Searching for a dispersed camping spot near Chiloquin? Dispersed camping gets you off the grid so you can disconnect from the hecticness of everyday life. You're sure to find the perfect dispersed campgrounds for your Oregon camping adventure.
$11 - $14 / night
Mt. Thielsen Wilderness encompasses 54,914 acres and runs along the crest of the Cascades 80 miles east of Roseburg and just north of Crater Lake National Park. Elevations range from 5,000' to the 9,182' summit of Mount Thielsen. Born of the same volcanic activity that created Crater Lake, this is the land of fire and ice.
Much of the Mount Thielsen Wilderness is made up of high alpine forests and open meadows. The terrain is moderate but becomes very steep toward the crest of the Cascade Mountains. Timberline stands at about 7,200 feet, just above a forest of mountain hemlock and fir mixed with whitebark pine. Lodgepole pine dominates the vegetation at lower elevations. The many streams in the area carry a substantial amount of snowmelt in spring.
The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail winds through the Mount Thielsen Wilderness for 26 miles along the summit of the Cascade Range. For a more serene wilderness adventure, hike into Lake Lucille or Maidu Lake on the North Umpqua Trail #1414. The trail passes over deep pumice that was deposited when Mt. Mazama erupted to form Crater Lake. The famed North Umpqua Wild and Scenic River begins at Maidu on its long trek to the Pacific Ocean.
14-day camping is allowed from May-October. Oregon Sno-Park Permit is required between Nov. 1 and April 30.
14-day camping is allowed from May-October. Oregon Sno-Park Permit is required between Nov. 1 and April 30.
Guide
After parking right off the trail head and hiking down about 0.8 miles, you have three “established” spots to chose from. I say established in quotations because they are marked with plaques but are all the way rustic sites. The middle sight is definitely the biggest and is where me and four others stayed for two nights. This is a very busy national park in the summer months but going the first week of October (as suggested by the ranger) made it so that we were the only ones in this area. We did have a couple backpackers stop for the night at the first site but other than that is was really quite. The lightning springs trail itself is incredibly long and we only went to where water was flowing so that we could fill up. We opted to hike out the first day and then drive to the Watchman Lookout Trail head and do that one first. It was only 0.8 miles long but I believe a 400 foot elevation change. Absolutely incredibly view. After that we drove north and did the Cleetwood Cove Trail which was around a mile with a 600 foot elevation change. This allows you to get right next to the water. Both hikes we semi challenging but well worth it. While the backcountry campsites do not allow fires, there are other location around Rim Village that have established sites that you can. When we went it was a little colder and windy but the tree coverage offered some shielding from that. There are plenty of other longer hikes as well in the area and other established sites if you are looking to have a more traditional camping experience. The Rim Village center was open and we were able to get a meal and visit the gift shop as well as go farther south and get our NPP stamped. Definitely recommend checking the NP website to see what is opened and closed as well as fire bans. We were lucky that the entire loop was open and got to drive all the way around the second day. While not directly at these sites, there are trash and bathroom areas really close. Really all around incredible views and an incredible weekend stay.
Guide
Great spot. Go all the way to the end of the road to reach the top. There is ample room to turn around, in spite of a step climb.
Was able to pull 15' trailer up with 4wd.
Wide open sky for solar and starlink.
Mid 60s f during day in early October. 40 f at night.
Guide
Large, paved parking lot. Plenty of room for big rigs and vault toilets. Some road noise, but nothing that bothered us. Great location for access to Glacier NP and a small town with a few restaurants was not far away.
Huge thanks to Rogue Snowmobilers - there was Wi-Fi available while we were there, which helped out a lot!
Guide
There’s nothing here except the highway but you can drive down the bike trail and stay there as well, just so your further away from the lot and the road.
Ranger
We absolutely loved camping here. During our off season stay it was fun and with all the ATV trails it was our favorite place to camp.
Our neighbor campers decided they could ride the trails without helmets and found out the hard way that is is a no no. They were brought back to the camp without their bikes and in the back of a National Forest Service Enforcement vehicle. After being spoken to about the importance of following the rules of the trails, they were left at camp and had to find their own way back to their motorcycles.
Fortunately we did not have the same experience. It can get very dusty so just be prepared for that. The trails are absolutely great and access to the Rogue River is just icing on the cake.
It was so nice to have areas provided for unloading bikes and ATV's so folks could safely load and unload their toys.
TravelerStayed for over a week and the only thing is it buts up to a quad/dirt bike trail. Other than that quiet and peaceful!
Guide
Quiet camping area off 138. You come up to what looks like a county shop, but keep going to the left, and you're here. A handful of sites. We were easily able to park out jeep a ways in.
ScoutThis was a lovely place to camp for the night. There were probably 10-15 campsites, and I was the only one there when I showed up. Campsites have picnic tables and fire pits and there is a pit toilet. Many trees which provide shade. Some mosquitos but not too bad. Very easy to find with the directions and it was also on GAIA GPS.
Guide
BE CAREFUL got a nail in the tire here. Ended up with a flat giving me a headache 😒. Otherwise the campsite was amazing, would have been 5 stars if not for the nail.
GuideCame here not really knowing what to expect and we were surprised with what we got. Road was was easy to get up, however 4x4 is definitely needed for the spots up on the rocks. Lovely view where we were! Lots of little camp fires scattered around the area .
TravelerSeemed to be plenty of spots when I got there on a Sunday. Far enough from the main highway, I didn’t hear any traffic in the middle of the night. A caveat however, the east side of hill itself seems to be an active rock quarry. That means if you are waking up on a work day, it may be somewhat of a rude awakening
Guide
We had to go in a ways before finding a suitable spot, but it was very secluded. We camped near the road but nobody came through the whole night we stayed. An owl swooped right through our camp site and scared the crap out of us. Easy route in and out.
Guide
It was a nice area; it was pretty easy to access, and there was lots of open space. I couldn't really hear the highway, but several trucks did drive down the dirt road. Had good cell service with t-mobile , but did spend most of the time in my tent due to the flies and mosquitoes
TravelerI spent a Thursday night here and it was almost completely empty. I only saw one person drive down the forest road. Good cell service for T-Mobile. Easily accessible for any car. Be a good human and bring a trash bag to pack out some of the litter.
Scout
Dirt road leads too many places to camp. Most vehicles should have no problem getting to a site. Some places can be difficult turning around for larger campers. My Crosstrek loved it.
GuideThis is a good campsite to stay to look at Crater Lake. It is about 15 minutes to the south entrance of the park and then another 15 minutes to the Rim Village. Huge thanks to the Rogue Snowmobilers who make this site so great. There was a rec area we ate dinner in and played cards. The only issue with the site is the mosquitos. Make sure to have bug spray and make a fire
ScoutNeeded a place stay for just two nights. This spot was not too far off the road, there were some bumps getting there but my Chevy Trax was able to get there just fine. The area was flat and no one else was there. Our T-Mobile phones had a small amount of Service in our campsite but not on the road to get there.
ScoutNot a long drive after leaving the highway. Several spots were all empty when I got here mid-November. The actual campground is closed for the season, but the pull-offs and turnarounds are enough. There are large trucks that use this road but it was quiet enough and far enough off the road to not be a problem. I was the only one here.
GuidePlenty of parking with bathrooms . We were the only ones there in our camper van got in late driving from the redwoods on the way to crater . Lots of stars . No cell service
Ranger
Easy to find. Small campground but was only 4 of us there so not too bad. Very beautiful scenery. Get your groceries before you get off your exit very limited on options. Toilets were stinky so I’m glad I had my private portable. Quiet morning.
TravelerPlenty of different types of camping spots: trailer and RV to serious offroad spots. I found a very secluded place with my 4by4 down rough road but plenty of other options. Best thing about it was I was able to be in the park to watch the sunrise.
Traveler
Entrance across from Annie Creek Sno Park. Stay left at first fork.
Potential for 2 spots, left spot had some ground bees.
GuideEasy to access road. So so many spots below, and a few great ones up the hill. We stayed below since we arrived late at night. Nice little walk in the morning up the hill, good views. Quick drive to crater lake. There were mosquitoes, but some deet and no prob.
TravelerThis campsite is dry camping. Silver Creek may be dry, as it has been since 2021. No facilities other than a picnic table. No Cell, No WiFi, etc. If you like totally 'being away from it all,' this is your place, if you can get there.
TravelerWe drove to this little spot after a busy day at crater lake July 2nd. We arrived about 6pm. Having seen a YouTube video about this spot in advance, we 4x4 straight to the top in my f150. Little bumpy but no problem getting up. At the very top, another truck with a RTT beat us, but we took the sheltered spot deep in the “rock quarry” center area.
We were worried about mosquitos due to so many reviews complaining, but it was pretty clear overall. There were a few, but really not a nuisance at all. I did use deet lotion, but my partner didn’t and she didn’t seem to mind at all. We walked to the tippy top section where are are trees and there were swarms on misquotes, but down in the rocks was pretty clear.
Got a fire started under the full moon and had a wonderful night with my family. 10 out of 10.
TravelerNice quiet spot off the main road. There are several flat spots for tents or small campers. The road is pretty good though we didn’t try to go up the mountain. There are lots of bugs and you can hear the occasional chainsaw, so just be aware.
Legend1,000 Springs Sno-park
We hiked to this spot from Union Creek Trail about a week before staying here.
Right off of Crater Lake Highway. There looks to be about 3 or possibly 4 spots to camp. Easily pull-in spots for larger campers and tent camping.
There is a large shelter house with a door on one end and wind flaps on the other. Two trash cans inside, two very large round wooden tables and an iron stove for heat. There is also a solar panel for lights and such.
We only stayed two nights as apposed of the 14 you can stay. Very spacious spots but not far enough away from each other. The second night we were kept awake by the people staying in the shelter, having a party and disco lights and loud music.
Two pit commodes are in the center of the camp. That meant a lot of traffic throughout the day and into the night by people stopping to use it, so the TP didn’t last long. Definitely bring your own just in case.
The road up to the spots from the parking area are dirt and wood chips. The stir up a lot of dust when people drive through, even if they aren’t going at a fast speed.
There are a few trails that go for miles and are very lovely to walk, or even take an OHV on.
We opted to stay the night here because we are traveling across country to DISPERSED camping areas. Would have stayed in the dispersed camping by Crater Lake but it was a $30 fee/ day to enter the park. So that’s not actually free.
If we head back up to Crater Lake in the future we may stay here again. It’s a very lovely spot, but do note that after Nov. 15th there is a fee in this Snow Park.
Might be a nice place to stay for a night, if you don’t like your privacy being invaded i’d suggest going down the road to Union Creek Trail :D
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular dispersed campsite near Chiloquin, OR?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dispersed campground near Chiloquin, OR is Jackson F. Kimball State Recreation Site with a 4.6-star rating from 18 reviews.
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