• Towel Clips for holding down a plastic table cloth on various sized picnic tables
• A fun way to learn essential knots that are useful for camping
• Paper plates
• Paper bowls
• Cutlery
• Aluminum foil
• Clorox disinfectant wipes
• Paper towels and/or napkins
• Plastic reusable tablecloth
• Silicone collapsable collander
• Can opener
• Ziploc bags of multiple sizes
• Hot Dog roasting sticks
• Coozies
• Disposable cups
• Travel mugs / camping mugs
• Propane
• Pot gripper
• Assorted pots and pans
• Cast Iron pan
• Ceramic paring knife
• Log Book to track your own camping trips
• Rain tarp
• Stuff sacks
• First Aid Kit
• Toilet paper
• Kit of assorted sizes of D rings
• Sunscreen
• Skipbo
• Playing Cards
• Aerobie Flying Disc
• Citronella Candle
• Wine/beer opener
• Flashlight
• Headlamps
• Lighters
• Emergency fire starter
• Rope lights
• Bow saw
• Maul/axe
• Working gloves for collecting wood
• Cotton balls and vaseline for fire starter
• Long lighter
• Matches
• Sham wows
• Garbage bags
• Monopoly Deal
• Hand sanitizer
• Water kettle
• Coleman grill
• French press or pour over filter
• Eno Doublenest hammock
• egg holder
• Coleman lantern
• Coleman tent
• tongs
• Spatula
• zero gravity chairs or classic camp chairs
• 2.5 gallons of water
• Fishing pole and lures
• Toothpaste
• Firewood
• Stash some cash - we like to keep a bundle of small bills on us for firewood, extra vehicle fees, or for emergencies
• Rain coats
• Blankets
• Towels
• Spare batteries
• Bug spray
• sleeping bags
• beanies
• Clear bins
• [Paracords] have many uses but we use them primarily while camping as leash extenders and a line to clip Winnie onto around our site
• Folding pocket knife
• Extra sunglasses
• pstyle for the ladies
• collapsible dog bowls
• dog collar lights
• hatchet
• We love this [collapsible stool]() so much we bought two to keep one in the house and one in the van

Luxury Items List

• Ipad with pre-downloaded movies
• Down blanket
• Bleacher seats for picnic table back support
• Mosquito screens
• iron fire poker
• fire bellow
• Blue tooth speaker

Beaver Campground
Site 18
8.16.19 - 8.18.19
No cell service, no internet

Beaver Campground is about 1.5 hours from our house and a really pleasant drive down Highway 14 which is one of our favorite scenic drives along the gorge towards Stevenson. The campground itself was just so-so. The trees are all deciduous with very few evergreens so I would assume its really beautiful in the fall. Its mostly all [Maple](https://oregonstate.edu/trees/broadleaf_genera/maple.htm and Sycamore trees which had such a different feel than what we’re used to in the evergreen forests. Its not really my preference, I was less charmed than usual.

The campsite was also just ok. It was fairly spacious but there wasn’t that much privacy. The dividing brush wasn’t very dense and you could hear everyone at every other campsite. There are a couple sites off a small cul de sac that seemed a little more private and secluded, we think site 16 is probably the best though it seems unlikely we would book this campground again.

The only attached trail is a short river side walk, its dry and not that interesting and ends at the forest road. This stretch of the [Wind River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_River_(Washington) was very clear but incredibly shallow. There were some kids swimming but only got about knee deep.

The campground is (hosted by HooDoo Management and they provided a really great display table full of maps and brochures of nearby recreation, hiking, and fishing spots. It looks like there’s a ton of great trails to explore a short drive from the campsite but we didn’t venture out. They also have a lot of games, recreation activities, and a horse shoe pit for family entertainment onsite. But we just played a whole day’s worth of Monopoly Deal with our good friend who joined us for this trip. We had a blast on our own, but I don’t credit this to the campground.

Pros:

• Close to home
• Bathrooms were very spacious, clean, odorless, and had hand sanitizer!
• Possible Stevenson windsurfing pairing trip
• Mark has perfected his tautline hitch!

Cons:

• The extra vehicle parking was $10 and firewood onsite sold for $7, both of which are quite expensive
• No good sites, no bad sites - I guess this is a wash
• Not ideal scenery, very dry, likely no mushrooms

Little Crater Lake Campground
Site 7
8.9.19 - 8.11.19
No cell service, no internet

CAMP CREEK IS AMAZING! This campground is so beautiful, really breath-taking. Our site was all the way at the end and it was huge and private with no neighbors. It felt so small and peaceful, I was immediately in love. The restrooms were average, not terrible, no amenities.

It did rain for a lot of the weekend with thunderstorms as well so we spent a lot of time playing cards and watching movies in the van but the morning was dry so we were able to hike the Still Creek Trail - the trailhead starts right at the end of our campsite. Right after a wooden bridge crosses the Camp Creek the trail walks along the creek for a bit and then cuts into forest wildnerness where we were just completely alone and surrounded by the most serene and dense forest I’ve ever seen. The trail was also covered in mushrooms - mostly russulas but we also found some chanterelles so you know where to find us come fall! This was definitely the largest array of mushrooms we’ve encountered on any of our hikes so we were pretty excited about it. I felt so at peace and awe struck in the forest on that trail and we will definitely return there. Its only about an hour and 15 minutes from our house too so its an easy day trip for foraging.

Pros:

• Amazing Still Creek Trail
• SO many mushies!
• Huge private tree covered spot
• Unbelievable old growth forest in every direction

Cons:

• It rained a bit which got in the way of our sitting by the fire but that’s not necessarily the campground’s fault.
• We couldn’t think of any other cons, this place is perfect!

Little Crater Lake Campground
Site 2
7.19.19 - 7.21.19
No cell service, no internet

This campground is just ok. Its pretty small, only about 20 spots. Our site was huge but not very private. Theres lots of trees but not much foliage to separate the sites. The bathrooms are old, dirty, smelly outhouses. Its pretty quiet and peaceful though and under 2 hours from home. The long forest road we had to drive to get in was covered in really bad and deep potholes which made for a treacherous 10 minutes or so. It was really hot in the sun and then really cold at night, it would probably not be ideal in the off season.

Its a real short walk to Little Crater Lake which is an unbelievably clear, blue, deep, freezing cold, and super teeny tiny lake. Its really beautiful but so small that there isn’t much to do or see. Its about 35 degrees so not an ideal swimming hole, if swimming was permitted, which its not. It kind of looks like a really cold and less polluted version of Morning Glory in Yellowstone.

Past the lake you land at another stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail at the 2000 mile mark. We walked south towards the southern arm of Timothy Lake which we loved. The trail was flat, shady, just perfect for a long walk.

Pros:

• Really remote without being too far away. There’s stunning views of Mt. Hood on the drive in.
• Very quiet, small and peaceful
• Little Crater lake is a really fascinating sight worth seeing

Cons:

• Pretty gross bathrooms
• Sites are pretty exposed
• Quite a few mosquitos!
• The road in was a wild and bumpy ride with the potholes

Fort Stevens State Park Sites C62 and C63 7.4.19 - 7.7.19 Full cell and internet service

I don’t have too much to add about Fort Stevens since went for the 4th of July last yearas well with some of the same people. This year we were in C loop. These sites were small with little to no privacy at all. This is definitely still only a good campground for groups, its not quiet or relaxing.

This year we borrowed bikes and biked a beautiful trail to the batteries that we hiked around last year. You still definitely need bikes to get around here. We drove to the beach this year with the whole group, past the main parking lot is a sandy road that only big trucks can get through and then you can just drive down the beach and park as you please. This was nice as we were able to get away from big crowds and have a patch of beach to ourselves. Winnie LOVED loved loved the beach and sprinted back and forth forever. She even played fetch for a while after watching our camping companion’s dog fetch, but sadly that was the only day we’d ever gotten her to fetch (though we’re actively training her to be a fetch dog.. one day!)

Pros and Cons remain the same but a new pro was how much Winnie loved the beach.

Fireworks this year were moved off a seawall to a barge in downtown Astoria. I didn’t think the show was a good this year, but still solid. Overall, we’ll keep going here for the 4th of July as long as our pals keep organizing this trip as we love the group… But its still not my favorite campground.

Southshore at Detroit Lake Campground
Site 22
6.28.19 - 6.30.19
Full cell service, full internet

We were joined by a bunch of friends for this trip and this site was perfect for 5 people. This campground is about 7ish minutes past Hoover Campground where we went last year. Southshore is much more elevated and I thought our site would be right on the lake but it was atop a cliff above the late and the surrounding trees blocked out a lot of what would have been an amazing view otherwise. The site itself was HUGE and spacious, and very private.

This campground has a boat ramp and its a short walk to a rocky lakeside beach. Unfortunately there are really cliffy patches along the lake so you can’t really walk around the lake too much, at least not on the south side. The Stahlman Point Trail is pretty close to the campground but its really steep! Our friends walked the trail (we don’t do steep) and we walked down to the rocky beach and around Cove Creek Campground which was down the road. Their facilities were fancy! They have showers, full toilets, sinks, mirrors, lights! But the sites looked crowded, small, and pretty exposed. I don’t think we’ll book a spot there although they have better lake access, but I prefer Hoover overall.

On Saturday evening we rented a 10 person pontoon from the Detroit Lake Marina which was the BEST. But given its high summer season, most of the boats were reserved and we only got a 2 hour window at the end of the day. Definitely make a note to reserve this ahead of time for next year.

Detroit Lake remains to be my favorite lake in Oregon (thus far). Its unbelievably beautiful and I want to camp here at least once every year, forever.

Pros:

• Hugh private spot with a view of the lake through the trees
• The picnic table, bench, and firepit was close to the carport for maximum convenience
• About 15 minutes to Detroit Marina and town

Cons:

• Outhouse bathrooms - not the worst, not the best
• On a cliff so no direct lake access
• Farther from home, Hoover or north shore campgrounds would be a closer drive

Cape Perpetua Campground
Site 28
5.27.19 - 5.28.19
No cell service, no internet

We came here on a whim in efforts to shorten our drive back home from our trip to Floras Lake and for a change of scenery after a windy and cold three days.

It seems that most campgrounds off the 101 are operated by American Land and Leisure so the nightly fees seem a lot higher than most other sites we’ve been to. These averaged about $26/night while non-ALL campgrounds are usually around $16/night. We suppose it goes to a good cause, so fine..

This campground was interesting as all the sites were just in one very long row with a ton of sites, most of which were fairly exposed and/or tent only sites. It was a Monday though so it was fairly empty and we were able to find one of the only private sites which was actually really private and secluded. The sites back up to Cape Creek so it was very peaceful and there is very luscious dense forest on both sides of the road so its really beautiful.

I think there are several trails and sights nearby and its right off the 101 so right at the coast, so it might be a really great spot if we were there for several days but we were really only there for one night. Its hard to evaluate the area but I would return if I can get over how much more expensive the site is.

Pros:

• Very green and lush
• Right off the 101 and so close to the coast
• Fresh water on site and fairly decent bathrooms

Cons:

• Sites are pretty small and most are pretty exposed
• The sites also seem to all be on a slant which is tough when sleeping in the van

Boice-Cope State Park
Site LV RV 4
5.24.19 - 5.27.19
Full cell service, full internet

This campground is where Mark learned to windsurf five years ago when we came up for Labor Day in 2014 to meet up with Rhett and Justa. We came back here for nostalgic purposes and to officially launch Mark’s 2019 windsurf season.

This campground is mostly just a big parking lot with mostly full hook-up RV spots. Sites 1-8 are the most green and shady, tent friendly, most camping-feeling. Most sites on the lake side were used as tent spots as they’re the only decent non-RV spots. They’re small though and offer little privacy. This place is really just a spot for those engaging in water sports on Floras Lake.

Memorial Day turned out to be much colder than Labor Day so it was in the mid-50’s vs. the high 70’s over Labor Day 2014. Its a short walk ~ 1 mile or so to the beach which is beautiful but so cold and windy. It also rained almost all of Saturday so we had a lot of card playing in the van.

The campground is pretty far from the the highway so it has just the right hum of ocean waves in the background. Its more like an RV park so it has really clean bathrooms with soap, mirrors, sinks and showers. It has full amenities including a laundry facility with wifi, outlets, plenty of water, and propane for sale.

Pros:

• Great for wind and kite surfing
• We were pretty obsessed with the height adjustable firepit grill
• Floras Lake is really shallow and warm which is great for learning water sports
• At the coast which is always fun to see

Cons:

• Really far, about 6 hours from home
• The lake is too shallow to foil (this was Mark’s con, obvs)
• NOT a good spot for just regular camping
• Campground is pretty windy, which was a con for me but a big reason why most of those people were there.

Eagle Creek Campground
Site 12
5.3.19 - 5.5.19
Full cell service, full internet

We initially booked site 14 but it was directly connected to site 15 which was not ideal. We switched to #12 but think #13 actually looks like the best spot as far as the view. $12 is small but very private and perfect for 4 people which we had for this trip. You would not be able to fit much more than that and definitely no more than 2 cars in the driveway.

All the Eagle Creek/gorge trails unfortunately were still closed from the 2017 Eagle Creek fire (I probably should have researched this first) but there are a lot of other trails within about 15 miles away. We went to the Dry Creek Falls which is right on the PCT instead ofter a quick flat tire incident followed by a speedy Hood River Tire Repair trip.

The site was beautiful and very relaxing except its right off Highway 84 so its pretty noisy and the trains are frequent (I feel like we’d already learned this lesson from last year’s Viento trip…)

Pros:

• Bathrooms are very clean but did not have any hand sanitizer (a new 2019 thing I look for!)
• Close to many beautiful gorge trails (that were still closed from risk of mud slides)
• Close to home - under 1 hour
• Spots are private for the most part

Cons:

• Tons of nuissance flies - could be seasonal?
• Noisy as its right above the highway and train tracks
• Spots all looked pretty small
• Could potentially be very windy
• Maybe near a shooting range…?

Hoodview Campground
Site 28
9.14.18 - 9.16.18
Limited cell service, Limited internet

This trip was pretty late season so it was pretty chilly and the fog unfortunately prevented the alleged views of Mt. Hood that I’d assumed by the name of the campground. We had friends join us though so this was a really fun group trip. Timothy Lake is gorgeous and so pristine and clear. It was perfect for kayaking and practicing our stone skipping. We also did a bit of fishing and Mark even caught a very small fish. It was really easy to walk along the lake where we stumbled upon a lot of meticulously placed cairns. It felt very private and quiet, I assume its got a lot more lake recreation activity in the high summer. The campsite itself was very large and perfect for a group. Its about 2 hours from home.

Pros:

• Huge secluded sites
• Bathrooms were not terrible
• Site was right on the lake with a beautiful view
• Great for kayaking and fishing

Cons:

• Pretty cold in September
• Couldn’t actually see Mt. Hood
• Not on any trails