Life is Short and the World is Wide .............
Little Crater Campground
This might be one of our best first come first serve site successes ever. We happened to pull into the park entrance with another camper right behind us, this site was just vacated by a camper as we were pulling in, and we got it. 10 min earlier or 1 minute later and we would not have had this prime lakefront site (site #45). The campground sits on the edge of beautiful Paulina Lake in Newberry National Monument. Incredible views no matter which way you look. 50 sites and most are reserved well in advance, but a couple prime spots are first come first serve. Fire rings, picnic tables & pit toilets. No hookups and no cell phone coverage! Pure uninterrupted relaxation.
GPS Info. (Latitude, Longitude):
43.71222, -121.24333
43°42'44"N, 121°14'36"W
Getting There: From Bend, travel 23.5 miles south on Hwy 97, then 14.5 miles east on Road 21, and 0.5 miles north on Forest Road 2100 570.
43.71222, -121.24333
43°42'44"N, 121°14'36"W
Getting There: From Bend, travel 23.5 miles south on Hwy 97, then 14.5 miles east on Road 21, and 0.5 miles north on Forest Road 2100 570.
Nearby Hikes and Sights.....
There are too many trails in this area to visit in a weeks' time, let alone the couple days we had. When you enter the park you will be given a newspaper of sorts that has a trail listing in it, click here for the 2016 version. Visitors can also explore the Lava River Cave.... 5,211 feet in length makes it the longest continuous lava tube in Oregon.
Paulina Lakeshore Trail - We chose to walk the lake shore and try to find the hot springs. They are about a mile or so from the Little Crater Campground if you walk counter clockwise. We missed them the first time and passed right by the obscure trail to the shore. Once we found them, it was cool to watch the bubbling hot water leave the earth. The trail itself around the lake is nice, up and down rolling hills here and there, but overall fairly easy.
Paulina Lakeshore Trail - We chose to walk the lake shore and try to find the hot springs. They are about a mile or so from the Little Crater Campground if you walk counter clockwise. We missed them the first time and passed right by the obscure trail to the shore. Once we found them, it was cool to watch the bubbling hot water leave the earth. The trail itself around the lake is nice, up and down rolling hills here and there, but overall fairly easy.
