Lewis River Horse Camp — Gifford Pinchot National Forest

We stayed here (without horses) when we couldn’t find anywhere else to stay. It was completely empty in July, probably because people think you have to be a horse to stay here. It is extremely basic, no water, just pit toilets. It was a little muddier than a human-focused campground, but didn’t smell overly of barns. There are a lot of nice trails that leave from right on the site, mostly intended for horses and mountain bikes but also great for hiking. We very much enjoyed it here.

It's not the most scenic site, but worked out great. There is no water, however, so you need to be prepared for that. The 90 is a rough road - it has tons of really bad dips. Someone told us that because of this, not many horse trailers travel to this campsite anymore. Therefore it wasn't smelly or buggy at all. Really comfortable actually. It was a clear night with a full moon and we had a great time.

I can only imagine that car camping here books up fast. It's a beautiful river with three (I think?) big waterfalls. Plenty of mellow areas along the river to stop and swim, Lower Lewis Falls being the most popular. We hiked on up as far as we could along the river and found some really sweet and secluded camp spots set up right along the river. One of my favorites. Do not forget bugspray! I don't know what the bugs are out there but they BITE.