Jeanne Pyle - The Best in Tent Camping: Oregon: A Guide for Car Campers Who Hate RVs, Concrete Slabs, and Loud Portable Stereos

F ifty campgrounds for just one state. Fifty seems like a big number, doesnt it? What are the odds that one personyou, for examplewill ever camp in all 50 places described in this book?

Well, you should know that it took two of us just to visit and describe these 50 places. Jeanne Louise Pyle created the first edition of this book for its 2004 publication, and in 2008, Menasha Ridge Press asked me to revise it. They said something like get some new ones in there and make sure the other ones are still up to date.

No worries, right? Just send the chapters to some very helpful government folks, then drive around and find some new ones. Its just one state, right?

Well, not really. The idea that Silver Falls, the Hart Mountain Refuge, and Camp Blanco share even a continent, much less a state, with the streetcars and high rises of Portland is a bit mind-boggling. And we Portlanders, it must be said, have a highly skewed idea of our state. We cut it into western and eastern, thus lumping Prineville, the Wallowas, Steens Mountain, and Lakeview into some vague other place that we are only marginally aware of.

No matter where you live, but especially if you live in Portland or the Willamette Valley, its my sincere hope that youll use this book as a guide to exploring Oregon. Dont say, Well, next time we get out east, we should check out some of these campsites. Instead, say, Lets go out to Steens Mountain this year and camp there. Or say, Ive always heard the Blue Mountains are nice, so lets pack up the camping gear and check em out. Or, even better, find someplace in here youve never even heard of and go see it. I bet there are some within a couple hours of your house.

For me, updating Jeannes fantastic work was a constant stream of discoveries. The fact I lived in Portland 13 years before I went to the top of the Steens is somewhat embarrassing. I had never really explored the Elkhorn Mountains, only passed through the Gearhardt Mountain area, and never seen the antelope in the wide-open spaces of the Hart Mountain refuge.

Likewise, as many times as I had hiked Eagle Creek, just 45 minutes from where I live, Id never seen the quaint and historic campground there. I had also never camped at Oxbow Regional Park in my own citys suburbs; and when I did, I was able to sit on a riverbank and watch spawning salmon thrash around in the rapids with a bald eagle overhead and fall colors all around. Id never been to Waldo Lake but now plan to spend a week there sometime. And I thought I had known peace in the Three Sisters until I saw the campsites around Scott Lake.

Its those moments of discovery and serenity that were looking for when we pitch our tent. And those moments, at least in our plans, dont include the sound of a buzzing generator or boom box. So when evaluating campsites for this book, we have tried to take into account all the factors one would want in a place to lay ones head: peace, tranquility, some measure of privacy balanced with convenience, and a nice view.

The truth is, however, that when traveling to any of these campsites, youll drive past plenty of others that could have made the book. In fact, part of my standard conversation with BLM and Forest Service employees always included me saying, I know I should check out the other five places youre telling me about in your area, but Ive only got 50 for the whole state!

So while we offer this book as an invitation to explore our beautiful state, we also hope it wont limit you. If you see a tree-lined gravel road and a sign saying, Campground, 8 miles, go check it out! Neither Jeanne nor I have been to every place in the state, but weve been to every place in this book, and a heck of a lot of others. By all means, go find your own little treasures, and if youre willing to share your discoveries, drop us a line.