The earliest day I could make reservations, I hopped online with my list of preferred sites but in the end, grabbed the ONLY one that was available; such is life trying to camp in a national park in August! Loop F is one of the smaller loops; aside from the sites that back up to the river, the sites on the outside of the loop are more desirable than the ones on the inside as these do not have clear boundary delineation (and there were several annoying kids who wanted to spend more time in our site than in theirs!) Fortunately, on my walk around the campground the next morning, I spied an empty site (H18), and we were able to move; our second night was much more peaceful. 

The bathhouse is what I’ve come to expect in national parks – very basic, no showers or hot water. I was perplexed, however, to find a urinal in the women’s room (at first, I thought I went in the wrong door!). The light also did not work consistently – in bright daylight, it was often on but at night, it went on as I was leaving so I got in the habit of bringing a headlamp with me every time I went! There is a camper sink, however, a nice amenity, especially as there were many tent campers, and it is bear country. Roads are paved but individual sites are dirt. Most sites are very shaded due to the abundance of trees. 

The visitor center was closed due to Covid, but rangers were available to answer questions between 10 am and 4 pm. The trail to Silver Falls and Grove of the Patriarchs is accessible directly from the campground and is definitely worth doing. Cell service is non-existent in this entire area of the park. 

It is possible to camp here and not pay the entrance fee, however, you would be limited to what you could see in the park. You really cannot complain about the nightly fee of $20 ($10 for seniors).