Best Dispersed Camping near Salem, OR

Recent Dispersed Reviews in Salem

32 Reviews of 16 Salem Campgrounds

• 

  Rachael B.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 3, 2024

  South Lake

  Road blocked, but still great!

  We camped where the road was blocked and it was great. Saw a cougar as we were leaving, though! Luckily we were all in the car, so cool to see, but be aware!

• 

  Hannah G.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 21, 2024

  South Lake

  Non existent

  The road was blocked off so there was no way to access this site.

• 

  Daniel W.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 9, 2024

  Britenbush River Dispersed

  Cliff jump swimming hole

  Awesome little cliff jumping swimming spot to teach the kids how to swim

• 

  Craig R.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 4, 2024

  Dispersed Camping Near Pioneer-Indian Trail in Siuslaw National Forest

  Amazing secluded mountain view

  We didn’t actually stay here because it was already taken. But I wanted to create this view just to add additional context on how to find it.

  There’s a pretty decent sized gravel turnout… It’s the only big gravel turn out like this on this part of the road … you’ll see what looks like a logging road with a steep decline. It looks a little intimidating, but you go down that road and it curves around in a sea shape for about a half a mile and ends in the big open area where you can camp.

  If you’re telling something, I’d recommend walking the road to check to see if anybody is down there before you go down because it’s the only place you’d be able to turn around with your trailer.

  Wish we were able to actually stay in this spot. Really big open flat area for either your travel trailer or a small group with tents. Amazing view very secluded feeling. Maybe next time!

• 

  Reed G.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 17, 2024

  Hebo Road

  It was okay

  Lots of trash, long drive, and sort of busy. Multiple sites available as you go up. Pretty spot though.

• 

  Reed G.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 17, 2024

  Trask River Campsites

  Pretty and clean

  River access and a fire pit. Dirt bike parking adjacent but pretty private.

• M

  Mark W.

  Guide

  

  Mar. 30, 2024

  Quartzville Recreation Corridor

  Pull out dispersed

  A lot of the trash has been cleaned up, we only saw a little bit in a couple of spots. Some spots have 2 or 3 fire rings per pull out and would be good for a small group. Fishing is OK year round in the river at these spots.

• 

  Russel M.

  Scout

  

  Mar. 16, 2024

  Road Turn Out Dispersed

  Rosd turn out on way to South Lake

  Great views, easy drive, AWD car would have been able to make it. The road to South lake was gated off so we used this turn out, there are many along the road. A slight drive on the forest access road leads to the top of the hill. Plenty of dead standing wood for fires.

• 

  Shainna M.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 26, 2023

  Quartzville Recreation Corridor

  People suck!

  So much trash thrown off the sides at each camp spot. Why would anyone do that to such a beautiful place?? I don't get it.

• 

  Derek D.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 14, 2022

  South Lake

  Overall good experience

  Aside from the few kids that decided to start shooting guns in the camp site. It’s a nice little place to escape the hustle and bustle of life.

• 

  michael K.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 8, 2022

  South Lake

  Beautiful Site but..

  Do not drive here if you can't drive on the edge of a cliff on gravel roads. it's bumpy and definitely not for the faint of heart. other than that, it's a great site with nice pullouts and camping for car campers, vans, etc... I was fortunate and I have a black series off road trailer behind a 4runner, and we were fine. I would not recommend a trailer for this location. great for tents and the lake is ok, not too appealing to us, though.

• 

  Josie M.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 28, 2022

  Dispersed Camping Near Pioneer-Indian Trail in Siuslaw National Forest

  Quiet Secluded

  Headed to this spot we saw hebo lake campground and got very discouraged, but we drove on and eventually saw absolutely no-one! We didnt pass a single car the rest of the way. We missed the turn off originally but saw empty spot from the road after driving on a few minutes. It's very pineconey and pebbley driving in but the road is super super short! There is plenty of turn around room at the end too! People definitely come pretty regularly as the bullet casings are everywhere, someone left a target practice sheet, as well as cigarettes butts and white claw cans. Besides that we didnt see anyone the entire trip! Beautiful quiet paradise!

• 

  Salem R.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 22, 2022

  Alder Flat

  Sadly Burned Down

  This gorgeous trail and dispersed camp is so unrecognizable from the 2021 fires that there is no turn off. May we remember it’s memories!

• 

  Robert D.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 14, 2022

  South Lake

  A rough and very narrow road to get here.

  We took a ride from Hebo up road 14 or 1400 to South Lake. The trip took over 1 hour down a partly paved road with lots of pot holes then the rest of the way down a very narrow pot hole dirt road to South Lake. Along the way we passed Hebo Lake Campground that had many tent camp sites. Once we arrived at South Lake we found the lake to be somewhat small and there were a few tent sites somewhat close together. We had been told this lake was always stocked with Trout. We suggest only using a 4x4 or a high clearance vehicle to make this trip.

• H

  Hannah L.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 9, 2021

  South Lake

  Looks nice

  Looks great but closed as of 8/9/21 due to fires.

• 

  James W.

  Ranger

  

  Jun. 21, 2021

  South Lake

  Not quite as disbursed as I wanted

  Nice small lake with a close to established campground. I was hoping for a true disbursed experience, you know boondock. There were established sites and a composting table. Nice spots, nice lake. Could pull in a 16’ trailer but until the camp site there is no other turn around spot so beware. More campers then I expected.

• 

  Darrin E.

  Traveler

  

  Mar. 31, 2021

  South Lake

  Gotta get here early

  Shhhh. This dispersed campground can be a trek to get to for limited spots. Great hikes nearby and for the most part fairly peaceful. Bring your fishing pole... Or not... The trout pretty much jump into your lap depending on the season :)

• 

  Hahns R.

  Guide

  

  Nov. 18, 2020

  Quartzville Recreation Corridor

  This is one of my favorite places

  I have camped here numerous times over the years. I love the dispersed camping. The sites are open, so good for solar, but do get windy.

  I have camped at the quarry a few times with my friends that have a camp trailer. I have also camped in the pull outs.

  My friends have found chanterelles in the woods, and fishing (last time I was there) has been great. It is great for fly fishing and for plunk and wait fishing.

  It is dispersed so only a few areas have bathrooms, and not being a regular campground some neighbors can get rather rowdy. But, overall it is a definite favorite.

• 

  Abby M.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 24, 2020

  South Lake

  Good single night stay

  Arrived around 4:30 on a Friday and only saw 2 other campers. By next morning, another 3 sites filled up. Vault toilets were pretty clean. Didn’t explore anything around as it was raining the entire time I was there. Quite a few hunters in the campgrounds / parking to go hunt. Road to get there was about 12 miles of dirt/gravel but when I left, only had dirt roads for 3 miles. Had 3 bars of LTE with AT&T once there. I’d definitely stay again. Very secluded and lush with greenery.

• 

  Christie U.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 21, 2020

  South Lake

  A bit tricky to find

  We love this dispersed campground. If you go earlier in the week, you’ll most likes find a spot with no problem. If you wait till Friday evening during the summer, it’ll probably be full. There is a vault toilet, no running water. The small lake has decent fishing and great for kayaking. Dirt/gravel roads are a bit tricky to navigate.

• 

  Sarah S.

  Legend

  

  Aug. 18, 2020

  Dispersed Camping Near Pioneer-Indian Trail in Siuslaw National Forest

  Private Dispersed Camping in Siuslaw National Forest

  We found this dispersed site by driving on Mt. Hebo Road about 20 minutes past Hebo Lake Campground. We noticed what looked like a logging road off to the right and followed it down for about 2 minutes. The road comes to an end and it was a perfect place to park our Cricket camper with plenty of room to turn around. 

  This site sits kind of high up in the forest with super tall trees all around. We didn’t realize it at first but we were about 100 yards up from a hiking trail, The Pioneer-Indian Tr#1300. We only realized it when we saw hikers go by, some of whom didn’t even notice we were up above them. 

  Going up the hike about 30 minutes will bring you to the top of Mt. Hebo with beautiful open views all the way to the coast. The hike goes all the way to South Lake. We gave up before we got there but as it was, that was a 10 mile round trip hike. Hiking the other way takes you to Hebo Lake Campground which we didn’t do. This was perfect spot to sit and relax and watch the forest and the sunset. Super peaceful and quiet. 

  The only negative is that there is no way to know if someone is in this spot from the road so we had a few people drive down to check it out and then turn around. Also, there were a ton of flies both at the site and on the hike. 

  To leave this site you have to drive up a pretty steep, pebbly road. We made it in our Subaru towing the Cricket but it was slightly nerve-racking and I would not try that in the snow or rain. Don’t think I would want to bring an RV down there either. 

  Overall, this was such a great spot to get away from crowds and get some R&R.

• 

  Alison S.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 9, 2020

  Alder Flat

  Cool spot but lots of foot traffic

  We stopped here for the first time for a hike and to check out the camping situation. The hike is just under a mile long, one way. Keep right at the fork early on to go the right way. Really pretty and shaded. You cross a few foot bridges and it opens up to a fairly good sized camping area with some scattered fire rings. It was surprisingly sparse camping wise for a saturday. Great view of the water just across a dry creek bed and over the hill. Good number of people enjoying the river and a few kids swimming but it was freezing so i dont know how they did it!

  Parking lot was fairly full, there might be room to park on the road but im not sure.

  I wouldn’t want to camp here because of the foot traffic and how close you have to camp to other people. Might work out good for others though!

  Also just a reminder to please pick up your trash and toilet paper. I saw it all over the place at the sites along 224 and its just gross.

• 

  Gerard R.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 24, 2020

  South Lake

  Quiet Lake

  South Lake is fairly small, I consider it more of a pond to be honest, but a great place for disperse camping. The quickest drive in is a bit sketchy. I recommend taking a slight slower route to avoid scratches on your vehicle from branches. We checked out a few dispersed sites before we picked our spot. We managed to get a spot that was a 1 minute walk to the water, and about the same to the vaulted toilets. The vaulted toilet is on the NW side of the lake. It must’ve been checked often for toilet paper because we were there for 4 nights and it always had some in there.

  We caught trout every day we were there. Most are small but was fun nonetheless. There is an old boat without a motor tied up for anyone to use. Only had one ore that was half broke but it still managed to get us across the water 🤷🏻‍♂️. We found a decent amount of firewood, just have to make sure it’s try if course. It’s all hidden below the ferns/greenery. No picnic tables or metal fire rings but who needs them? Plenty of rocks for a fire pit were already set up. Plenty of shade. Only downside was precious campers leaving toilet paper near the trees when you are literally a minute or less walk to the vaulted toilet.

• 

  Tawnya B.

  Scout

  

  May. 25, 2020

  South Lake

  Beautiful lakeside camp ground

  We love South Lake, peaceful and Beautiful. The lake is stocked with trout which have been biting like crazy. Most times when you go up there you will see them jumping clean out of the water. We’ve been camping at Southlake usually about three times during the season for the last couple of years. This last trip was very disappointing it was packed with people camping which is wonderful that they’re getting outside, but there was a group up on the hill who felt the need to blast music until 6 o’clock in the morning so nobody in the camp area got any sleep.Then the next night another camper decided to. I think everyone needs to remember were there to camp in peace and take a nature not listen to somebody’s rap music. Also as a reminder to our fellow campers it is posted quiet time from 10 PM to 6 AM

• 

  Kevin R.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 30, 2019

  South Lake

  Nice and Easy

  This is  simple, primitive campground mostly centered around a small picturesque lake.

  There are a few other sites dispersed in the area. One of the best ones is just around the bend from the lake sites and its of the road and gets more sun, if thats your thing.

  When i visited mid week in July it was empty. 

  Its quite a distance on sometimes very rough gravel roads, with no tirn outs and sometimes large drops on one side, so be very careful with log trucks .

  But i made it OK with my beat up old Grand Caravan.

  Enjoyed

• 

  Sam L.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 10, 2019

  South Lake

  A nice quiet place

  It's basically a few tent spots right off the road you can pull up to with your car. No amenities besides a vault toilet and no fee. Nothing fancy, but really beautiful, clean, nice rangers, and not busy at all. Get ready to dodge loads of potholes and deer as you travel up the gravel roads to get here, though

  ALSO we had full data and cell service!

• 

  Tracy H.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 7, 2019

  South Lake

  Beautiful Forest surrounding small lake

  This was a last minute find for us on the 4th of July.  There were a few sites left for us to choose from.  The sites are not numbered but are designated by a rock ringed fire pit. We hammock camp and there are plenty of sites with trees positioned perfectly for hanging the hammocks.  The lake is small but very beautiful.  We did bring our kayaks but didn't launch them.  There is a launching area but it's pretty mucky and there are a lot of downed trees in the water.  I only saw one really great beach area to pull up to but it was already claimed by another small boat.  There are trails all over leading from the campsites to the lake and around it.  We also met other campers that had hiked a trail from Hebo lake to South Lake which was about a 7 mile hike for them.

  We will go back and try out South Lake again in the other seasons.