My 3 favorite campgrounds
Just a not-so-quick note: I rarely ask Patrick, my partner, to read my blogs before I post them, or after for that matter, but I asked him to read this one. And he hated it. Well, he didn't use those words, he is more diplomatic than that. He said it seems different than my usual style and instead of being incredibly personal like the rest of my writing it comes across more surface level, like I was writing for a travel magazine. And he is right. And I know why all of the sudden I changed my writing. It's capitalism. As you might have seen from my previous post, we are broken down in Bend and waiting for the transmission to be rebuilt on our campervan. We had to borrow the money to pay for the rebuild which has put a huge strain on our plans to build businesses around our creative endeavors. Like this blog. So I have been doing some research while we are staying in a hotel about how to grow a blog and monetize a blog for surviving capitalism. My brain has been saturated with ideas about how to optimize SEO and how to make a blog appealing for a wider audience (aka make it happier) or how to be a freelance writer for magazines. And so I wrote a more watered down blog where I tried to use SEO keywords and not talk about my emotions. Which is not my style and hasn't ever been my style. My blog is deeply personal. A story about a sad, trans, fat, traveler whose life is, in general, a shitshow.
I am going to leave this blog up because, even though it doesn't really fit here, I think it is still interesting for people who might be interested in travel or interested in some more high resolution photos of our travels. So I hope you enjoy it. And for the future, I am going to keep sharing a more personal account of my life with you. I am not a “travel writer”, that is not something I want for myself nor do I think that is what the world needs from me.
In March 2021, my partner, Patrick, and I left our home in Southern California with our dog to travel up to Oregon and Washington. Along the way, we stayed at over 20 campgrounds, both free and paid. Since we are currently in Bend, OR waiting for the transmission to be rebuilt on our 20-year-old converted campervan, I thought I would reminisce about my favorite campgrounds that we have stayed at along the way.
#1 My favorite paid campground
William Heise County Park
Julian, CA
Cost: $35/ night
Stayed April 2021
We originally booked three nights at William Heise County Park Campground in a panic when the temperatures were getting into the mid-80s at a campground we were staying at in Cleveland National Forest. We ended up loving the park and staying for three weeks. It was expensive, more than we normally are willing to pay for campgrounds, but there was something that just felt right about being there. It felt safe, like home. There was a large field in the center of the campground with picnic tables scattered along the edges where I would go to read my book or stargaze at night. Patrick, Bodhi, and I went for many hikes around the park that were all just a few minutes walk from our campsite.
#2 My favorite free campground
Pine Creek Road
Bishop, CA
Cost: Free
Stayed May 2021
This was the first free campsite that we stayed at on our trip up to Washington that really had everything we could ask for. A creek, mountains, snow, trees, wildflowers, secluded campsites, trails. You name it. We stayed at two different spots while we were there. One had grand views of the mountains and the stars at night. The second campsite was secluded, tucked away under the trees and right along on the creek. It was peaceful and serene. We spent the days hiking through the wildflowers and putting our feet (and paws) in the cold snow runoff of the creek. There were only two drawbacks, one was that there was no cell service at all. The second drawback was that it is a popular site for rock climbing and a few of the climbers weren't as respectful of other people using the space. But it's definitely worth a visit.
#3 My favorite pullout/ rest stop
Random pullout on the Oregon Coast off Hwy 101
Between Brookings, OR and Gold Beach, OR
Cost: Free
Stayed one night in August 2021
After spending hours trying to find space at a few different campgrounds in Northern California and Southern Oregon, it was late and we needed a place to stay for the night. We had decided to drive up Hwy 101 along the coast to a rest stop that we saw on Google Maps when we came across a few large pullouts that had a ton of RVs parked along the edges facing the ocean. We decided to take a risk and find a spot among the RVs and I was so happy we did. We saw a beautiful sunset and there was a trail heading down to a secluded beach. It was quiet, there was only occasional noise from the road. All in all, I would definitely stay there again just to take another morning walk with Bodhi along that beach.
There are too many good campgrounds so I have to share just one more...
Bonus: My favorite inexpensive campground
Skull Hollow Campground
Bend, OR
Cost: $10/ night
Stayed October 2021
We stayed here on our way south for the winter after nearly a month in Olympia, WA so the dry climate and desert landscape was a breathe of fresh air. I really appreciated the open skies and colorful sunsets (and sunrises, let's be honest). It was COLD so there weren't many people staying at the campground which was nice because the campsites are pretty close together. It seemed like the campground was mostly used by travelers, at least this time of year, so everyone was pretty respectful of each others space. There trails surrounding the campground were great for Patrick and Bodhi to go on for their daily walks. Right up the road from the campground are some designated dispersed campsites if you are looking for free camping. We opted for the safety of the campground this time since we are still recovering from a not so great camping experience we had in Olympia, WA. The only downside I can think of were the hundreds of robins that, while beautiful to watch, would land on top of our van, each with a loud thud-screech (think nails on a chalkboard) every morning at 7am and poop on our roof and all over our stuff. I must have cleaned up hundreds of bird droppings over the coarse of the two weeks, but it was worth it for the beautiful views and quiet.
This was a hard list to make. There are so many beautiful campgrounds in California, Oregon, and Washington, I am sure there are many more I have yet to visit. We found all of these campground on Campendium, minus the pullout out on the Oregon Coast off Hwy 101 that we just stumbled across. I hope this inspires you to get out and travel somewhere, whether it is to these campgrounds or somewhere else just as magical.