South Twin Lake Campground

The campground is located beside South Twin Lake. Only the lower numbered sites that are on the east side of the loop have a view of the lake. There are many large Pine trees in the campground. Most sites are partially shaded. There is a restaurant, store, day use area and boat launch for non-motorized boats. There are no RV hookups. A nice trail circles the lake which is about one mile in length.

We stayed at site 17. This is a National Forest Service campground, so the site quality varies significantly. We attempted to setup our travel trailer in site 6 and 8 which have a nice view of the lake, but the sites were not level and were uneven. It was a bit awkward, so we decided to move around the loop to a more level site without ruts. Most of the sites are fairly level with the exception of 6 and 8. All sites are dirt pads with generous spacing between sites. Each site has a picnic table and fire pit. We didn't use the campground bathrooms or showers. The campground is very close to Forest Service road 4260 which is the main road into the area, so there is traffic noise from the road. There was no AT&T cell phone signal but we did have a useable signal with our Verizon hotspot with external antenna and booster.

Just across Forest Service road 4260 is West South Twin Lake campground which is beside Wickiup Reservoir. This is also a Forest Service campground with no RV hookups. Also across Forest Service road 4260 is Twin Lakes RV Park. The RV Park is beside Wickiup Reservoir and has full RV hookups. The RV Park feels more like a campground because of the large trees in the area.

The price of $9 reflects the federal senior pass discount.

I had reserved our site on recreation.gov several months in advance and it was a good thing that I did. I had no idea what a perfect gem this lake is. We arrived on a Sunday afternoon, and the beach was overrun by happy kids and their families. The day use lot was packed.
The water was crystal clear, the lake is spring fed, and had lots of water compared to the Deschutes River across the road which was incredibly low, as water had been released from the Wickiup Dam fir irrigation. No motors are allowed on the lake, and the Twin Lakes Resort which is just on the other side of the boat ramp rents rowboats, kayaks, stand up paddleboards and peddle boats. (If you forgot your own) People on the beach were playing with all sorts of floaties. Once the weekend was over, the crowd died down.

The campground itself is small, and the reservable lakefront sites are hugely rutted and unlevel. The 3 best level, lakefront sites are all FCFS...that said, people arrived on Sunday, with the intention to hop over to those sites. We were in site 7, where we were able to get some solar with our long, thick extension cord and solar suitcase. Sites were huge and often had multiple rigs/families camping in them. That said, everyone was quiet and well behaved at night.

We were pleasantly surprised to find that the campground had numerous piped water spigots, and one flush toilet. There was a convenient water spigot at the exit from the boat ramp, and our water bandit fit on it just fine. There is a forest service dump station/potable water fill 1/2 mile south, it is $10 to dump (credit cards only), but the potable water was free.

We also enjoyed a great meal at the lodge, and got the granddaughter ice cream every night.
The campground host was very diligent, checked the restroom several times a day, and also cleaned sites and picked up trash.

On the negative side, the paved campground road had potholes, with chipmunk holes in the bottom of them. DO NOT walk the dog at night, without watching where you step. Chipmunks (ground squirrels?) were running rampant. Don't leave any food out on your picnic table. You may not like the crowd, if you don't, check out the very peaceful North Twin Lake.

We'll go back next year...

SEASON: April to October LOCATION: on South Twin Lake ACCESS: from Bend, 26.8 miles south on Hwy. 97 to Wickiup Junction, then 11.0 miles west on Rd. 43, then continue 4.6 miles west on F.S. Rd. 42, and finally 2.0 miles south on F.S. Rd. 4260 ELEVATION: 4350 feet FACILITIES: vault and flush toilets, boat launch (small boats only, no motors), drinking water SITES: 24 RV/Trailer/Tent MAXIMUM SPUR LENGTH: 26 feet SPECIAL ACTIVITIES: fishing, trails, swimming, picnicking. biking, accessible toilets OPERATED BY: Hoodoo Recreation Services CAMPGROUND FEE: single site: $16.00 first vehicle and $8.00 each additional vehicle RESERVATIONS: None DAY USE FEE - Boat Launch and Picnic Area within Campground: Recreation Pass Site - Vehicle Permit - $5.00 Day Pass or $30.00 Annual Pass or other valid Recreation Passes