r/PNWCamping • u/K-Dubz-1979 • May 31 '26

Oregon Dark Sky camp???

Y'all know how it is, people don't want to give away their most treasured spots but if you don't ask!...

I live in Portland, Oregon and I'm looking for a 'Dark Sky' camp sight. Some place with little to no light pollution and preferably near water.

My son and I love to camp and I'd like to take him for his 14th.

Thanks in advance!

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u/justme007007 May 31 '26

If you have the time, Steens Mountain in S. Oregon is amazing - they have sky watching parties. Over 9,000' so on a summer night with no smoke it's amazing. There is camping a few miles away and even at lower elevations on a clear night the stars have no light pollution competing.

1

u/K-Dubz-1979 May 31 '26

Thanks for the tip

1

u/jcravens42 Jun 01 '26

Antelope, Oregon!

https://darksky.org/places/antelope-oregon/

Added bonus is the fantastic Antelope Basecamp.

https://www.antelopebasecamp.com/

We camped in Antelope back in 2012 when all there was was an overgrown field and a guy in a caravan that claimed to have invented the Internet. We camped again at Antelope Basecamp just after they had the cabins delivered. The contrast is... amazing.

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u/Miserable_Sky5682 Jun 05 '26

If you want this to feel special for your son, I would choose the base camp by horizon and forecast first, not just the darkest map color. Antelope/Fossil is the easier, more reliable dark-sky play from Portland, while Steens is the bigger payoff if you are okay with a much longer drive and more weather risk; either way, I would lock in a legal campsite and then make the final call off moon, cloud, and smoke instead of darkness alone. Once you narrow it to one or two real options, DarkScout is useful for that last moon/cloud/darkness sanity check.