Best Tent Camping near Powers, OR

The weekend we spent at Sunset Bay was busy with limited availability. In our group was my mother-in-law who requires ADA facilities, and a potty training toddler. All of the designated ADA sites were full. Standard sites require an extensive, uneven, walk to the restroom, a problem for those needing ADA facilities, potty trainers, and middle of the night restroom users. The only play area is across the street (there is a path that crosses under the road) it provides only horseshoe toss pits, beach volleyball nets, and a basketball hoop. We stayed in A loop which is along the road and adjacent to the ranger station/entrance. There were limited barriers resulting in loud road noise, car lights at all hours, and a lot of wind. Tent sites, yurts, motor home sites, and dedicated hiker/biker sites are available, though tent sites are not level. Included in the cost of the camping fee is entrance to the botanical gardens with your vehicle permit, guided hikes to the tide pools, and educational events, such as animal lectures, in the amphitheater.

Wile road tripping to oregon from Los Angeles, we stopped here for the night. Relatively affordable, very clean, and not busy (at least while we were there). You can walk down to the river to fish, where there were also RVs camping on the beach. Tent camping is limited to very few sites but it looked like there was plenty of rv space. We set up for the night at the tent sites where we had a nice dinner with a beautiful night sky above us. The river is a good fishing spot, according to some local fisherman we met in the morning following our stay. There were bathrooms but they were locked. We had good service though. The site we chose wasn't particularly hidden or private, so anyone driving in or out of the road to the river, whether that's someone launching a boat or a ranger checking fishing licenses, they will have a full view of your entire site, something to consider if you require privacy.

Bluebill is a wonderful little spot to camp, hike, explore, fish, and enjoy the quiet. You can hear the dune buggies off in the distance which makes it feel close to home without being disturbing.

Wild Mare camp is next to Bluebill Campground so you may hear an occasional horse whinnying, also makes it feel close to home without being disturbing.

Bluebill Lake is a wonderful hike with a great trail to the water if you want to do some fishing.

The Pacific Ocean is less than a mile away, with a gorgeous view from the top of the trail.

My only confusion was the information board said to check in with the camp host, there isn't one there. Obviously, a volunteer position, but the park rangers should be more involved in the campground. Stayed four days, never saw a ranger.

No internet at all, spotty cell service at best. No electricity. No hook ups. No showers. Be prepared to be self contained.

It was clean, quiet, and comfortable. Other campers followed the rules.

Check out is 1pm, check in is 2pm.

Wonderful spot to camp.

Have driven by this park without stopping... We finally stayed two nights and I'm glad we did.  There is electric and water for hookups with a dump station.

The park is next to the highway so you do get highway noise.  There is a trial that leads down under the highway to the beach. 

The sites have reasonable distance between them with picnic tables and fire rings.  Nice restrooms and showers.

One of the reasons we stayed here was to hike Humbug Mountain, one of the highest on the coastline.

It is a fairly easy hike, about three miles with an elevation gain of 1748 ft.  Good trail and dogs are welcome, mine pulled me up the mountain and then down...

Nice campground, we will be back.

General: 95-site state park campground with a mix of tent sites (no hookups) and water/electric in two loops– upper and lower. There are a couple of long pull-thrus, but the rest are back in. We had originally reserved a tent site but upon arrival, we were dismayed to discover it backed up to Route 101 with just small Brush Creek as a buffer and the road noise was loud. I asked the camp host if we could switch sites (this was one of the first Oregon state parks we have seen this trip that was not completely full) and he told me I would have to speak with a ranger and changes could not be made online. Fortunately, I was able to track down a ranger (who was very accommodating) and we switched to a w/e site for an additional fee. There was still road noise in this site but not quite as bad. You would be hard-pressed to be in any site that did not have some road noise. 

Site Quality: All have paved camper pads and were level. Varying amount of privacy between sites. 

Bath/Shower House: Only two in the campground so depending on where your site is located, you may have a bit of a walk. The bathhouse in the upper loop (where we ended up) was newer with all-in-one units, and three private shower rooms in addition to a men’s and women’s restroom. The shower had nice hot water. 

Activities: We chose this campground since we wanted to hike the Humbug Mountain trail. Downed trees from storms closed the eastern route so you could not do a loop hike when we were there. You can go up the western side to the top and then descend the same way. Views were better en route; at the top, we could not see much (but there was still smoke in the air from an in-land fire). You also have access to the Oregon Trail and there is a trail to the beach, although it is a rocky beach. It was nice to escape the smoke and watch the crashing waves for a while.

Right off of Interstate 5 near the Seven Feathers Casino is this nice little campground, but you have to put up with some road noise. It is a good place to stay for a night while traveling through.

There are full hook up sites ($29/night) and dry camping sites ($19/night). We were only 1 of 3 campers here. Reservations are accepted though not necessary. The website states no first come first served but we just came and got a spot and the host came by and there was no problem.  The info board at the campground said that walk up sites are available for that night only if the spot isn't reserved.

There are free hot showers, bathroom, water spigots and fountains throughout, garbage (no recycling), and playground. It is well shaded and sites are paved and include picnic tables and fire pits. There is no wifi or firewood for sale.  Sites are paved and pretty level.

Good cell service from ATT, Verizon and TMobile.