Established Camping
Blue Bay
About
State Park
Willamette National Forest
Overview
Blue Bay Campground is situated in a diverse forest of pine and fir on the south shore of Suttle Lake in Deschutes National Forest. Its proximity to high alpine lakes, lush forests and towering peaks in nearby wilderness areas make it a popular destination for individual and group camping excursions.
Recreation
Popular activities in the area include hiking, fishing and motorized boating in the summer months, as well as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the winter. Numerous hiking and horseback riding trails can be accessed from the campground and in the surrounding area. The 3.2-mile Suttle Lake Loop Trail meanders through the developed recreation areas on Suttle Lake. The trail follows the wooded shoreline of the lake, providing opportunities for fishing or picnicking along the way. For fishing, boats are most commonly used on Suttle Lake. Float tubes are adequate, and wading is possible in some areas. A few areas are fishable from shore. The lake sustains an excellent population of naturally reproducing kokanee, brown trout, whitefish and crayfish. The campground has a shallow boat ramp area, and most campsites have easy access to the waterfront. Motorized and non-motorized boats are allowed on Suttle Lake.
Facilities
Blue Bay Campground offers standard sites that accommodate both tents and RVs, but no hookups are available. Picnic tables and campfire rings with grills are provided, as are vault toilets and drinking water.
Natural Features
Suttle Lake is surrounded by mixed conifer forest. Its waters are deep and clear, formed in a terminal moraine, deposited by glacial ice about 25,000 years ago. Lake Creek flows eastward from Suttle Lake to the Metolius River. The clear, cold Metolius flows north from headwater springs through diverse coniferous forests and a volcanic landscape with extinct volcanoes, cinder cones, calderas and ancient lava flows.
Nearby Attractions
Visitors can explore wilderness areas, lakes, reservoirs, wild and scenic rivers and approximately 1,600 miles of trails that comprise nearly 2.5 million acres within the Deschutes National Forest and the adjacent Ochoco National Forest.
Fee Info
Access
- Drive-InPark next to your site
- Walk-InPark in a lot, walk to your site.
- Boat-InSites accessible by watercraft.
Stay Connected
- WiFiUnknown
- VerizonAvailable
- AT&TUnknown
- T-MobileUnknown
Site Types
- Tent Sites
- RV Sites
- Standard (Tent/RV)
- Group
- Cabins
Features
For Campers
- Market
- Trash
- Picnic Table
- Firewood Available
- Phone Service
- Drinking Water
- Toilets
- Alcohol
- Pets
- Fires
For Vehicles
- Pull-Through Sites
- Big Rig Friendly
Small, semi-private, onerous pull through
Blue Bay Campground (Suttle Lake) Site 15 description from Recreation.gov, which I found to be accurate: “Driveway Entry: Pull-Through Driveway Length: 110 Driveway Surface: Gravel Is Equipment Mandatory: Yes Max Num of Vehicles: 2 Max Vehicle Length: 40
This site will accommodate one 40-foot and one 30-foot vehicle (total vehicle length). In addition to the above space, there is parking for approximately two extra vehicles (total vehicle length less than eighteen feet each).”
What is not mentioned, that I could find, is the driveway is shaped like a horseshoe and to pull through your RV or trailer might be tough. There are several large boulders and wood bollards on the right side of the driveway that may make it difficult to swing the front end of your vehicle wide enough to clear the trees on left. We ended up backing our trailer (32’) into the site vs. trying to pull through it.
Site 15 is spacious and mostly private that has 2 picnic tables. Plenty of space for several tents in the site and to set-up if your outdoor games. There is some road noise, but it was not overwhelming. The boat dock is a short walk from this site - short enough to walk with your SUP board, kayak or canoe. The dumpster is close to this site, but it was not overflowing and the garbage service came on Friday of the holiday weekend.
Blue Bay campground appears to be the smallest of the three campgrounds on Suttle Lake and it appears that several of the sites are semi-private to mostly private. It was mostly quiet during our stay, the loudest noise heard was the occasional barking dog and excited child.
The dock at the campground is small, but perfect for smaller craft launching and close to Suttle Lake Boat House and lodge. The lake is gorgeous and no wake for a generous part of it. Perfect for paddle boarding. The trail around the lake gets a lot of use - walkers, runners and bikers.
Accessing the campground is easy, just off HWY 20. The campground road was in good shape and we found that we had no issues pulling our 32’ trailer through the campground.
We did not utilize the restrooms (pit toilets) during our stay, but they were directly off the campground ground road and we walked by them several times and did not notice an odor.
The campground host was off duty during the holiday weekend (odd?) It looked like, if on duty, firewood might have been available for purchase. However, we did not get close enough to the wood bundles to inquire if there was an alternate pay system (leaving cash in a box vs. paying a person). There was not much Forest Service (FS) personnel presence, we saw a FS vehicle once.
We have AT&T as our phone carrier and received and made calls without issue. Text messages mostly went through, however internet was slow and iffy most of the time.
Beautiful setting by picturesque Oregon lake!
We got last min reservations for this campground and fell in love with it! Our spot was by the road and I was worried it would be noisy, but it wasn’t bad and never heard a car at night. Sites have enough space to give you privacy from the other campers. Vault toilets only that we’re well used, but staff was very friendly and helpful!
Hidden Gem
Beautiful lake with fishing, boating, and lots of trails in the area. Campground sites are spaced far apart and generally of good size. Sites in the 1-11 loop were the best.
Location
Blue Bay is located in Oregon
Directions
From Sisters, travel approximately 13 miles northwest on Highway 20/126. Turn left onto Forest Road 2070 (Suttle Lake Campgrounds). Travel just less than 1/2-mile to Blue Bay entrance on the right.
Address
PO BOX 249
Sisters, OR 97759
Coordinates
44.42 N
121.7319444 W