Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Ochoco National Forest and Crooked River National Grassland

While staying here in August 2024: -Dog friendly -No hookups -2 bars on Verizon -No shade -Madras, OR only 10 minutes away. -1 acres fenced in dog park in Madras OR (15 min. drive) -Used my credit card at the automated self pay station (super convenient). -fairly clean bathroom (toilet only). -From travel trailers to Teslas, they all have made down the road and plenty of room.

Situated on the banks of the Deschutes Wild and Scenic River, Mecca Flat Campground is located just a mile and a half from Oregon State HIghway 26 near Warm Springs. The site features 13 individual campsites and one group use area. The southern terminus of the 7-mile long Trout Creek Trail can be accessed directly from the campground.

Know Before You Go:

All campsites, including the group use area are open year-round on a first-come, first-served basis; no potable water is available. The 1.6 mile Mecca Flat Road is narrow with few pullouts; use caution particularly when pulling a trailer. Access the nearby non-motorized Trout Creek Trail which fronts the Deschutes Wild and Scenic River for 7 miles where it terminates at Trout Creek Campground. Cell phone service is not available in the campground. Goathead, also known as puncturevine, is present in the area; protect your pets and bicycle tires Point of Interest:

The Deschutes Railroad ran on portions of the nearby Trout Creek trail and Mecca Flat Road for several decades, competing with the Oregon Trunk Railroad before abandonment in the early 20th century. Look for the historic, now-abandoned tunnel near Highway 26 - but stay clear of this degrading and unstable structure.

This place is loaded with just about everything you need from putt putt golf to a fully stocked pond (barbless un-baited hooks only, catch & release). We loved the giant dog park, huge sites, and the staff were absolutely amazing. They not only brought the bundles of wood to your site for you but they also come and collect your trash from your site.

We will definitely be going back. The only problem I have with this place (and it can also be considered a good thing when dealing with bad dog owners that don’t pick up after their pets) is that they have signs everywhere saying to keep the dogs off the grass and are pretty rigid about enforcing it.

We arrived on a Monday afternoon of a long holiday weekend in October and the campground was about 1/4 full with half the sites closed for the season. Lots of trees, level paved pads, and electric and water hookup at all sites. $33 per night as of October 2020. Everything was clean and well maintained including a nice, roomy trash/recycling station and dual dump stations with lots of room for lines. Good distance between sites and the campground was very quiet. There was a separate grassy fenced dog area as nice as some of the dog parks in our neighborhood in Portland. We usually go for a more rustic/dispersed setup because we don’t want to be right on top of our neighbors when we camp, and we were pleasantly surprised by how idyllic this site was. Would stay again!

We followed our RV GPS and WAZE, which agreed until we got near the state park. We checked out the confirmation email, which stated to follow the signs. We could have gotten to the campground(CG) following either our RV GPS or WAZE but held steady on following the signs. We arrived at the upper Crooked River CG early, so there was no one at the check-in; however, a ranger pulled up just as we were looking at the information board and she checked us in. We then proceeded to back-in site E61 with water and electric(50/30/20 AMP). We had no problem backing into our site, and the pad was just long enough for our 40’ fifth wheel and F450. We only paid an$8 online booking fee with the Oregon State Park Disabled Veterans Pass. The utilities were in the middle of the site, so that was convenient. The water pressure was close to 60 psi, and we used a reducer. Verizon was 1 bar, and as we were on the northwest edge of the CG, we had no problem getting a north shot for Starlink. There are mature trees in the CG, mainly on the interior sites, so satellite could be iffy in some sites. We were here the first week of October; only the first loop and the associated bathhouse were open. Sites on the NW edge of the CG from E71- E41 could be good for north or south satellites. Sites E65- E55 on the edge provide very nice mountain views. They have a large(about 1/4 acre) fenced dog park on the east side of the CG. Madras, 15 minutes away, has your major amenities. We enjoyed seeing deer moving around the CG, plus amazing views of the mountains and canyon.

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.

Arrived after the office closed and started to read late check in rules and available spaces. Helped to look up to see on the other side of the door envelopes with names, including ours. Access is easy for even large rigs. All sites are paved. Space between sites is reasonable. On site restrooms are very nicely presented. There is an on site pool and outdoor gathering place, a general store, propane vending, a dog walking path and large property behind the park to take pets with a reminder to clean up and pack it out. Garbage service is nice - place the bags by the road and maintenance staff will take it away.

You are a few miles from sisters and about 15 from the outskirts of Bend (the side that has the big box hardware and all purpose stores).

The RV park is quiet and comfortable. There are plenty of trees and green grass at each site. The way the park is laid out, it’s more of an RV neighborhood of travelers.

Decent campground, nicely kept, clean, very friendly rangers. Really nice and big dog park. Nice hikes right from the campground. We couldn't go to the water, since we only have an RV and no tow car, and it seems that the water is the main draw to this campground. Lots of jet skis and boats and screaming kids.

Cell reception was ok.

We went up to the upper campground on our way out to dump, and there is no water spigot there. Heads up. We flagged down a nice ranger who hooked us up but you may not be able to fill your tanks here.

Sites in this campground vary in size. We fit into one of the tent sites in our 26ft class c. You'll probably have to drive through the loop first before picking a site if you're trying to stay here in an RV.