Somes Bar, CA is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. There's so much to see and do, from exhilarating hikes or bike rides to exploring the local dining and shopping. Ready to plan your adventure? Check out our campgrounds near Somes Bar and user-submitted reviews.
"Camped here for one night mid September, slept in a car, great view and found the 3 spacious camping spots with a picnic table, fire pit (with a grill rack), and an unsmelly bathroom a short walk away."
"When you get to the area where apple maps says park and walk, just take the pine ridge or whatever trail a couple more miles up."
$35 - $50 / night
"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."
"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 just finished a backpacking trip in marble valley and sky high lakes area, both accessible about 5+ miles from the Lovers Camp Trailhead. It was absolutely beautiful!"
"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)."
"Great bike trails. Plenty of showers and restrooms. Flat concrete for tent setup and bbq pit in each site with fresh water close to all sites."
$50 / night
$10 / night
$10 / night
$45 - $50 / night
GuideI 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.
ScoutThis 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.
GuideWe 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.
GuideRosevelt 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!
LegendStayed 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.
TravelerThe 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.
ScoutWe visited early Oct 22.
The first review for this campground is not for this campground.
The road up the the campground is a rough dirt road. Eagle Creek is a beautiful creek as are most of the creeks coming out of the Trinity Alps. We live on one of these creeks near Weaverville. The campground proper has not been maintained. Very little evidence of recent campers. Many of the sites have been degraded by debris carried by flooding. The turn around at the end of the campground road has serious washout problems. The campground road is narrow. Trees are dying causing danger from falling limbs &/or trees. The canopy is dense enough that there is very little sunlight. There are a few sites below the road that are nicer & next to creek but parking is sparse. We spent about 3 hours there before deciding to find a more hospitible camping site. Verizion (best carrier for Trinity Co) coverage was nonexistant.
RangerThe 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)
TravelerElk 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
Horse camping in California offers a unique way to explore the great outdoors while enjoying the companionship of your equine friends. With a variety of campgrounds catering to horse enthusiasts, you can find the perfect spot to set up camp and ride the scenic trails.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Somes Bar, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Somes Bar, CA is Lacks Creek BLM with a 4.6-star rating from 19 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 10 equestrian camping locations near Somes Bar, CA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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