Established Camping
Big Creek Campground
Closed For the Season
This campground is closed for the season from September 23, 2023 through May 16, 2024.
Closed For the Season
This campground is closed for the season from September 23, 2023 through May 16, 2024.
About
National Forest
Gifford Pinchot National Forest
Overview
Situated in the vicinity of majestic Mount Rainier, Big Creek is a family campground nestled among Douglas firs, hemlock, alders and maples. The lush vegetation offers plenty of privacy between sites. The sites at Big Creek form a loop, with only a handful of sites sitting along the banks of Big Creek. Open from mid-May through late September, Big Creek provides an alternative to the campgrounds at Mount Rainier National Park, which can get very crowded during the summer.
Recreation
Anglers can try their luck at catching brook trout in Big Creek or for those looking to explore the area, the Osborne Mountain Trail starts at the campground. The route is steep, but the scenery is amazing, and the trail can be traversed by foot, horse, mountain bike or dirt bike.
Facilities
The campground requires vehicles to have a relatively tight turning radius. Big Creek can accommodate tents, trailers and RVs, with a maximum vehicle length of 22 feet. Some parking spurs are paved; others are native moss and dirt. Some sites have rocks or heavy vegetation, which may make it difficult to pitch a tent. Drinking water is available, but there are no hot showers available onsite. Vault toilets are provided as well as a pedestal grill, fire pit and picnic table at each site. Gray water disposal facilities are located throughout the campground.
Natural Features
Located in southwest Washington State, the Gifford Pinchot National Forest encompasses over 1.3 million acres and includes the 110,000-acre Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument established by Congress in 1982. Big Creek is located in the Cowlitz Valley Ranger District, the northernmost portion of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. This Ranger District manages four Wilderness Areas including the Goat Rocks Wilderness, Glacier View Wilderness, Tatoosh Wilderness and William O' Douglass Wilderness. The Cowlitz Valley Ranger District is roughly located among three volcanic peaks: Mt. Rainier to the north, Mt. Adams to the east, and Mt. St. Helens to the west, providing visitors with a unique geological landscape.
Nearby Attractions
Big Creek is 6 miles from the Nisqually entrance of Mount Rainier National Park. The popular Henry M. Jackson Memorial Visitor Center at Paradise is 21 miles away, and the nearby town of Ashford offers restaurants, along with a few art galleries and shops.
contact_info
This location has limited staffing. Please call (360) 686-3008 for general information.
Charges & Cancellations
Cancellations Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee.__ A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a campsite. Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee. No-Shows A no-show visitor is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Staff will hold a campsite until check-out time on the day following the arrival date. No-shows are assessed $20.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's rate, taxes and applicable add-on for a campsite.____ Refunds Visitors may submit a refund request through their Recreation.gov profile within 7 days of the end date of their reservation. Refunds will not be issued after the 7 days has ended. Refunds for debit or credit card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank or credit card used to pay. For check or cash purchases, Recreation.gov will mail a Treasury check for refunds of cash, check, or money order payments to the address associated with the reservation. Treasury check refunds may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive.__ In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team or facility manager will refund all fees and will attempt to notify you using the contact information within the Recreation.gov visitor profile.
Fee Info
Access
- Drive-InPark next to your site
Stay Connected
- WiFiUnknown
- VerizonGood
- AT&TUnknown
- T-MobileGood
Site Types
- Tent Sites
- RV Sites
- Standard (Tent/RV)
- Group
Features
For Campers
- Trash
- Picnic Table
- Firewood Available
- Phone Service
- Drinking Water
- Toilets
- Alcohol
- Pets
- Fires
For Vehicles
- Pull-Through Sites
Near rainier
Cute little site just a short drive to the entrance of the park. The host seem sweet and there’s some hiking trails near.
Meh
We spent 2 nights at Big Creek and it was ok, nothing to write home about. We arrived on opening day and were one of the first campers, so we had our pick of sites. We chose#42, which was nice--spacious enough for a campervan, 2 humans, and 2 big dogs. Also nice were the 3 trails surrounding the campground (1 mostly flat, about 1.8 miles long, that encircled the campground, the other 2 were uphill hikes with views). The campground itself was ok, some sites more private than others. Bathrooms were pit toilets--no sinks, no showers--but clean enough. I think my biggest gripe (and the reason for the 3-star rating) is that Big Creek Campground just didn't deliver on the "exceptional scenery" part of the website's description. It's a second growth forest with mostly small Doug firs and (I think) vine maples, with a few hemlocks thrown in. I'd say "scrubby scenery" is more accurate.
Perfect Campsite
We love Big Creek! Our campsite was #25. It is a double site with pull through parking for our 17-foot camper. The site has a fresh water spigot at it, and there are several others around the loop. One of a few restrooms is nearby and relatively clean. The campground is small and quiet. Some of the other campsites are much smaller and good for car camping. Big Creek is very close to the entrance to Mount Ranier National Park. There are a couple of nice restaurants between the campground and the park too. This will be our “go to” site for camping on the southside of the park.
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Location
Big Creek Campground is located in Washington
Directions
From Ashford, WA, take Forest Road 52 approximately 5 miles to the campground.
Coordinates
46.7352778 N
121.9702778 W