Foghorn Outdoors Pacific Northwest Camping: The Complete Guide to Campsites in Washington and Oregon [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Tom Stienstra (Author) "It was a warm, crystal clear day, the kind of day when if you had ever wanted to go skydiving, you would go skydiving..." (more)
Key Phrases: leashed pets, five sites for tents, two primitive tent sites, County Road, Deschutes National Forest, Willamette National Forest (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Meticulously researched and smartly written, Foghorn Outdoors offers some of the best recreation guides around.

Product Description
Now in a completely revamped format for easier navigation, Foghorn Outdoors Pacific Northwest Camping -- written by award-winning author Tom Stienstra -- lists thousands of campsites throughout Oregon and Washington. This authoritative book brings the great outdoors within easy reach for campers of any level, and provides a wide array of locations. Foghorn Outdoors Pacific Northwest Camping helps outdoor enthusiasts choose their own adventure, whether they are camping on Oregon's coast at Cape Perpetua to watch whales on their northern or southern migrations; fishing (and enjoying the serenity) at Fish Lake, at the headwaters of the Cle Elum River in Washington's Alpine Lakes Wilderness; or picking a campsite for a quick weekend getaway 10 minutes from either Seattle or Portland. Each campsite is rated on a scale of 1 to 10 for scenic beauty, and the easy-to-use icons reveal a wealth of information, including the resources and amenities available, whether pets are allowed, if there are power hook-ups for RV's, if fresh water is available or needs to be brought in, and much more. Including information on fees, reservation services, helpful websites and full contact information for all locations, Foghorn Outdoors Pacific Northwest Camping is a must-have for enjoying the outdoors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 660 pages
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing; 8th edition (April 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566916313
• ISBN-13: 978-1566916318
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #510,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive . . . But not always helpful, May 2, 2001

By	"[e-mail]" (Oregon, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foghorn Outdoors: Pacific Northwest Camping (Paperback)

I was very excited when I first purchased this book. It had listings for nearly every campground and RV park imaginable. It seemed to be quite detailed in the information it provided. It was also generally organized by geographic area.

As I began to use the book, however, I realized that it painted an incomplete picture of most campgrounds. In particular, one often gets little or no information about the beauty and amenities of the campground from reading the listing. This was especially true as to the RV Park listings. On several occasions, I planned to stay at a park, and then drove on after seeing it first-hand.

Let's face it. Some campgrounds and RV parks are cleaner, nicer, more beautiful, more private etc. than others. That's why Woodalls has a rating system that takes these amenities into account. Unfortunately, for most campgrounds, Pacific Northwest Camping gives little discussion of how pleasant the campground is to stay in. In particular, for RV parks, it is important to know whether you will find a glorified parking lot or a nicely landscaped park.

Don't get me wrong. The book is very complete and often very helpful. However, I only use it in conjunction with other reference sources.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A basic guide, July 24, 2000

By	Steven Maturin (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foghorn Outdoors: Pacific Northwest Camping (Paperback)

A good basic guide book for campgrounds in the northwest. What this book lacks is a way to evaluate campgrounds before you get there. Ya, it gives you the facts but it is hard to distinguish the enviromental factors (road noise, etc.) until you pull in with your tent on a Friday night. It is best to supplement this book with guides such as:

"Camping! Washington : The Complete Guide to Public Campgrounds for Rvs and Tents"

which give a general feel for what public campgrounds are more desirable and why.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A major undertaking -- maybe too major, August 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Foghorn Outdoors: Pacific Northwest Camping (Paperback)

I bought this based on a number of the reviews below, and because it looks comprehensive. It is that, but I wonder how many of these campgrounds have ever been visited in person by the writer(s). Example: He describes Slate Peak, near Harts Pass Campground (about 7,500 feet) as "the highest point above sea level in Washington State." Somebody might want to introduce him to Mount Rainier. Example: Queets Campground in Olympic national Park : "Since it's so close to the highway, it gets a fair amount of use." Actually, it's 14 miles down one of the worst-maintained, potholed roads you'll ever find. Example: Daroga State Park, a major central washington campground, is nowhere to be found in this guide. Nor are a whole string of camprounds above Lake Chelan in the Wenatchee National Forest. Other things about the book make little sense. Like giving every boat-in state park its own full listing, as if it's a legit campground accessible to anyone other than a boater who enjoys sleeping on an exposed rock. Same goes for DNR camprounds, most of which are so primitive they barely rate a mention -- yet get just as much space (and sometimes praise) as real campgrounds. If you're new to the area and plan on setting itineraries using only this guide, good luck. You're going to learn the hard way.