Best Cabin Camping near Cheatham Lock and Dam

My wife, son, and I stayed at The Klickitat Treehouse for two nights in early March 2022 and had an amazing experience! The treehouse is furnished with 3 queen-sized beds + a couch. It also contains most modern amenities that you would find in a hotel suite, including A/C, 2 heaters (bedroom & bathroom), a wood stove for heating the main area, an indoor shower, a stove, refrigerator, glasses + mugs, board games, plenty of firewood, and much more. In addition, there is an outdoor shower and fire pit available to guests during specific seasons (no outdoor shower in the winter and no fires during fire bans a.k.a. late summer in the PNW). Note, however, that there is no wifi or cell service (this was a plus for me, as I was looking for an "unplugged" experience).

The Treehouse is on private property off of a dirt/gravel road about 15 minutes from downtown White Salmon (AWD not required, but could be useful for rain/snow). We received specific directions ahead of our stay via email that took us directly to the house.

Some other miscellaneous things to note:

• There is a tiny home that shares the property and accommodates overnight guests. It's not close to the treehouse, but expect to share some of the common amenities (e.g. deck, firewood, Mt. Adams bench, etc.) if somebody is staying there.

• If you're coming from Oregon or want to spend some time in Hood River, there is a $4 toll to cross the bridge. So a round trip across the river will cost you $8 as of 2022.

• Everything you need to make meals is in the treehouse, but we explored White Salmon and Hood River for some food. Highlights included White Salmon Baking Co., Everybody's Brewing, Pfriem, Ferment (though there are many more that we would still like to explore!)

The only thing I wish had been provided in advance was fire starters for the wood stove. There were matches, a hatchet, and an instruction manual, but I had to spent quite a bit of time chopping wood to make kindling and meet the wood size specifications of the stove itself.

While the cabin is certainly pricey, it is such a truly unique experience that I would highly recommend for any season. Looking forward to staying here again in the future!

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.

This beautiful campground was loaded with amenities. The gorgeous John Day River, was perfect for fishing, swimming, floating. There was several trails within the campground as well as trailheads around the perimeter. We brought our own bikes but if you don’t bring yours, they offered loaner bikes and there were little bike workstations on the grounds. Pet friendly! Including a fenced in dog area (about an acre) and doggie poo bags readily available. We have a truck with camper but the tent sites each had a solar panel to provide electricity for charging the essentials. The grounds must have been a farm originally and the campground designers did an awesome job of using the existing structures to add to the rustic nature and maintain the land’s historic relevance. Cottonwood Canyon surpassed our expectations, especially considering the very low price tag. I cannot recommend highly enough.

This small state park is tucked alongside the Columbia River and Horsethief Lake. The campground is not large with only 4 regular campsites, 4 walk in sites, 8 partial hookups, a Teepee and 2 platform tents. The grounds surrounding the campground and alongside the lake are large, green grass areas with picnic tables everywhere. There are also archaeological sites with artifacts and pictographs within walking distance of the campground. There was a small kayak/canoe rental place that is run by the super friendly camp host.

I reserved the Teepee. I arrived a dusk during what would be a very strong wind storm that would last all night and all the next day. When I first went into the Teepee I noticed the canvas at the bottom was so rotten and the inside flap was secured to nothing so every time the wind blew the inside flap would fill up over half the inside and dirt would swirl everywhere. The front door flap was also very rotten and would not secure, so every time the wind blew, the door would fly open and let in more dirt. Needless to say my dog and I lasted about 5 minutes.

After talking to camp host I was able to get into one of the platform "tents". I later learned from the Park Ranger that stopped by that the canvas on the tents had rotted out in May so he had built what I would call plywood cabins with canvas roofs. There were 2 cabins, each one had 2 windows, 2 sets of bunk beds, a weak light, and a latch secured door. The cabin let in not one bit of wind which was nice, but also got very hot even though it was a cool evening and I had the window open all night. The next day the wind continued, not a big fan of strong sustained wind, but I figured out that when the door was open it created an arc of no wind right in front of the cabin which was nice to sit, watch, and relax. Please note, the cabin is not sealed to the creatures, on the second morning my dog woke me up to a bat that got stuck inside the cabin and was trying to get out, I was able to get the door open and it flew out.

The downside to the platform cabin is the lack of air flow, which in the summer could be rough. Also the only bathroom was a bit of a walk, but was kept clean and had showers. Also the parking was far away, so again a lot of walking. I was also informed by the Park Ranger that the Teepee would be taken down at the end of the 2018 season with no plans to bring it back.

Overall it as a good state park if you don't mind the wind and just want to relax. I'm not sure if I would go back but would recommend it to others.

We used Tilly Jane as our base for hiking Cooper Spur (trail 600A to 600B) and it worked perfectly! The road getting here is not so great (you're driving up a mountain) but passable if you go slow. It's quite far up the mountain, so make sure you have everything you need. There isn't anything fancy about the campground, but it makes an adequate base for an early morning start.

Tilly Jane is also not far off the Timberline trail loop around the mountain, and the majority of people visiting the camping area were day hikers. The weather was very hot in the day, but got quite chilly at night.

In addition to the campground, the Tilly Jane A Frame is available as a rental- it was having some work done to it in August 18, so should be in good shape for the summer 19 and beyond camping seasons. There is also a small amphitheater in the campground.