Escape Into Nature At These Secluded, Spacious Campsites On Oregon's Iconic Detroit Lake

One of the most iconic views in Oregon has to be Mount Jefferson framed by forested hillsides, mirrored in the deep blue waters of Detroit Lake. As you drift along in your canoe, a bald eagle cruises overhead, while in the distance, friend squads from the nearby college town of Eugene wakeboard, and a fisher in an aluminum boat quietly casts his line along the misty shore. Colorful dome tents peeking along the secluded southern shore — one of them yours. You're just a short paddle from the busy Mongold Day Use Area's boat launch. Boaters come and go from the marina while families shriek and splash at the rollicking swim beach, but it's 11 long miles away by road, buffering you nicely from the hubbub.

Two hours from Portland or 1.5 hours from Bend, Detroit Lake is a place that generations of Oregon families hold dear. In warmer months, it's a 9-mile long fishing, sailing, paddling, and waterskiing paradise, and an hour closer to Portland than Clear Lake, another of the West Coast's best lakes for swimming. Its shores are covered with fall colors in autumn, and in winter it's blanketed in show that invites you to strap on your snowshoes for a tramp. In the spring and summer, there are several places to camp and immerse yourself in nature.

The lake's state park campground has just under 300 sites, with full hookups, hot showers, boat ramp, and even basketball and volleyball courts. But if you're prepared to sacrifice amenities you'll gain a lot of serenity by venturing to the lake's southernmost reaches, heading for the remote Southshore campground, where just 30 campsites sprawl under trees, and peace and silence reign supreme. Who needs a hot shower when you can have a bracing dip in a pristine lake?

To get to Detroit Lake's Southshore Campground, you'll turn off the highway onto Forest Road 10, also known as Blowout Road. You'll pass the 34-site Hoover Campground, then the 63-site Cove Creek Campground. Keep going. Just when you think you're going nowhere, there you are. It's worth the extra effort for the serenity and solitude you gain by heading off the beaten path. Take that canoe off the roof of the Subaru, pop your tent, hang your hammock, and get down to relaxing.

Sites four through 11 are walk-in, meaning you'll have to hoof your tent in from a shared parking lot, but the reward is a lakefront view. Site seven is particularly spacious and well-situated, with ample shade and views through the trees to the lake. If you have an RV or van, site 25's picnic table and fire ring have a superb view, but there isn't really a bad campsite at this gem of a campground, and even some of the inner ones have lake views, thanks to the gentle slope of the terrain.

At this campground, you're close to one of the lake's best secret attractions, the unsigned trailhead to the Blowout Creek arm of the lake, where a suspension bridge provides intrepid adventurers with a diving and jumping platform into the cool, jade green waters below — there's even a rope swing, if you're up for it. Expect a lot of whooping and hollering and maybe even a boom box or two, but the energy is infectious if you just go with it.

When you're ready to get out of your watercraft and stretch your legs, just a short drive back up the road from Southshore Campground heading east takes you to the trailhead for Stahlman Point, across from Cove Creek. It's a great little 4.2-mile day hike through a stand of enchanting old growth forest that gains steadily in altitude to reach the site of a former fire lookout 1,300 feet above the lake. From the top you have an excellent view (pictured) of Piety Island below. Turn in a circle, and you'll see Mount Jefferson to the east — maybe you're headed that way next on a scenic Oregon road trip.

Oregonians are devoted hot springs enthusiasts — it's a great way to chase the damp chill of the rainy climate away, or soak off the soreness from a summer hiking expedition — and the hot springs at Breitenbush Hot Springs Retreat and Conference Center, just half an hour's drive from Southshore Campground, is one of the all-time classics. This rustic, clothing-optional resort offers what it calls a "digital detox" experience — meaning no cell service or wifi. The vibe is pure Summer of '69 hippie, and clothing optional, so come prepared to bliss out and bare it all, or at least be around others who do. "Pure magic. Glorious place for the body and soul," writes one Yelper who is a frequent visitor. "There is nothing like soaking under the stars, in the rain, in the sunshine, or in the snow."