Redwood Bar Dispersed Camping, near the southern Oregon coast, is a laid-back spot perfect for those who enjoy a more rustic experience. This area offers camping right on a gravel bar next to a beautiful river, where you can set up your site wherever you like and enjoy the natural surroundings.

Visitors often rave about the refreshing river, which is great for swimming and floating. You’ll find fire rings scattered around, making it easy to gather around a fire after a day of adventure. Just keep in mind that there are no hookups or drinking water available, so come prepared.

The scenery here is stunning, with towering trees and a peaceful atmosphere that many campers appreciate. Some have noted that it can get a bit crowded on weekends, but if you visit during the week, you might just have the place to yourself. As one camper put it, “It’s wonderful and quiet and perfect here!” 

For those looking to explore, the area is ideal for kayaking and hiking, with plenty of opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors. Just remember, this isn’t a place for those who need a lot of amenities—it's all about embracing the simplicity of nature.

This dispersed campsite for tents or small trailers, is located on the Recreation portion of the Wild and Scenic Chetco River. Enjoy summer fun in the crystal clear waters of this outstanding river. There are a few shaded spots that can be found along the tree line. Picnicking, sunbathing, swimming, floating and other forms of non-motorized water sports are possible. Facilities Camp where you want No drinking water Vault toilet Garbage disposal from May 15 through September 15

Redwood Bar Dispersed Camping

Brookings is the perfect place for adventurous campers and RVers. Brookings is a great camping destination for everyone. There are tons of nearby hikes, adventurous activities, and sights to see. Find the best campgrounds near Brookings, OR. Read helpful reviews and tips to find the perfect camping option for you and your crew.

Brookings

The Best Camping Near Brookings, Oregon

We once stumbled upon this pace by accident. Had an amazing first day of adventuring so spent a second night. Its dispersed camping in the Siskiyou National Forrest. So find a place that you like and stay there. Only want to light fires in existing fire pits. Everything was so moist from recent rein we found it difficult to get a fire going. Once we did the wahoo.

Theres mostly hiking/meanderring here. If your not satisfied with that beat it! The Redwoods here were fantastic. Not as grandiose as the California red woods but more quiet, less people. In 2 days we only saw one other group.

Cheers!

It wonderful and quiet and perfect here!

When we need a free place to stay over on the southern Oregon coast, Redwood bar works. It can sometimes be a party place, especially on weekends but go during the week and you might have the place all to yourselves. Be care diving out on the gravel bar, have seen some big rigs get stuck. The water in the river is amazing and as clean as you can get.

FREE is always good.....

Sooooo, apparently dispersed is no longer free in some places. This campground was$10 a night. But for that$10 you get camping on the gravel bar right next to the river with semi-clean porta potties. The best reason to camp here is that you are in the“banana belt” of southern Oregon where it gets really warm. I was able to dive right into the river from my site(I was camped next to a really deep part of the river). There are lots of fire rings set up all over the gravel bar, you just have to pick who you want to camp next to. There were the usual rowdy groups as well as hige family gatherings and the line campers as well.

Dive right in! 

We live in Brookings and go up the Chetco to this river bar or to Nook or Miller Bar all summer long.
No, there’s no spaces and no hookups and no cell service for miles. It’s just a gravel bar on the river where you pull your camper wherever feels good and unhitch and camp.
You might have some USDA Forest Service employee drop off a pay envelope at your site but , there’s no place to leave it and they may or may not come back to get it. 
It sometimes gets crowded  during holidays and weekends and the good places, not next to rapids and close enough to good swimming holes, become rare. So you might have to settle for something less than ideal. And, the porta potties might get full.
There’s no one enforcing quiet hours or leash laws and no form of law enforcement anywhere nearby. There is a Forest Service LEO assigned to the area but in 18 years, I’ve never seen him on the bar. Despite all this, incidents involving injuries or violence or crime are exceptionally rare.
It’s a great kayaking and swimming place and there’s nearby rocks for jumping off. Remember! It’s a river not a lake so kids ought to have life jackets.
Please note….as the summer progresses, the water level drops, the temperature rises and the algae grows. As such, we prefer June camping.

It is what it is….

This was an ok site. We visited middle of January and we were the only campers here. It was nice being by the river but this area recently had a fire go through it and there was a lot of down trees/erosion.

Also, the amount of trash here was rather disappointing and we were concerned our dog would step on something sharp. We tried to pick up as much as possible but there were a lot of small bits and it appeared to be from a long term camp for whoever was piling up a lot of trash over a long period of time. 

In a burn area

We tried to get to these coordinates with Apple Maps on an iPhone, and it took us somewhere completely different in the middle of nowhere with no cell signal or people for miles. The road it had us go down was very steep, couldn’t get back up and had to make camp there and hike for help the next morning. I gave a second star because on our hike we had to cross this river a few times and it is absolutely beautiful. Crystal clear, cool, perfect for swimming. 

Don’t use Apple Maps to get there

Great spot by a river. Refreshing water not too cold, deep enough to float.

Starlink internet is spotty here but you should be good if you park further away from the river. 

Be careful with maps! This listing has the wrong pin on the map. If you use coordinates and google maps it will get you to the right side. If you come across a road with a dead end sign, you’re on the wrong side of the river.

Careful with maps

Great area with lots of room to separate you from others ! The road in is paved till you drop into the actual camp site which is rocky but easy for a suv to do. The views are amazing and the privacy is even better!

PNW road trip 🏕️

This camp site is amazing. 10/10. Nothing fancy like bathrooms, but a beautiful rocky terrain! Me and my girlfriend tent camped here and although the ground was rocky we managed to pitch the tent just fine. The road leading to the site is long, flat, relatively slim, and windy. A few cars were pulled off on our way to the side camping at pullouts. The site is right off the road but still felt secluded, we heard maybe 1 or 2 cars each night we stayed here. Easily accessible for most cars, my girls Nissan versa managed to climb the very slight incline with slight loss of traction out of the site and onto the road so. Overall great spot right next to the coast

Photos of Redwood Bar Dispersed Camping

Real photos from real campers