Best Glamping near Antelope, OR

Generations of campers have stayed here, and if you have little ones, no doubt they'll want to continue the tradition. The park has experienced many improvements since the landslide transformed and closed it many years ago. Available to rent now are yomes (yurt domes) with bunkbeds and inexpensive lake view cabins with AC and heat. A swimming hole, playground and amphitheatre delight little campers, and a store/restaurant/rental business delight adults who run out of ice, beer, fishing tackle, or other necessities. Kayaks, paddle boards and other water sport equipment is available for rent. The lake is long and deep with Kokanee, Rainbow Trout and Bull Trout, but you'll need to make sure you purchase an Indian permit (available at the store) if you want to fish for them. Take a trolling boat up the narrows to the back of Round Butte Dam in the morning and rev up the engine for a mile of skiing area near Pelton Dam to cool off in the afternoon. This is a PGE park with on-site camp hosts and regular visits from the local law enforcement. You'll feel safe camping here solo or with your children. Quiet time is politely enforced. There is a community kitchen available for cooking or washing dishes and clean flush toilets and shower facilities are on site. Electrical hookups abound, even if you are tenting, you can bring an extension cord to recharge, light, or cool off your campsite.

Cove Palisades State Park is one of my favorite Central Oregon destinations.  Lake Billy Chinook is simply stunning, and there is a great hike, the Tam-A-Lau trail, that goes right from the campsite.

Wow!!!! That seemed to be a word I used constantly during my 3 day stay at this wonderful new park. I wasn't sure what to expect at this high desert park, but situated deep in a canyon on a once working cattle ranch, this park is poised to become one of Oregon's top state parks. Whoever has done the design and development of this location should be praised. They're working with the natural features and old ranch buildings to give campers a feeling of history while they enjoy the remote locations typical of Eastern Oregon. Loads of wonderful trails, free use of mountain bikes, an information center, wonderful, huge sites......all added up to an amazing stay. Yes, it's dry camping so plan ahead. There is potable water on site. The bathrooms are super clean. I stayed there during a full moon and the night lighting of the surrounding hills and rocks was outstanding....not to mention star gazing as there's no peripheral lighting.

Wonderful overnight experience in Lonetree campground in Cottonwood Canyon State Park. Campground is relatively new and has scenic canyon views. Provides a nice change from other parts of Oregon. We camped in site 6 with the pergola that provided much needed shade during the 100° weather each day. Camp site was just a short walk to the John Day River that provided the kids with wading, floating and cooling opportunities. Love to come back again in fall and spring. Some nice amenities include solar USB charging stations, potable water, free bikes to use and free fishing poles to borrow.

Ccottonwood Canyon State Park Campground is a lovely, remote primitive camp experience. For the uninitiated, this means no electric sites, no running water, no flush toilets. Its also a rattlesnake habitat in Eastern Oregon's high desert biome, within 30 miles or so of The Dalles, a city marking the change in the Columbia River Gorge from high desert to wooded mountainsides. This camp ground us located deep in a canyon 15 miles from Wasco, Oregon. Before descending into the canyon, you'll see Eastern Oregon's classic golden wheatfields, then a wind farm, with scores of white windmills. The evening I arrived was the night before a full moon, so the setting sun over the canyon and the waxing moon gave a lovely glow to the sights. Unfortunately, my camera phone and photographer skills are lacking; sorry. If you love truly getting away from it all, as I do, you'll appreciate the absolute peace at Cottonwood Canyon. We arrived at dusk, late in July, and as is typical for the region, it was still 90 degrees. Fortunately, my summer tent is mostly screen, allowing the cool canyon breeze in, and it erects quickly and easily. It was full dark by the time I'd pitched it, and outfitted it with my airbed. Because of all the rattlesnake warning signs, I kept my dog leashed or tied out on a campsite-length cable. We parked across the campground from the pit toilets, which were not lighted, so bring a flashlight, cell phone, or lantern for inside the biffy. If this kind of camping appeals to you, you'll be rewarded with a quiet night of no traffic noise, only the sound of the nearby murmuring creek and the breeze in the trees. The other campers here were very quiet and respectful of the rules. The beautiful moonlight set one side of the canyon aglow and the clear sky was filled with stars. I didn't need my rain fly, so could enjoy finding the constellations as I lay in my tent. In the morning, I awoke just before dawn when my dog sat bolt upright and intently watched with me as an elk cow walked through our campsite. The fee here is $10 a.night, and worth every penny!

Here is the one caveat: as of this writing, (late July 2018) the loud diesel pickup truck that came through to empty trash bins at 6am was jarring. It was followed by the back-up beeping of heavy machinery by 6:30am, as work on a new building commenced near the campground. This was so unfortunate, and I pity the folks that had hoped to sleep in.

We enjoyed a return to this campground and found it less populated in April than it had been when we were here during late summer a few years ago. It's located right along the Deschutes River with a landing used by rafters and fishers. There are lots of trails and roads to walk on, so it would be easy to spend a few nights here. You can't make reservations, although when we found it full last time we were able to share one of the larger sites with a guy who had somehow fit his Class A motor home through the very small tunnel you have to fit through to get here. There's no drinking water, so make sure to bring your own, or be prepared to purify the river water. There's a fair amount of ground cover, so you feel like there's a little privacy between sites. This site will stay on our list of easy favorites in Central Oregon.

This is the best Oregon State Park in the entire state!!! Better than anything on the coast. Been to all so I know of what I speak!!! There isn't a lot of privacy in the sites, but I didn't really want to spend time in my site. There's the 6 mile Tam-a-Lau trail that starts on the west side of the park. With a 1 mile, 600' elevation gain, you find yourself up on the rim with about 3.5 miles of trail over looking Lake Billy Chinook and "the island". There's also a wonderful, huge, fenced off leash dog area with green grass. Only Farewell Bend SP has a nice large dog area like this. Always appreciated. The hosts and rangers really work to keep this park clean and in great repair and it shows.

Again with most of our trip in Central Oregon, late August/early September, it was very smoky. But the campground was very central to a lot of cool adventures, including Peter Skene State Park, Smith Rock State Park, and Cove Palisades (obviously). Its not too far off the highway, but the road there goes through some small towns and farm land, so be careful to pay attention to the signs. And the road down to the campground and the marina is not fun for people that have vertigo. Bungee jumping at Peter Skene, rock climbing at Smith Rock, fishing and cliff jumping into the Deschutes River nearby. Campsites are close together, which is the only downside, and it was full, or near full when we were there in September. Terrebone, Redmond, Prinville, and Bend are an easy drive to get supplies (beer). Its hot and in the high desert so days are really hot but it can be cold at night. I would love to stay there again when its not covered in smoke as you can see in the photos.

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.

Reservations are not taken at this BLM campground, but it's not usually very full. That could be due to the fact that it's a dry camp with (very nice) pit toilets, or it could be due to the 14' clearance tunnel you need to pass through that limits some RVs, or it could be because of the rutted washboard gravel road that pleads for you to drive 20mph. If none of that scares you off, and you like to camp in a hot, dry spot with few neighbors, this place is for you! Many people use it for the boat launch to start their Deschutes River rafting trip, so not many actually stay. Which is exactly why this place is at the top of my list. You can sit by the river in the shade of an ancient juniper and watch the wild horses from the Warm Springs Indian Reservation collect at the watering hole while dipping your feet in the icy rushing water. And do absolutely nothing but watch the sky turn colors against the surrounding rimrock, listen to the baby ospreys calling for their meal, watch the cows and horses graze across the river (and a mountain goat who thinks he's a cow!) and cook your dinner on your propane stove (grills and campfires are prohibited during summer fire season - leave your s'mores makings at home). Leave your motorized off-road vehicles at home, too. You won't need them here, anyway. There's hiking trails and fly fishing and rafting instead!

Loved this spot. Across the river we watched wild horses. In the river there were birds. During the day rafters come down.

No water available unless you boil river water.

The road down was STEEP! I really overheated my motorhome breaks. Plus a scary, low and narrow tunnel at the bottom.

We stayed at Maupin City Park between days rafting on the Deschutes. There was a happy vibe to the campground itself, and the facilities were clean and well-stocked. 

We enjoyed the proximity to the Imperial River Company restaurant, and quick short drive to a convenience store to restock supplies before our last day on the river. 

The sites aren't huge and are packed pretty close together, but that's not a huge issue when just making a pit stop. Parking for trailers is available, and everything is just a minute from the river itself. 

Boat tie-ups are available on the river that lead directly into the campground, so you don't have to pull up your boat for the night, and unloading is simple on the concrete dock.

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The White River BLM Campground is north of Maupin along the Deschuted River BLM access road. I think there's about 5 sites. These sites are all located along the Deschutes, between Maupin and the 216 highway. I think the sites were $16/night. 

The sites are pretty basic, with vault toilets and no running water. There is a picnic table and fire ring at each site.  The highlight is the amazing river access and views. Fishing and rafting are the main activities here. 

I loved the sound of the Deschutes as you fall asleep.

Pelton park was clean and well taken care of during our visit. The park is very family-friendly, with easy physical access to restrooms, the docks and playground equipment. Pet-friendly too, stocked poo bags, poles by restrooms to hold leashes and a small fenced-in area to let the dogs run and play. Docks were clean and safe. Rental boats were well-maintained. The yomes are small, 6 people and 2 dogs is tight and gear had to stay outside with that many people, but we all fit. The lake itself is beautiful, good fishing, and appreciate the 10mph speed limit throughout the majority of the lake.

Campground right off the forest service road on the Deschutes. If you prefer a little more privacy from the road, go a few miles further to Beavertail Campground.

This is an excellent string of campsites that run right along the beautiful Deschutes River.  

It is far enough down the canyon that car traffic is infrequent, but when the Salmon Fly hatch is happening in May the adjacent road is rocking and rolling with anglers driving looking for trout water.  The road is washboard dirt, so all the traffic (and typically wind) makes this campsite a bit dusty during the high season. (May-August)

• a Saturday in August and easily found a spot
• oh this river is gorgeous!

• windy evening! It’s a dust up !
• close to road…more dust up

• you can spend your day at any of these camps or day use spots along this river and be a happy camper…but definitely raft or kayak or tube or something