Best Equestrian Camping near Oakridge, OR

Horse Creek group camp is one of my favorite campsites ever. Besides being gorgeous, the sites are large enough that you can have more than one tent in each, and the campground is all yours, so everyone camping is your pal! The only reason I didn't give it five stars is that the biffies aren't always pumped out often enough, and the water in the pump has a lot of rust in it. There is a big gravel area where you can gather for group campfire at night, and the sound of the creek is wonderful to sleep to. If you want even more privacy, you can lock the gate.

My car and I climbed over 5,000 ft from the Oregon coast to get to Waldo Lake in the Willamette National Forest. The drive along was well worth it. There are three campgrounds at Waldo Lake and North Waldo is the largest. I didn't have a reservation and attempted to find a site in the smaller two campgrounds first but neither of them had space available. Of the almost 100 sites at North Waldo I'd estimate that about a dozen were unclaimed the second weekend of September.

The campground was definitely crowded. There were many large groups with people of all ages. There was noise until about 11pm. Be warned that it gets VERY chilly at night. There are pit toilets but when I was there the majority were closed for maintenance and had been replaced by portable toilets. There are also water spigots and each site has a sump for dish water. The majority of the sites are removed from the water and only a select few are near the lake. They all have trees between the site and the water. The campgrounds also all have boat ramps and swimming areas. In addition to the trails throughout the national forest, there is also a trail that runs around the lake and through the campgrounds.

The sunsets are not to be missed! I spent all of my phone battery taking pictures of the sunset and didn't get any of the campground...

We stayed one night on August 17 through August 18, 2019, in campsite A5, the overnight cost was$24, there was no electrical or water service). The site was level, only needed 2 inch lift to level left side. The campground is at an elevation of 5180 ft. 

Access to the campground was right off hwy 138, which is a few miles from the north entrance to Crater Lake. Our 28 ft travel trailer easily fit with room to spare in our site. Once we enter the campground, the asphalt pavement surrounds the campsites as we drove directly to our campsite, each campsite pad also asphalt. Weather was sunny upper 80's, the nights low 40's. 

This is a very quite campground, there was no noise from main road entering the campground. Activities we enjoyed at the campground to keep busy was hiking and moutain biking. The restroom was a couple spaced down from our campsite. The free showers were also easy to find and had great water pressure. The lake is very nice, smooth water and a few mosquitos, but not that bad. 

My wife and I enjoyed the campground, we will stay again next time we travel to Crater Lake, Oregon.

This is a very large campground with over 200 sites.  I stayed overnight, July 3, 2023.  I was a walk in .  The ranger office was closed when I arrived and they did not have a list of available sites posted.  I found a site, K11, without any reserved tag and spent a wonderful night.  There was a very strong onshore breeze from the lake that kept the mosquitoes grounded and I didn't really need repellant.

The campground is two halves.  In the upper half, the campsites are higher, above the lake.  To the south or east, the sites are closer to the lake.  Water was only available (non threaded faucets) outside the flush latrines, which were not very well kept (mostly due to the dead bugs).  There is not electricity and I was only able to get 2 bars on Verizon.  I could get a text through, but rarely a photo.

I have camped throughout Oregon and what impressed me as different were the large number of tent campers.  More than half were tent camping, though the site would fit small to medium size rigs.  I only saw one Class A and few trailers.  Noisy neighbors can be a problem, as the sites though not exactly next to each other, are still close.  The roads and parking for sites are paved, but some have very steep driveways.  Be careful in your site selection if you have a long trailer or RV.

There are some nearby stores and gas station if you need, but very little else.  A very beautiful spot with lots to do and see nearby.

Waldo Lake is a fantastic choice for any non-motorized boaters, as motors are banned. We took our kayaks out onto the large crystal clear lake where you can see straight to the bottom. Since there are no motored boats, the lake and campground were very quiet and peaceful. There is also an extensive trail around the lake, which can be followed on foot or bike. Nearby are more hikes and lakes (Crescent Lake allows for motored boats). Salt Creek Falls is just down the highway and makes for an excellent day hike. Would definitely recommend North Waldo for a relaxing camping trip.