Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Gifford Pinchot National Forest

Gifford Pinchot National Forest is a veritable wonderland, let's put that on the table right away. Lava flows, waterfalls, views of huge mountains and huge rivers, tons of berry picking, the Pacific Crest trail... it's ridiculous. So enter Kalama, with easy access, varied campsite sizes, space between a lot of them and a crazy - and I mean crazy - amount of trails. And if you like mushrooms... O M to the G. Check out the photos! We woke up in the morning and marched up Mt. Saint Helens. With or without horses (they couldn't fit in the trunk), with or without beer, it just doesn't get any better than this.

Great campground in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Smallish campground with about half the spots right on the river. Nice day use area slightly separated from the camping. Picnic tables and fire rings. Mostly tents when we were there, but there's also pull-through driveway type spots that could fit a trailer. At just $12 per night, price can't be beat.

Plenty of trees and grass. Most spots are slightly exposed to the turn-around road, but still feels private since there's space and trees between the spots.

Not too far from Mouton Falls, which are amazing, plus other hiking and swimming areas nearby.

Moss Creek is in prime middle south territory of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest wonderland, right by the Big Lava Bed, Lil' Huckleberry Mountain, the Pacific Crest Trail, Forlorn Lakes and the Mt. Adams Ranger Station. That each site is so uniquely its own is what makes this special - the raw campsites right by the road, the dip down to #8, right by a creek, that #12 sits up with a beautiful forest view right out the door (see pic) and the very helpful/pro-active campground hosts behind. Moss Creek isn't crowded and is easy to find, right by Hwy. 14. So what if it's not spectacular scenery-wise. You just can't go wrong here.

What a great way to spend our weekend. This place was a wonderful place to stay while hiking within the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Washington offers so many hikes and beautiful places to see the best views. Mountains everywhere! This campground was great, located just off the road. It is pretty easy to find, and you dont have to go up a bad forest road to get there. The campground is great, pretty basic. Each campsite has a picnic table and fire ring. The people who must have stayed at our campsite before didnt really do a good job of cleaning. We picked up after them, which wasnt a huge deal to us. The campsites were a decent size- fit our tent, hammock and 4 people comfortably. The hiking was great. Highly recommend checking out the hiking spots nearby. The most amazing views ever!!

This is my go-to campground when visiting the Gorge area. Located in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, just north of the town of Carson. Its about a 20 minute drive to the Columbia river, and 10 minutes to the small town of Carson. Its tucked away down a beautiful Forest road. You are nestled amongst towering old growth trees, wild ferns and thimbleberries, with Panther Creek running alongside the camp. The 2018 season had excellent campground hosts, I hope they return next year! They were very friendly and had helpful tips for trails in the area.

The pit toilets were clean, though heavy smell of ammonia which is not unusual at campgrounds like this. Each site has a fire pit and picnic table. There are potable water pumps, as well as garbage and recycling. Frequented mainly by families, and some PCT hikers, as it is located just of the PCT trail. They have first come first serve as well as reservable sites. It fills up quickly on the weekends, so if you dont have a site reserved I highly recommend getting there early. Each regular site is $18 a night. Enjoy!

This is a great base camp for exploring the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

The campground and facilities is very clean and well maintained. Most sites are in a wooded area with good shade. 

The day use area is along the river with boat ramp and dock. However, THERE ARE NO FALLS. The other reviewer's photos are not from here. There is a damn downstream which creates a slow moving river good for boating. The river is very cloudy murky green a result of ash and sediment runoff from the Mt St Helens eruption. 

Loops:

A-Loop: water & electric. A mix of shaded and open grassy sites. Outer are pull through, inner are back in. You will find the most private sites in this loop. 

B-Loop: no utilities, possibly tents only. These are the only sites which are not paved. Many are right next each other. It's like they had it laid out well but then jammed in a few more as an afterthought. 

C-Loop: Group RV water & electric. This loop is interesting. It’s a paved circle with a treed center with group tables and firepit. Circle your RVs like a wagon train.

D-Loop: water & electric. This is an RV neighborhood where everyone has a "Welcome to our campsite" sign and there's a common covered area with tables. Sites have the table to rear of site.

Campground Review

This campground is at the base of Mt Rainier National Park in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.  To get to the campsite, you have to drive down into the ravine of where the Cowlitz River cuts through the campsite. There are many sites on the river, with the rest in the trees covering the expanse of the grounds. Large RV/ trailers can only be in the upper Loop H.

The road is a one way and for the most part, campers respect the speed limit, though there are some idiots who drive fast through. 

There are no hookups, so you will be dry camping if you bring an RV. This is very close to Packwood and a great place to stay during Memorial Weekend for their annual Flea Market.  There is no cell service at this site. Site claims to have flushing toilets, but those were removed a few years ago, there are only vault toilets and no showers. Depending on how the snow melt is during the spring, will dictate fishing and camping opening. 

Product Review

I had the opportunity to review a GCI Outdoor Backpack Event Chair.  This product is amazing for lugging around from campground to fishing and back. The chair has four different positions for reclining and hard arm supports for getting up and down. There is a large pocket on the back allowing for easy toting of items from car to wherever. The backpack straps make toting a breeze and the clip to close keeps the chair in place. It is very light and easy to transport and has a weight limit of 250, but my very large cousin (300+) was able to sit with no problem. 

https://www.gcioutdoor.com/camping-chairs/backpack-event-chair/