oregon coast tent camping

Hi All,

I%26#39;ve checked the archives and am a bit confused about information about coastal camping.

We%26#39;re planning a camping trip mid-August until Labor Day weekend. We plan to car, tent camp along the coast. We%26#39;re experienced tent campers, don%26#39;t require many amenities, but enjoy bathrooms/showers in the campgrounds. We%26#39;d like to spend several days in each campground and use it as a base to enjoy nature and explore the coast.

Questions:

1) Do we need reservations at the state park campgrounds in mid-August.

2) Can you recommend a few campgrounds, perhaps one each in the south/central/north coast to focus on.

3) Would it be better to use motels in certain areas, (like the north coast), as we%26#39;re not all that interested in camping in a %26#39;tent city%26#39;...

Thanks in advance for your advice!

oregon coast tent camping

1) Do we need reservations at the state park campgrounds in mid-August.YES!!!!!!!!!!!

2) Can you recommend a few campgrounds, perhaps one each in the south/central/north coast to focus on. For the N Coast, I%26#39;d choose Cape Lookout. Beautiful, mid-sized campground with plety of privacy for tents. For teh Central Coast, Carl G. Washburne is a little known jewel just north of Florence. This park is non-reservation, however if you arrive b4 1pm checkout time, sites are almost always available. Annotehr good option would be Beachside, about 12 miles north. Beachside does acept reservations. For the south coast, I like Humbug Mt. Good, central location and wind protected.

3) Would it be better to use motels in certain areas, (like the north coast), as we%26#39;re not all that interested in camping in a %26#39;tent city%26#39;...That%26#39;s always an option, but an expensive one. You might alos consider Yurts.

oregon coast tent camping

1) You may be too late for good spots at the most popular state campgrounds.

2) %26amp; 3) There are a few nice private campgrounds with tent camping. Here is one in Cannon Beach, in the north. This place also has cabins, which you may prefer over motels:

http://www.cannon-beach.net/searanch/

There is also www.wrightsforcamping.com , and one called Circle Creek (Seaside address I think) which has nice tent sites along the river, and is quite rural.

Harris Beach SP north of Brookings is a nice southern coastal campground. Brookings also has an RV park/campground with tent sites on a big grassy area right at the marina; this is operated by the Port of Brookings/Harbor.

Some campsites at Beachside SP are just a few feet away from very busy Hwy 101, so choose your site carefully if you stay there. There is also a KOA and a private park near Beachside SP; the private park has tent sites right on the Alsea river - it%26#39;s called McKinley%26#39;s Marina.

We recently drove out to Cape Blanco SP campground and thought that pretty nice, but it%26#39;s kind of isolated.

Bastendorff Beach near Coos Bay is nice a county park, and there is a private park that has great *ocean view* tent sites near Charleston. Don%26#39;t be put off by the title - look at the photos, lol:

http://www.oceansidervpark.net/

This is just a sample of some alternatives if you do not find a SP that suits you, or you would prefer a water view.

1.) Most of the larger major Oregon State campgrounds have tent vacancies mid-week, it%26#39;s getting one on a sunny weekend that%26#39;s the challenge. You can still reserve good sites through the service that the State system uses, there is a link in their web site. Or, call directly to 1-800-452-5687 to reserve. They will charge $6.00 to take a reservation, a small price to pay for not being dissapointed.

2.) Sunset Bay is gorgeous in the South, Central would be Beverly Beach and North try Fort Stevens. Yes, it%26#39;s the busiest campsite on the coast, but for good reason, there%26#39;s so much to do!

3.)Unless the weather is awful, there is no reason to stay in a motel; also when you camp in a State park, it entitles you to access to all State parks without paying a user fee. There is adequate buffers of privacy in most campsites, so you don%26#39;t feel like you%26#39;re in a ';tent city';. Hope this helps

As for reservations at the campgrounds: Oregon State parks (unlike the ones in Washington state) keep half of their camp sites for ';first come, first serve'; basis...good for people who cant plan a camping trip 10 months in advance, or who don%26#39;t know that reservations on the coast are required (like in Washington State). The other half of their campsites are for reserved only.

You will have a good chance at getting a spot if you look around Mon-Tue-Wens....then you can stay at that spot for a bit. Reservations for over the weekend are nice, if you can get them. That is why you should get the ';first come-first serve'; site first and stay put over the weekend!!!

As for a Yurt, better reserve 9 months ahead! You may get lucky and find one available for a one-night-only-stint in the mid-week.

Here is a secret:

Tillamook, OR has a large (~ 100 sites) County campground on the beach (a little known secret) and it is ALL first come, first serve when I was there ~ 3years ago. A great find when you are the first ones there on a Friday!! I%26#39;m not advertising, just passing on a good tip here.

Also, check out the National Forest land that is east of the coast. Get ~ 15 miles east up in the mountains for cheap/free uncrowded camping by some beautiful rivers. Had to do that a few times when the State campgrounds were full on the coast.

Have a wonderful time! The Oregon Coast is heaven. You will not want to go home. One more tip---it rains remarkably less in the southern half of the coast than it does in the northern half. If it is raining and you are north of Lincoln City--pack up the gear and head south...2 different weather systems there.

Oregon State Parks DO NOT keep 1/2 of their sites available for first-come, first-served. The only park that used to do that was William Tugman, but it no longer does. The rule of thumb is a maximum of 10% of available inventory be held off reservations for volunteer host and problems such as a reserved site not being able to be occupied (such as problems with the utilities). There are a few parks, Beachside for example, that have been allowed to hold a larger percentage off of the reservations system due to a large number of undesirable sites, but 10% is the most common.

Well, welcome to TripAdvisor, foreveragirlscout, but your statement:

%26gt;%26gt;it rains remarkably less in the southern half of the coast than it does in the northern half.%26lt;%26lt;

I%26#39;m afraid is NOT correct. The entire coast gets more or less the same amount of rain each year . . . and that amount is right around 70';.

The southern coast is warmer both winter and summer, gets more fog in the summer, and tends to be drier *in the summer* only.

Anytime you go more than just a few miles east of the coast, the weather in summer will be very warm or even quite *hot*!

We camped at Carl Washburn State Park on June 23, a Tuesday night. There were sites that were open all night. The park was very full of large RVs. I found the spaces to be rather close together, not as bad as most RV parks, but closer than we prefer. Someone came in very late and I could hear their conversation in my tent at 2:30am. That said, the setting is beautiful.

But not on the ocean :-(