Olympic Peninsula Camping - Reviews of Four Campgrounds
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2014 9:21 pmRather than report on each campground I stayed at individually, I decided on this long post. They are listed in the order I stayed at them: counterclockwise along the coast. All were next to the beach and had views from at least some sites. I would recommend any of them.
Fort Worden State Park, Port Townsend, WA – This is an old, retired army fort, so there are lots of buildings and things to explore, including at an officers’ quarters museum and an artillery museum. There are two campgrounds: upper and lower. The upper is in the woods on the hill with no views. Upper sites were gravel with water and electric. The lower sites were behind the dunes and some old bunkers. The southern sites have a slight view of the sound, but the ones in the north had no views. All sites were old asphalt. Many had full hookups, rest were water and electric only. All were within a short walk to the beach. In the beach area was also a lighthouse, marine science center, whale exhibit, and kayak rentals. Good Verizon service.
Town is a little over a mile away and nice to walk around in. There are several ferries that leave from this port and some whale watching tours. I enjoyed the all-day tour that stopped at Friendship Harbor. $39 per night for full hookup site.
Salt Creek Recreation Area, Port Angeles, WA – This is a county park, about 15 miles from Port Angeles, and has a weird via letter only reservation system, but they do have quite a few walk-in sites available if you get there early. This is a very popular place, so get reservations early! There are basically three rows of sites on a sloping hill, all with an incredible view of Puget Sound and Canada in the distance. The RV in front of you is on a slightly lower level so it does not block your view. Sites are closer together than I like, but view was worth it. Lots of tame deer in the area. Warning: Do NOT use your cell phone here because you will roam into Canada and incur possibly hundreds of dollars of costs. Ditto for data roaming.
There is no “beach” as such, but at low tide, you can climb down a few steps and then scramble the rest of the way over big rocks to some tide pools. Also, this campground is located about 25 miles from Sol Duc Falls area of the Olympic National Park. It is also about 25 miles from Neah Bay and the fantastic native American museum there and the hike to the very northwest tip of North America. $28 per night for water and electric site.
Quileute Oceanside RV Resort, LaPush, WA - This is an Indian reservation with a hotel and two campgrounds along some of the most spectacular Pacific Ocean coast in the area. I stayed in the one on the beach, although my site was at a 90 degree angle, not directly in the row facing the ocean, but I could see a bit of it over the dunes anyway. They have built fences between each site, which is nice. There are no amenities to this campground, and I would not exactly call it a resort as it is pretty basic, but you come here for the ocean and beach, not amenities. Promised internet access was not usable. Keep in mind that this is tribal land, so you stay here on their terms and enjoy it as it is. Excellent Verizon service, however. Make sure you bring all the supplies and groceries you need. Still well-worth the money. Also convenient to Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park.
There are lots of ancient logs on the beach, including one huge old-growth tree you can walk onto and be about 15' or more above the ground level--scary, but I did it. It is laying on its side and roots stick up maybe 25' in air. Also, sea stacks on both ends of the beach. The sites are on rough gravel with full hookups, but are not fancy. You might also find roaming dogs in the area, but the only one I saw was a very large one on the beach that was intent on making friends. He would follow you around until you petted him or threw a stick. He slipped in between one young couple who were walking and holding hands, and trotted along with them like he had found a new family. Very nice dog and quite amusing to watch. $45 per night for full hookup site.
Pacific Beach State Park, Pacific, WA – This campground was very open and directly on the biggest beach I have ever seen. Nice asphalt pads. Most sites were just behind dunes, but there were some right on the edge of the beach and had an excellent view. Very foggy when I was there, but you could hear the surf and very pleasant breeze. The beach is very flat here, so very very wide. I was worn out just trying to get to the surf! Hard, wet sand at least was easy to walk in. You can wade out in 2” deep water for another couple of hundred feet once you get to the actual ocean in low tide. Once you get out to the surf, you can see the beach disappearing in the fog for a couple of miles in both directions, and also watch the fog gather on the wet beach itself.
Bring lots of groceries as there is not much in the very small town nearby and it is 15 miles to the nearest town with a grocery store. Also, the only threaded water fill was at the dump station, and it was on the wrong side for me, so lucky I came in with full tanks. It is a very popular campground, so make reservations early. No walk-in sites. $40 per night, electric-only site.
Fort Worden State Park, Port Townsend, WA – This is an old, retired army fort, so there are lots of buildings and things to explore, including at an officers’ quarters museum and an artillery museum. There are two campgrounds: upper and lower. The upper is in the woods on the hill with no views. Upper sites were gravel with water and electric. The lower sites were behind the dunes and some old bunkers. The southern sites have a slight view of the sound, but the ones in the north had no views. All sites were old asphalt. Many had full hookups, rest were water and electric only. All were within a short walk to the beach. In the beach area was also a lighthouse, marine science center, whale exhibit, and kayak rentals. Good Verizon service.
Town is a little over a mile away and nice to walk around in. There are several ferries that leave from this port and some whale watching tours. I enjoyed the all-day tour that stopped at Friendship Harbor. $39 per night for full hookup site.
Salt Creek Recreation Area, Port Angeles, WA – This is a county park, about 15 miles from Port Angeles, and has a weird via letter only reservation system, but they do have quite a few walk-in sites available if you get there early. This is a very popular place, so get reservations early! There are basically three rows of sites on a sloping hill, all with an incredible view of Puget Sound and Canada in the distance. The RV in front of you is on a slightly lower level so it does not block your view. Sites are closer together than I like, but view was worth it. Lots of tame deer in the area. Warning: Do NOT use your cell phone here because you will roam into Canada and incur possibly hundreds of dollars of costs. Ditto for data roaming.
There is no “beach” as such, but at low tide, you can climb down a few steps and then scramble the rest of the way over big rocks to some tide pools. Also, this campground is located about 25 miles from Sol Duc Falls area of the Olympic National Park. It is also about 25 miles from Neah Bay and the fantastic native American museum there and the hike to the very northwest tip of North America. $28 per night for water and electric site.
Quileute Oceanside RV Resort, LaPush, WA - This is an Indian reservation with a hotel and two campgrounds along some of the most spectacular Pacific Ocean coast in the area. I stayed in the one on the beach, although my site was at a 90 degree angle, not directly in the row facing the ocean, but I could see a bit of it over the dunes anyway. They have built fences between each site, which is nice. There are no amenities to this campground, and I would not exactly call it a resort as it is pretty basic, but you come here for the ocean and beach, not amenities. Promised internet access was not usable. Keep in mind that this is tribal land, so you stay here on their terms and enjoy it as it is. Excellent Verizon service, however. Make sure you bring all the supplies and groceries you need. Still well-worth the money. Also convenient to Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park.
There are lots of ancient logs on the beach, including one huge old-growth tree you can walk onto and be about 15' or more above the ground level--scary, but I did it. It is laying on its side and roots stick up maybe 25' in air. Also, sea stacks on both ends of the beach. The sites are on rough gravel with full hookups, but are not fancy. You might also find roaming dogs in the area, but the only one I saw was a very large one on the beach that was intent on making friends. He would follow you around until you petted him or threw a stick. He slipped in between one young couple who were walking and holding hands, and trotted along with them like he had found a new family. Very nice dog and quite amusing to watch. $45 per night for full hookup site.
Pacific Beach State Park, Pacific, WA – This campground was very open and directly on the biggest beach I have ever seen. Nice asphalt pads. Most sites were just behind dunes, but there were some right on the edge of the beach and had an excellent view. Very foggy when I was there, but you could hear the surf and very pleasant breeze. The beach is very flat here, so very very wide. I was worn out just trying to get to the surf! Hard, wet sand at least was easy to walk in. You can wade out in 2” deep water for another couple of hundred feet once you get to the actual ocean in low tide. Once you get out to the surf, you can see the beach disappearing in the fog for a couple of miles in both directions, and also watch the fog gather on the wet beach itself.
Bring lots of groceries as there is not much in the very small town nearby and it is 15 miles to the nearest town with a grocery store. Also, the only threaded water fill was at the dump station, and it was on the wrong side for me, so lucky I came in with full tanks. It is a very popular campground, so make reservations early. No walk-in sites. $40 per night, electric-only site.
