Best Cabin Camping near Essex, CA

General: RV sites with water and electric hookups plus tent sites and what looked like a cabin located along Route 101 in northern California not too far from the Oregon border. Although located right on the highway, the RV sites are tucked far enough back that road noise is not an issue. We had our choice of assigned site (13) or one of the few other available sites. We ended up taking Site 19, one of the other choices so that our van door would not open directly into the slide out of the RV in the next site. 

Site Quality: Sites are on grass with no defined camper pads. Sites 15-21 are a little wonky in that the hookups are on the left side; we were able to thread our electric cord underneath our van to reach them. Most but not all sites had picnic tables (ours did not but we were just passing through for one night so not a big deal). As is typical of RV parks, sites are close together with little to no separation between them. We chose Site 19 because it had trees on one side, providing us with partial privacy. 

Bath/Shower House: Two stalls and two showers – both were very clean but did not use the shower so cannot comment on how well it worked. 

Activities/Amenities: Laundry (main reason in addition to the convenient location we booked this RV park). You reserve a time and then get the key from the office. There is an 18-hole mini golf course, but it looked quite worn so we passed. There are horseshoe pits and a swing set. There is also a small store with gifts and other basic sundries.

Patrick and Maya are new owners since April 2023, and we were greeted very warmly by Patrick. Later while doing laundry, I had a nice conversation with Maya. They live on-site with their two young children and the store/office is open 9 am– 9 pm. Honestly, this is why I gave this place 4 stars. This was a good overnight stay for us and worked well for us to catch up on laundry while at our campsite.

Gorgeous campground in the Redwoods. We have stayed here twice. Once in March and once in July. The shade from the redwoods makes this a cool haven from the hot California summers. Campsites are mostly shaded. Campsites are large with good fire pits and picnic tables. Lots of redwood stumps for the kids to play on. If you plan to hang your hammock, bring extra rope as the trees are SO BIG that regular hammock ropes won't reach around the trees. Spent several afternoons reading in the shade of the redwoods in our hammock with a blanket on top of us. Even the 13-year-old boy fell asleep reading in the hammock. Short walk to a beautiful swimming hole when the sun warmed things up in the afternoon. The closest store is okay for snacks and essentials but not much else. No real restaurants nearby. Be sure to have your cooler fully packed and bring your meals with you. Clean restrooms with coin operated hot showers. Water spigots close by to campsites.

I highly recommend this location - what could be better than camping in the redwoods, with elk grazing in the meadow right next to your camp!

Sites were decent sized for our 2 tents, surrounded by trees and bushes offering some privacy so you don’t feel like you are right on top of your neighbors. Very clean bathrooms, decent showers, picnic tables, fire pits. You are expected to keep your site ‘crumb clean’ and will be provided with instruction about that.

The only downside is that it can get very damp at night – which made it seem a little colder and had a lot of tent condensation.

There are many wonderful hikes in the area – love it when you can get forest and ocean on the same trail! Normally I don’t like hearing other people’s campground music, but whoever was singing vespers it was beautiful. Slept peacefully to sounds of the creek running by our site.

The visitor center was good and gave us a lot of useful information. The ranger even came around to let us know of local events.

We stopped here as it was one of the only places near Trinidad. It was your typical state park camp ground with nearby bathrooms, fire pit, picnic table, and water. One thing to note is that there wasn’t a grey water disposal area. There are several campgrounds and we stayed at the Agate Beach one which had nice trail down to the beach.

The area was very quiet and dark. The pull-in we were at had a nice spot for tent camping. We showed up last minute and there were several spaces available. There is a placard that shows which spaces are available and you can flip it once you park. We picked a spot, flipped the card, and went to go pay at the kiosk. $35/night and cash/check only. I wish I would’ve knew this coming from Oregon.

It was an ok typical state park but I probably won’t stay here again if I had other options.

We stayed here one night last year. We’d hoped to stay at Patrick’s Point State Park, but it was full. The woman who set us up with a tent site here was super friendly and helpful. She offered advice for where to eat in the area and points of interest.

My daughters and I checked out the Bay Area and hiked the Trinidad Head. It was a beautiful afternoon. We had dinner at the Trinidad Bay Eatery and Gallery which was nice with a friendly server and good American fare.

After we returned we looked at the little arcade area in the cabins area. It reminded me in a nostalgic way of the arcade area in the 80’s movie Starfighter. Very fun.

Although it wasn’t quite dark yet when we headed back to our site, it was VERY dark in the back area with the tent sites fue to heavy tree cover. Finding our spot was difficult in the dark. The path is winding and doesn’t exactly match the campground map and the ground was very uneven. I was glad we have four wheel drive.

The campsite was also very uneven and had a steep drop off to a creek bed on the side. Luckily we’d planned to car camp and only had to fold down the sleeping area in our vehicle. I can’t imagine trying to set up a tent on that site in the pitch blackness. I’m not sure that the site had any amenities like a picnic table or water or a fire ring. I couldn’t see anything!

Overall I’d stay here again, but I’d get there way before dark and set up camp first before adventuring in the area. I love the Trinidad/Eureka area. There’s lots to do and see. I gave the three stars because the tent site area ground is so uneven and so unlit.

 I was so excited to be camping here. I wanted a campsite in Trinidad which would be central to all I wanted to do in the Redwoods. This campground seemed to check all my boxes, plus: CAMPING BY REDWOOD TREES!!! This was the clincher for me. There are a lot of redwood trees in the campground& in the sites.

 My husband wanted to give one star. I'm giving three. It wasn't completely awful. First, divide the campground in two. The Hwy 101 side& the Patrick Point Road side. You don't want the Hwy 101 side. It's noisy. VERY noisy. PPR side is the better bet. There's traffic noise, but not as bad. There's a rustic charm about the campground. It's obviously an established place, but I couldn't find out how old it was. Lots of annoying signs posted all over the place about quiet hours, check out time, speed limit, ect. They sell propane& there's a dump station. They have a camp store/gift shop at the office. The beach is very close, but there's no view of the ocean at this campground. This is one of the few places we camped at that we were allowed to have a campfire. 

The worst thing about the campsites on both sides is how close they are- VERY VERY close& narrow. Sites 2-11 are very tight. We had campsite 9. It would have been acceptable if we weren't camped next to site 10, which is the trashiest campsite I've parked next to. Ever. There were a couple of sheds, wooden pallets for a privacy fence& junk everywhere. Obviously a permanent site. The trailer has been there a LOOONG time. We were there for four nights. It sucked. Best site in the campground is site 20, which is a pull through. Don't get site 9 or 11. Sites 14-17 are right on top of the bathrooms& there's foot traffic there all the time. Also not very attractive& right on top of each other. If you rent a cabin, ask not to get Q. Right on top of the bathrooms. Lots of foot traffic. 

If I had a tent site I'd be in heaven. The tent sites are in a redwood setting. Very rustic& nice. Also spacious. There's cabins also that looked nice. 

There's one bath house in the 101 side. Men& women. The women's side had 3 sinks, 1 out of order. 3 toilets all working. 3 showers, 1 out of order. There's a group of three unisex bathroom/shower combos by the PPD side. All working. It looked clean, but my husband accidently dropped his towel on the floor& I had to wash it. Very dirty.

 Laundry had all machines working.

 It looked like most reviewers liked this place a lot. I think it had some charm, but didn't like how close the RV sites were. 

If you're there for a night or two it would probably be ok.

[ PROS]

• Super lush and foresty campground right by the Pacific Ocean. There is so much to see all around the campgrounds. You can go for a hike and the Rim Trail which perimeters the park, you can go down to the beach and hunt for agates, explore tidepools, look at birds and other wildlife, and go to the visitor center.

• Each site came with a picnic table, bear box, fire ring, and two parking spots.

• Sites were surprisingly large! We stayed at Site#99 and it was super spacious. It even had a hidden area that was under large trees that was perfect for setting up tents.

• I love how the sites were also very private. Each site seemed to be carved out of the brush so you’re just enclosed in trees and bushes. Everything was so green!

• The restrooms were really clean. Site#99 was a little far from the showers, but we had nice toilets right by us.

• VIEWS VIEWS VIEWS! My gosh. We stated at Agate Campground (1 of 3 campgrounds at this park) and it was really close to the beach access. We did the Rim Trail hike and it was unbelievable.

[CONS]

• NONE! Perfect campground:)

Overall, I would come back here in a heartbeat! I know we came during off season so the campground wasn’t as full, but i’d imagine when this place is fully booked it would still be very tranquil and peaceful. Each site was like a little oasis removed from everyone else.