## Overview

 Situated at the confluence of three waterways near Mount Rainier, La Wis Wis is nestled under a canopy of towering Douglas firs and red cedars. The handful of sites that dot the riverbank enjoy the most sunshine. With an abundance of activities nearby, La Wis Wis is a popular destination for long-stay camping. Its proximity to Mount Rainier National Park makes it an excellent base for exploring all of the area's natural wonders. 
## Recreation

 Hikers can easily access the Blue Hole Trail and Purcell Falls Trail from La Wis Wis. Anglers can fish for rainbow trout, cutthroat trout and whitefish at either Butter Creek or Skate Creek. 
## Natural Features

 Located in southwest Washington State, the Gifford Pinchot National Forest encompasses 1.3 million acres and includes the 110,000-acre Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, established by Congress in 1982. La Wis Wis is located in the Tatoosh Wilderness area of the Cowlitz Valley Ranger District. The campground sits where the Ohanapecosh River, Cowlitz River and Purcell Creek meet. The campground features old-growth forest and opportunities to observe a variety of wildlife. 
## Nearby Attractions

 La Wis Wis is located near the entrance to Mount Rainier National Park. The popular Henry M Jackson Memorial Visitor Center at Paradise within Mount Rainier National Park is 28 miles away. 
## 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. Group Sites Group Facility (including Cabins and Lookouts): A visitor who cancels a group overnight facility reservation less than 14 days before the arrival date will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use 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.

La Wis Wis Campground

I've been coming here since I was a little kid and it's still one of my favorite campgrounds (with leashed pets allowed).  It's cute, wooded, with a moss covered old growth forest, fairly private camps, with one large group site available.  Obviously the river spots are the prime locations but we recently had to branch out and stayed in the more wooded Loop B at site B4.  We found we had plenty of space and privacy for a party of 5.  At this location we had piped water between us and site B5, and we were conveniently located a short walk from restrooms and Purcell Falls.  There are plenty of options to keep you busy inside the campground such as visit to one of the many rivers or creeks, the blue hole or a hike to Purcell falls.  
If you choose to use the campground as a base camp your close to many other options as well; Ohanapecosh campground and amphitheater, hike naches peak loop, visit the town of Packwood or Mount Rainier National Park (no pets allowed). 

Long time favorite

This is an older campground with smaller roads and bigger campsites. This makes it great for tent campers and those with smaller RV's or tent trailers. The larger loud RV's would not fit in the spots or on the roads. Quiet for the most part with sounds of the river being heard and only the occasional sound of road noise. The bathrooms were not well kept up and lots of broken toilets and sinks when I went so that was a downfall. The river spots are prime real estate and I would recommend those if you can due to the cool breeze that comes off them. Overall a good campground that I would go to again. Oakwood is close by and has a small grocery store and the entrance to Mt. Rainier was only a 10 min drive away.

Great for tent camping

This is one of my favorite campgrounds in Washington State. The area is very large, offering campers the choice of woodsy sites or water front. There are port o hole bathrooms spaced out amongst the sites, though no showers. Depending on snow melt, the river can be bare or flowing freely. Water is very cold but there are lots of swimming holes and even a rope swing.

There is a group site, but when we have gone we just get a few spaces clustered together on the river. Works well and gives the little ones nice space to play in between camp sites.

One o the best in Washington

This camp ground is always a blast for the family, however it can be crowded. We try and plan our trips so we arrive on Thursday and have a day of relaxing before a lot of people show up. Our Kids love site C-12 because of the hill behind the site it great for climbing, playing and exploring. Just a short drive into the national park with lots of trails!

Always a Joy for the family

Sites are green and shaded. Most are pretty close to one another, but several have river access. Toilets are nonflushing, pit-style, but are kept pretty clean. There was no shower available. Many sites are reservable while many are first come, first served. If you do not reserve ahead of time, be sure to come on a Thursday before the weekend crowd comes. We went early Thursday afternoon and had several to choose from. (Open sites are clearly labeled "Open" in green while reserved sites are clearly labeled in red.) By Friday afternoon, the campground was full. Single sites are labeled with an "S" while multi-sites are labeled with an "M." Our single site in C Loop had plenty of room for 2 tents, but there were some sites that were much smaller. Firewood is sold in small bundles for $6\. Be sure to check out Blue Hole, a beautiful swimming hole with a very rocky beach.

Enchanted Forest Grove

I camped here twice this summer, once in late June and again in late July. Both times for hiking in Mt Rainier Nat Park. Great alternative to the parking lot conditions at Ohanakaposh just inside the park. Most of the sites are reservable, but a fair number are first come, first serve. The campsites along the river are the best, but fill up quickly near the weekend. Best to go early in the week if you don't have reservations. On my first trip I managed to get a riverside spot, not so lucky second time around. However, all the campsites are nice, large and well equipped. Camp hosts were very friendly and helpful.

Riverfront, sprawling, good access to Mt. Rainier Nat. Pk.

We actually love this campground so much we went here for not just one but two senior trips. The big trees, fresh mountain air and awesome river make this one of the best campgrounds we have ever stayed at. We will be back, again and again. Plenty of sites for tents or RV’s. Rope swings and places to jump off just down the road. White pass hiking and sledding if there’s still snow. Always a great time. 

FAVORITE TRIP

Campsites were big and clean with lots of privacy. Mostly new vault toilets as well. Only downside is parking is a bit of a challenge. Most of the sites look like they will barely fit one car. We got a multi site (e1) and it had space for 3 vehicles with no overflow parking. We were there in beginning of June 2019, the campground already changed all toilets to vault toilets, they are kept clean. We took a short walk to Blue hole trail, the river is freezing cold but still beautiful. This is one the best campground around. It became our favorite. 


One of the nicest around

**Campground Review**

This campground is at the base of Mt Rainier National Park in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.  To get to the campsite, you have to drive down into the ravine of where the Cowlitz River cuts through the campsite. There are many sites on the river, with the rest in the trees covering the expanse of the grounds. Large RV/ trailers can only be in the upper Loop H.

The road is a one way and for the most part, campers respect the speed limit, though there are some idiots who drive fast through. 

There are no hookups, so you will be dry camping if you bring an RV. This is very close to Packwood and a great place to stay during Memorial Weekend for their annual Flea Market.  There is no cell service at this site. Site claims to have flushing toilets, but those were removed a few years ago, there are only vault toilets and no showers. Depending on how the snow melt is during the spring, will dictate fishing and camping opening. 

  

**Product Review**

I had the opportunity to review a GCI Outdoor Backpack Event Chair.  This product is amazing for lugging around from campground to fishing and back. The chair has four different positions for reclining and hard arm supports for getting up and down. There is a large pocket on the back allowing for easy toting of items from car to wherever. The backpack straps make toting a breeze and the clip to close keeps the chair in place. It is very light and easy to transport and has a weight limit of 250, but my very large cousin (300+) was able to sit with no problem. 

[https://www.gcioutdoor.com/camping-chairs/backpack-event-chair/](https://www.gcioutdoor.com/camping-chairs/backpack-event-chair/)

Ranger Review of GCI chairs at La Wis Wis Campground

I camped in one of the sites on the river and it was just lovely 😻 I wish I had planned on staying another night. The campsites are also huge!

I didn’t want to leave!

This campground is nestled in old growth forest alongside a slow moving river.  The campground is very large with many different types of spots to pick from, like along the river, shady, sunny, and group. I had a spot next to the river and there was a ton of rocky/sandy beach area that would be really nice in the summer since the river is slow moving.  There was a day use area that can be reserved and several trails leaving from the campground.  I visited the campground when a fire was near by and had the highway closed and it was pouring rain so it was nice and quiet but looking at the empty reservations it looks like it could get very busy.  I ended up moving from my reserved site to an empty site so I wasn't right next to people.  It would be a great place to bring the bikes.

Campground in Old Growth Forest

La wis wis was an amazing campground with lots of awesome spots. We chose one right by a trail that let to a beautiful waterfall and creek. The sites were clean with well maintained bathrooms nearby. Side note: our campground hosts Jack &amp; Jill even helped jumpstart our car!

The best campground!!

We go here once a year… we’ve been early summer and late summer. Recommend late summer if you want to swim as the river is still moving strong and quickly June/July. Lots of great “first come first serve sites” on the water if you can’t find ones on the recreation site. 

Lots of Fun

I came here in September 2020 when Oregon was on fire. The air was clear and so was the water. No cell service. Lots of beautiful spots to get in the water. Not a lot of people here mid week in September.

Nice Respite

Super basic as far as bathrooms and water but absolutely gorgeous surroundings. Try and get a spot next to the creek! My husband and are from Florida so we were in awe camping in the redwoods!

Beautiful!

The camp site are nice and you can plenty along the river. Wood is sold at times but if needed you can drive to pack wood and grab the wood needed.

Great place!

This large national forest operated campground wasn't up to full operations from COVID when we visited last summer, so our bathroom was closed and we had to use porta potties, but otherwise it was my favorite campground, I think ever. Privacy, gigantic lichen-draped douglas firs and yellow cedars, tons of thimbleberry to snack on, and adjacent Cowlitz River to play in. With a little hiking, there is a swimming hole and you can jump off rocks into the freezing cold water. According to the kids, this is the coldest water they experienced on our whole PNW/coast trip. 

  

People were not worried about bears here (or anywhere in WA, really), in case you're traveling from a non-bear area and wondered about bear boxes. We mostly didn't get cell service at our site (Verizon), but my son got a call through to my husband a couple times on his older Samsung while my iPhone never got anything through. Water didn't taste great. Maybe bring a filter or your own water to drink.

  

Perfect proximity to Mt. Rainier. Really nice vibe in the campground and with the people. Just absolutely gorgeous and perfect.

My Favorite Campground EVER

The facilities, while only vault toilets, were always kept clean. The trees and the river were beautiful. We loved that we were only 5 minutes from the entrance to Mount Rainier National Park, and about the same distance to Packwood WA for access to amenities if needed. I’d recommend trying to get a site along the river. There was no cell phone signal (T-Mobile) for miles around. 

Beautiful campground among the trees

Review: July 2025

The park hosts are fabulous and informative. Getting a reservation is a bit tricky but once you do it is worth the hassle. 

Blue hole is breathtaking and just 30 min. from Mt. Rainier National Park. 