Campground Review

Good for a very busy campground.

There are actually 2 campgrounds here. One is where we stayed, Deschutes Campground, and the other is Crooked River Campground which is just for RVs. If I was in an RV and had to choose, I would choose Deschutes because it seemed like a prettier area.

This is a good campground but it is very busy and crowded. If you are camping with kids, I think this would be a great campground with easy access to the bathroom, a playground, and a amphitheater where they offer educational talks. Snakes the night we were there! There is little privacy between the sites but it is a really beautiful area. Our site (B62) and the sites nearby back up to rocky hill which was beautiful and we saw quite a few deer. There is a hike you can do right from the campground called Tam-a-lau Trail. It's a mile to the top of the ridge and then another 6 mile loop or so once you get to the top. Nice view of the mountains the and the lake from the hike. You can also rent kayaks which we didn't do.

Overall, I prefer quieter campgrounds but it was a pretty area and nice to have a trailhead right from the campground.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time. On this trip I tested the Matador DL Backpack. I’ve had this ultralight, waterproof backpack for awhile now and I love it! It is extremely light (4.2oz) and scrunches up to the size of your hand. It's a totally packable backpack so I can just throw it in my gear and it takes up no space. (It’s actually really great for traveling, too) It’s waterproof which is great for Oregon but not needed on the hot day I used it.

There are 2 side pockets for water bottle and a smaller, zipper pocket on the outside which was perfect for my car keys. This is a perfect little, light daypack that I keep in my car (when I'm not using it) at all times because it so handy.