Goumaz Campground - Lassen National Forest

This little campground is best gotten to by Highway 44. A fire went through here a year or so ago, so it’s slowly coming back. A lot of local teens use this as a party camping spot, so be prepared.

It was an adventure to get to from route 36. It takes you on a forested, cliff-side adventure. There were a few downed trees that would have blocked the road, but luckily the paths are well-maintained. I came here on 4th of July weekend hoping that the crowds hadn't found it and sure enough, I mostly had the campground all to myself, aside from one couple and their dog. I heard a kid yelling in the distance so I'm guessing there's another campground nearby. There were about 5 or 6 sites to choose from. Most are right on the Susan River. Be prepared for bugs zzz-ing in your ear; bring mosquito spray. There is a water spigot and one toilet booth full of bullet holes that graciously had toilet paper. There are two info stations about respecting mountain lions and being mindful of fires. It looked as if the wood from those downed trees were shared to the campsites: free firewood! I didn't use them. I slept in my car. No reception for phones. Temperature in early July was pretty moderate.

We stopped here for the night, on a Friday night in June, and the place was deserted, with only one other tent.  It was nice, quiet and beautiful.  Only 10 sites, but there are lots of dispersed places to camp on the way in from the highway if the campground is full.  We have a VW Camper so we are pretty much self contained.

Great place to camp.

This is a small campground with just a few spaces under shady pines. The campground is right along the Susan River that is reputed to have some pretty good fishing. If fishing isn't your thing the pretty, burbling river adds a zen quality to your stay. One of the main attractions for staying here is that it is right at the trail head for the Biz Johnson trail. This is a hiking, biking, horseback friendly trail that travels along an old Rail Road right of way from Westwood all the way to Susanville for a nice, mostly level path of 25 miles. There are picnic tables, fire pits and one pit toilet. It is a very quiet out of the way spot to stay.

This place is magical, serene and if you are not put at peace then there is no hope.  Out of all the camping we've done since we've been fulltiming this one is definitely at the top of the list.

The campground is very small: only 5 sites plus the extra site near the bridge. There is a creek and our spot (#4) was next to it. Perhaps it was nice because we had the entire place to ourselves for a whole day. Others showed up later, but surprisingly both large rigs picked sites that kept us all hidden from each other, which was very nice. 

There was no fee when we were here. No garbage service so pack in and pack out. There are water spigots but water had not been turned on this early in the season. 

The bathroom is set back a bit from the camp sites and looked as if someone was using it as target practice unfortunately. Fire pits and picnic tables are at all sites except the first long back-in spot right when you pull in near the bridge. 

The sound of the creek downs out any sounds from neighbors. Sites are both partial sun and shade. The road in was about 3 miles of dirt road but surprisingly smooth and we made it fine in our 26’ Class C, and later much bigger rigs came in so the road is good for most sizes. 

Nearby is the Bizz Johnson trail and runs from Susanville to Westwood. The trail was created on an old railroad line and is nice and wide and relatively flat. 

Without WeBoost three is zero cell reception for AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. With it we were able to watch a movie at night on our T-Mobile hotspot and be able to do some browsing on the Verizon cell phone. No bugs when we were here in April but we saw wasp traps all over (full of wasp carcasses) so I’d guess they are a problem at other times of the year.