Where can I find a secluded, but with amenities, campsite in the PNW?

April 3, 2017 12:59 PM

We are trying to go family camping. Daughter wants a real bathroom with running water. Husband wants to not be pressed right up against other humans. How to find the porridge that is just right?

I know that the parks services generally offer campsite areas with a bathroom. The problem I've found on my own with this is that most of the campsites are really close to other people - maybe five to ten feet to the other campsite. This then becomes a problem, especially if the other people are noisy and it is impossible to forget they are there.

I recall, at one of the places I was driving through for some backpacking, some "wilderness campsites", or what have you, which were located near but not on top of the other campsites, and still had parking and access, but were about forty or so feet away from each other. Unfortunately, I can't seem to remember where it was or how to locate it again.

Please help if you can! Western Washington is preferred but I am willing to drive pretty far if it will solve this problem.

posted by corb to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (11 answers total)

There are many campsites at Deception Pass that have a decent amount of space and privacy between them. There are toilets and (I believe) showers available too.
posted by joan_holloway at 1:30 PM on April 3, 2017

One thing that I have found helpful when choosing a WA State Park campground is studying the map of the campsites on the reservations website. Each individual site has a description and a photo. So, in your case, I would choose a site that is not immediately adjacent to a site that can accommodate multiple cars and tents or has an RV hookup.

(I have camped at Deception Pass a few times - it's definitely not a backwoods experience and the Navy planes are so loud and sleep disrupting, but there are sites that are more mellow and secluded. Bowman Bay is on the north side of Deception Pass, I like it a lot better than the Forest Loop area.)
posted by stowaway at 1:50 PM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]

Depending on time of season Alta Lake in Pateros can be a great place to camp. But in the middle of the summers it can be really crowded.

There's also colonial creek campground off highway 20 near lake diablo. Campsite 15 is freaking damn gorgeous:
https://www.nps.gov/noca/upload/Colonial_CG_2011.pdf
posted by Annika Cicada at 1:56 PM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]

This meets everything but the "real" bathroom. There is running water, it is secluded (on two small, wonderful lakes), very few camp sites, and lots of room between you and neighbors. Reservations go fast.

Here's a post wherein I mentioned it previously.
posted by klausman at 4:19 PM on April 3, 2017

You may look for places that have "walk-in" campsites. These generally require a 20-100. Yard walk, but the sites are farther apart and there is often actual restrooms in part of the larger campground.
posted by rockindata at 4:25 PM on April 3, 2017 [3 favorites]

How far are you willing to bike? State park hike & bike sites are usually pretty spacious and set apart from the crowded car camping.

Happy to talk more about resources for bike camping if it's of interest - I can answer many questions on this topic.
posted by aniola at 6:57 PM on April 3, 2017 [2 favorites]

North Cascades NP has some campsites that are walk-in. About 100' - 200' between sites, a short loop trail from a parking area next to bathrooms. I camped there last summer and really enjoyed it. Less crowded than WA state parks (which I enjoy, they have their place).
posted by WacoKid at 7:24 AM on April 4, 2017 [1 favorite]

Silver Springs, along 410 near the entrance to Mt. Rainier, has some very nice spots with space. And at least one restroom with water. It really is a beautiful site.
posted by trinity8-director at 9:35 AM on April 4, 2017 [1 favorite]

This can be a challenge without actually visiting a campground first and making note of the best/most secluded campsites. You're right--in a lot of them, the sites are really close together, especially the ones run by State Parks (generally speaking, I would not even look at those). Campsites run by the Forest Service or at the county level are occasionally better. Walk-in or Hiker-biker sites are often better as others have noted. I know how your husband feels--I hate camping right next to strangers and the only time I'll go car camping is when we're with a larger group, surrounded by people we know (and even that is sometimes too close for comfort).
posted by bennett being thrown at 3:38 PM on April 4, 2017 [1 favorite]

Spencer Spit State Park has some sites with okay privacy; you'll want to make reservations before heading out. That's "okay privacy" by campsite standards, of course. You'll have people walking by. I've stayed in sites 1 and 3, and 1 had plants that blocked the view of the road. We could still see people through the bushes at the site behind us. Site 3 wasn't private.
posted by The corpse in the library at 12:55 PM on April 5, 2017

Campsite Photos can be helpful.
posted by The corpse in the library at 12:56 PM on April 5, 2017