Summer camping in Oregon is here and we couldn’t be more excited! We reserved our campsite at Timothy Lake’s Oak Fork Campground a few months in advance, as prime camping spots along the lake seem to fill up quickly – and to us, summer camping = being on or near the water. Not knowing what the weather would hold for us on June 1st when we reserved the spot, we were fortunate to have plenty of sunshine, no rain, and perfect daytime temperatures in the mid-70’s. Overnight, the temperatures dropped down to the upper 30’s, but we bundled up in heavy coats and mittens to prepare coffee and breakfast outside, soaking in the gorgeous sunrise with fog drifting over the water.
I was very impressed with the cleanliness of the campground. Crews were seen constantly driving around to clean restrooms and monitor trash. Vault toilets are usually disgusting to me, but my experience at Oak Fork showed me that they can be tolerable when kept very clean and deodorized.
Most of the campsites are very large! For the two of us in a teardrop trailer, we were overwhelmed with all of the space. We could have invited multiple friends to spread out their tents at our site….there was so much room!
Check in time is 4 PM, a little later than other campgrounds. With the Aero Teardrops trailer stocked with everything we needed, set up was a breeze. A tablecloth on the picnic table, we shared a bottle of wine and played yahtzee and a card game of “13”.
With carefully planned ingredients in our cooler, dinner was delicious and even more importantly…easy. We used the propane stove to assemble a tortilla, pre-cooked shredded chicken, shredded cheese, and salsa/pico de gallo….folded it in half….used a smaller skillet to flatten it while it cooked….flipped it once….and ta da! Quesadillas!
For dessert, we enjoyed toasting marshmallows. I didn’t have graham crackers or chocolate bars with me on this trip, but I did pack squares of freshly baked brownies. The toasted marshmallow on top of the salted caramel brownie was AMAZING and I think that I will go for the s’more brownies on every camping trip and skip the graham crackers all together.
Our campsite at Oak Fork was #7 and it was directly along the shore of Timothy Lake. The Southshore Trail # 529 runs right in front of the campsite, along the edge of the lake. It is a 2-½ mile trail for walking or biking, connecting to the Pacific Crest Trail and other Timothy Lake Trails. It’s easy to hop on the trail and explore the different beach areas and stunning views of Timothy Lake.
The lake is perfect for kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, fishing, etc. Plenty of trees abound for hammocks if you prefer a lazy afternoon of diving into a good book.
Check out time is noon, but the camping pass gives you access to the day use areas on Timothy Lake for the rest of the day so that you can continue to enjoy the lake after check out.
We had a perfect experience at Oak Fork Campground. It is very clean, it has spacious campsites, beautiful water, and the shoreline trail provides a fun and easy way to explore. The only problem is that spaces fill up quickly, so plan your trip in advance. Reservations can be made online at recreation.gov.
-Guest Blogger, Kristin Grill
