Cottonwood Campground - Naches River (WA)
4Heads up4 fires, nearest 33 mi
- Right now
- Listed not openA database flag with no reason and no date
- A night
- $22From, per site
- Sites
- 15All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 7 notices
In the agency’s own words
Cottonwood Campground is located along the Naches River in the Northern Cascade Range of Washington. Craggy peaks, mountain meadows and old-growth forests provide visitors with unique landscapes within the Okanogan National Forest. Warm summer days and access to a multitude of recreational activities make it an ideal setting for both individual and family camping excursions. Keep reading
Recreation
Visitors enjoy whitewater rafting on the nearby American River or splashing around in Naches River, which can be accessed from the campground. Cottonwood Campground offers outdoor enthusiasts the opportunity to fish, swim, hike and enjoy a multitude of recreational activities throughout the year. Numerous hiking trails can be accessed near the campground and in the surrounding area. Nearby American Ridge Trail, open to hikers, backpackers and horseback riders, extends over 26 miles from Bumping River to the notable Pacific Crest Trail.
Facilities
Cottonwood Campground offers standard sites and tent-only sites. Vault toilets and drinking water are available; however, electric hookups are not available.
Natural Features
The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest's high, glaciated alpine peaks tower along the Cascade Crest. Lush valleys of old-growth forest define its western boundary, and at its eastern edge, rugged shrub-steppe country comprises a more arid region. Elevations range from below 1,000 feet to over 9,000 feet. The Naches River, adjacent to Cottonwood Campground, is a tributary of the Yakima River in central Washington. In its upper reaches, the Naches River flows through rugged terrain and areas of pristine wilderness. The river was used by Native Americans and settlers throughout history. It has served as a natural corridor between the east and west sides of the Cascades via Naches Pass.
Nearby Attractions
Boulder Cave National Recreation Trail is one of the most popular places in the Naches District. Visitors can walk the accessible trail along the river or explore Boulder Cave. Interpretive signs along the trail explain the geology, plants, animals and fire history of the area. In the fall, thousands of people come to experience whitewater rafting on both the Tieton and American Rivers. Contact Info This location has limited staffing. Please call (661) 702-1420 for general information.
Charges & Cancellations
Cancellations Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee. A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a campsite. Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee. No-Shows A no-show visitor is one who does not arrive at a campground and does not cancel the reservation by check-out time on the day after the scheduled arrival date. Staff will hold a campsite until check-out time on the day following the arrival date. No-shows are assessed $20.00 service fee and forfeit the first night's rate, taxes and applicable add-on for a campsite. Refunds Visitors may submit a refund request through their Recreation.gov profile within 7 days of the end date of their reservation. Refunds will not be issued after the 7 days has ended. Refunds for debit or credit card payments will be issued as a credit to the original bank or credit card used to pay. For check or cash purchases, Recreation.gov will mail a Treasury check for refunds of cash, check, or money order payments to the address associated with the reservation. Treasury check refunds may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive. In the event of an emergency closure, the Recreation.gov team or facility manager will refund all fees and will attempt to notify you using the contact information within the Recreation.gov visitor profile.
What the agency tells you
Check in: 2 pm, Check out: 12 pm (noon)
Off-road vehicle use is prohibited in the campground
Single site fees include 1 vehicle and 1 legally towed vehicle. Any additional vehicles are subject to an extra vehicle fee on-site, space permitting. Extra vehicle fees are half the single site price.
Everything else this campground posts · 4
Click here for more information about Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
Don't Move Firewood: Please protect Pacific Northwest forests by preventing the spread of invasive species. Firewood can carry insects and diseases that can threaten the health of our western forests. You can make a difference by obtaining and burning your firewood near your camping destination. Visit Dontmovefirewood.org for further information.
Water is available in this location via a handpump and/or water spigot. Please DO NOT attach your RV hoses to the water systems we provide. These are made available to you to fill your water jugs/buckets and take back to your site to use. If you need to fill your RV water tanks, please fill your tank before you come to the campground. Thank you!
Firewood is available for sale at host site for $10.00/bundle.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 15 · 4 tent-only
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 40 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…standard sites and tent-only sites. Vault toilets and drinking water are available; however, electric…”
- Drinking water
- Yes
- “…and tent-only sites. Vault toilets and drinking water are available; however, electric hookups are not…”
Around the campground
- On the water
- River, Meadow
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Water sports
- Night sky · 294th darkest of 400 in WA
- Bortle 3
No reading yet, book on recreation.gov
Every site here is reservable, and the record lists none held back for anyone who drives up.
No availability snapshot inside the last 36 hours, so this page draws nothing rather than ageing a reading into fiction.
Watch for a cancellation
Full? Watch it.
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 14
What you actually pay
“Extra Vehicle Fee $11.00” · the U.S. Forest Service’s own fee record
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rate for this season, $22 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
“Cancellations Individual Campsites: Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee. A visitor who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee including tax and applicable add-on for a cam…” · this campground’s own no-show terms
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 7
rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Oct 1, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
15 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 11 mapped sitesAll 15 sites
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 15 of the 15 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 01 | tent only nonelectric | 16 ft | 125 ft | 235 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 02 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | $22 | ||
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 03 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 125 ft | 110 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 04 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | $22 | ||
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 05 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | $22 | ||
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 06 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 50 ft | 67 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 07 | standard nonelectric | 18 ft | 33 ft | 69 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 08 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 33 ft | 72 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 09 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 37 ft | 78 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 11 | tent only nonelectric | 22 ft | 12 ft | 98 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 12 | standard nonelectric | 21 ft | 12 ft | 86 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 13 | standard nonelectric | 18 ft | 108 ft | 182 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 14 | tent only nonelectric | 22 ft | $22 | ||
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 15 | standard nonelectric | 19 ft | 99 ft | 125 ft | $22 |
| AREA COTTONWOOD | 16 | tent only nonelectric | 20 ft | 99 ft | 60 ft | $22 |
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Sawmill Flat CampgroundSnoqualmie National Forest · 5.7 mi
Halfway Flat CampgroundSnoqualmie National Forest · 6.0 mi
Little Naches CampgroundSnoqualmie National Forest · 6.7 mi
Indian Flat Group SiteSnoqualmie National Forest · 7.7 mi
Cedar Springs Campground (WA)Snoqualmie National Forest · 7.9 mi
American Forks CampgroundSnoqualmie National Forest · 8.2 miFrom Naches, take Highway 410 northeast 22.5 miles to milepost 99.5.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Cliffdell, WA
Typical weather
Typical October night 34°F, day 62°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical January night 20°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it
Roadless country, and what’s coming for it
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Cottonwood Campground - Naches River (WA) is in Washington’s 4th congressional district. Its representative, Dan Newhouse (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →