First Trip to Oregon

2gypsies wrote:
The OP has a 40' motorhome so I doubt he'll be using many of California's state parks. California is a different country. :)

so true!! and unfortunately, the Cali state parks system is the ugly stepsister to the beautiful and fantastically run Oregon state park system.
we do have many beautiful and fantastic parks, it's just the Park system is poorly run and managed and the facilities have been suffering for decades.

if only we could get ours modeled after Oregon's.:(

The OP has a 40' motorhome so I doubt he'll be using many of California's state parks. California is a different country. :)

It's an altogether different story for Oregon. There are many state parks in Oregon for a 40' motorhome. We've been there with our 40'. We've volunteered in the state parks. Pull in early morning and in May you'll get a site without reservations. There are also plenty of private parks in Oregon. You won't have a hard time finding a site - even without reservations. In Oregon there are also some nice casino parks and county parks.

When folks make the statement that "they're all booked up for 7 months" they probably don't realize that the parks don't book every single site. There are always ones available just by driving in. This goes for the national parks in our country, too. They don't book every site. I just cringe when I hear things like "you'll never get a site" thereby deflating the person before they even try. This is so untrue. We rarely make reservations with our 40' motorhome, even for the major national parks. We get there early morning and seem to get a site easily. Traveling with reservations really limits any kind of flexibility.

Bob & Ann wrote:
dapperdan
You say that all of the State campgrounds are full as others have said. What about privately owned campgrounds. Will I need reservations for them in May?

not making reservations for Calif. state campgrounds, even in May, is a bad idea.
even in NorCal, camping in May at our state parks, will have many sites already booked 6-7 months prior.
private parks aren't as bad in May but you should definitely check with them first.

2gypsies wrote:
Another suggestion - I see you're from Alabama. You could reverse that trip by going up through Oregon on Hwy 97 at Klamath Falls. Stay at Collier Memorial State Park - great for a 40' motorhome - and drive your toad over to Crater Lake and see as much as you can. The road around the lake will not be fully open but will be to the visitor center with views of the lake and would be worth the short side trip. It would be a shame to pass it up completely if that's what you planned to do originally.

Then continue north on 97 through Bend and pick up 26 at Madras taking you into Portland. This is a very scenic drive and again, good for a 40' MH. Cross over to the coast via Oregon Hwy 30 or Hwy 4 at Kelso, Washington and take either one over to Astoria for your coastline trip south on 101. Crossing the Astoria bridge from Washington is awesome!

We, too, would recommend heading south along the coast - especially with a big rig. It's so much easier and safer to use the scenic turnouts on the right-hand side. We've done this trip often with our 40' motorhome as we gave the lighthouse tours at Heceta Head at Florence. There are so many neat areas to stay overnight and to check out the areas fully. We have made many stops at the state parks without having reservations in May.

Then enter California. For the redwoods we loved our stop at Redcrest at Ancient Redwoods RV. It's excellent for big rigs and it's right in the midst of the giants. Nearby are so many gorgeous short trails weaving in and out the redwoods. Then continue on 101 down to the San Francisco area and wherever you're heading next.

Have a great trip!

This would be an awesome route. I have done this several times in our MH.

Bob & Ann wrote:
dapperdan
You say that all of the State campgrounds are full as others have said. What about privately owned campgrounds. Will I need reservations for them in May?

Try them first, that's what we did but we were there in early/mid September and most were "booked". You won't have ANY trouble finding nice private CGs to stay at though. We did stay at Vista Harbor in Florence OR, that was very pretty and reasonable too. I think we paid twenty bucks a night there for water and elec.
Again, that whole coast area is awesome!

Dan

Not very many private CG's on the coast. Your biggest hurdle will be your 40' MH. There are many St CG's along the way but some are not big enough for a 40' MH. But the majority are. But not all sites in the majority will work for a 40' MH. In May during the week you'll have no problem getting a spot somewhere. It's the weekends that can be tricky. Some of the St parks have walkup only sites along with reserved sites. Those would be the ones to grab on a Thur or Fri early. The Oregon coast is very popular during the summer but that's starts around Memorial Day weekend. So anytime before Memorial Day is better. We live in Oregon and don't even think about going to the coast after Memorial day thru Labor Day. It's a zoo.

There are also some nice RV parks along the way that can be utilized if no St park spots are available.

Sept is different than May. Sept is one of the best times to go to the Oregon coast. Weather is some of the nicest that month, so yes it will be fuller in Sept. May weather can is a******shoot.

The OR state campgrounds vary in how many sites can be reserved. Some are all, some none and some part. In May would not be to concerned and the parks are some of the best anywhere. We have found that if you get to them mid afternoon you can be pretty sure of getting in even in summer. Really like 2gysises route since it will take you through the Columbia River Gorge (my old home)on 84 which you should try to see if possible. Since you have a toad you could see Mt Hood and explore the water falls along the old highway. Our favorite parks in the gorge are Memaloose (part reservation) and Ainsworth (no reservations) see OR parks site for details. if you have time you could then take 26 over to Astoria for the Lewis and Clark Fort and Ft Stevens St Park is close by. Heading South down the coast is a good plan. Many great parks to chose from. You would have to cut over to see Crater Lake. Anyway you choose you should have a great trip.

dapperdan
You say that all of the State campgrounds are full as others have said. What about privately owned campgrounds. Will I need reservations for them in May?

We saw the Oregon coast for the first time last September, OMG! We came through Portland down through McMinnville to the coast and took that all the way to SF. What a trip, do yourself a favor and take your time there is so much to take in! Absolutely breathtaking, going from north to south is easier but I think it would be easy enough to cross over into pull outs heading south to north as mentioned before.

Definitely plan on taking in Northern California and the Redwoods. As long as your that close it would be a sin not to take that in as well.
Enjoy your trip, you won't be disappointed! BTW we tried to stay at state parks but that wasn't happening, once you get there you'll fully understand why.

Dan

diazr2 wrote:
You might want to make reservations at places like Harris Beach State Park that has a beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean by Brookings and Bullards Beach State Park that has huge beautiful beaches to play on with you and your dogs. They fill up rather quickly. Just a heads up while traveling through our coast. Port Orford and Reedsport both have speed traps so watch your speed.

Second on watching your speed!Also...add Gold Beach also. But....not really speed traps if you are going the speed limit.