Smiling River Campground

Really nice USFS campground along the road, one of many similar campgrounds (something like 8?) We checked out a few of them but decided to move on. The price of $29 seems high for a campground like this. 

Campground closes in late fall/ winter and reopens late spring/ early summer.
 Poor to nonexistent cell reception in this entire area. Campground has a dumpster and a little can for collecting recyclables to raise money, and accessible and unnecessarily gendered pit toilets. No water available here other than the river. This area is really nice and peaceful and I’d imagine camping here would be really relaxing.

Smiling River campground is right on the Metolius River. There is a walking/fishing trail that runs along most of the river. The trail is walkable to the Camp Sherman Store. The road going through the campground is narrow for tow vehicles but if you go slow you will be fine. Sites have picnic table and fire pit with no water or electric hookups. Make sure and visit Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery that is north of the campground on the Metolius River. It is one of our favorites. We had no Verizon cell coverage.

The campsites are all right next to the Metolius River, so most of them have great views and scenic sunsets only a few steps away. There’s quite a few campsites (35), but some of them on the far side from the river are right next to the road, which can account for a bit of noise. In various places around the campground there are 3 water spigots, but there are no black/gray water, electrical, or water hookups for RV’s in the sites. Camp Sherman General Store is a little under a mile and a half away(they have great donuts- just saying). There’s almost always a campfire ban, due to how dry the area can be, which can make the camping a little less enjoyable, but probably safer in perspective. Remember to bring lots of bug repellent, because around the beginning of summer the mosquitoes and gnats are unbearable.

My family and I visited in Mid July so the heat was pretty unbearable if you are in any spot not close to the river. The previous camper left a yellow jacket trap which helped along with Hanging our trash on a far tree but the minute food came out the yellow Jackets swarmed, I suggested bringing some sort of enclosure for your table and eating area. There are a few water outlets for fresh cold central Oregon drinking water which was convenient. The out houses were original to the site but well maintained. If it is hot I would plan to visit surrounding lakes like Suttle or Scout, the Metolius is very cold and runs very fast not good for small children. If you want to explore the area the hatchery is interesting a fun for the kids, also if you need supplies or just about anything the Camp Sherman store is well stocked.