There’s nothing like waking up and unzipping your tent to the view of a lake, meadow or beautiful central Oregon mountain. For many Summit students, this is what they look forward to while daydreaming in class. Most students have been camping for years, while others hope to begin this spring. It can be hard to find where to camp, especially when managing permits, reservations and regulations. However, this list of campgrounds can help you decide your first or next camping trip.
Green Lakes
Buried in the Three Sisters Wilderness lie the Green Lakes. The Green Lakes consist of three main lakes, all different sizes. They all hold beautifully clear waters and soft sand bottoms. Besides the amazing waters, the lakes are surrounded by breathtaking mountainous landscapes, offering more possibilities of exploring if you’re interested in hiking.
The Green Lakes are never very crowded, mainly because of the long hike and limited permits. Even if the 11.2 miles round trip hike is lengthy, it’s full of easy terrain and beautiful scenery. This long path follows meadows and hills with views above the many miles of surrounding forest.
Sophomore Laird Jessup is a big backpacker and one of his favorite places to hike are the Green Lakes.
“It was a decent length backpack and extremely beautiful the entire way,” said Jessup.
Even if you aren’t interested in hiking further once you’ve arrived, there’s quite a lot of things you can do. Fishing, swimming and exploring can make this trip even more rewarding.
With each lake being full of brook trout, it’s an amazing area for fly fishing. If you’re going during the spring and summer, bring a three to six weight rod with you and flies like caddis, mayflies, and nymphs. If you ask me, look for fish coming up to the surface to eat bugs and drop offs in depth of water close to shore.
But if you’re not into fishing, you can explore around the lakes, watch fish and swim. If you’re there in the summer, the water will still be cold, but not cold enough to hold you back from swimming around.
Lower Bridge Campground, Metolius River
The Lower Bridge Campground is placed right in the heart of the Metolius River. The Metolius River is one of the largest spring-fed rivers in the country and is home to beautiful, deep blue water.
Sophomore student Wilhelm Jaimeson loves the Metolius River because of its unique beauty and opportunities for huge bull trout.
“I really like camping at the Metolius…because it’s so beautiful and there’s always that chance of a huge bull trout,” he explained.
This campground is right beside Bridge 99 and only a few miles down the highway from the well known Camp Sherman. The spot does cost $27 a night but it has multiple amenities like bathrooms with running water and beautiful views of the river.
If you’re not planning to fly fish, hiking is a great option. Small trails zig-zag all around each side of the river, they follow the river pretty closely and have extremely breathtaking views. You can even find some less known views if you take some of the more rugged paths.
Besides hiking the surrounding trails, there’s not much to do around this campground if you’re not a fisherman. Below the bridge is open to all styles of fishing, fly and gear. The Metolius River can be an amazing redband trout fishery year round and can hold some ginormous bull trout during the fall.
Big Bend Campground, Crooked River
The Crooked River is one of the most popular rivers in our area because of its beauty, warmer waters and excellent beginner fly fishing, and the Big Bend Campground is right in the middle of that.
This campground is open year round with parking beside it. It’s $8 to $16 a night on a first-come-first-serve basis. The campground has many amenities like water and bathrooms, making the campground very easy and simple to stay at. The Big Bend Campground is perfect for a relaxing trip with calm activities like walking and fishing.
The Crooked River has some of the most beginner friendly fly fishing waters. It’s safe and simple wading. These rivers are open year round, and remember to always go small during the winter, small flies like zebra midges and rainbow warriors will be consistent options.
Even If you don’t like fishing, these spots are still worth a visit. All these camp sites share just as much beauty as any other campground in our area. And all these campgrounds have swimming in clear water, hiking for views and activities and even mountain biking as options.
If you’re gonna check out any of these sites, remember to reserve in time and respect the campgrounds. The biggest part of keeping these areas in great condition is leaving no trace or leaving it better than you found it.
