August 2022: Fee-free camping at Three Creek Lake

General discussions on hiking in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest
Post Reply
User avatar
adamschneider
Posts: 3711
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:02 pm
Location: SE Portland
Contact:

August 2022: Fee-free camping at Three Creek Lake

Post by adamschneider » August 25th, 2022, 11:43 am

This is on the USFS pages for Driftwood, Three Creek Lake, and Three Creek Meadow campgrounds near the end of Forest Road 16 (south of Sisters) in Deschutes National Forest:
August 2022 - Due to staffing challenges, Three Creek Lake, Driftwood, and Three Creek Meadows campgrounds within the Three Creek Lake area will be closed to reservation camping for the 2022 season. Campers who previously made reservations for the sites will receive cancellation notices and a full refund of their reservation fees. The public is welcome to camp for free in designated sites within the three campgrounds. The Forest Service will provide periodic toilet service at the campgrounds until the staffing issue is resolved. Due to very limited garbage services the public is being asked to not leave trash at the campgrounds, but to take it with them when they go.

User avatar
retired jerry
Posts: 14399
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Re: August 2022: Fee-free camping at Three Creek Lake

Post by retired jerry » August 26th, 2022, 6:01 am

I stayed two nights at McNeil campground on the Sandy River and no one ever came around to collect fee

another staffing issue?

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: August 2022: Fee-free camping at Three Creek Lake

Post by Chip Down » August 28th, 2022, 4:17 pm

Best way to camp free is to just camp wherever the eff you want, and if somebody comes around to hassle you, tell them to eff off. Has always worked for me. Of course, I must admit I sleep in weird places, so YMMV.

User avatar
BigBear
Posts: 1836
Joined: October 1st, 2009, 11:54 am

Re: August 2022: Fee-free camping at Three Creek Lake

Post by BigBear » August 29th, 2022, 1:20 pm

Glad I didn't make any reservations this year. I knew motels would not honor reservations if they learned of a big event (e.g. the solar eclipse a few years back and the Oregon22 this summer). There were stories in the Oregonian for both events where motel owners canceled reservations and then jacked up the prices 3x or 4x the previous amount. Should be fun for the campers this Labor Day to find an alternative site. After all, it's not like anyone else is looking to go camping on Labor Day, right? ;)

Post Reply