Now is the Perfect Time to Reserve a Campground for This Summer!
Camping is the perfect way to get out and enjoy Washington
Washington has over 1,000 public and private campgrounds
Whether you want to camp with the noise of the waves, wake up to the sun rising over a mountain lake, or enjoy the stars shining over your campfire high up in the mountains, there is a wealth of options. But if you are hoping to go camping this year—be prepared. Either make your plans early, go mid-week, or choose one of the less crowded campgrounds.
Washington recreation lands saw an unprecedented surge of visitors in 2020 as people were desperate for safe recreation opportunities that were also close to home. Many people who flooded to our public lands had not been regular visitors, but now they have a taste of the opportunities. Tourism and recreation management groups are anticipating that visits to public lands will remain very high through 2021: as the economy slowly opens up and people are looking for a break but still interested in activities that are closer to home and allow them to maintain distance as needed. Washington State has many signature camping destinations that are known around the world, but these are going to be very busy this year as they are the ones that people first think of when they start planning their vacation. In this post, we are going to look at some of the most popular campgrounds in Washington State—places that you should reserve now if you want a spot this summer.
There are too many great campgrounds to cover them all in one post, so we are going to look at favorites in the National Park and State Park systems.
National Park Campgrounds
The two parks that best define what people think of when they think of Washington State are Mt. Rainier National Park, with its iconic peak, and Olympic National Park, with rain forests that are perfect hiding grounds for Bigfoot or kids playing hide-and-seek as well as spectacular ocean beaches—but don’t forget North Cascades National Park!
The national parks open up reservations 6 months out, so act now if you want to get a spot this summer.
Mt. Rainier National Park
One of the most popular destinations, and perhaps the place that most defines our state, Mt. Rainier National Park has three regular campgrounds and numerous hike-in campgrounds for the more adventurous. Cougar Rock Campground and Ohanapecosh Campground are two of the top rated campgrounds in Washington State. Click here for reservations. Even if you are looking for a backcountry experience, you need a permit to camp overnight in the wilderness. Click here for more information. If you can’t get a spot in the park, the USFS has many nearby campgrounds that may be less crowded.
Mt. Rainier has both standard and backcountry campgrounds.
Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park offers wild beaches, rainforests, and mountain lakes. The park has 130 campgrounds from standard campgrounds to primitive backcountry destinations that you must hike into. The park has three standard campgrounds that accept reservations: Kalaloch Campground, which is considered one of the top destinations in the state, Sol Duc, and Mora. Click here for reservations.
Kalaloch and Mora are both on the coast, but the national park, and adjacent national forest and Department of Recreation Lands, offer many types of camping and recreation.
Washington State Parks Campgrounds
Washington State Parks offers over 70 regional camping parks throughout the state. In addition to tent and RV sites, many of the parks offer camping cabins, yurts, and even vacation houses. Camping reservations can be made up to 9 months in advance, so the booking window has already opened for the full camping season. Some of the top rated state park campgrounds include Lake Wenatchee State Park near Leavenworth, Curlew Lake State Park just outside of Republic, and Moran State Park on Orcas Island. However, many other parks such as Potholes State Park south of Moses Lake, offer a relaxing camping experience with less crowding. You can use the Washington State Parks reservation page to find a place to camp, or click on any campground and get a link to the reservation page.
Deception Pass State Park has several campgrounds, including Cranberry Lake Campground (which is rated as one of the top in the state), Bowman Bay Campground, and Quarry Pond Campground.
Curlew Lake State Park. Photo credit: WA State Parks.
Find the perfect place to camp with the Northwest Portal’s recreation maps and apps. Outdoors NW, available as a web map or app for Apple and Android, has everything you need to plan a vacation in Washington State. On the app, you can even download regions for offline navigation. If you want a map that has more filters for campgrounds and camping, check out the Camping web map—all the recreation on Outdoors but emphasizing the things that campers are looking for. Icons are coded by the type of camping, and the filters let you find a place that has just exactly what you are looking for.