If you're looking for a place to pitch your tent near Randle, look no further. Finding a place to camp in Washington with your tent has never been easier. Search nearby tent campsites or find top-rated spots from other campers.
The campground at Mowich Lake is the smallest of the four camping areas within the boundaries of Mount Rainier National Park. The road is unpaved after the first three miles and may be rough. Also, this is a walk-in campground only and fires are not allowed. With all that said, however, it just may be the most pristine and beautiful place to pitch a tent you’ll ever come across, with one of the most magnificent views of the mountain that you’ll find anywhere.
The historic Mather Memorial Parkway (State Route 410) is the gateway to a recreational haven. On a clear day, enjoy spectacular views of Mt. Rainier. For more excitement, take a spin in the off-road vehicle area at Evans Creek, or zip down the slopes of Crystal Mountain Ski Area. Or if you prefer solitude, escape into the solace of the forest and leave the world behind.
Mather Memorial Parkway Created in 1931, this paved two-lane classic Cascades drive along Highway 410 from Enumclaw to the eastern edge of Mount Rainier National Park presents majestic views of Mount Rainier and surrounding peaks. More than 200 miles of trails accommodate hikers, horses and mountain bikes. Drive, hike or ride to the Suntop Lookout Cabin at the top of Forest Road 7315. Choose a primitive campsite along forest roads east and west of the parkway. In November buy a permit at the Enumclaw office and take the family out to the woods to cut your own Christmas tree. Most forest roads are unpaved and minimally maintained. Cell phones have limited coverage in the mountains.
Dispersed camping is the term used for camping in the National Forest OUTSIDE of a designated campground. Typically, it refers to roadside car camping, but also refers to backpacking in undeveloped sites. Dispersed camping means there are no services like trash removal, and amenities such as toilets, tables and fire pits, are not usually available.
It is your responsibility to plan ahead and learn the extra skills necessary for dispersed camping. Camping rules and regulations apply to make your experience safe, and to keep the natural resources scenic and unspoiled for other campers.
Dispersed camping along Forest Service roads is allowed where there is adequate space to safely park completely off the roadway and not on any vegetation. Whether car camping or backpacking, choose an existing campsite on bare or compacted soil. Unless signed as an area where a fee is required, dispersed camping is free. Dispersed camping is prohibited in developed campgrounds and areas posted closed or no camping. Some designated Wilderness areas have additional restrictions.
Forest Road 83 provides access to Mt St Helens campgrounds. There are dispersed sites along this road for camping, and the area provides access to Climber's Bivouac, Ape Cave, and Lava Canyon. Camping near Mt St Helens is open from Memorial Day until snow blocks the roads. Food, lodging, gas, and other services are available in nearby communities.
Tents only. Backcountry camping permits are available from the Carbon River Ranger Station (360) 829-9639.
$18 / night
A small, less developed campground for tent camping only, located at the confluence of Twin Falls Creek and the Lewis River. The campground is placed on the banks of the river with an impressive view of the falls. Nearby Summit Prairie Trail #2. 5 walk-in sites available.
This site has isolated camp sites with roughly 5 acres per site on private land. Some sites are walk in some are drive in. All have pit toilets, fire pit and a small bench. This listing is for site #1 which has drive up access for 4wd vehicles and higher clearance 2wd vehicles. Subarus outback or equivalent are a perfect fit. The property features a seasonal pond and plenty of old logging roads for morning walks.
$60 - $100 / night
Scout
It was great to go in the Fall as the summer rush is over, but there was still good weather. Place was clean and the staff was polite and helpful with our last minute reservation.
Scout
Scammers and scumbags. I purchased a cabin here. When it came time to move in I discovered the fridge/freezer had gone out and rotten meat had festered there for weeks or months. It was completely uninhabitable. I spoke to the seller who was willing to void the transaction, but the sleazy salespeople at Camper Hideaway refused to give up their$8,000 commission. I'm talking to the Vancouver Free Legal Clinic to see if I can get my money back. Tread with caution.
Scout
This is a newer campground with spacious and private sites away from the river. Sites at riverside are narrow, long, flat, but not so private. While the outhouses in general are pristine, by late summer those in the lower loop are usually over full, you would be better of with a bucket. That said, we need an ADA site and the ADA and a few of the other accessible sites here are very good. This is always on our short notice list of great places to relax.
Ranger
Stayed here a few days a couple years ago and it was a great place. The campsites are nice and spacious with good privacy from other campers. The lake level was pretty low when we were there so you had to walk out a bit of distance to get to the water. But it's a nice sandy shore so great for the kids swimming and the water is so shallow for a long way out so you don't have to worry about the kids. It's a beautiful lake and nice area.
Ranger
The paramount feature of this campground is the beautiful Mount Adams directly across the lake. The sites are adequate, flat places to pitch a tent or park a small trailer, but the view of Mount Adams is magnificent. However, the lake is marshy and there's not really a good place for swimming. It's quiet and peaceful wilderness camping.
Ranger
This is a lovely lake campground in the forest with gorgeous views of Mt. Adams. The campsites are private and separated. There was a few mosquitoes when we went, but not too bad. It's a quiet a peaceful location and is highly recommended. A jeep trail / atv trail goes steeply up council bluff to a beautiful view overlooking the lake and surrounding forest. Overall, a great location! We originally intended to camp at Lake Takh lakh but when it's already full, this place is an excellent backup plan.
RangerWe didn't camp here, but there's a couple nice campsites near these marshy lakes. Quiet and peaceful but beware the mosquitoes! Great place to fish or just paddle around. The road is pretty rough the last couple miles, not suitable for cars or big rigs or trailers.
Ranger
We camped here for 4 days this summer. It was peaceful and quiet. The view from the camp site is simply stunning. The glassy smooth waters reflect Mt Adam's glacier like a mirror. The campsite we picked was large enough to accommodate our 22 ft trailer plus truck and a Jeep. The outhouse was cleaned daily but can get stinky at the end of the day. There is no official swimming area, but the shoreline has many great places to take a dip in the clear cold water. There was a few mosquitoes but not too bad. Best to go in late summer to avoid the mosquitoes. The road in from Randle is a bit rough at times for a car but doable.
ScoutThe campground is easy to get to and thanks to the staff has a lot of unique amenities like you can fish in Silver Lake from your motel room or rent a variety of boats for the day.
Traveler
Close to lots of hikes and views. A little bit of road noise but not much. Very busy but that’s to be expected at mt rainier. Clean bathrooms and easy check in.
Scout
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Traveler
Nice area to camp at, vault bathroom close by but there was no toilet paper so bring your own. Does feel like camping in a Parking lot. Trail close by.
Guide
Right off forest road 81. Group camping with 4-5 places for tents and 2 maybe 3 spots for travel trailers but will need to back in. 2 fire pits and a few walking trails. Solar friendly and level. No bathroom. 1-2 bars with Verizon.
ScoutEasy to get to. Just 1 mile from the Mount St Helens visitor center. Right on Silver Lake with a perfect view of Mount St Helens. The place was clean and quiet. Employees were helpful and courteous. Lots of ways to stay. Motel rooms, cabins, RV and tent spaces.
Ranger
Our daughter told us about this place. You have to climb up a narrow gravel road to get here. A drive leads out to a flat area with a fire pit It was raining when we pulled in, so views were limited. In the clear morning, we got a beautiful view of Mount Rainier. We got decent Starlink signal with a bar of Verizon. Spot would be perfect except prior campers left toilet paper around a bush.
TravelerThe hike is beautiful and the lake at the end is stunning. It was a great place to start gaze
Guide
Went here for a social event and had a blast. Big sites with lovely paths between, wonderful shop with firewood available at any hour (just square up when the place is actually open), clean plumbed bathrooms and a coin operated shower at $0.50/minute. There’s a beautiful meadow, a creek, huge trees. The owners are incredibly friendly and the place is very dog friendly.
Scout
Extended our stay because there was so much to do for the kiddos. Staff here are amazing and fellow campers a delight.
ScoutBeen here many times. Sometimes strange folks show up but they almost always keep to themselves.
Great place to spend some time next to a lake.
14 day limit in 30 days.
Traveler
We intended to stay a week, left after 4 days. Could be a beautiful place if not for people.
Pros:
Open space, plenty of room
Beautiful View
Near the park
Cons:
Crowded, even mid week we had close neighbors
Party spot, loud people with loud music
Dirty, we picked up an entire garbage bag of trash just in the spot we were at. Much more in the rest of the area.
Road noise, you're literally right off the road
River is nice, but it's a glacial run off so it's definitely not a swimming area (dirty)
Road in is super rough
Again, overall it could be a nice place. We stayed Wednesday through Saturday after labor day. So not "peak" season and the place was absolutely trashed. Feces, TP, beer cans and bottles, food trash, even car parts litter the area. We did a clean up but barely made a dent.
The first night was quiet and then some locals came and you could tell it was a party area. Loud music, dogs off leash, close neighbors.
We ended up leaving Saturday because it just wasn't enjoyable.
Scout
Beautiful and private campground, we'll be back for sure. Honey hole type toilets and lots of water spigots around. We didn't hike but there seemed to be lots of hiking trails, plus the beautiful river! Despite there being a total burn ban (propane stoves only) there were SEVERAL fires happening all weekend which was disappointing.
Most sites are really private which we loved. We walked through the three loops that were open and made note of the sites that looked most private/flat-ish for a tent/good location. In our opinion these were the best sites we could see: Loop B 24, 52, 47, 44, 39, 38, 36, 31. Loop C 56, 57, 60, 69. Loop D 78, 80, 84 (this one seemed to have an awesome trail leading right down the river!). No cell service so plan accordingly!
TravelerRight off the main road, but several sweet camping spots more tucked away and along the river. I’d definitely recommend a higher clearance vehicle if you want to camp deeper near the river due to rocks and tree roots. People need to clean up after themselves though. We pulled up to a spot that was thrashed. That is how free things get shut down.
Traveler
A great spot with privacy ! Lots of turnouts along the road with river accesses just steps away ! Definitely recommend!
Guide
Quiet campground with clean vault toilets. Many of the sites are very close to each other and some do not accommodate even a small trailer. Small stream near by with limited access. Monte Carlo and Monte Cristo trails are close by but were under repair by WTA. There were some mountain lions near the camp while we were there, 2 separate sightings, probably moving because of the work on the nearby trails
Guide
They have several back-in spots, some with partial hookups and some with full hookups. Most of the spots are well-shaded from the trees. A specific area is designated for tents only, and some cabins can also be rented. It was a 5-minute walk downhill to reach the lake, which had a very long and nice boat ramp deep enough to accommodate just about any boat. Regarding cell service, I got 3 bars of LTE with my iPhone. Overall, it was a nice, quiet, shady place to visit, and I will definitely be back.
TravelerThis place was gorgeous. Right off a busy road but with being right by the water it tunes out the noise of the traffic. Plenty of spots and can drive in further to be more secluded if needed.
Traveler
Got here around sunset. Looks like some good camping spots to walk into. Beautiful view of Rainier. There was a little bit of traffic but nothing crazy. Would stay here again.
Frequently Asked Questions
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Randle, WA is NF-52 Dispersed Camping with a 3.7-star rating from 7 reviews.
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