Little Crater Lake
4Heads up4 fires, nearest 13 mi
- Right now
- Listed not openA database flag with no reason and no date
- A night
- $26From, 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
Little Crater Lake Campground is one of the most scenic spots in Mt. Hood National Forest and a very comfortable place to camp. It is not far from Little Crater Lake, a cold, crystal clear, spring-fed pond. Also nearby is Timothy Lake, where boaters and anglers enjoy recreating, all in the shadows of Mt. Hood, Oregon's highest point. Keep reading
Recreation
A short path to view Little Crater Lake begins in the campground. It connects to the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, which winds its way through the area, past Timothy Lake and up the slopes of Mt. Hood. The long-distance trail is popular among hikers and backpackers, stretches 2,650 miles through California, Oregon and Washington, from Canada to Mexico. Visitors enjoy fishing at Timothy Lake, which covers roughly 1,400 acres. Anglers will find Kokanee salmon and a variety of stocked trout.
Facilities
The campground offers more than a dozen single-family sites for tent and RV camping. Each site is equipped with a table and campfire ring with grill. Accessible vault toilets are provided. A hand-pump water spigot is located near the campground's entrance and is the only source of water within the facility. Utility hookups are not available. Parking surfaces are grass, dirt and irregularly shaped.
Natural Features
The quiet campground is nestled in an evergreen forest at an elevation of 3,300 feet. Little Crater Lake is a geologic oddity, possibly formed by artesian water forcing its way through soft, volcanic rock. The beautiful, turquoise water is a wonder to see. The surrounding meadow is a great place for observing birds and other wildlife. The region is ripe for huckleberry picking as well.
Nearby Attractions
The Clackamas Lake Ranger Station Historic District is less than 10 miles from the campground. It was built to house forest service workers in the early 1900s. The rustic architecture and historic nature of the buildings and the surrounding area draws thousands of visitors each year. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (503) 622-3191.
What the agency tells you
Please be advised that this facility is Little Crater Lake in Mt. Hood National Forest and is not Little Crater Campground in Deschutes National Forest on Paulina Lake.
Off-road vehicle use is prohibited within the campground
In accordance with standard industry practices, Mount Hood Recreation will be assessing an additional vehicle fee on the second vehicle in each single family campsite, and on the third and fourth vehicle in any double family campsite, provided these vehicles are not joined to the first vehicle by a hitch and towed onto the site. In the case of motorcycles, the first two are considered as one vehicle for determining additional vehicle fees. The third and fourth motorcycle would also be considered as one vehicle. No additional vehicle fees are collected for bicycles.
Everything else this campground posts · 4
Click here for more information on Mt. Hood National Forest
Refunds: Refund requests made through www.recreation.gov will be charged a $10 processing fee. This fee is retained by the reservation service contractor along with the non-refundable reservation fee. All requests for the return of the non-refundable reservation fee and the cancellation fee will be declined by the campground concessionaire as they did not receive these fees (these are the fees retained by the reservation contractor, a different entity).
Fire Restrictions: Fire restrictions may be imposed at any time due to hot, dry weather conditions, at which time campfires and charcoal fires may not be allowed
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.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 15 · 7 tent-only
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 26 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…and campfire ring with grill. Accessible vault toilets are provided. A hand-pump water spigot is located…”
- Drinking water
- Yes
- “…vault toilets are provided. A hand-pump water spigot is located near the campground's entrance and is…”
- Stay limit
- 14 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, Meadow
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Historic site
- Wildlife viewing
- Night sky · 623rd darkest of 770 in OR
- 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 · 13
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rate for this season, $26 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 · 5
rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
15 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 15 mapped sitesAll 15 sites
Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 15 of the 15 sites listed. A site with no reading is unknown, never far.
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.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 001 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 132 ft | 493 ft | 154 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 002 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 143 ft | 491 ft | 176 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 003 | standard nonelectric | 20 ft | 53 ft | 450 ft | 232 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 004 | standard nonelectric | 20 ft | 53 ft | 409 ft | 204 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 005 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 66 ft | 442 ft | 130 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 006 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 66 ft | 387 ft | 75 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 007 | tent only nonelectric | 68 ft | 372 ft | 29 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 008 | tent only nonelectric | 65 ft | 332 ft | 95 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 009 | tent only nonelectric | 65 ft | 286 ft | 159 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 010 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 104 ft | 163 ft | 273 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 011 | tent only nonelectric | 104 ft | 147 ft | 243 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 012 | tent only nonelectric | 122 ft | 160 ft | 245 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 013 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 56 ft | 345 ft | 27 ft | $26 |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 014 | tent only nonelectric | 56 ft | 328 ft | 82 ft | $26 | |
| AREA LITTLE CRATER LAKE | 016 | tent only nonelectric | 70 ft | 390 ft | 125 ft | $26 |
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
North Arm Campground (Timothy Lake, OR)Mt. Hood National Forest · 1.3 mi
Clear Lake Cabin LookoutMt. Hood National Forest · 1.4 mi
Oak Fork Campground (Timothy Lake, OR)Mt. Hood National Forest · 2.6 miTimothy Lake - Meditation Point CampgroundMt. Hood National Forest · 2.7 mi
Gone Creek Campground (Timothy Lake, OR)Mt. Hood National Forest · 2.9 mi
Clear Lake (OR)Mt. Hood National Forest · 3.2 miFrom Sandy, travel east on Highway 26 for approximately 40 miles to Skyline Road (Road 42). Turn right and travel south for 4 miles. Turn right on Forest Road 58 and travel 2 miles to the campground.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Government Camp, OR
Typical weather
Typical October night 37°F, day 53°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical December night 26°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 Augusts are colder than the August line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Little Crater Lake is in Oregon’s 5th congressional district. Its representative, Janelle Bynum (D), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: A. See every public-lands vote →