Best Tent Camping near Summer Lake, OR

This remote campground is functional and practical. Bare bones with a few camp sites, a restroom, some covered picnic benches and a restroom. Bring your own water and plenty of it! It can be very windy here so make sure to stake down your tent well so it doesn't blow away! (We saw this happen to one gent. Glad he had some fear in it to keep it from flying too far).

There are many roads near by that lead out into the collection area. It takes your eyes a minute to see what you are looking for because sunstonea are so plentiful!

My tip: look for the reflections of the stones, catch a glint and go after it! There are thousands right under your nose and you don't necessarily have to dig to find them.Happy Rock Hounding!

For a small campground, which could only accommodate small RV’s and tenters, this campground has everything you might need. Along the banks of Sage Hen Creek, this intimate campground offers well-spaced out sites, with a fire ring and picnic table each. The two vault toilets were very clean and well stocked. The campground has trash, a returnables bin and drinking water. 

With the large ponderosa pines overhead we had to be strategic about our parking situation for our camper’s solar array. In many of these situations we set out our portable panel so that we can keep our camper in the shade and still collect solar energy to keep our small battery charged. 

There are plenty of hiking trails and opportunities for cycling and fishing throughout the National Forest area. There was a recent forest fire on the other side of the creek so the views are stunning in their own haunting way. Just a few miles back down the road, the town of Paisley has a few services, a small cafe, gas station/ convenience store, post office and of course a drive-thru barista. The closest larger town is Lakeview with a few more services, but don’t try to do your laundry there!

Free spots, totally barren with Mars-like landscape and no trees. You're completely exposed to the elements, though there are covered picnic tables and fire pits. Beware of the pit toilets since they are often home to black widows (not the Marvel superhero…sadly). Sunstones galore. Easy to pick up right at your camp site. Not far from some of the best sunstone mines in the world. No water. Be sure to bring all your supplies with you as the nearest stores is miles away. No hookups for trailers, though properly supplied and with decent clearance and spare tires for the gravel road, there is space to park them.

Camping at Juniper Camp is free. Easy access to the sand dunes; somewhat rough road into nearby Lost Forest. Best access is from the west. One porta-potty for the whole area; pretty nasty, so best to bring your own toilet system. No designated campsites; set up camp anywhere. This is a popular OHV area. If you are into quiet, wilderness camping, this area is not for you. Very noisy, and you may have to tolerate drunken and behavior, and loud music at night. However, if you are into OHV adventuring, this appears to be a good area to explore on OHVs. Finding a level site for your rig may be challenging, but it's possible. Tent camping is definitely possible. Not enough trees together for hammock camping. No water. Some sporadic T-Mobile service, but good AT&T service.

Back in July 2019, my buddy and I rode our motorcycles to this camp/hot spring.  I had heard of this place from another friend on Facebook & this was our  destination.  A wonderful ride to this easy-to-find site.  Everything from full-service cabins to rent and RVs, down to what we used, tent camping.  Beautiful but spartan tent camping area, portable toilets (clean), and cable spools used as tables.  The hot springs were WONDERFUL, with both indoor (bathhouse) and outdoor pools.  If I recall. clothing optional after 9pm.  The operators of this facility are extremely "green" in thinking, with the re-use of most building materials, etc.  Their website is excellent and gives more details.  Highly recommend!!

Spent two nights in this great isolated spot- the first night we were the only ones there! The second night we were joined by several people who had car tents but we never felt like we were on top of one another. Wonderful flat area at the top of a hill that boast amazing views of the valley- gave us one of the best sunsets and moon rises that we have ever seen! There is a central pit toilet for all of the sites to share.

There is a fire tower a short distance away from the sites that you can walk up to the base of and hike around. Sites are also close drive to "Crack-in-the-Ground", which is a fascinating lava formation that makes for a good spot to hike around for half a day.

The road up to the site is washboard, so be prepared for a bumpy drive. There is a small store at Christmas Valley before the turnoff that has the essentials, including an emergency eyeglass repair kit when my husband was head butted by the dog. Oops!

This place has great little grassy areas next to each pull through—each one has a newly planted tree and a picnic table. The sites are level. Contrary to listing they do have 30 amp service. There’s a little playground for kids, as well as a warm, clean bathroom with showers. There’s a laundry room, which I didn’t use. This park is very near the Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge, which is a great place for birdwatching. Lots of little quail were hanging out in the park on my recent visit. If you need supplies, head over to the Summer Lake store, which has a very friendly owner. Otherwise the nearest real grocery store is about 72 miles away. Take a drive up to Fremont Lookout for a breathtaking view.

This location is primarily used for day hikes.

Ccoming from hwy 14 near Christmas valley the turn off for crack in the ground is a gravel road. When we took it was freshly grated, but as you go along there are some rough patches where it may be difficult to pass with a small car or a vehicle with low clearance. There are sparse opportunities to fit two vehicles on this road once you make the left up the hill.

The parking area is marked and well kept, including the restroom (basic vault toilet).

Trailhead is opposite of parking where there is room for maybe 10 vehicles.

This is a very dry and open area. As you travel down the trail maybe .25 miles there is a trail log box where you can sign in as well. Picnic benches are available here (2).

From here you can see the Crack in the Ground! Start your journey into the crack where it is nearly 30 degrees cooler. Quite nice on a 100 degree day!

This is a down and back trail through the crack, but you also may return on trails above ground level.