Best Cabin Camping near Rainier, OR

We picked this campsite as our last stop on a week long camping trip round Rainer and St. Helens area. Nice flat camping area, picnic bench fire pit, a bit of a mosquito challenge but not too bad. Lots of families, and maybe even groups. Has showers, which is what we mainly booked for. Small general store, basketball hoop, pizza shop, and some cabin rentals. Luckily the dance party ended just after dark, so we got plenty of sleep. Stayed only 1 night. Plus is ranger station 5 minutes from site, with maps, stickers, fridge magnets, etc. Ranger gave us detail on ape caves, and other are hikes for kids, AND ranger was cool enough to tell us all about his Bigfoot experience in the area, complete with mobile phone picture of footprint! Lots of kids and teens, but some fisherman too, who didn’t seem to mind the dance music and footballs flying around!

Lucked out with a last minute Father's Day weekend reservation at this great little campground located just at the junction of Mt St Helens and Gifford Pinchot. The campground is bookable online for only $15 a night which felt like a bargain for a private campground in the area. 

There are only 10 camping sites - some are suitable for RVs. There are also very small cabins that can be rented. There is a well stocked camp store on the property which is staffed from 7am to 7pm. There is also a pizza place on the property which is visited by a lot of area day hikers, so if you want an all day quiet woodsy feel you might want a different location, but if you've been camping or hiking for days on end without any amenities, this place will feel like an oasis.

The campground was busy over the weekend, but was nearly empty and quiet by the time Sunday night rolled around. We were at campsite #9 which was right next to a basketball hoop which got plenty of use while people were waiting for pizza (and was a bit noisy). The Pizza Place is not open everyday.

Each site had a firepit with grill and a picnic table. The toilet in the camping area had cold running water and a flush toilet. The toilets closer to the camp store had hot water and an outlet. Showers are available for an additional $3 charge, and laundry facilities are available for $5 a load on certain days.

The Camp Store had lots of knowledge about local hikes and what roads were open around MSH.  We used this campground as a base to hike Ape Caves, June Lake and Ape Canyon. It was about 30 minutes of forest road driving to the trail heads.

Loved this State Park! The trails around it were fun and led from the camp right up to the beach by the old ship wreck. My kids ages 2-14 always had something to do and we brought our bikes. The camping sites and RV sites are cheap compared to Utah, Washington and Idaho rates, but they were also very nice! A little close together but nice. You have to book your site months in advance at this place because it fills up fast. So much to do in this area! Close to seaside, the fort Stevens retired military site was free and interesting-with a scavenger hunt and prize at the end for the kids who complete it. Also, close to Astoria which also has many things to do! Loved that it was close enough to drive over the Columbia River to get to Washington to see the light houses!

Campground info

174 full-hookup sites (36 pull-through) 302 electrical sites with water (11 pull-through) Six tent sites with water nearby 15 yurts (7 pet-friendly) 11 deluxe cabins (5 pet-friendly) Hiker/biker camp Flush toilets and hot showers RV dump station Adult and Youth Bike Rentals 9-hole Columbia Shore Disc Golf Course

BGLSP is a really lovely park not too far from Portland with camping and rustin cabins. Most of the campsites are large enough for 2 tents, and there were many RVs and popups - good size driveways/parking areas. Cabins C17 and C21 were the most private, though C13 and C15 had a partial view of the lake. Campsites 19 and 20 were really tucked back and adjoined such that two groups could spread out. There is only one bathroom for the entire camping/cabin area, and it got pretty dirty/crowded at times, so that wasn't ideal. I would also recommend checking out the water quality information before going if you plan to do water sports or swimming. There was a high bacteria advisory when we went, so swimming was discouraged. We ended up going to nearby Klineline Pond to swim instead. There is a nice little concession stand, though, and they offer SUP and kayak rentals that looked nice.

The campground is split up into two sides. The north side and the south side. The north side has the getaway cabins, and cottages. It also has the pool/hot tub, cafe, group fire pit, kids play ground, and overflow parking. Pickleball/tennis courts. The north side is also the only side that has 50A power. The south side is all 30A. The tent sites are also on the north side. It gives access to all the amenities here. They took out the propane site, cause they didn’t have anyone to take care of it. We come down here to get away from the heat, inland, area. It’s usually 20-30 degrees cooler, than inland. So when the heat hits the valley, everyone runs to the coastline. So it can get crowded. You have to be careful with your kids. People don’t drive the speed limit. It’s 5mph. They drive like they are in the raceway. The Clatsop county beaches, have the best razor clam digging, in Oregon. On every minus tide, in the winter and spring, you have some of the best razor clams, this far south of Alaska. Usually from he first of October, to July 15th, all minus tides will expose the clam beds enough to walk out and get a delicious meal. Plus the Columbia River estuary is just 10 miles away. Which is the place of the world class Buoy #10 Salmon fishery, every August - October. Both Large Chinook Salmon, and the feisty smaller, Coho (silver) salmon. You also have fresh crabbing available in town, and behind the old high school, or drop a few pots while out salmon fishing, for a great fresh seafood meal.

Fort Stevens is arguably the busiest campground in Oregon. If you go in the middle of the week in January you pretty much have the place to yourself. The deluxe cabins are the place to be in the middle of a windstorm, with four heaters to keep you warm, and a large dry front porch to take your boots off on. Our cabin faced the trees, so it was like a private cabin in the woods near the beach. The fridge was almost full sized, and easily held our meals for the week. Bring lots of pillows and cuddly bedding and snuggle down after a long day of beach combing and storm watching.