Gust Backstrom City Park is terrific. I really enjoyed my stay here. You may be asking yourself a…read morepark and sleep in the same category? Yes! Gust Backstrom offers camping! All types of camping including Full RV Hookups and or primitive tent camping. Well...that's where I fit in. I was looking for a simple/easy/casual place to pitch my tent for the evening and this Gust Backstrom City Park absolutely delivered!! Just to give some background info.... For me, I was coming from Mount Rainier National Park and heading south towards Mount Saint Helens. Gust Backstrom was right in between both these landmarks...though it's situated a lot closer to Mt. Rainier (being only 30 miles away) and about 118 from Mt. Saint Helens. I discovered Gust Backstrom through the APP on my phone called CAMPENDIUM. I highly recommend for all the adventurers out there to download this free App and wherever you're located throughout the USA...it'll provide and list all the available campsites within a radius that's appropriate for where you're headed. After finishing while my wonderful exploration of Mount Rainier, I was tired and ready to find an affordable campsite to sleep for the night. When I found Gust Backstrom...I was hoping they'd offer online booking/reserving campsites ahead of time. Unfortunately that wasn't an option. So to make sure I'd grab a spot...I quickly arrived in late afternoon, parked my car and went inside the office to book a site. I was here during the month of August on a random Thursday and thankfully I had no problem getting a site for my tent. It was $15 to book the night. I then had to fill out a form and the lady behind the desk just asked which site I'd like to choose. I picked an area underneath a tree sort of near the playground. And I was good to go! Yes, woohoo! I had a place to get a good night's rest. Other Prices Included.... - Day Use Vehicle - $5 (Friday through Sunday) - Full RV Hookup - $32 - Power and Water - $30 - Tent only - $15 - Extra Car at Site - $5 - Sewer Dump - $10 - Covered Picnic Area - $40 - Open for reservations year round. - Payments are by cash, check or money order. They say - NO CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED. As the sun started to set, I put my tent together and got ready to relax. I had a small grill with me to barbecue for dinner, though there weren't any pits available for lighting a fire. Surrounding my campsite was a playground for kids, a picnic area for eating and best of all.....at this picnic area were working electrical outlets to charge my phone and generator! That was awesome! Also good being here was that cell phone reception worked fine. I was able to connect to the internet from my phone. This may not matter to some people but....there were some soft grassy areas to my campsite good for setting my tent upon. This way the ground would be nice and fluffy as I laid down. Most campgrounds I visited on my road trip were based near hard, dirt ground....difficult to get comfortable on. If I had to say anything disappointing about Gust Backstrom, it's that there weren't any showers available and they only had vault toilets (though some RV Parks and campgrounds out there do offer all the amenities, lol). So...although it wasn't a big deal...had there been a shower and bathroom I would have been thrilled. Still I was extremely satisfied with the conditions and surroundings. Before I went to sleep for the evening...I sat in my beach chair and looked up at the sky. It was a beautiful summer night with plenty of stars out, very pleasant for appreciating being outdoors. Overall, Gust Backstrom City Park was a fantastic place to camp out for the night. Had I stayed in this city of Morton, Washington longer...I happily would have returned for a second evening. The following day I kept traveling towards Mount Saint Helens. Finally, to everyone out there...I urge you to download this App called - Campendium on your phone! When traveling spontaneously or on a cross country trip like I was...this convenient little Gulf Backstrom Park will be easily accessible for camping and spending the night in nature.

Beautiful place on the Tilton River. Just needs more attention to picking up trash. Other than…read morethat, we absolutely love bringing our dogs here and enjoying a lunch at one of the picnic tables!

Such a fun campground you never wanna leave! Very relaxing and clean and organized love how the…read morebathrooms are maintained and clean

Fun to camp there , been going there for many years! It is a bit hard to get camping sitesread more

If you find yourself near Spirits of Iron, or even if you don't, a trip to the grounds is well…read moreworth it. You can see the sheer amount of creativity, tools and hard work that it takes for this man to make this place what it is. It's truly incredible! Admission is free, but donations are appreciated especially if you are taking pictures. I love the set up for the donations as well. Check it out, it's not only inclusive and fun, but also gives insight to his character. I can't even begin to explain all of his works. There are so many and each one is unique and created so particularly. It's cool to see the range that this guy has. One minute you see something small and cute, and the next you're standing infront of a life sized giraffe. There's even something Rated R in the back, which is quite funny and hidden from the eyes of children. This sculpture park is something special and you'd be mad to pass it up.

Spirits of Iron is the perfect way to finish off a great day of hiking in Mt. Rainier NP!…read more The installments are in the front, side, and back yard/passages and there are some really interesting pieces up against one of the barn/out buildings. The entire place is free to walk around but donations are accepted through Venmo with a suggested donation of $5. I feel that this place is worth that and more!

I really wish we had a better experience at this campground. We were looking for something near…read moreMount Rainier, and this fit the bill. Some of the sites were basically right in the parking lot, but most of them were really nice. Ours was a walk-in site up the hill with lots of trees and greenery. It had a nice flat area along with a picnic table. The bathrooms were close and clean, and I loved having the lake nearby. However, the campground was really loud and rowdy. We stayed for two nights, and each night there were two to three large family groups that were loud until after 11 pm. We heard a car playing music with loud bass. A groups of kids entered the echoing bathroom and played, screaming, turning on the hand blowers, and spraying water everywhere. It was just really loud and the quiet hours were not enforced. The campground had all the ingredients to make a great stay. We just had a few loud groups that disturbed the otherwise quiet campground. I hope we just had bad timing.

Nice little stop over on the way to Mt Rainier or if you are exploring the area…read more We went on a weekday in the fall so parking was plentiful and it was very quiet. The weather was also clear enough to see the lake, with a dock to walk around and stretch our legs. I didn't see much else to do aside from exploring the lake and whatever other water activities are involved like fishing, kayaking, etc. The restrooms are actual flush toilets with soap and water, and they were pretty clean aside from the hard water stains on the toilet bowl that is inevitable with park bathrooms. Still a better option that pit toilets. Fun Fact: The code name for Intel's 12th gen desktop processors was based on this lake.

Mayfield Lake Park Review…read more We absolutely love Mayfield Lake Park and spend many weekends here during the summer camping in our little tent and chasing muskies. The staff is always friendly, professional, and hardworking, and they truly go above and beyond to make every visit enjoyable. The park is always spotless -- from the campsites to the bathrooms and park areas -- and you can tell the staff takes pride in keeping it that way. On this trip, we came across an injured feral cat near our site. Skyler responded immediately and professionally, setting a trap to help the cat. My son was able to safely get the cat into the cage, and the staff took it to an animal sanctuary. We were so impressed by how quickly and compassionately they handled the situation. Another example of their dedication happened when we accidentally left soap in the shower the night before. Ben was quick to check if it had been found (unfortunately, someone had walked off with my husband's men's Dove soap), but we appreciated his effort and quick response. We drive an hour and a half from our home to spend time at this beautiful lake, and it's always worth the trip. The staff truly deserve recognition for their dedication, hard work, and kindness. Mayfield Lake Park will always be one of our favorite places to relax, fish, and enjoy nature.

What beautiful lake and not as crowded. Coming from Los Angeles we are used to crowded public…read moreplaces but this place is peaceful and clean. I would totally recommend if you are looking for a spot to bbq with friends and family.

The gates and restrooms are open only from Memorial Day to Labor Day, but don't let that stop you…read morefrom enjoying this park at any time of year. There is ample free parking across the road. A 0.7 mile paved footpath circles the pond and is a favorite of the locals. Four floating piers welcome the fisher. Non-motorized boats are allowed in the pond, but I have seen only one there in all the years I have visited. A few ducks, geese, and coots live here year round, and many more visit in winter. For info about the fish stocked in the pond see http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/washington/749/

Such a wonderful place for peace and quiet. Enjoyed watching the birds and hanging out by the…read morewater. Very few people and just a few folks fishing. Great place to relax and spend some time and lots of room to social distance.

One of the nicest parks in the area! Lots of options for a park (play, food, views, recreation,…read moreboating, lodging, etc.)! Loved having it be small while it was, but like all great things... everyone else finds them too! If you don't mind the wind a bit, it's a great place to spend the day at.

I'm quite surprised to be the first to review this beautiful and very well kept-up riverfront park…read more We stayed at McMenamin's Kalama Harbor Lodge this past weekend, and Louis Rasmussen Day Park is adjacent to the Lodge. My husband and I were surprised by how much we liked this park. We were also surprised by how much this park has to offer. It has wide walking paths with beautiful waist-height light posts lining one of the paths for when it gets dark - very romantic! The river view is really nice. There are lots of trees, 2 covered areas with several picnic tables under each one, horseshoe-throwing sand pits, tennis courts, 2 basketball courts, several sandy river-front areas, and 2 beach-volleyball courts. Also within Louis Rasmussen Day Park is Ahle's Point Cabin, a small, gorgeous, wood-paneled restaurant/bar with 2 fireplaces (1 indoor & 1 outdoor), a patio overlooking the river which is a nice place from which to watch the sunset, and a variety of games to play if you're in a game-playing mood, from cribbage to chess. I'll review Ahle's Point Cabin (which is a part of McMenamin's) more extensively on its own separate listing, but for the purposes of this review, the cabin really adds a lot to this already impressive park. This park has 3 signs saying that: 1. Beachfront hours are from 5am - 9pm. 2. There is no camping or overnight staying at this park. 3. No alcohol is allowed in this park. The public bathrooms in this park are easily accessible - they're near the basketball courts and the tennis courts - and they're very clean, well-kept-up for outdoor bathrooms, and well-stocked with toilet paper and paper towels. To my surprise, I noticed a full walk-in shower at the back of the women's bathroom. However, the shower was out-of-order at the time of my visit. Do note that this park is a stone's throw away from a busy amtrak train track and close enough to I-5 to clearly read the exit signs on that freeway. However, don't let that deter you from visiting this lovely park. We saw couples, teenagers, families with small kids, 20-somethings, and elderly folks enjoying their time there yesterday. This is a delightful park for a stroll along the river, a chat seated on a park bench, watching a sunset from the Ahle's Cabin patio, a picnic, or a fun game of basketball, horseshoe-throwing, tennis, or beach volleyball.

We love camping here! It seems like every spot has some privacy and space! There are lots of water…read moreactivity options with two rivers merging into a huge lake. The trail around the lake is about a mile through many varieties of evergreen trees and forest foliage. Electric and water hookups on the RV sites is available. If you don't have camping equipment, the park has about 8-10 cabins with bunks, a table and couch and an outdoor fire pit and picnic table.

My family enjoyed the cabins on a weekend in February. They are huge (unnecessary so), and contain…read moretwo rooms - a bedroom with a queen/bunk bed combo and a larger room with a four person table and a futon. The park itself is in a beautiful wooded setting and the lake is huge. We enjoyed the trial around the lake. Hopefully, we'll be back during the summer to enjoy some swimming.

I'm on a mission to stay active during this pregnancy, and have been hiking every Saturday morning…read morefor the last month or so. Last Saturday we went to Little Mashel Falls, and it's the first "new" hike I've done in a while (one that I haven't done before). The information on AllTrails & WTA is kind of confusing and daunting to follow regarding parking, so let me make it easy for you - PARK AT THE BUD BLANCHER TRAIL. It directly takes you to the falls trailhead, you don't have to be out of the lot by 2:30 (it's open til dusk) and it's right off a main road so you're very close to civilization and not in the middle of a forest or random highway. You can easily GPS Bud Blancher Trail by name and have no issues. There is a portable bathroom at the trailhead that is clean & maintained regularly, so if you really need to go, it's not the worst. This trail is fairly easy. There were a few times that my heart got pumping, but overall it was a great morning workout. I didn't hike to the Upper Falls as I've heard the views weren't that great. I did the Middle & Lower falls. The lower falls is a steep descent and coming up is probably the most incline you'll deal with the entire hike. Middle Falls is very easy to get to but be VERY careful on all the big rocks as they are very slippery. We had someone in our group fall (they're okay) and I slipped a few times myself. That being said, it's gorgeous and you can go underneath/behind the falls for a deafening experience if you so desire! Highly recommend this trail. Dog-friendly, kid-friendly (I'd say 6 and up), and great for beginners.

We really enjoyed exploring Middle Mashell Falls. We learned a lot by reading previous posts…read more Nicely maintained. Pet friendly. Next time we will pack a picnic & stay longer!! There is a bit of an incline before you get to the falls. Signage is very small & easy to miss on your first visit. We parked at Bud Blancher Trailhead

A small park for your dog or yourself. There is a ton of parking available whether you enter from…read morethe neighborhood side or from the apartments side. Most of the people at the park are here for the basketball court and skate park. There are rarely any dogs and people taking on the trails. There are many paths for you to take whether it be the north side of the baseball field or the left side of the baseball field, you end up back at either the park or another neighborhood. My only problem is this park is dirty. The trails are filled with litter and the fields are not as maintained. Overall, we will definitely come back to this park. Its peacefully busy, but the park needs a little more maintenance.

Great space for some paddleboarding, swimming or whatever you wanna do. I've taken my sister and…read morefamily here and we've all had a great time lounging. I haven't seen any bathrooms except porter pottys which suck and it's a nightmare with a toddler that needs to go but other then that the lake seems cleaner then meridian and the grass area isn't full of geese poop like some other lakes.