Donner Memorial State Park Campground

Nice state park right next to the Donner Memorial Site and Donner Lake. We were in site 133 which was not the easiest site to get in with a trailer. Rocks, trees and tree trunks make it a challenge but also part of the beauty of the park. We park our truck at an angle in front of the trailer to fit on the site. Sites are closer than what I prefer (I don’t like to see my camping neighbor) however each site is good size and would accommodate a few tents. A freight and passenger railroad track can be seen and heard on a hill high above the campground. Showers require tokens. 1 token for three minutes which can be purchased at the ranger station at the entrance. Although there is a leash rule for dogs not many people were following that rule. We were only a few sites away from a 1.4-mile trail that goes to Donner Lake, or you can drive your car down to the lake day area without any extra fees. There are boat rentals and rafting tours at the lake. The Donner Memorial cabin site and museum is next store and there is no fee, however there is a$10 parking lot fee. We stayed for a week and besides going down to the lake several times we went to Truckee, the Truckee Farmers Market on Tuesday, the Donner Museum, Donner Summit and Lake Tahoe. Would have loved to stay another week.

We stopped by here in May looking for a spot for the night but both the campground and the day use areas were closed. The visitor center is open though ($10 parking fee for visitor center parking lot).

The campground is really beautiful though and looks like a great place to camp. It's close to Hwy 80 so there's road noise though. It's right next to the visitor center, which is neat.

We did have cell reception here.

Beautiful campground, big campsites, great trails for walking & biking. I’m not sure if it’s everywhere in the campground but there is a constant sound of road noise from Highway 80. It’s a popular campground can be tough to get reservations last minute.