Lower Falls Campground
Jessie C.
Reviewed Jul. 19, 2017

Nature doing it's job

Our visit was pretty much phenomenal. The camp sites are pretty evenly spaced out, most the people that were staying when we were there were extremely friendly, and just the right amount of sociable. The only issues we had were with people that staid before us and didn't leave the campsite better than they had found it (which I had thought up till now was common practice)

I got a little worried because we staid in camp 3, which someone had reviewed only 2 days before our reservation that there was a problem with mice. When we got there it was pretty late in the day, the campsite had no table which was slightly surprising (if not a little concerning), but camp 5 had two!? To make matters worse the people before us left a mess. they left garbage in the fire pit and a "Beware of Mice infestation" sign written on the back of a coke box. I get being worried about mice but...you're in the forest...it's their home not yours.

Either way, not having a table was going to be troublesome so we walked over and talked to the guests in camp 5 and they were nothing but kind. They said the tables were already there and offered to help us move one but the tables were too heavy for them and myself, so we went to talk to the host. Unfortunately I think the host had gone to bed for the night so we just made due. We decided that it was worth worrying about the following day, and for the moment to focus on camp setup.

In the morning to our delight, and surprise the host had already been notified and had already sent a team to get the table for us. The Forest service people were probably among the sweetest people we'd met. To me that's amazing service to get a table right when you wake up thinking you still have to tell someone about it, talk about an awesome start to the day!

We had a terrific experience. The only other real campsite issue we had was the water pump in lower loop didn't work and we couldn't get the one in upper loop to work either (I'm pretty sure we must've been doing something wrong with it but thankfully we brought a ton of water anyway because I always expect to have none). The toilets didn't smell nice but there wasn't a smothering smell, and there weren't that many flies for a compost toilet (At least not as many as expected based off the previous review). Honestly for a compost it toilet it wasnt at all as bad as I had anticipated.

There were mice, but they were the farthest thing from a problem. They did NOT get into any of our things, they did NOT climb over us in the night, they didn't even touch our tent. They were NOT a problem. If anything they were cute and kept their distance when we were about the campsite. We talked to some of the neighbors in the sites around us too and no one seemed to have any issues with mice so I think its fair to say as long as you're clean there's no issue!

I suppose my only real advice for anyone camping here (or anywhere out in the deep forest) is bring ammonia. you can get a big bottle for 2 bucks at target pour a smidge around where you keep your food and tent. I am used to camping in places like Yosemite and Ho national forest, where bears are prevalent. Ammonia deters MOST critters, including bears. This camp site doesn't have a problem with bears but there are no food lockers so its advisable to keep food locked up and put in your car at the end of the night. which is what we did and poured ammonia around the car (a safety paranoia quirk on my part). we had no issues with mice, no raccoons, no bears, no problem.

Overall the campsite was peaceful, and a great step away from society. We heard the falls at night, we heard owls when we were washing our dishes, and saw an eagle catch a mouse the morning we left. you might think pesky animals that are considered pests in the suburbs are a problem out in the wild, but if you're clean, nature will do its job. You just need to realize you're literally in the middle of the forest.

Will definitely be coming back for my birthday next year.

Site3
Month of VisitAugust
  • Review photo of Lower Falls Campground by Jessie C., July 19, 2017
  • Review photo of Lower Falls Campground by Jessie C., July 19, 2017
  • Review photo of Lower Falls Campground by Jessie C., July 19, 2017
  • Review photo of Lower Falls Campground by Jessie C., July 19, 2017
  • Review photo of Lower Falls Campground by Jessie C., July 19, 2017