Best Tent Camping near Monroe, WA
Forested mountains surrounding Monroe, Washington offer several tent camping options within a short drive. Wallace Falls State Park Campground in Gold Bar provides walk-in tent sites year-round with picnic tables and trash collection. The Woodlands at Lake Stickney features four secluded walk-in tent sites with toilets and trash service. For more primitive tent camping experiences, Gothic Basin offers hike-in tent sites accessible via a challenging 7-mile trail. Mountain Loop Highway Dispersed Camp, located north of Monroe, provides free primitive tent camping with fire rings but no facilities, requiring a permit for overnight stays.
Most tent campgrounds in the Monroe area feature natural surfaces with minimal site preparation. Campers should bring their own water, as drinking water is rarely available at primitive sites. Wallace Falls allows fires and provides firewood for purchase, while some areas implement seasonal fire bans during dry summer months. Vault toilets are available at established campgrounds but absent at dispersed sites where campers must follow Leave No Trace principles for waste disposal. The Mountain Loop Highway sites feature dirt or forest duff surfaces with simple fire rings and no amenities, requiring complete self-sufficiency.
In early summer, backcountry tent sites at Gothic Basin offer spectacular mountain views and solitude. According to one camper, "There was plenty of space to set up camp at the lake and down in the basin," though finding flat ground can be challenging. Sites along Mountain Loop Highway provide riverside tent camping with natural log seating and rock fire rings in heavily forested settings. A visitor to South Fork Sauk River noted, "Half way along the Mountain Loop Highway you encounter numerous spacious tent sites with fire rings and gorgeous river and mountain view camp grounds." Tent campers frequently report dusty conditions during summer months, so protective gear for equipment is advisable.
