Best Cabin Camping near Fern Ridge Lake

This campground is always a safe bet any time of the year. Pets, children and groups are very welcome at this campground with nearby lakes, sand and ocean access. Rent kayaks and canoes at the lake. Visit the rustic and historic log cabin store with a southern exposure and bask in the afternoon sun. Kids can swim in a shallow roped off area out in front of the store with ample outdoor seating. Located near the ocean, this campground is protected from the heavy winds often experienced in other coastal campgrounds. Honeyman has access and a wonderful walking trail to Cleawox lake, where the dunes literally slope right into the lake. Sandboarding is popular on the hillside of the dunes adjacent to the lake. Fishing, non-motorized boating and protection from winds are the plusses at this nearby lake to the campground. Back at the campground, there are many loops for different kids of campers. Those with ATV's, Yurt camping, RV camping and tent camping. The hiker/biker campground is very quiet and private.

The quaint town of Florence is just a few miles north with historic downtown shopping located on riverfront. Locally owned coffee shop, Siuslaw Coffee Roasters offers comfy fireside seating with a view of the river and the historic and recently restored Siuslaw Bridge, designed and engineered by the famous Conde M. McCullough. Downtown Florence offers many specialty gift shops, eateries and fine dining as well as family pizza and locally owned BJ's Ice Cream Parlor with a huge variety of salt water taffy.

Across Highway 101 from Honeyman is Wohink Lake, where motorized boats are often seen pulling water-skiers. A great place to spend the day if you have a large group or have your own motor boat. Lots of sun, swimming areas and parking make this a convenient place to spend a day.

I have found this campground to be completely reserved 6 months in advance. They always seem to have sites available if you arrive early enough. I've never been turned away if I've arrived early.

The website was not kidding about not following the directions through Google Maps. The last 9 miles to the resort was really trying - the roads were narrow, twisty and winding. If you are probe to car-sickness, go slow. I took extra precaution and dabbed essential oils on myself and my children.

Our pull-through site was in the Upper Marina, #22. If you have an extra canopy for camping, I'd suggest you bring it. It got really HOT when we were there. The good news is once the sun sets behind the trees, around 6pm, it makes eating dinner at the picnic table so comfortable and cooling.

My husband and children perused the bathroom/shower facilities which was just across from our campsite. He said it was spacious - a shower + private bathroom + sink setup and wide enough for a family.

Access to the swimming beach/boat launch is just a short 3 minutes walk. You just have to exercise caution because you will be crossing a main road (cars and big logging trucks rumble along often enough during the week).

The swimming (sandy) beach is cosy (read: tiny). There are no lifeguards on duty but enough trees offering shade for parents/families to sit back and keep watch.

You would have to drive back 5 minutes down the road to visit the Lodge for supplies or ice. The Lodge also provides some light refreshments* (deli sandwiches and ice-cream).

Our site offered full hook-ups including cable (limited channels). WIFI* was a disappointment though - we had to create an account for a complimentary hour of WIFI usage every day. Together with the zero cell reception, it renders us completely off the grid. It's great really to totally relax your mind and body but it is worrisome for that what-if's scenarios.

*Ice-cream was very pricey for the single not-generous scoop in a plastic cup that we bought for each of us. Because of the steep prices and WIFI availability (you have to pay if you want to get connected), I could only give a rating of 3.5/5 stars.

Otherwise, we had a great time at the RV resort. The sites are appealing for huge family reunion (we witnessed such a reunion during our trip). We will be back! 😊

We are a family of 4 (2 young boys with no pets). We traveled with a travel trailer.

We had a great time staying at River Bend! This was our first trip here and won’t be our last, we’ve already made reservations for next year.

The sites were maintained very well and the camp hosts were very friendly. In addition to the paved driveway for our trailer, there always a nice, large concrete pad for the picnic table with a fire pit built on to the corner. The neighboring site on the right was 20-30 yards away and the site on the left was 100+ yards away. Lots of trees all around, good shade for those hot August days.

The bathrooms for the loop were a nice walk but not too far and they were cleaned 2x per day.

We spent most of our days at the river swimming, floating in tubes, skipping rocks and looking for crawdads. It was an easy walk on well maintained trails to get to the river.

The playground and adjacent field were fun for playing and games in the evenings.

Being a long, hot year there were no fires allowed in the fire pits. That was a small bummer, but the fire danger was so high that it wasn’t a big deal. We used our propane fire ring instead and that was great. Kind of nice coming away from a camping trip and not smelling of smoke 😁

Came here to meet up with a Facebook camping group. It was one member's favorite place and I see why! Nice level sites with water and electric. Dump station on site. The sites are private with picnic tables and fire pits. The bathrooms are very nice. Peeked inside some of the creekside cabins. Those look super cute.

The main attraction here is the South Santiam River, which in October is stunning. Would love to visit in the summer when can actually take a dip. It's a great place to come and sit and meditate, watch the birds, just relax. Love it here!

I had such a nice time at this campground. We went in the off season (in the winter) so the campground didn’t have many people staying- most being in RVs and us in a yurt. I have a toddler and it ended up being so helpful with the weather being a bit rainy and getting some creature comforts while still enjoying nature.

The yurt comes with a bunk bed (top a twin and bottom maybe a full size), pull out couch, small table with 2 chairs and a heater. Our location was conveniently located near the bathroom which made for night bathroom visits easier. The bathroom is also very clean with multiple stalls and showers (push button but not coin operated).

The campground had a playground for kids, a small free library and ranger station with a couple of souvenirs of the area. The campground offers firewood to buy and extra ice.

The campground is located near the dunes, not far from the city with grocery stores if you forget something, it’s not a far drive from Seal Rock, and the lighthouse.

Overall we loved it. Wish I had an extra booked night to really get the most of the location

I camped here twice this year. Once in June in the Hiker/Biker area, and again in July in a regular site. The experiences couldn't have been more different.

Hiker/Biker is fairly segregated from the rest of camp. The access point is actually before the entry to the main campground itself. My first visit left me surprised at the beauty of the camp. It feels like it is in the wilderness despite being less than a few miles from Florence's cool Old Towne.

The trees here are big, and the ground cover lush with ferns. The trails are canopied by Rhododendrons. Nature paths lead off to Cleawox and Woahink lakes. Sand dunes abut the west side of camp. They seem endless, and otherworldly. At Cleawox Lake day use area there are paddleboats, boards and water toys for rent by the day or hour. Sand boards are available from a temporary space set up in the day use parking area. 

On my first visit the entry Ranger station was closed but the Welcome Yurt was open. Maps, advice, firewood, a lending library was available. 

Honeyman Camp is huge. When I was there in early June it made for a lovely exploration, and seemingly great spaces between campers. In late July the vibe had completely changed. Each of the several hundred spaces was occupied by a seemingly large family with 5 kids to every adult, or 25 belligerently drunk RV campers who felt the need to blast Fleetwood Mac. 

That second visit, in the main campground, made it very clear that your experience here will depend on the quality of people choosing to stay in the same park. All the amenities were the same, but despite it's size, a campsite with stereo speakers set to full boar are hard to ignore even when you're on the other side of camp. Now multiply that by several campsites per loop.

One thing of note: Each campsite is issued a set of rules, including "Quiet Hours". Unlike some other sites in which hosts ignored those rules in an attempt to avoid confrontation the hosts here were on top of it. For as obnoxious as the camp was at 9:45pm, by 10:15 it was silent, and we were able to enjoy the remains of a campfire and view of the stars in the slight clearing between trees.

Amenities include: 

• Flush Toilets

• Hot Showers (free and some without having to keep pushing a button!)

• Picnic tables & Fire pits

• Welcome yurt

• Kids playground

• Access to lakes and dunes (Bear sitings on the path to Woahink Lake in July)

• Nature Trail

*Pro-Tip: Stop in Old Towne Florence and buy some fresh fish or get a coffee at the local roaster.

Yes, you can walk to the beach. A "nature trail" leads down to Alsea Bay. We had the beach to ourselves the night we stayed. You are almost beneath the Hwy 101 bridge that crosses the bay. Nice clean beach with rocks and driftwood.

The campground itself is tidy with a nice office/gift shop and helpful, friendly staff. Pricey though. We don't go to a KOA for privacy. The sites are packed together like at most KOAs. We go for the facilities - clean showers and maybe use the laundromat. Some sites are bigger with chairs and fire pits. We had a smaller one with full hook ups and a picnic table.