Best Dispersed Camping near Powers, OR

Recent Dispersed Reviews in Powers

36 Reviews of 16 Powers Campgrounds

• 

  Casey B.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 19, 2024

  Burma Pond BLM

  Awesome spot not too far off I5

  The road getting up to it wasn't too bad. Some bigger potholes that we're easy enough to avoid. The pond at the top was beautiful with tons of bats flying around at night. Super cool!

• b

  bridge R.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 10, 2024

  Elk River "Stony Beach" Dispersed Camping

  Dispersed camping!

  Elk dispersed camping starts 8 miles up elk river rd. Everything past the fish hatchery is fair game. We found a great pull off that led under a bridge. Beautiful spot and no bothersome traffic

• 

  Ciara W.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 8, 2024

  Elk River "Stony Beach" Dispersed Camping

  Not great for starlink

  Full time van lifers who work remote. Very dense in a valley spot, starlink would not work great for a work day. So many bugs when we arrived at night.

  Wouldn’t dare try going down the steep rough dirt road knowing internet wouldn’t be great.

• 

  Hannah A.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 30, 2024

  Elk River "Stony Beach" Dispersed Camping

  Camping

  Site was very easy access after driving down a long back road. Quiet, clean, and pretty. No phone service.

• 

  Connor M.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 29, 2024

  Beautiful Dispersed View off Fire Rd

  Scenic pull-off that allows camping

  This spot is a gravel pull off that is about 25ftx15ft. You can fit a small pull behind, truck, and/or van. The 6.5 mile road (FS-25) is paved so the accessibility of the site is a plus. The only downside is the logging operation that you can hear during the week further up the mountain.

• 

  Cass G.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 26, 2024

  Burma Pond BLM

  Off the grid just enough

  We needed a place to set up for a quick sleep on our way down to Yosemite from Washington. I navigated using Google Maps due to other reviews saying Apple made it confusing. This led us right to the pond/camp sites. The road is a little rough with potholes but it’s not terrible if you just drive slow over the holes. There is a few split offs/2-way roads along this dirt road, the last one being a tree with a smiley face and an arrow leading you where to go. Didn’t get lost at all and it was already dark when we got there. No one was there, it was peaceful, clean and quiet. There is a pit toilet/bathroom with toilet paper. No trash cans so you’ll have to pack out your trash. I recommend this spot for anyone willing to drive 10-15 minutes off the freeway for some dispersed camping.

• S

  Shayne M.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 20, 2024

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Beautiful, secluded, lots and lots of bugs!

  My husband and I were looking for a place to camp close to the coast during 4th of July weekend when every other campground was full. It was a nice drive, saw maybe 2 other cars the whole night. Our site backed right up to a little creek. The only downfall was the flys and bugs were killer - there were huge horseflies everywhere

• 

  Bobby J.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 18, 2024

  Canyon Gulch by Eight Dollar Moutain

  Not really dispersed camping

  There was a few pullouts on the road and I wouldn’t exactly call it dispersed camping. I parked in what I think was a road for fishing access. Only positive was the river was right there

• K

  Kali R.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 1, 2024

  Beautiful Dispersed View off Fire Rd

  View off a fire road

  10 miles up a fire road with some spots along road. All are tiny pullout spots just enough for a van to park, would not recommend for an rv or trailer. Very gorgeous though! And paved road the whole way!

• L

  Linda J.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 21, 2024

  Rocky Riffle

  Area closed

  It looked like a decent place to camp with river access. I was disappointed the camp was closed due to fire. I saw a couple campers but I didn't stay.

• r

  robert M.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 17, 2024

  Burma Pond BLM

  Nice spot off the beaten path

  This is a lovely spot. Just a few campsites around a pond. Just overnighted here. Saw some folks camping and fishing. A bit of a challenge to find. Take speaker road to the end of pavement and then follow the dyrt map carefully. The correct location is pinned.

• 

  Shelby S.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 15, 2024

  Canyon Gulch by Eight Dollar Moutain

  Target practice

  I liked the area, but it seemed to be heavily trafficked. Lots of cars and vans drove by. I was also woken up in the middle of the night to someone practicing with their shotgun in the distance for a good half hour

• B

  Bob Z.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 15, 2023

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Elliott Primitive Campsites

  The Elliott State Forest has more than 550 miles of roads and trails, but only a primary network has been maintained over the past 10 years since the 90,000 acre area was shut down with environmental lawsuits. Many of these roads lead to excellent camping sites, including old lookouts, fishing holes, secluded springs, and an undeveloped campground favored by local mudrunners. Met organization has worked with the local Community College the past seven years regarding recreational research on the Elliott, with our most recent (and likely final) focus being on historic trails and primitive campsites. The pandemic caused much of this work to be documented on student-level videos, indexed on YouTube: http://www.orww.org/Elliott\_Forest/Recreation/index.html and https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1JyKCHg2GmHjLtQzXXDks4Rb-LE9HoJ-

• 

  McQuaid F.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 24, 2023

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Beutiful but not the best for tent camping

  This was beautiful but the only options were on the side of the gravel road. There were a few of these pull outs along the road but the road did have a few other cars driving by.

• K

  Kaylee T.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 12, 2023

  Elk River "Stony Beach" Dispersed Camping

  Refreshing creek and easy access

  We were looking for a last minute place to camp when our last site didn’t work out. This place was perfect! They have dammed up a bit of the creek to make a perfect deep area to take a bath. It’s nice a secluded behind trees to shield you from the other campers.

  We went on a Friday night and there were three other groups but plenty of space for a another couple of people. The road to access this is paved and very accessible BUT there is a steep gravel hill to get down into the campground. It is pitted and difficult to get up/down but we managed in an AWD Subaru crosstrek. Someone else brought down an entire trailer. I have no idea how but I guess it’s possible.

  The entrance is marked with a large rock painted red. You can’t miss it. Just put in the coordinates and you’ll take you right to it.

  Perfect secluded little campground. Highly recommend!!

• C

  Catey N.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 7, 2023

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Beautiful spots, make sure to download a map

  Needed a last minute to car camp that was close to the coast, found these dispersed sites online and figured it try it out. There was surprisingly multiple spots that I had cell service (AT&T) so I was able to navigate myself around through a satellite map. Lots of nice spots with good views, just takes a bit of driving around to find the perfect one. Didn’t see anyone up there and I was there from Tuesday to Wednesday. Hope to return at some point! Just beware some of the side roads are a bit overgrown and can scratch up your car.

• 

  Maddie

  Scout

  

  Jul. 7, 2023

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Secluded and spacious

  Super large campsite! I think only one other car passed by the whole night/morning. Ground was relatively level and decently cleared.

• 

  Emma G.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 27, 2022

  Burma Pond BLM

  Good stopping point off I-5

  Subaru Impreza got up the road just fine! Location is about 20 minutes off i5. Hard to find with Apple Maps but we switched over to google maps and it was a lot easier!

• 

  Laura M.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 5, 2022

  Argo Bar

  Good and Free

  I'll add another review since we did go back there this summer and stay there for a night. But I'd check on the effects of the Rum Fire if you're planning to go to this area. Not sure what the river area looks like now. :(

  We couldn't really find a flat place to park, and so ended up parking just along the bathroom, which was rhe flattest spot here. It was a nice and peaceful stay, quiet, watching boaters and rafting companies coming and going all day. Nobody else was there at night.

  The area is beautiful but there's not much to do unless you have a boat or a car. No nearby hikes within walking distance.

  Still zero cell service. 14 day stay limit. Garbage bins and recycling and bathrooms on site. Free!

• 

  Daisee Mae S.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 21, 2022

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Very Steep

  We stayed all day but decided not to stay a night. Our day stay was due to the road being too steep for my 1993 truck camper. It got too hot and blew the transmission, made a nice long trail in the steep road.

  We made it to the 6 mile marker, where a nice couple of people stopped and went into town for us to get what we needed to not be stranded.

  If we could have drove further up I’m sure our experience would have been different.

• C

  Carl L.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 9, 2022

  Burma Pond BLM

  Excellent for a pit stop!

  Google maps will take you right to this one. The drive in is pretty short, making this a convenient place to stop if you’re driving through.

  Three spots, two of which are very close together. We were there in August. It was hot and the pond was scummy, but not buggy. 

  Pretty woods and good stars up here. We didn’t explore.

• 

  Caroline E.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 20, 2022

  Elliott State Forest Dispersed

  Worth the drive

  Very secluded but spacious sites. From the start of Marlow Creek Road to where I chose to camp was 8.5 miles. There are several forks in the road that you can follow to more campsites, but I opted to camp right off the main road. I was the only car out there. Really beautiful spots aside from the trash that was unfortunately scattered in several sites. Worth the long drive in.

• 

  Hannah S.

  Traveler

  

  Mar. 21, 2022

  Burma Pond BLM

  Nice spot to spend the night

  Found this spot on our way down to California. Not a bad spot to camp, it’s very quite and we were the only ones there.

  Getting there is pretty easy, we made it a lot more difficult by going down a bunch of roads. Stick to the main road, the road to the campsite is on the right and has a tree that’s spray painted with a stick figure. It’s very steep like the other review said but isn’t too bad for a truck.

  There aren’t a lot of spots here. We parked right by the lake, there was another spot in the middle of the loop, and a few others.

  It looks like there’s a trail that goes around the lake. We found some ticks on the dogs immediately so we didn’t end up exploring it. Overall a nice spot, it’s right off the highway so you don’t have to worry about driving deep in the mountains.

• j

  jason

  Scout

  

  Sep. 24, 2021

  Rocky Riffle

  Didn’t stay

  Saw lots of trash and toilet paper. Decent spot otherwise.

• 

  Laura M.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 4, 2021

  Argo Bar

  Wide Open, Right On the River, and Free

  We checked this spot out and ended up moving on to keep looking, but would come back here if ever in the area.  

  This is a recreation site / boat ramp, and it's wide open for camping as well.  When you pull in, you first see a large area that looks like a parking lot.  It wasn't until we left the spot and looked back on it from the higher road that we saw that the camp area extended a bit past the bathrooms into more camp friendly spots, with some shade and greenery.

  No cell service in this whole area.

  There is a pit toilet, and trash and recycling bins.  No fires at this time!

• 

  Laura M.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 4, 2021

  Rocky Riffle

  Hot, Dusty and Nice (and Free!)

  This BLM area is a quick turn off the main road.  Take a right or left to start the loop and you’ll find various spots for dispersed camping. The road is mostly ok with some areas of high rocks but we made it in our 26ft Class C with only one ding on the steps. Larger vehicles might have problems along the lower half of the loop, but the upper half was doable.  There are some spots close to the river and others up above it more with nice views as well as shade.

  There are a few “long term residents" here.  One was right on the water with a big mirror and a homemade sign warning of “thieves among us." The sheriff and ranger came by the next day and left citation on his camp. Nothing scary nor anything that made us feel unsafe at all. 

  This is a dry camp with no amenities. Tent/car campers welcome but must have port-a-potties. You must pack out your waste and trash. We found several trash piles which we cleaned up. There are NO fires allowed at this time. Also be aware that there is a lot of poison oak around. 

  Also there were unleashed dogs, one in particular that wandered into our camp site every morning. A lot of rafters and kayakers, especially on weekends, but they stay mostly on the water but can become quite loud at times. River access in this area is available in a only few spots that you have to walk to. There is no real shoreline to hang out in unless someone is not camped right in those areas. 

  Zero cell reception from ATT, verizon and TMobile in this whole area.

• 

  Laura M.

  Legend

  

  May. 19, 2021

  Burma Pond BLM

  Remote and Quiet

  This was quite a way in on a fairly smooth but steep dirt road. Along the road were random deep pot holes so be aware they sneak up on you when the road is shadowed. The last .3 miles was steep and though we made it in 26ft rig I would not attempt it again. I could see major problem if rain was expected. 

  The pond was peaceful and so beautiful with a couple of level options to set up. The area as a whole is very small though, so if someone else is already there when you arrive it’s going to feel very cozy and/or awkward. 

  There was a handicap accessible bathroom with pit toilets that someone shot up the lock (boooo) so at the moment is open despite the "closed for covid" sign. There was a pile of garbage near the garbage cans. Bullet casings littered the ground as well.

   The fish were jumping and the water clear. Overall nice, just wish people would respect public lands more and not trash these areas so much. The road is narrow with very few turn arounds. The way down I was in 1-2 gear riding the break on some of the hills. Good place to let the dogs run and swim. If we had a smaller rig we would come here again. Very weak / unusable Verizon service, no service with TMobile or ATT.