Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area

We camped here mid May 2016 in site #16. The fee at the time was $18. There were 2 clean vault toilets. The available water was treated with iodine. The waterfall was about 30-40’ high and emerged from a rock crevice. The sites were t that private but only a few people were there. I believe now that this federal campground is by reservation only as are the others in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.

Really amazing area for families and pets. The first 9 campgrounds are right on the water so my dog was so happy to be right on the beach. Perfect space for leads in every campsite and very well kept.

I love to camp at steamboat! It’s great for tent or RVs. There’s some awesome hikes near by. Right on the lake and a great play ground. Great for bike riding. Great for pets!

We came here to enjoy the lake.  The campground was right on the lake shore with a great sand beach!

They sites are pretty close together but were usable.  The site we had was a back-in site, the site is gravel and pretty level.  There are no hookups at this location.  First time boon docking, so we were not sure what to expect. This allowed us to test out our travel trailer and it passed.

We have Verizon and there were no issues with cell service for us.  

The campground has a clean restroom, we used our trailer shower.

Pets are allowed and with how the lakeshore was, we were able to walk around a bend and get away from others allowing us to go off-leash so our dog could play in the water freely.

Played in the creek/ waterfall with our dogs. Caught frogs, and hiked all day.

The drive into this area is absolutely beautiful. Campground is large, with at least 3 loops. The campground itself is very clean. We saw rangers checking up and driving thru at least 6x through out day and evening. There are flush toilets and spigots throughout the loops. Bathrooms had toilet paper and hand sanitizer.

We stayed in loop 3, spot 61. It was smaller compared to other spots. This campground is big so there isn’t a ton of privacy and spots are close together. You can hear pretty much everyone’s conversations around you. Lots of RVs and families with kids. Lots of sites with dogs, so anytime people did walks with their dog, a symphony of barking dogs would start. Bring earplugs.

First night in, mosquitos were absolutely terrible. Literally swirling around us as we put up the tent. Neighbors were loud past midnight, and there was construction noise over night (woke us up around midnight and 2am).

Second night, still had noisy neighbors but these didn’t stay up as late as the ones from previous night. Mosquitos were not as bad. There was no overnight construction noise.

There are some nice hikes nearby, just be sure to plan accordingly as it gets quite warm.

Overall, while the lake was nice, it was not a place for me considering how busy and noisy it was. I did appreciate how well maintained it is though.

This is a five star campground based on our criteria. Only reason we give it four stars is they are letting the only trees they have for shade die and they are creating a mess. No shade without them. Grounds are largely in disarray. Also washers are top load agitator type. There are many positives though that will bring us back. It is largely a quiet small campground. It is very reasonably priced and is very dog friendly. There are several places to walk the dogs on leash and off within either walking distance or a short drive to the Colville national forest. Management is really friendly and flexible to changing needs. And they do not require payment until you show up. This is a great spot for golfers as well as non golfers. Note the club has pickle ball courts for free use! Great little restaurant and bar on site too with very cheap drinks ($9 Moscow mule!)

Very busy campground when there are fishing events. First come first serve except group camp, which is reservable. River view from almost every camp site. This campground is popular with the fisherman. There is a boat launch and a dock for your boat as well. There is also a swimming area and dogs are allowed in the river just not in the marked off swimming area. Bathrooms are well maintained with flush toilets. No shower.

Really shocked there aren’t more reviews on this place. There’s beach access with clear water and it’s all nestled between canyons. Very quiet but doesn’t feel isolated. Dog friendly with finished bathrooms that include sinks and mirrors. Only negatives: no camp supervisor- we paid for this site and anyone could just pull up for free. It says online reservation required but no one is here enforcing anything. Maybe it’s different pre-Labor Day. Make sure you bring a stove because campfires are a no go!

This camping spot is conveniently located off a well groomed gravel road just a mile or so from the main paved road. It’s the first campsite we came to as we drove into Lake Roosevelt. There were a couple other campers, but it wasn’t crowded at all. The only downfall is the sites are really close to one another. But the lake and beach are huge and there’s plenty of room for your dogs to play. There’s Fire pits and picnic tables for each designated camp site. Sometimes even a little firewood. We pulled our pop-up camper into site 7 which was perfect. Then we fished and enjoyed the evening under the stars.

Clean bathrooms, no showers, fire pits, dispersed water spigots, limited access to the water for swimming. We prefer little to no amenities for camping but a crowd of friends that meet annually were unable to get the usual spot so this was the compromise. Busy, noise did calm down by 10 but be prepared for babies crying, dogs barking and a few campers not noticing the time and enjoying themselves. I can see where many campers find this place better than we did... but we prefer no amenities to have less people around. It is well maintained and it was obvious from the regular ranger patrols and maintenance patrols rules were followed and campground well maintained.

Campsites are clean, well spaced so you aren't sitting on your neighbors lap. It's fairly spacious as far as the hiking and nature paths you can explore. Sites are limited, I think there might be a total of 17 or so, some of which are day use only, but we have FULLY enjoyed our stay both times, and our dog is a huge fan as well! The water is clean, can't really swim considering it's more of a creek, but you can get in and cool off, fish, hike the creek itself or the several beautiful paths that seem to take you into your own private nature getaway. Lol, I am packing up to go again in the next few days. And the people that take care of the park are super small town friendly!

Jake from the Dyrt here!  Brown Barrel is new to the Dyrt but they have an awesome spot in northern Washington, the trees are plentiful, and several mountains are nearby ready to explore.  Check them out and share your favorite pics of your stay!

The place is falling apart and they don't seem to care. If you like being watched while in the bathroom then by all means camp there two way mirrors in both bathrooms. Paint chipping off dirty bathroom and shower only 1 shower. Fish cleaning station overgrown by weeds. When we first got there I was told in a hostile voice that there was no storing anything outside. It was always ok for everyone else to have a bonfire but us. We were on constant alert the entire 6 months there. I asked before bringing a truck to the park if it was alright and she said yes for a week. Then on the fourth night she met us with a pen and paper screaming at me that she was going to have it towed. Oh and our small dog had a small cable leash around the the tree that wasn't ok either. Nothing we did was ok ever! One week doesn't doesn't have 4 days last time I checked. I had bought a truck to replace the other truck we owned after all we lived there for 6 months. I became very sick while there and had to go back and fourth to the hospital never once did they ask how everything was going. Hostile environment even complaining about 5 potted plants. Really why others had them. Long story short if you like to camping in the middle of a subdivision by all means check it out. Be careful not to trip on all the nails sticking up on the docks as they need repair as well then go ahead and see for yourself. I will never go back ever!! Not that they care I think they should sell the place because they don't care.

General: Three campgrounds (Sage, Dune, and Bay Loops with a total of 136 full hook-up sites and 26 standard sites) in the main park plus primitive sites at Jones Ba (44) and Osborn Bay (36) with vault toilets and no water, 12 boat-in sites north of the main campground and five campsites for equestrian campers in Northrup Canyon. There are also three cabins in the Bay Loop that each sleep five.

Site Quality/Facilities: We stayed in the Bay Loop. The sites were all very generous in size and spaced a decent distance apart. The drives are paved and can accommodate large RVs. Each site has a large metal picnic table and fire grate (although there was a fire ban when we were there). Park volunteers were very visible throughout our stay maintaining the campsites. 

Bathhouse: The bathhouse in the Bay Loop was the more modern of the two I saw. It was clean and had one shower stall BUT there were NO hooks or bench (other than a useless tiny shelf above the sink) to put toiletries; my bag fell and the top of my moisturizer container broke making a huge mess! There are also two all-in-ones. Showers were 50 cents for every three minutes and I managed to do a three-minute shower! 

Activities: So much to do but you have to bring your own toys! I had read there were kayak and SUP rentals but could not find where to do this anywhere in the park. There is a swimming beach, boat launch, fishing pier (and fish cleaning stations in each camp loop), basketball, volleyball, playground, and paved walking trails connecting the beach and all the camp loops. I was disappointed that the Steamboat Rock trail was closed when we were there due to fire danger. Also, the concession stand selling burgers, hot dogs, ice cream, etc. is closed on Monday and Tuesday and, of course, we were there on a Monday! 

The scenery is beautiful, and the campground is very well-maintained. The price is steep ($50) but at least you don’t have to pay extra for the Discover Pass. All in all, we had a very nice stay here and would come back again, hopefully to hike the Steamboat Rock trail with the reward of Huckleberry ice cream.

We have stayed here two times, with our little starlight Tent Trailers. Almost a week each time. The setting is beautiful. The lake is clean and full of fish!!

Bald eagles, Loons, turtles, even Moose & Bears ! The resort office has a small cafe and store. This resort has been around for many years and is a bit run-down. Some their old log cabins are looking like very old log cabins. Wonderful if you don't care about level floors. They also have a multi-room motel if you want that instead. Common Bathrooms that also show their age. 

There are boat docks, with slips for rent. Paying the dock fee or camping covers the Indian reservation recreation fee. An Indian reservation fishing license is required here, but not a Washington State License. If you have a WA license, you still need the Reservation License.