CAMPANAC.Powered by public lands intelligenceMore Than Just Parks

U.S. Forest Service · Siuslaw National Forest · OR

Sutton Campground

Reservable, and full this SaturdayEvery one of the 2 sites on offer is taken this Saturday, and the record lists no site held back for a walk-up. read 16:27 UTC

We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →

Watch for a cancellation Book on recreation.gov ↗

Right now: OpenThe agency lists it open
A night: $35–$47Across the site types the agency prices
Sites: 80All of them booked ahead
Season: Year-roundOpen year-round

Photos · U.S. Forest Service

111 ftLongest rig

40 ftElevation

134 ftWater · an unnamed streamOcean · 1.2 mi · to the Pacific Ocean

1.2 miNE of Heceta Beach, OR

65%Tree cover

Open year-roundToday

The place

the agency’s own description · what’s there · 6 notices

In the agency’s own words

Sutton Campground is located just off the Pacific Coast in Oregon, 1.5 miles from Sutton Beach and 2 miles from Sutton Lake. Hiking is the most popular activity, but visitors also enjoy swimming in Sutton Creek, and fishing and boating on Sutton Lake. Keep reading

Recreation

Hiking is Sutton Campground's main draw. A number of trails provide access to nearby Alder Dunes and Sutton Lake. Wild berries, vibrant rhododendrons and picturesque sand dunes are located along the trails. The Holman Vista Day Use Area and Holman Vista Trail are one mile west of the campground, providing an accessible viewing platform for memorable sunsets of the world's largest the ocean. Boating, canoeing and fishing are popular activities at Sutton Lake. Anglers cast for yellow perch, largemouth bass, cutthroat trout and stocked rainbow trout. A boat ramp is located 2 miles away.

Facilities

The campground offers single-family sites and group sites for overnight camping and day-use picnicking. Some sites offer electric hookups. Picnic tables and campfire rings are provided, as are flush toilets and drinking water.

Natural Features

The campground is set among scenic coastal pine, Douglas-fir, spruce, wax myrtle and huckleberry trees within the Siuslaw National Forest. The Siuslaw extends across the lush forests of the coastal mountains to the Oregon Dunes and beaches of the Pacific Ocean. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (801) 226-3564.

Nearby Attractions

Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area begins 15 minutes south of the campground visitors will find 40 miles of wind-sculpted, shifting sand dunes. The area is known for its off-road opportunities, but it also offers accessible trails and beach access. Enjoy Darlingtonia State Natural Site, Heceta Beach, Sea Lion Caves and old town Florence, all within 10 miles of the campground.

Source: Recreation.gov data (RIDB), full extract · Aug 23, 2026

What the agency tells you

Rule

Be sure to reserve a site that will accommodate your equipment. The site you reserve is your site. You may not move to another site.

Rule

An additional fee will be charged for extra vehicles

Rule

Click here for more information on the Siuslaw National Forest

Everything else this campground posts · 3

Rule

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.

Rule

Any accepted senior passes must be entered for the discount at the time of booking for single sites only.

Rule

Customer Service Contact 801-226-3564 or Help.Siuslaw.CentralCoast@AmericanLL.com

Read them on the agency’s own page →

Source: recreation.gov facility notices, quoted verbatim · Sep 9, 2026

Tents and rigs

Sites: 80 · 3 group
Hookups: 24 electric
Longest rig: 111 ft
Paved pads: 78 of 80
Accessible sites: None listed
Pets: Allowed
Campfires: Allowed, barring fire bans
Shade: Every site

Source: Recreation.gov campsite records · Aug 23, 2026

Facilities

Toilets: Flush Toilets; “…and campfire rings are provided, as are flush toilets and drinking water. Natural Features The campground…”
Drinking water: Yes; “…are provided, as are flush toilets and drinking water. Natural Features The campground is set among…”
Boat ramp: Yes
Camp host: On site; recreation.gov lists “Host”
Stay limit: 14 nights; recreation.gov facility rule maxStay

Source: Stated in the agency description · Aug 23, 2026

Water, toilets and showers: read from the agency description, shown above · Sep 12, 2026

Around the campground

On the water: Lake, Creek, Beach, Coast; Berry Picking; Boating; Fishing; Hiking; Swimming; Wildlife viewing
Night sky · 655th darkest of 770 in OR: Bortle 3

Source: Recreation.gov activity records · Aug 23, 2026

Night sky: VIIRS Day/Night Band annual cloud-free composite, VNL V2 2024 (Earth Observation Group, Colorado School of Mines), read at the published coordinate · Sep 8, 2026

Full this Saturdayread 16:27 UTC

How full the weekend is nationally.

6 campgrounds have sites open within 30 miles, read 16:41 UTC. See them

OpenBooked

Every one of the 2 sites on offer is taken this Saturday. 24 are free on Wed, Oct 21. read 16:27 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t

Booking window6 months outBookable now through April 16, 2027. Today at 10 AM ET, availability opens through April 17, 2027.recreation.gov

Max stay14 nightsthe facility record

A night$35–$47plus $8 to reserve, once per bookingthe agency’s rate schedule

A weekend$78–$102DerivedFriday and Saturday, everything includedours, from the lines above

If plans change$10 to cancel$10 to change a reservationrecreation.gov’s schedule

Runs itAmerican Land & LeisureA private concessionaire under permit from U.S. Forest Servicethe operator link

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.

Free forever, no booking kickbacks.

Where there’s room this weekend Book on recreation.gov ↗

We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.

Every line of the receipt · 14

What you actually pay

The sign priceU.S. Forest Service

A night, per site$35–$47

Standard Nonelectric$35

Standard Electric$47

Group areas, a night$145–$250

Rates for the season the campground is in now, Jan 1, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026.

The booking feerecreation.gov

Reservation fee, booked online$8

One fee per reservation, however many nights you book, and it’s non-refundable. $9 if you book by phone, $3 in person.

Pass discounts only apply to the recreation (or use) fee for the facility. Other charges such as electricity or water hookups, reservation or other fees are not eligible for a discount.

What a stay costs

One nightDerived$43–$55

A weekend, Friday and SaturdayDerived$78–$102

Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $35–$47 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.

If your plans changerecreation.gov

Change fee, moving to dates outside your booking$10

Cancellation fee$10

Cancelling the day before, or the day of$10 + your first night

No-show$20 + your first night

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

Sign price: recreation.gov facility rate schedule, quoted as the agency publishes it · Sep 10, 2026

Booking fee, change fee, cancellation fee, no-show: Rules and Reservation Policies, Recreation.gov, the published fee schedule, curated by hand into lib/reservation-fee-schedule.json (9 rows, each carrying its own verbatim sentence). The publisher states these policies were last updated September 2019. · Sep 9, 2026

The two totals: Derived by CAMPANAC by adding the agency’s own published nightly rate to recreation.gov’s own published reservation fee. Both components are cited above; the addition is ours and is shown only where every component is known. · Sep 9, 2026

Who keeps the booking fee: Recreation.gov facility policy text, Dead Swede Campground (facility 234221) · Not on the national policy page. This is agency policy text recreation.gov publishes on individual campground pages; this site holds it verbatim on 45 active campgrounds (campground_rules.cancellation_description, scripts/load-facility-rules.mjs). · Sep 9, 2026

The contract: Reservation Gods: Who Stole Our Campsites and Sold Them Back to Us, More Than Just Parks, April 2025 · Apr 1, 2025

Source: Recreation.gov data (RIDB), full extract · Aug 23, 2026

Open within 30 miles this weekend · 6

Sites the agency is offering this Friday and Saturday that nobody has taken, nearest first; the nearest 5 of 6. read 16:41 UTC

South Jetty Sand CampingOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 6.9 mi · 22 of 28 site-nights open
DriftwoodOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 12 mi · 61 of 132 site-nights open
Siltcoos Sand CampingOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 12 mi · 32 of 32 site-nights open
Lagoon CampgroundOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 12 mi · 24 of 50 site-nights open
Tahkenitch LandingOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 18 mi · 15 of 26 site-nights open

Open this weekend: recreation.gov availability · derived by CAMPANAC: site-nights the agency offered this weekend that nobody has taken, within the radius, closures removed by the closure rule · Oct 16, 2026

recreation.gov availability, read 16:27 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this

Seen something wrong here? Tell us.

The sites

80 sites · which ones have room · the site map

The sites, ranked

from 80 mapped sites

81 ftbetween you and the next site, typically

82%of tent sites sit clear of electric or RV sites

Most roomLoop C GPC 291 ftLoop A A18 197 ftLoop A GPA 176 ftLoop A A16 149 ftLoop C C01 120 ft

Least roomLoop B B22 36 ftLoop B B26 36 ftLoop D D06 37 ft

Source: Derived by CAMPANAC from recreation.gov per-site coordinates (nearest-neighbor distance) · Oct 12, 2026

All 80 sites

80 of 80 sites located

Standard55RV / electric22Group3

A01 A02 A03 A04 A05 A06 A07 A08 A09 A10 A11 A12 A13 A14 A15 A16 A17 A18 A19 A20 A21 A22 A23 GPA B01 B02 B03 B04 B05 B06 B07 B08 B09 B10 B11 B12 B13 B14 B15 B16 B17 B18 B19 B20 B21 B22 B23 B24 B25 B26 B27 B28 B29 B30 B31 B32 C01 C02 C03 C04 C05 C06 C07 C08 C09 C10 C11 GPC D01 D02 D03 D04 D05 D06 D07 D08 D09 D10 D11 GPD

Aerial · Esri World Imagery

Sites: recreation.gov (RIDB), coordinates as published · Aug 23, 2026

Imagery: Esri World Imagery

SleepsTakes aUp to

Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 80 of the 80 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. 80 of the 80 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.


Loop A	A01	standard electric	42 ft	30 amp	50 ft	123 ft	224 ft	$47
Loop A	A02	standard electric	40 ft	30 amp	50 ft	139 ft	178 ft	$47
Loop A	A03	standard nonelectric	45 ft		94 ft	25 ft	247 ft	$35
Loop A	A04	standard electric	53 ft	30 amp	59 ft	161 ft	124 ft	$47
Loop A	A05	standard nonelectric	37 ft		92 ft	73 ft	182 ft	$35
Loop A	A06	standard electric	42 ft	30 amp	62 ft	193 ft	69 ft	$47
Loop A	A07	standard nonelectric	60 ft		92 ft	116 ft	144 ft	$35
Loop A	A08	standard electric	39 ft	30 amp	85 ft	267 ft	86 ft	$47
Loop A	A09	standard nonelectric	40 ft		112 ft	165 ft	164 ft	$35
Loop A	A10	standard electric	44 ft	30 amp	74 ft	291 ft	265 ft	$47
Loop A	A11	standard electric	40 ft	30 amp	66 ft	284 ft	170 ft	$47
Loop A	A12	standard electric	53 ft	30 amp	76 ft	152 ftSutton Creek	264 ft	$47
Loop A	A13	standard nonelectric	72 ft		66 ft	257 ftSutton Creek	206 ft	$35
Loop A	A14	standard nonelectric	41 ft		93 ft	42 ftSutton Creek	299 ft	$35
Loop A	A15	standard electric	49 ft	30 amp	73 ft	120 ftSutton Creek	194 ft	$47
Loop A	A16	standard nonelectric	50 ft		149 ft	31 ftSutton Creek	232 ft	$35
Loop A	A17	standard electric	41 ft	30 amp	73 ft	126 ftSutton Creek	122 ft	$47
Loop A	A18	standard nonelectric	46 ft		196 ft	60 ftSutton Creek	137 ft	$35
Loop A	A19	standard nonelectric	50 ft		104 ft	311 ftSutton Creek	146 ft	$35
Loop A	A20	standard electric	50 ft	30 amp	81 ft	231 ftSutton Creek	84 ft	$47
Loop A	A21	standard nonelectric	50 ft		98 ft	252 ft	247 ft	$35
Loop A	A22	standard electric	52 ft	30 amp	81 ft	238 ftSutton Creek	158 ft	$47
Loop A	A23	standard nonelectric	50 ft		84 ft	211 ft	299 ft	$35
Loop A	GPA	group standard nonelectric			176 ft	177 ftSutton Creek	173 ft	$145
Loop B	B01	standard nonelectric	111 ft		67 ft	210 ftSutton Creek	121 ft	$35
Loop B	B02	standard nonelectric	25 ft		87 ft	217 ft	190 ft	$35
Loop B	B03	standard nonelectric	46 ft		94 ft	198 ft	222 ft	$35
Loop B	B04	standard nonelectric	73 ft		67 ft	193 ftSutton Creek	138 ft	$35
Loop B	B05	standard nonelectric	37 ft		118 ft	226 ftSutton Creek	259 ft	$35
Loop B	B06	standard nonelectric	44 ft		104 ft	154 ftSutton Creek	305 ft	$35
Loop B	B07	standard nonelectric	69 ft		92 ft	54 ftSutton Creek	291 ft	$35
Loop B	B08	standard nonelectric	45 ft		63 ft	109 ftSutton Creek	200 ft	$35
Loop B	B09	standard nonelectric	46 ft		63 ft	88 ftSutton Creek	138 ft	$35
Loop B	B10	standard nonelectric	40 ft		92 ft	under 10 ftSutton Creek	205 ft	$35
Loop B	B11	standard nonelectric	41 ft		97 ft	under 10 ftSutton Creek	118 ft	$35
Loop B	B12	standard nonelectric	46 ft		110 ft	under 10 ftSutton Creek	105 ft	$35
Loop B	B13	standard nonelectric	28 ft		63 ft	119 ftSutton Creek	103 ft	$35
Loop B	B14	standard nonelectric	58 ft		116 ft	under 10 ftSutton Creek	181 ft	$35
Loop B	B15	standard nonelectric	52 ft		63 ft	183 ftSutton Creek	121 ft	$35
Loop B	B16	standard nonelectric	43 ft		116 ft	10 ftSutton Creek	287 ft	$35
Loop B	B17	standard nonelectric	57 ft		95 ft	125 ftSutton Creek	250 ft	$35
Loop B	B18	standard nonelectric	49 ft		90 ft	under 10 ftSutton Creek	321 ft	$35
Loop B	B19	standard nonelectric	56 ft		84 ft	31 ftSutton Creek	273 ft	$35
Loop B	B20	standard nonelectric	56 ft		78 ft	113 ftSutton Creek	190 ft	$35
Loop B	B21	standard nonelectric	56 ft		87 ft	39 ftSutton Creek	278 ft	$35
Loop B	B22	standard nonelectric	52 ft		36 ft	153 ftSutton Creek	169 ft	$35
Loop B	B23	standard nonelectric	50 ft		44 ft	126 ftSutton Creek	213 ft	$35
Loop B	B24	standard electric	52 ft	30 amp	54 ft	182 ftSutton Creek	190 ft	$47
Loop B	B25	standard nonelectric	110 ft		65 ft	181 ftSutton Creek	113 ft	$35
Loop B	B26	standard electric	53 ft	30 amp	36 ft	153 ftSutton Creek	146 ft	$47
Loop B	B27	standard electric	49 ft	30 amp	60 ft	213 ftSutton Creek	92 ft	$47
Loop B	B28	standard electric	38 ft	30 amp	67 ft	247 ftSutton Creek	56 ft	$47
Loop B	B29	standard electric	62 ft	30 amp	63 ft	213 ftSutton Creek	184 ft	$47
Loop B	B30	standard electric	48 ft	30 amp	72 ft	210 ft	147 ft	$47
Loop B	B31	standard electric	53 ft	30 amp	93 ft	167 ft	288 ft	$47
Loop B	B32	standard electric	49 ft	30 amp	95 ft	219 ftSutton Creek	237 ft	$47
Loop C	C01	standard nonelectric	25 ft		120 ft	203 ftSutton Creek	134 ft	$35
Loop C	C02	standard nonelectric	40 ft		69 ft	292 ftSutton Creek	107 ft	$35
Loop C	C03	standard nonelectric	30 ft		69 ft	327 ftSutton Creek	120 ft	$35
Loop C	C04	standard nonelectric	25 ft		89 ft	414 ftSutton Creek	208 ft	$35
Loop C	C05	standard nonelectric	25 ft		73 ft	290 ftSutton Creek	115 ft	$35
Loop C	C06	standard nonelectric	25 ft		73 ft	245 ftSutton Creek	159 ft	$35
Loop C	C07	standard nonelectric	25 ft		55 ft	164 ftSutton Creek	222 ft	$35
Loop C	C08	standard nonelectric	25 ft		55 ft	130 ftSutton Creek	207 ft	$35
Loop C	C09	standard nonelectric	35 ft		65 ft	73 ftSutton Creek	270 ft	$35
Loop C	C10	standard nonelectric	35 ft		88 ft	120 ftSutton Creek	138 ft	$35
Loop C	C11	standard nonelectric	30 ft		88 ft	53 ftSutton Creek	215 ft	$35
Loop C	GPC	group standard area electric			291 ft	85 ftSutton Creek	359 ft	$220–$250
Loop D	D01	standard nonelectric	23 ft		69 ft	373 ftSutton Lake	220 ft	$35
Loop D	D02	standard nonelectric	25 ft		69 ft	386 ftSutton Lake	151 ft	$35
Loop D	D03	standard electric	50 ft	30 amp	105 ft	245 ftSutton Lake	196 ft	$47
Loop D	D04	standard nonelectric	39 ft		105 ft	340 ftSutton Lake	91 ft	$35
Loop D	D05	standard electric	50 ft	30 amp	98 ft	291 ftSutton Lake	237 ft	$47
Loop D	D06	standard nonelectric	48 ft		37 ft	373 ftSutton Lake	154 ft	$35
Loop D	D07	standard nonelectric	45 ft		37 ft	403 ftSutton Lake	125 ft	$35
Loop D	D08	standard nonelectric	45 ft		85 ft	451 ftSutton Lake	27 ft	$35
Loop D	D09	standard nonelectric	42 ft		73 ft	435 ftSutton Creek	87 ft	$35
Loop D	D10	standard nonelectric	43 ft		73 ft	400 ftSutton Creek	153 ft	$35
Loop D	D11	standard nonelectric	50 ft		119 ft	343 ftSutton Creek	271 ft	$35
Loop D	GPD	group standard area electric			97 ft	462 ftSutton Lake	206 ft	$220–$250

Price: Derived by CAMPANAC: each site takes the per-night rate this campground publishes for the site’s own site type (recreation.gov rate schedule). recreation.gov publishes no per-campsite fee, and a site whose type carries no published rate is left blank rather than called free · Sep 11, 2026

25 of 80 listed

Source: Recreation.gov data (RIDB), full extract · Aug 23, 2026

Getting there

the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number

Coordinate44.05417, -124.10722

The mapSee it on the map

The driveDirections ↗

The phone541-997-2715

The agency’s pageOfficial page ↗

Where it is

Also near here

Alder DuneSiuslaw National Forest · 1.1 mi Baker Beach CampgroundSiuslaw National Forest · 2.4 mi

Horse Creek CampgroundSiuslaw National Forest · 3.7 mi

South Jetty Sand CampingOregon Dunes National Recreation Area · 6.9 mi

Rock Creek Oregon Coast (Siuslaw National Forest, OR)Siuslaw National Forest · 9.0 mi North Fork Siuslaw CampgroundSiuslaw National Forest · 9.0 mi

Getting there

From Florence, Oregon, take Highway 101 north 5 miles to the Sutton Campground turnoff and go one mile to the campground.

Directions: Driving directions as the agency wrote them · Sep 9, 2026

Source: Recreation.gov data (RIDB), full extract · Aug 23, 2026

The weather

the next four days · the thirty-year normal

Next four days, and the thirty-year normal

Forecast

Overnight50°Areas Of Fog27% rain

Saturday62°Areas Of Fog then Partly Sunny7% rain

Saturday Night41°Partly Cloudy

Sunday60°Partly Sunny

NWS forecast for Heceta Beach, OR

Source: National Weather Service, PQR forecast office · Oct 17, 2026

Typical weather

Typical October night 44°F, day 61°F.

Coldest month of the year: typical February night 37°F. Bring the bag rated for it.

80°30°

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.

Measured at: FLORENCE #2, OR (USC00352973), 4 miles away and 35 ft higher

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, monthly normals · Sep 8, 2026

The land, and who answers for it

who answers for it · a letter you can send

Who answers for this land

Sutton Campground is in Oregon’s 4th congressional district. Its representative, Val Hoyle (D), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: A. See every public-lands vote →

Seen something wrong here? Tell us.

Source: U.S. Census district boundaries and the MTJP Congressional Public Lands Score

Who can change it · 3

Write to somebody who can change it

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 moneyVal T. HoyleU.S. Representative · Oregon’s 4th district
Open their contact form ↗Their record →
Your senator, on the same appropriationJeff MerkleyU.S. Senator · Oregon
Open their contact form ↗
Your senator, on the same appropriationRon WydenU.S. Senator · Oregon
Open their contact form ↗

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.

To Val T. Hoyle

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 Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon

Dear Val T. Hoyle,

I’m a constituent in Oregon’s 4th district. I tried to camp at Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t.

All 80 sites at Sutton Campground are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 2 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. Sutton Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule.

I’m not asking you to run Sutton Campground. 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 Sutton Campground (Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com

To Jeff Merkley

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 Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon

Dear Jeff Merkley,

I’m a constituent in Oregon. I tried to camp at Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t.

All 80 sites at Sutton Campground are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 2 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. Sutton Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule.

I’m not asking you to run Sutton Campground. 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 Sutton Campground (Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com

To Ron Wyden

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 Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon

Dear Ron Wyden,

I’m a constituent in Oregon. I tried to camp at Sutton Campground, Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon, and couldn’t.

All 80 sites at Sutton Campground are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 2 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. Sutton Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule.

I’m not asking you to run Sutton Campground. 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 Sutton Campground (Siuslaw National Forest, Oregon) via campanac.com

How we know this · 4

Contacts: Contact forms from @unitedstates/congress-legislators · Sep 9, 2026

The figures in these drafts: Navy Ford (CVN-78) Class Aircraft Carrier Program: Background and Issues for Congress (CRS Report RS20643) · Updated December 4, 2025 · “The ship’s final procurement cost was $13,316.5 million (i.e., about $13.3 billion) in then-year dollars.”

The figures in these drafts: Salary Table 2026-GS, Incorporating the 1% General Schedule Increase, Effective January 2026 (U.S. Office of Personnel Management) · Effective January 2026 · “Grade 5, Step 1: $34,799 (annual rate, before locality pay).”

The figures in these drafts: Update to Civilian Position Full Fringe Benefit Cost Factor, Federal Pay Raise Assumptions, and Inflation Factors used in OMB Circular No. A-76 (OMB Memorandum M-08-13) · March 11, 2008 · “the civilian position full fringe benefit cost factor needs to be adjusted downward, from 36.45 percent to 36.25 percent”

How we know

every fact on this page, and where it came from

Right now: The agency lists it open right now.

Sites on recreation.gov: recreation.gov’s own month availability payload for this facility, asked for October 2026 and November 2026. It names 80 of the 80 campsites the agency files here, and every one of them carries an answer either way. A campground nobody has read carries no answer at all, never a no. · Oct 14, 2026

Season: Recreation.gov data (RIDB), full extract · Aug 23, 2026

Elevation: USGS 3DEP elevation point query at this campground’s coordinate · Sep 7, 2026

Tree cover: NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC), one 30 m cell at this coordinate, taken as the median across the 80 campsites here that carry a reading · Sep 9, 2026

Water: USGS National Hydrography Dataset, nearest perennial lake, reservoir, river or stream to this campground’s coordinate · Sep 8, 2026

Coast: USGS National Hydrography Dataset, nearest ocean, bay, sound, estuary or tidal flat to this campground’s coordinate · Sep 8, 2026

Night sky: VIIRS Day/Night Band annual cloud-free composite, VNL V2 2024 (Earth Observation Group, Colorado School of Mines), read at the published coordinate: 0.16 mcd/m² of artificial all-sky glow, ranked against the 770 rated federal campgrounds in Oregon · Sep 8, 2026

Sky-glow model: Duriscoe, Anderson, Luginbuhl and Baugh (2018), a simplified model of all-sky artificial sky glow derived from VIIRS Day/Night band data, the National Park Service sky-glow model

Cell signal: the Forest Service’s own campground description, read as text by CAMPANAC. None of this is a measurement. It’s what the land manager published about the place, and phones, carriers and weather all disagree with each other; treat it as a warning, not a promise.

Nearest town: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 places, measured by CAMPANAC to the town boundary; population is the ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimate · Sep 9, 2026