michaelsirott

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.

7/21/22 Update: the lot is now open in the summertime and the price has gone up to $70/night.

If you're a skier and you have an RV, the Steven's Pass Ski resort RV parking lot is a great destination. The RV lot (aka Lot F) sits above the lower lots and adjacent to the Pacific Crest Lodge. You can walk or ski right to the ski lift. There's also easy access to back-country hiking/skiing/snowshoeing across the highway, using the pedestrian bridge.

At $40/night for an electric hook-up spot, the cost is more than one would pay for typical RV parks. But the proximity to the ski resort makes up for it.

The sites are back-in only. Signage indicates that longer RV's should park on the mountain side, and shorter RV's on the highway side. I arrived during a major snow storm, which was interesting. The lot is not always plowed and there is a short hill getting up to it. So bring chains if you don't have four wheel drive.

There is not a pay-box in the RV lot. You pay for your spot at Guest Services in the main lodge. Guest Services also sells the lift tickets, which can be convenient. The Guest Services desk seems to have limited hours (8-4?).

The RV parking lot is about 100 yards from Highway 2. There may be some highway noise under some conditions. When I was there the snow dampened the noise and it was very quiet. Although the lot was almost full when I was there, other campers were generally pretty quiet.

I recently had a business conference at nearby Suncadia resort. The $250/night rooms at the resort were not as appealing as bringing my house with me and staying at Whispering Pines.

We had a great overall experience.The sites are spacious and our site was relatively private. Each site has 50/30/20 amp, cable TV, and water hook-ups. There were trash bins every few sites. There are no sewer hookups due to the Yakima River being literally a few feet from the campground. The park is well maintained but not overly manicured. They've got a reasonable well equipped RV parts store. There's a bathhouse that appears to be relatively new.

We arrived Thursday night after hours. The campstore was closed but the camp hosts were kind enough to stay up long enough to greet us and direct us to our site. In the morning we registered and paid at the campstore. We met the owners who were friendly and welcoming.

We liked the proximity to Cle Elum (about a mile to downtown), Roslyn (a couple miles), and Suncadia Resort (about 5 miles). We visited restaurants and stores at each place during our four day stay.

This campground is dog friendly. There's an off leash dog run. There's also a nice hiking trail along the Yakima River.

The name Whispering Pines is a bit ironic, because realistically the only thing you'll hear is the traffic on I-90. Tent trailer and tent campers may want to bring ear plugs or run a fan for some white noise.

The noise level from I-90 is the only negative thing I have to say. We'll stay here again next time we have occasion to visit the Cle Elum, Roslyn, Suncadia area.

We visited Salt Creek Rec Area in early October just as the busy season was winding down. We enjoyed listening to the wind and crashing waves just a few feet from our site. Coming from Eastern Washington where there were drought like conditions, we actually enjoyed the moist air and rain during our stay. We also liked watching the shipping traffic in the strait. There are several good hikes right from the campground. The hike to Striped Peak follows a lushly forested trail along the water until it turns up the hill. A shorter hike to the old gun battery position follows the bluff from the campground. It was well worth the effort!

Arrival to our pre-paid site went smoothly. We got a reminder email a few days before giving us details about the park. The park manager responded quickly to a question I had about water by email.

The park looked about 70% full during the time we were there. We stayed on the western, wooded side of the campground in the non-hook-up area. The sites in this part of the park are just a few steps away from a cliff above the water and most have a great view of the strait. The non-hook-up/tent sites provide more privacy and are closer to the water. The sites are still packed pretty close together but the layout is more relaxed we didn't feel too close to our next door neighbors. The non-hookup sites are limited to RVs of about 25 feet. One of our neighbors in a travel trailer didn't have enough room to extend her slide outs on both sides because of trees in the site. On the other side of the park the hook-up sites are larger, paved and able to suite bigger rigs. We saw motorhomes and 5th wheels 35+ feet in length. These sites also had decent views of the water. But for us it looked too much like an RV parking lot.

The entire park was well maintained and friendly. Although there were lots of dogs and children around we did not have any issues with noise. We were surprised to find good 4G Verizon service at our site.

Not many negatives to report. This park is very popular and it apparently gets much busier and louder during peak season.

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.

We stayed one night at Colonial Creek Campground while on our way through the North Cascades to Bellingham. The campground is located at the base of a hill on the shore of Diablo Lake. It's moderately hilly and densely wooded throughout the campground. Even with the campground almost full, we found our site to be quiet and somewhat private. There are very few if any waterfront sites, but there's a boat launch for small boats. And there are abundant hiking trails throughout the area. We did a 5 mile hike from the campground to Thunder Knob. A lookout point on top overlooks Diablo Lake.

The sites are usually small and aren't all perfectly level. Larger RV's will be challenged to find a good spot. It worked great for our 16 foot trailer. The campground is first come, first served. So it could be iffy if you arrive on a busy weekend. No hook-ups. No cell service (like anywhere in the North Cascades Park).

Positives:
- well maintained
- located right on the Columbia, in the gorge. It's across the river from Bigs Junction on I-84.
- relatively dog friendly
- scenic

Negatives:
- like any WA state park, pricey for what you get
- no sewer hook-up at the sites. But dump is free for campers.
- noise from trains and nearby highways.
- may fill up or get busy during peak times.