Merrill Lake Campground is a pretty awesome spot. Awesome enough that I honestly hemmed and hawed…read moreover whether to even add it to Yelp. Although my better Yelp humanitarian judgment has won out here, I still hope you read this, enjoy it, and camp somewhere else. Why? This little campground only has about 9 sites. It's free but you need a discovery pass. There is a camp host and there are surprisingly clean pit toilets on-site, but no potable water. The sites fill up fast in the summer time, but have a 3-day limit that's enforced by the friendly but vigilant camp host. I don't want it to fill up even faster now that I'm sharing this, since I do plan to hit this spot at least one more time before summer is over. There are no reservations (first-come, first-served) and the campsites are designed to work for larger groups - some of them could easily fit 7-10 tents. Each site is spaced decently well away from the others, and offers a picnic table, fire ring and places to pitch. The sites don't really offer views of the lake, they're set back in the trees, but there's plenty of shade Not too dusty, but some sites are heavy with gravel. While it's car camping, you don't drive right in to your site but park in a common lot, then walk in (the farthest you'll have to walk is about 50 yards). So no car noise up close to your site. This little campground sits just by Merrill Lake, a nice smaller lake that does not (thankfully) allow motorized boats and fishing is restricted to fly only, catch + release. For these reasons the water is calmer, cleaner, and dotted with fly fishermen and specific times of the day. At the mid-July mark the lake was warm and clear... perfect for swimming and canoeing. There are some excellent trout holes around the edges of the lake, however I'm not a fly fisherman and don't believe in torturing anything I'm not able to then eat (so catch + release is not for me). However I can see how this would be an attractive spot for a fly fisherman. This campsite is a great place to get away from PDX. Only about 1h 35m in no traffic, and the drive (especially if you come up the 503) is a nice one. Very pastoral, windy road. Get out of your house this summer and sleep under the stars. Just do it at some other campsite since this one is mine.

We stayed for two nights-three days last weekend for my niece's birthday. We usually stay at a…read morecampsite at Lake Berryessa in California, but most of my family now lives in Vancouver so we opted for somewhere near there. Plus, the lakes in California don't even amount to the lakes in Washington/Oregon. My parents went to Merrill Lake Campground on Thursday to secure us a spot which was first come first serve. They managed to get a campsite (#4) that had a direct path to the lake (not the day use where most of the guests would walk to)! It was really big, the only downside was the hill which isn't ideal with little kiddos. Also, that we couldn't have a campfire due to Washington's high alert for fires. It just wasn't the same. You do need a discovery pass which we got at a store that was twelve minutes from the campsite- Lakeside Deli. It was $11 for a day use. The scenery was amazing. It wasn't hot at all where the campsite was. It was surrounded by trees. The water was so clear and clean. The weather was perfect once we made it out of the campsite, through the trail, and to shore. Oh god, and the drive. The drive up the mountain was the scariest I've ever seen. It was beautiful, but so scary. It was a great stay (for free at that!). I recommend this lake!

I had a great experience at this campground. It's a short walk from the day use park and the Falls…read more The campground offers potable water, bathrooms with showers and has a map of all nearby trails. I typically prefer more privacy in my site than what most of the campsites offered but it wasn't horrible. It did get loud at times from cars speeding by on the main road. Cell service was fair. I could send and receive texts but that was about it. Overall, it really depends on the kind of camper you are, but it still was a great experience.

Pretty nice camp spot, this is a small step up from dry camping as the site only has vault toilets…read moreand campsites, no amenities other then that. Bring all the water you need, no onsite that we found. First come first serve only.

We stumbled on this place while looking for a camping spot for a few days. We got here on a Tuesday…read moreand left on a Thursday in June. The campsite was very quiet and not overly populated. The sites are well kept and clean. It's big enough that you can get in a good walk around or pedal around on your bikes. The surrounding area is not bike friendly though. Pretty much no bike lanes and it's a bit busy on the streets. You can't really hear it from the campground though, except for on the north side. It looks like the kind of place that gets incredibly busy on weekends. There's a large sports field, three playgrounds for kids, horseshoe, etc. I don't think this would be the best campground on a weekend or if it just gets busy in general. Most of the spots are not well covered from your neighbors. Where we stayed, of someone had camped in the spot next to us, we would have been right on top of each other's space. But, if you come on a less busy day, it's great. Also, it's close enough to civilization that you will still have internet and cell service if you need it.

Our family has gone here every year for a while now with a group of friends. The staff is next…read morelevel, always welcoming and accommodating. They always seem to go the extra mile. The campgrounds are great, perfect for us since we like to let our kids run around between our sites and are able to keep eyes on them. Shirt drive to the boat launch and short walk to the lake shore.

Great campground. With porta potties that get emptied regularly. Staff who works the grounds are…read morefriendly too and check sites often, which is nice.

What a lovely park with pride of ownership everywhere. Friendly and helpful service, great…read morelocation and incredible views. We rest immediately when pulling in. Watching the different boats, ships and containers go by is so interesting. But , our favorite is watching the seals go fishing right near us. We love the location as we often need to be near Portland. It is our favorite in this vicinity. I am not telling which site we were in because it is so great. We don't want word out there. :)

We thought this park looked nice. However it lacked in a few important areas. The hookups were set…read moreup for a pull-in not a back-in. The park was large with only 2 showers.

I absolutely love it here. I come camping here all the time and it feels comfortable here. It's…read moresmall. It's easy and it's familiar. It's beautiful.

Huge swimming area under the bridge, Trails were closed for maintenance when we went. The lake is…read morecozy and the campground pretty large with camp hosts on site. Picnic tables*limited restrooms* Amble Parking* paid entry

Camp Kalama rv has apparently been abandoned by its Management. We arrived only to find the…read moreoffice locked up and could not check in. We finally found someone to help with that and went to our space. The park bathroom/shower house was disgusting with trash and just plain filthy. We couldn't use it. The other bathroom had plants growing over the doorway and could not be entered. The entire stay no one was here for help as we watched people trying to check in but Noone around. This used to be a lovely park but owners don't seem to care. Very disappointed. For the price they charged for a partial hook up over $80 a night, you would think it would be taken care of.

We arrived after hours and found our paperwork waiting for us on the office billboard. When we got…read moreto our assigned RV spot we found that location of the water/electric was too close to the road (very odd!). Thankfully, someone was able to help us switch to a different spot, but several days later (and at least 6 different emails (charge, credit, charge, credit, etc) I found that we were double charged for the 12 hours we stayed there. Prices are outrageous!! $80 + $17 in taxes. Crazy!! Don't recommend, and we definitely wouldn't return!

We purchased in May then bought another site and sold our first. It's a great getaway and something…read morewe love to do. We use our boat a lot more now and less hassle putting boat in. Beautiful view of the lake.

This is my 2nd review now. I had my remaining lot for sale but last weekend a giant tree snapped…read moreand went through my roof. The damage from this makes my little place a total loss. I needed several people to have access for insurance as well as workers. The people contracted with insurance are not on some list the office has so they can't be let in unless Im present to do so AND stay onsite the entire time they're working. Im 2 hours away and recently had hip revision surgery. If I were able to stay up in camp it wouldn't be so bad but there's a huge hole in my roof and the interior is soaked. The staff has not been helpful one bit. My hope is to clean this site up and sell it so I never, ever have to deal with these people again. BUYERS BEWARE! Membership is about 3k a year. Power and water are frequently out for days. There are frequent rule changes that you aren't aware of unless you attend meetings or hear about it from other members. What a disaster this place has become. Poor communication and frequent misunderstandings among staff, expensive, and just not the carefree relaxed experience it was 9 years ago.

Beautiful park with so much potential, like other reviews have said the noise levels is quite high…read moredue to constant traffic over a nearby bridge,when we arrived it was like a ghost town something may have been going on with whoever was running the place, we didn't really see but the one person who came over to check us in the entire stay which was a couple of days. We couldn't find where to take the trash unless it was supposed to be left in a pile with the overloaded can we did see so we took our trash with us when we left which wasn't convenient to say the least.

Nice staff, great location, and good price! You get what you pay for! Narrow sites, permanent…read moreresidents, overflowing trash, more grass and dirt than gravel.

This review is day use only, and trail hiking…read more This is an excellent spot to jump on several trails that circle the area. Today I did an 8 mile loop that took me south for a bit then back around. My goal was to stay on the Storey Burn Loop Trail, and I mostly did. It turned into Gale Creek Trail and there were many places where I could have diverted. Watch your map or it will have you darting across highway 6 - don't do it! Although, University Falls is over there and its gorgeous. On the east side there are lots of dirt bikes and hand cannons. The west side is blissfully free of that noise. Now you know. It was super muddy today, suck you out of your boots muddy. The water is flowing with all the rain we've had, and the rain forest is lush with growth. Enjoy!

I haven't stayed here as a camper, but I've come often for the Day Use Area and to go hiking on the…read morenearby trails around the campground. The facilities are great. Clean, well-kept, and clearly marked. The campsites aren't right on top of each other which is nice! Definitely room to spread out and have a little privacy. The river runs through and it is beautiful! It's a fantastic place to just hang out. Bring the dog and a beer and you're golden! There are a few moderate to difficult hikes that run from the trailhead at the entrance of the campground, so there's always something to do and see! There are multiple points where you can access the river, so you don't have a bottleneck on one trail. You also won't have an issue of people trying to walk through your campsite for river access. Hoping to actually camp here soon, and I'll update my review. But at least for day use I can say it's fab!