We went on a family camping trip to Harris Beach in Brookings, OR. Harris Beach is an Oregon State Park. We stayed at site C11.
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The Campsite
Our site (C11) was no problem to park our 20 foot rig and tow vehicle in. The site had a nice paved parking pad that was fairly level. This was a very large campground and it did look like most of the sites wouldn’t be too difficult to park a trailer our size.
The site itself was on the smaller side. It had a little bit of space and a tree the kids could climb. We were surrounded by neighbors which made the site feel even smaller. One side was pretty much blocked by shrubs but the neighbors behind us and on the other side were right there. It wasn’t a big issue, we had friendly neighbors, just made it feel like we had no privacy.
This was a massive campground and looking around most of the sites seemed to have similar space and privacy to the site we had. We didn’t see any sites tucked in with an illusion of seclusion like we normally look for.
This campground does have full hook-ups. Our particular site only had water and electricity. There is a dump station available. And we had decent cell service through Verizon.
The Activities
This campground had a large playground that my kids were very excited about. We took multiple trips to the playground and it was a great way for the kids to get some energy out.
Another great activity to do at this campground is go to the beach! Now, the campground itself is back from the beach a bit. Which does help quite a bit with the wind. The beach itself was extremely windy, but you can’t feel that at camp through the trees.
When we went to play at the beach with sand toys and kites we decided to drive. It is possible to walk to the beach (which we’ll discuss in the next section) but to take the kids with a bunch of gear it really would be too far to go. So we packed up and drove across the street to the beach.
It was extremely windy at the beach but the kids loved every minute of it. There were some streams they could run through, lots of sand to play with, and they even started building a fort out of driftwood.
The Dog-Friendly Hiking
This campground was very dog-friendly including the hiking trails. We hiked on the South Beach Trail. This dog-friendly trail was very pretty and was a great hike for our family. It wasn’t too long, probably about half a mile, but I’d say it was more of a moderate difficulty because towards the end there was some elevation.
The South Beach Trail starts at the campground and ends at the beach. It’s a different part of the beach than where we had driven to earlier. And although it isn’t too far, it’s far enough that I wouldn’t want to carry a bunch of beach toys. There is also a road that you need to cross but the road is basically the entrance to the campground so it isn’t too busy.
The Beer
We tried to go to Chetco Brewing Company in Brookings. When we got there I went in to make sure it’s okay for us to have our dog while the rest of the family and the dog waited outside. The bartender simply handed me a piece of paper and didn’t say anything. I looked at the paper and it saw that it was their dog policy. It was very long and specific. The rule that caught my eye was if there are more than three barks you will be asked to leave. I asked how strongly these rules are enforced. I said our dog is pretty good but if he sees another dog it’s possible he’ll bark a little more than that and then calm down. The bartender simply glared at me so I decided to turn around and leave. They clearly didn’t want our business and I didn’t feel comfortable having the kids sit down and order stuff just to have our dog bark four times and then we’d be asked to leave. I felt like that would be difficult for everyone and likely very upsetting and confusing for the kids.
So we decided to go right across the street and pick up some beer and dinner at Fred Meyers. There are some fabulous breweries in Oregon that are easy to get at the grocery store. Some of our favorites are Ninkasi, Deschutes, and Rogue. We decided to go with SeaQuake Brewing. We had just discovered SeaQuake at our last stop and have enjoyed all of their beers so far.
The Recap
Harris Beach is a very large campground without very much privacy, but it is a nice place to visit. And it is fantastic to be able to enjoy the beach and hiking trails with the dog.
Campground Details:
Harris Beach State Park
U.S. 101, Brookings, OR 97415
Can reserve online at stateparks.oregon.gov. Reservations open 6 months ahead at 6am PST.
