Jackson Campground on the Applegate River
5Heads up5 fires, nearest 22 mi
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- Taking bookingsSites offered on 30 of the next 30 nights read 16:52 UTC
- A night
- $30From, per site
- Sites
- 12All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 14 notices
In the agency’s own words
Jackson Campgrounds are located on the beautiful Applegate River in the Applegate Valley near Ruch, Medford, Grants Pass and historic Jacksonville. Keep reading
Recreation
Jackson Campground sits on the shores of the Applegate River, a popular recreation site located north of the Red Buttes Wilderness Area. Visitors enjoy swimming, cycling, boating, canoeing, fishing and hiking the various trails near the river. Nearby is the inactive Bigfoot trap, found at the beginning of the trail, built in 1974 by the North American Wildlife Research Team. The trap was inspired by a miner who lived near the Applegate River who claimed to have found 18-inch-long, human-like tracks in his garden. The organization operated the trap, keeping it baited with carcasses for six years, but caught only bears and a hiker.
Facilities
The campground has eight tent only campsites, two dry RV sites and one group site. Campsites are located along the Applegate River. Camp trailers are not recommended due to tight corners and short campsite spur lengths. The day use area is adjacent to campground. Drinking water and clean bathroom with flush toilets are available. There are NO showers. Kayak and paddle board rentals are available at nearby Applegate Lake, $45for 3-hrs or $60 all-day. There is also a boat ramp offered at the Lake. Please note, there is a two-night minimum when you desire to reserve a Friday or Saturday night.
Natural Features
The unique character of the landscapes comprising the area has led to the designation of over 340,000 acres of the forest as wilderness, and over 200 miles of streams as National Wild and Scenic Rivers. The forest itself is composed of two distinct geological provinces, the Cascade Range and the Siskiyou Mountains. The Cascade Range is dominated by snow-c apped volcanic peaks like the 9,495-foot Mt. McLoughlin, located within the Sky Lakes Wilderness. The Siskiyou area embodies the most complex and treasured plant communities in the Pacific Northwest. World-class wild rivers, biological diversity, remarkable fisheries and complex watersheds all define the Siskiyou. Diverse landscapes provide habitat for a wide range of wildlife, from spotted owls and bull elk to salamanders and Sandhill cranes.
Nearby Attractions
Stop by historic Jacksonville while in the area or enjoy special events like the Britt Festival. The nearby Rogue River National Recreation Trail, stretching 40 miles between Grave Creek and Big Bend, offers some of southwestern Oregon's most scenic landscapes and rewarding hiking experiences. This hiking-only trail follows the north bank of the Rogue River as it winds its way toward the Pacific Ocean. Applegate Lake is minutes away and has an 18-mile trail that winds through the forest around it. Mountain biking, hiking, trail running and more for all levels is abundant and visitors swim in the river and or lake from early to sunset which is 930 PM for most of the summer here. Visitors also enjoy Crater Lake National Park and learning about its unique natural and cultural history. At 1,943 feet deep, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and one of the ten deepest lakes in the world.
What the agency tells you
Tent camping includes parking for one vehicle, each additional vehicle is $7 per night / On-site camp hosts available
Please schedule arrival prior to 8 p.m., or call to make late arrival arrangements. As a courtesy to other campers, late arrivals after 8:30 p.m. may be accommodated elsewhere, as to not disturb the sleeping and quiet campground.
Check-in time is 2:00 p.m., but we will accommodate early arrivals if the campsite is empty.
Everything else this campground posts · 11
Check-out time is 10:00 a.m. If your spot is open on your departure day, you may pay $7 additional dollars, and enjoy the day.
Quiet time for generators and RV noise is 6 p.m.
Dumping of sewage or gray water is prohibited.
When your first camping night is a Friday or Saturday night, a two-night minimum reservation is required.
This is a USFS facility, operated under a special-use permit by Aztoor LLC. All inquiries should be directed to: www.applegatelake.com, which also has direct contact information for email & phone.
Dogs on a leash are welcome. Please be considerate of other campers and keep pets under control at all times.
Upon arrival, please check-in with camp-host.
See campground MAP: https://applegatelake.com/jackson-map
Click here for more information about Rogue River-Siskiyou 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.
Cancellations: Recreation.gov collects an $8 reservation fee, which is non-refundable. The campsite cancellation fee is a flat $10 for your entire reservation. EXAMPLE: if you booked (2) nites at $30 per nite, your total camping fee would be $68. If you cancelled at least 48-hours prior to your reservation arrival, your refund would be: $68-$8-$10 = $50 net refund. If you late cancel (within 48-hr of your arrival), you will also forfeit the first-nite camping fee. In this same example, you would be refunded: $68-$8-$10-$30 = $20 net refund. Processing refunds is time-consuming & expensive for the facility, and we potentially will not refill your camping spot. This loses revenue for the facility due to your situation & circumstances changing. The Facility is NOT responsible for acts of God / weather / fire-restrictions / smoke / or other things outside the control of the facility. Thanks for your understanding. If you have any questions please email: chandler@applegatelake.com
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 12 · 9 tent-only, 1 group
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 25 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Toilets
- Flush Toilets
- “…to campground. Drinking water and clean bathroom with flush toilets are available. There are NO showers. Kayak and…”
- Showers
- None at this campground
- “There are NO showers.”
- Drinking water
- Yes
- “…day use area is adjacent to campground. Drinking water and clean bathroom with flush toilets are…”
- Boat ramp
- Yes
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River, Creek, Coast
- Berry Picking
- Biking
- Birding
- Boating
- Canoeing
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Kayaking
- Mountain biking
- Paddle Boating
- Rafting
- Ranger Station
- Stargazing
- Swimming
- Night sky · 678th darkest of 770 in OR
- Bortle 3
Full this Saturdayread 16:52 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
2 campgrounds have sites open within 30 miles, read 16:37 UTC. See them
OpenBooked
Every one of the 7 sites on offer is taken this Saturday. 9 are free on Mon, Oct 19. read 16:52 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
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.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 25
What you actually pay
“Tent camping includes parking for one vehicle, each additional vehicle is $7 per night / On-site camp hosts available” · the U.S. Forest Service’s own agency notice
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rate for this season, $30 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.
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 · 6
Open within 30 miles this weekend · 2
Sites the agency is offering this Friday and Saturday that nobody has taken, nearest first. read 16:37 UTC
- Cave Creek CampgroundOregon Caves Protective Buffer Zone Protection Area (Administrative) · 16 mi · 32 of 34 site-nights open
- Tree of Heaven CampgroundKlamath National Forest · 29 mi · 11 of 25 site-nights open
recreation.gov availability, read 16:52 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
12 sites
All 12 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. 12 of the 12 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 001 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 002 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 003 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 004 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 005 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 006 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 007 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | 008 | tent only nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | Group 1 | group tent only area nonelectric | 25 ft | $75 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | RV1 | rv nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | RV2 | rv nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
| JACKSON CAMPGROUND ON THE APPLEGATE RIVER | RV3 | rv nonelectric | 25 ft | $30 |
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Flumet Flat Group CampgroundRogue River National Forest · 0.2 mi
McKee Bridge Community Kitchen1.1 mi
Acorn Woman LakesRogue River National Forest · 2.0 mi
Beaver Sulphur Group CampgroundRogue River National Forest · 2.8 mi
HART-TISH PARK at APPLEGATE LAKE4.3 miHart-tish CampgroundRogue River National Forest · 4.8 miHighway 238 to Upper Applegate Road. Campground is close to mile marker 9.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Ruch, OR
Typical weather
Typical October night 36°F, day 68°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical December night 29°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 · a letter you can send
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Jackson Campground on the Applegate River is in Oregon’s 2nd congressional district. Its representative, Cliff Bentz (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 3
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The member who votes the moneyCliff BentzU.S. Representative · Oregon’s 2nd district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationJeff MerkleyU.S. Senator · Oregon
- Your senator, on the same appropriationRon WydenU.S. Senator · Oregon
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon
Dear Cliff Bentz, I’m a constituent in Oregon’s 2nd district. I tried to camp at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t. All 12 sites at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 7 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Jackson Campground on the Applegate River keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Jackson Campground on the Applegate River. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Jackson Campground on the Applegate River (Rogue River National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon
Dear Jeff Merkley, I’m a constituent in Oregon. I tried to camp at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t. All 12 sites at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 7 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Jackson Campground on the Applegate River keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Jackson Campground on the Applegate River. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Jackson Campground on the Applegate River (Rogue River National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon
Dear Ron Wyden, I’m a constituent in Oregon. I tried to camp at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River, Rogue River National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t. All 12 sites at Jackson Campground on the Applegate River are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 7 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Jackson Campground on the Applegate River keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Jackson Campground on the Applegate River. I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Jackson Campground on the Applegate River (Rogue River National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com