretty big and would accommodate a group.

The road getting to the campground is really nice. It is paved, which surprised us based on other reviews. Some sections narrow to one lane, but there are plenty of shoulders and turnouts so if you had to reverse to allow someone to pass you wouldn’t have to reverse very far. In a few spots the road is gravel with some potholes but not bad at all.

There is a pit toilet at the campground we did not use but we did look inside and it was clean. Right across from the pit toilet is a trailhead. It looks like there used to be two trails, one leading down to the river and another that goes up to a creek that feeds into the river, but parts of both trails are washed out and blocked by tree fall. We hiked as far as we could along them, though, and it was a nice walk.

When we left on Sunday, we decided to drive to Yahoo Lake Campground just to check it out. About 1/4 mile (or less) beyond Upper Clearwater, the road splits. Take the right fork for Yahoo. We took the left fork and went about 3.5 miles before realizing it wasn’t going to take us where we wanted to go. It was a beautiful detour and we saw some nice views but it’s just logging roads. Trust that Yahoo Lake Campground exists because there are no signs but if you go about 6 miles from that split in the road, it is there. You’ll arrive at a well-market trailhead where you can park and take a short hike to the lake and campsites. The main road continues on but, during the off season, it is closed for elk preservation. We walked to the lake and checked out a couple of primitive sites that would be great for tent camping. Super remote, beautiful little lake.

Overall, Upper Clearwater is a really nice campground and a great place to stay.

This is a campground that is pretty much what comes to mind when you think of camping in the PNW, good and Sasquatchy looking with old trees, ferns and moss everywhere. We were the only ones there when we camped so had the pick of the sites and went with a riverside one. Campground was clean and while not perfectly maintained, the older fixtures did add to the ambiance. I would say bringing anything bigger than the smallest of trailers would be a challenge though.

I loved my time at Upper Clearwater. Large sites with varied amenities. I was happy to have my riverside site even if it meant a ring of rocks instead of a real fire ring like at other sites. Or the fact that the seat on one side of the picnic table had been removed. One site even has a permanent shelter that would be great for groups (see pictures). If you love camping in the woods and hearing rivers instead of radios, this is the place for you. P.S. seriously, cleanest and least smelly pit toilet I have experienced in my life. It was oddly impressive.

Approach to the campground is mostly paved and well marked. The road narrows considerably in a few places and with a soft shoulder. Large RV’s and vehicles with trailers meeting each other in these sections will need to reverse to allow safe passage.

The campground has only 7 sites or so and one long drop toilet. There is one group site. There are several turnouts along the road for overflow camping and gravel roads going out into the bush.

The is another campground further down the road, yahoo campground I think?
The campsites were clean with tables and fire rings. Great big trees and lots of shade.