Lewis & Clark State Park Campground

We were traveling along the Oregon coast and then needed to divert inland to the Portland airport and continue north to Tacoma for a wedding reception. Not far off I-5, this place was gorgeous. Tall trees, lush foliage, immaculately maintained. As others have noted, the sites with hook-ups across the road on the east side are for large trailers and not as picturesque. To the west are these beautiful sites, facilities, and walking trails. In the morning, we hiked the old growth loop prior to resuming our journey. Be aware, Google Maps says you enter off of Park Road, but that is incorrect. The entrance is on Jackson Highway.

The RV park is separate from the camping tents and smaller campers. Those are in a beautiful forest. Unfortunately, we had to stay in the RV section. The RV section had six spots. 3 of those spots back up to a busy paved road with traffic. The road is mere feet from the camper. Dangerous for dogs and kids. Not relaxing at all. Waste of money. Terrible RV site. Don’t waste your money to park your RV next to a busy paved road.

Sitting in our peaceful and private campsite amid a grove of trees, I felt I must share kudos for this state park. Many of the structures were built in the 1930’s by the CCC and it has an iconic feel.  Add the easily accessible trails, one through one of the last standing groves of old growth forest. Our site #18 was large and could easily accommodate a large family. The tent site is very nice. But it’s just us, our pup and the teardrop trailer which was easy to park on the level lot.

We arrived late after leaving Portland for Mt Rainier. We stayed in a tent site right on the main road. Cars started going by early in the morning (Friday). Had a beautiful morning walk through the old growth forest before packing up and heading to the National Park. We had water, but the bathroom was only a porta potty. I think if we’d stayed in the main campground our stay would’ve been great but we were using it as a quick overnight stop only.

This is a lovely park with beautiful trails that wind through very large, old growth cedar forests. The Rangers and the campground hosts were very friendly and helpful. We stayed at a full hook up campsite that included electricity sewer and freshwater.

Somethings we would change forever. The eight full hook up sites sat right on a very busy highway with loud logging trucks going by. It did quiet down at night however. The reservation system is very strict and though you can change your reservation online for eight dollars a change, there are hefty penalties for canceling.

The camping sites across the street had no amenities at all, but they were across the street and deeper into the forest and very beautiful. I’m not sure if any of the sites in there would be big enough to fit our 31 foot RV.

We got to this campground on a Saturday evening, around 5pm, and got the last first-come spot. It was a nice spot to stay for a night and the campsite was quite large. The spot felt very private even though it’s next to other sites. We don’t love paying $32 for sites but didn’t get a spot where we’d hoped that morning. I’d stay again as a back up to the smaller sites, or it does seem like a good group or family spot!

This is a nice spot to stop over for a day or two. It is a smaller campground but it offers quite a bit. There is a amphitheater for guests and the rangers put on decent shows. There are only two bathrooms for the entire campground but they do have showers. When we went one of the showers was out of order, but we were told it would be getting fixed soon.

There is lots to do around the campground you just have to venture out and find it. This is a pet and horse friendly spot.

There is one hiker spot for first come first serve.

love the host they make you fell like you are part of they family and they love dogs too

This are gets surprisingly nice as you drive away from I-5, but I still think of it as less of a destination and more of just a place to camp. I appreciate that the park has public kitchens and some good areas for sports/playing.