Sturdivent Park in Coquil, Oregon, of all the places we’ve stayed, was kinda weird. We’re no strangers to staying at state parks and campgrounds. This, however, was probably the first time we stayed at a park that was primarily a day-use facility, but allowed cheap dry camping. Facilities Sturdivent Park is primarily a day-use park and fishing staging area. The area has several porta-potties, play fields, and trash cans throughout.
Skull Creek Campground was one of those rare treats: a free 14-day BLM campground with facilities! The campground is pretty easy to get to, but taller rigs should be careful, as both entrance roads have low branches overhanging the road. Our bus, at just under 12’ tall, barely passed under the branches. Amenities at Skull Creek Campground I don’t mean to oversell it. By facilities, all I mean is a
By now, we’ve stayed at our fair share of campgrounds, boondocking spots, and even casinos. We think we have a pretty good idea about what makes a good one and what makes a bad one. Wolf Creek Park in Wolf Creek, Oregon, definitely fits in the latter category. One thing we learned as we traveled up the west coast was that with the lack of public lands came a lack
We’ve been crisscrossing the nation, ticking off as many national parks as possible, and Crater Lake National Park in Oregon has always been on the list. Unfortunately, a park named for a massive, deep blue lake isn’t always about lakeside strolls, especially in early spring! We spent a day at Crater Lake, and what a day it was. When we pulled in, the roads were clear, but the snow was
We had an opportunity to visit the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and needed a place to stay. While looking up locations on Freecampsites.net, Buck Divide Road caught our eye. While it wasn’t great, it was a free place to park. Buck Divide Road: Not Great for Large Rigs Buck Divide Road can be roughly split into two sections: the woods and the staging area. When we arrived in mid-spring, we were
We don’t stay in a lot of RV parks when we travel. This is both to keep costs down and to keep scenery high. But when traveling up the west coast of the United States, public lands are few and far between. Schroeder Park in Grants Pass was one stop between public lands. Better for Smaller Rigs While the web page stated that the park could handle rigs of all
In the spring of ’25, we decided to travel north along the Pacific Coast along the 101. Not only was this a beautiful drive, but it also gave us a chance to tour Redwood National and State Parks in California. Redwood National and State Parks are very unique in that they’re not one park surrounding a feature, like Black Canyon of the Gunnison or Hot Springs. Redwood NP and SP
While roving up the 101 in the spring of 2025, we found a dearth of public land. As such, we spent more than a couple of nights in casino parking lots and a few brief stays in RV parks. Cher’ere Campground in Klamath, California, was probably our favorite park to date. What to Expect at Cher’ere Campground Cher’ere Campground is a campground in flux. While it’s clearly been in the
As we puttered up the 101, we had a hard time finding public land to park on and made use of several casinos along the way. Bear River Casino was one of the nicer ones. Staying in an RV at Bear River Casino Like most casinos, Bear River is free and dry, meaning that you can park in their lot for a few nights, but there are no hookups. The
While “rely” is too strong a word, we’ve come to appreciate casinos as acceptable “spots between spots.” They are almost always free, spacious, and happy to host weary travelers. Garcia River Casino in Point Arena, California, is the exception. What to Expect at Garcia River Casino The casino itself is sparse; mostly a large card room with some video slot machines. Google mostly marks it for its restaurant, which is