Best Equestrian Camping near Orick, CA

I camped here in late March 2021 during a 2 night, 3 day hike of the Redwood National & State Park. This campground is the first one you come upon while hiking in from the Orick Horse Trail Trailhead. There are picnic tables and two bear lockers, (there's another by the horse coral). I stopped for lunch at this site on my first day. I think this is the primary campground used by most hikers, (and the gravel bar near by).

If I were to plan another trip I would only use this campsite as a way point on the way to more secluded sites. This is a main thoroughfare, so people will pass by your site. It's also the only horse camp. There was a sign that directed hikers to camp on the gravel bar instead of Elam. I think this is more likely in summer because of traffic as I only saw one horse rider on day hike.

This is wilderness, so appropriate caution must be taken, Bear canister is required is you do not have access to a site with a bear locker.

This campground is conveniently located right on the 101 Hwy, close by to the ocean and right down the road from tons of Redwood Nat’l Park trails. Because of its proximity to the Hwy, this means you will hear vehicles but it’s not obnoxious and didn’t bother us. The closest amenities (groceries, gas, and one or two small restaurants) are about a 15 min ride south in Trinidad. Orick, the closest town to the north, is very run down, but I think it has a gas station and small market. The grounds are very lush and green. You do have to watch where you walk because there is Elk dung everywhere, but that is a small price to pay for being able to see an herd of Elk almost every day. The ladies at the front desk were very friendly to us. They did warn us about keeping distance from the Elk and doing things like, looking out your RV’s window before walking outside in case the Elk were right there. When they say that the Elk come right into the campground, they are not joking! We stayed in a site in “the meadow”. They are quite close to each other but we got lucky with and end spot and no one on the other side of us during our 2 night stay. Our site had full hook ups, a picnic table, and fire pit. They had a clean laundry room, which we didn’t have to use during our stay so I cannot attest anything other than it’s cleanliness. The bathrooms were also very clean, but sadly the showers required quarters. We didn’t have any but we’re able to exchange cash for some at the front desk. It was $1.50 for 6 minutes of shower time. Overall, we liked this campground a lot and would stay here again.

We used this as a checkpoint in 2021 when traveling from Oregon to Southern California via HWY-101. The park is clean, and we had a great time walking around and resting between the legs of our trip. We arrived after hours and our stay information was available in an envelope at the main building. Here's a view from the back-in site 510. We would stay here again.

I stayed here twice for a total of eight days. Many long-term Residents give the place a seedy feeling. Ultimately it is safe and secure. And well managed. The bathroom is clean, heated, free showers and the combination is changed weekly. Large grassy area with good spacing between most RVs. I was in the middle of the campground for short term parking. Because of recent rains and some soggy areas I had to overnight campers close to me. 30 amp and 50 amp power and water at each side. The largest downside to this place is the RV dump station inside the fairgrounds. It’s the worst one that I’ve ever used. It needs to be completely rebuilt. No ultimately it did work. Great location to the picturesque town of Ferndale California. Also a convenient location for exploring the Lost Coast area. 12 miles away from Eureka California which has a Costco and Patriot gas station on the south end of town has a car wash that can accommodate RVs.

Rosevelt Elk roam through the campground. They were obviously used to people. We stayed on the “meadow” side where the elk roam through your campsite. The “forest” side is quite dark as you are camping in the redwoods. We had full hook ups on the meadow side. I am not sure if the forest side had full hook ups. They have a small pond with a ton of polliwogs in it (end of June). No fish in the pond as a couple of otters came in and ate the all the fish. Close proximity to the southern end of Redwoods National Park and many California State Parks. All in all this was a once in a lifetime experience!

I stayed at this campsite twice two years ago. The first time was in the spring (April) with my daughters and the second time was in August that year. This is not a campsite per se, but rather a parking lot in which you chose a parking spot directly next to someone else and if you have a tent pitch it directly behind your car in the scraggly grass and sand sticker plants. There is zero privacy or distance between campers.

The fee is $20 per night. The bathrooms are disgusting. The best thing about them was a family of nesting birds above the door to the ladies restroom. We were able to watch the babies for a while which was fun, but there is also the chance that you’ll be pooped on while entering or leaving the bathroom.

The first time was just okay. We camped inside the back of my Toyota Highlander amongst mostly RVs, most of which left their loud generators and bright outside lights on long after quiet hours. I finally had to knock on our neighbors R.V. door to ask them to turn out the outside light which was shining directly into our car.

This wasn’t terrible and was completely outshone by a half day spent on the beach in the dune area. Locals surfed as families. The community seemed so tight knit and inviting. We left deciding that we’d definitely come back to spend a day on the beach later in the summer. Also, the local Samoa Cookhouse is nearby with family style breakfast, lunch and dinner served. It is a historic site and museum that used to serve the loggers in the area the food and service is awesome and has become a much looked forward to stop on our road trips to California.

When we came back we came with my husband, choosing to camp at the boat launch area again because of its proximity to the beach. The late summer campers were a very different crowd. Mostly they seemed transient. There was garbage everywhere. Beer bottles, wild pets - even an actual pig, run down RVs that were clearly full time housing for large, loud families filled the parking lot. There was loud partying far into the night.

I had my daughters car camp and locked them in while my husband and I slept in a tent behind the car. We kept being woken by a loud noise that I couldn’t identify. I thought it sounded like a bear, then maybe a plastic barrel being pulled across the concrete. Eventually - after very little sleep - we discovered it was our neighbor who had some sort of terrible sleep disorder. It was bizarre. After he woke in the morning he proceeded to urinate in from of my daughters onto the water spigot rather than in the restroom which was 50 feet away. My husband was horrified and asked what would ever possess me to bring him there. Lets just say that the beach was not reason enough.

I would not stay here again. I did not feel safe or that this was a sanitary. The price seems to attract people who are not camping so much as homeless. The bathrooms don’t get serviced often and even if they did I’m sure they’d be trashed in a matter of hours.

Across from Stone Lagoon and Dry Lagoon Beach along Highway 101. This campground accommodates tent camping and RV full hook-up. Herd of Roosevelt Elk live there and are frequently in the campground. Beautiful grounds and open all year.

This was a very easy and convenient camp and resort type area right on hwy 105. The tent area were very well taken care of and offered picnic tables with fire firerings. There is a store on site. Also elko bed there for the evening. The resort also has RV options.

Elk country rv resort was AMAZING! Nothing beats sleeping under the canopy of redwood trees and waking in the brisk morning to find elk grazing in the adjacent pasture, who could care less that you’re there. It had almost a magical feel to it! The only negative I could find was that you do have to pay to shower, and we rarely had warm water. not sure if there was something going on with the showers or if that’s just how they are, but I took some of the fastest showers in my life lol

There's a heard of elk that roam the campground which is pretty cool. There's limited cell service in the camp ground. The spots are pretty close together. Paid WiFi connectivity.

Can’t believe how gorgeous, this was my favorite part of my trip. Saw otters in the small lake🥰

The campground was clean and had a lot to explore. We enjoyed seeing elk as we pulled in. We went on some nice walks around the pond and watched the otter swim in the water. Conveniently located near several nice beaches as well. Showers were basic but clean. The sites weren’t very private but overall we had a great time here. This was our second stay and we have liked it both times.

Didn’t get to see any elk when we stayed which was a bummer but it was a really nice site with a cute little lake. Hosts were great, and it was a nice location. They have showers available, pay with quarters. Will definitely be back, hopefully will get to see elk next time!

Only stayed for one night and it was a great experience. The bathroom is super clean and had hot water. Would come back.

The sites have really fine dusty dirt. Literally no cell service on att or Verizon. The front desk lady was consistently rude. We stayed in site 9 which looked into the bathrooms - not my vibe. But some people might find that convenient. It also looked into a barn with a bunch of stuff behind it including obnoxious keep out signs. The trees were pretty, it was quiet and peaceful. There’s also a bunch of ugly mobile homes throughout the rv sites which isn’t my idea of a beautiful campground.

My favorite parts of staying at this site were 1) seeing all the elk migrate through the campground, and 2) you’re right by the ocean! The site was clean and family friendly.

There were some downsides, however. This site nickel and dimes you for everything. You only have 3 hours or WiFi and then you must pay, showers are coin operated, laundry cost about $5 in quarters for one load, and the firewood was pretty pricey. The bathrooms in the meadow area were also closed but there was no notification that they had been closed on the website. There were bathrooms and showers in the forest part of the campground, but again, it cost $.75 for 3 minutes of water (about 1 minute of hot water)🙈

The greatest think about this campground is the Rosevelt Elk herd that grazes throughout. They are simply beautiful. We stayed in the Meadow campground which is all open and no shade but we loved it. We pretty much had the park to ourselves so lots of room.

It’s a 2 min drive (or mile walk) to a beautiful and secluded beach. Also a short and beautiful 20minute drive to the Lady Bird Trail in Redwood National Park (a great 1.5 mile loop through a redwood grove)

Such a great spot to get to hikes within the redwoods but, also see the beaches. The sites are well spaced out but, you do have to pay to shower if you use the public facility. We got to see the elk in the morning and it was so cool! We stayed in the meadow and there was not trees for shade but, it was pretty cool out so our airstream didn’t get too hot

We rented an RV and discovered we couldn’t fit down the narrow roads to the campsite we planned for. Praying for plan B we drove back to this RV park we saw from the road. Thankfully they had space for us. We learned about the roaming Elk herd that passed right through the camp. The camp host made clear the Elk were NOT domesticated in any way. Our site was a comfortable distance from neighbor vehicles, included a picnic table and fire ring. Had a beautiful coastal foggy sunrise on the meadow which have clear views in all directions. Friendly neighbors, clean bathrooms and showers (bring quarters). Hook ups were in good condition. Visited nearby state park and beaches. Elk herd arrived the next day, slowly making themselves at home amongst the campers. The meadow, the elk herd, friendly people, good campground…. was probably our favorite stay that week.

Great place to stay. So quite, sites are great, some what level. The red school house was very interesting. The smell of camp fire was wonderful.

Loooooved this campground. There's a meadow area for RVS and a forested area for smaller rvs/vans and tents. Some tent sites have electrical outlets, all tent sites have a spigot. BIG bathrooms with flush toilets, hot coin showers, laundry room. Laundry room has a soap machine AND a change machine. Hosts are super nice and the facilities are really clean. The grounds are beautiful, there's a lovely large lake with a little footpath around it - I saw otters in the lake and elk in the front meadow! Great base to explore the redwoods, Trinidad, Patrick's Point and Eureka. I got some TMobile service near the road but the wifi didn't work for me. Solo female traveler approved, super chill. There were a few open spaces even over the weekend.

Stayed three nights over Thanksgiving weekend in a 29 foot travel trailer.  Due to the holiday the office was closed when we arrived so we picked up our paperwork at the front door.  To my dismay, our site was different than the one we reserved and it was the closest to the highway.  This is one of a couple black marks against this campground - I was moved and received no heads up and no avenue for recourse since I arrived on a holiday.  All in all, the site wasn't too bad.  It was large enough for our trailer and truck and decently spaced from our neighbors.  The road noise was there but not too bad.  The second black mark was the wifi.  Not sure if it was our site location, but the signal was poor - very rarely were we able to connect (also we had Verizon with barely any signal).  All the utilities were in decent shape and worked fine.  Bathroom was clean and there were plenty of toilet and shower stalls.  I never used the laundry but there were three washers and three dryers that looked fairly new.  The store had some basic grocery and supplies (a bit overpriced, but that's because there isn't much local competition).  There was an old one room schoolhouse on location that still had a lot of displays in it from when it was a museum (just ask at the office to be let in).  And the ELK!  

Let me tell you about the elk. Our first morning the herd came in the far side of the campground.  We kept an appropriate distance and watched as they grazed and roamed the meadow.  Then we didn't see them for a few days.  The morning we planned to leave, we got up before dawn to make an early get away.  That plan was foiled when we opened the door and realized we were surrounded by the herd - over 40 elk surrounded the trailer, some as close as 10 feet away.  We watched, and waited, and eventually they moved away, allowing us to go outside to break down.  

Overall, a nice campground.  It's very close to the local parks.  I would stay here again.

No cell signal. WiFi is iffy at best and you are only allowed an hour of WiFi a day unless you want to pay for a “package”. When a place advertises it has WiFi all qualifiers should be stated. The sites are not well maintained. Worst place I have been in 6 months of traveling.

This is a nice place to stay while visiting the Redwoods.  Make sure you stay in the meadow portion, the forest looked dark and damp.  Meadow spaces are spacious, although our rig is small.  Bathrooms ok, pay showers.  Cell service not good.  Office staff ok (didn't seem too outgoing, but could have been the day).  But the ELK, so cool!!!  Also, a trip to Fern Canyon is totally worth it.

We’ve only stayed here one night but Would recommend staying here. Pretty expensive and still had to pay for the shower, which was kind of dirty.. staff is really friendly tho.

I’ve driven by this RV campground at least 20 times in my life now and have ALWAYS seen elk. It has never disappointed. I wanted to bring my kids to see elk, so we booked a site in December. It was wet, rainy, and cold (at no fault of the campground lol) but we’re not fair weather campers and came prepared.

Lo and behold, ELK AS PROMISED! My kids were fascinated and very excited. We kept them a safe distance and followed the campgrounds rules and precautions about being near elk.

The campground is HUGE. There are over 500 sites so I can imagine how mobbed this place can get when the weather is nicer. We didn’t have any issues getting a site in the winter. It was rather empty with a few other RVs, schoolies, an van lifers around.

The restrooms were big and clean. Showers had plenty of hooks for keeping dry things dry.  

Had booked and paid for a site but when we arrived it was closed up and no record of my booking. We just found an empty space and parked up for the night. No info on facilities. Left early