First come, first servedA forested campground near trout fishing, hiking, and mountain biking. Most campsites have no hookups, and RV fit varies by site.
Smiling River Campground sits beside the clear, spring-fed Metolius River in the central Oregon portion of Deschutes National Forest, a setting defined by cold, fast water that issues from Metolius Springs at the base of Black Butte (a 3,076-foot cinder cone) and flows north through conifer forest and volcanic terrain. Many of the 34 campsites look toward the river, offering easy access to one of the region's premier fly-fishing runs rainbow trout, whitefish, bull trout and kokanee salmon are all present and to riverside trails that range into higher subalpine forest.













Length limits vary by campsite.
Check dates on Recreation.gov.
| Site | Fr 13 | Sa 14 | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 036 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 006 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 029 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 033 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 004 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 032 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 035 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 018 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 005 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 007 standard nonelectric |
Hookups (individual campsites): 34 no-hookup individual sites.
Official facts link to their source; “Listing” facts come from the Recreation.gov listing. Anything we can't source says so.
Themes from recent written reviews on Recreation.gov. Quotes are verbatim.
“Absolutely love the Metolious River!”
“The location is great, with the river trail making it very easy to walk the 1.”
Verbatim from guest reviews on Recreation.gov ↗ (169 reviews, ★ 4.0). Not written or edited by us.
“Quiet and clean campground. Absolutely love the Metolious River!”
“This site is really close to the bathroom which was quite smelly. Close to the water but no view. River trail goes right by the site. ”
“What an awesome campground! We had a site right next to the Metolius and a short walk from the bathrooms. The location is great, with the river trail making it very easy to walk the 1.3 miles to the Camp Sherman Store.”
First come, first served
First come, first served
First come, first served| – |
| – |
| $29 |
| 030 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 034 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 031 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 002 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 028 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 003 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 001 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 008 standard nonelectric | – | – | $29 |
| 020 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 013 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 024 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 016 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 017 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 023 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 010 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 011 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 019 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 015 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 014 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 012 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 022 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 021 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 009 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
| 025 standard nonelectric | – | – | $31 |
✓ available · R reserved · X not available · C closed · W first come, first served · N not yet released
Rentals that may deliver here and whose listed length fits sites up to 50 ft. Delivery may be available — confirm fees and dates with the owner before you book.

Camper van · 19 ft · sleeps 3 · 23 mi from campground
$199/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rental
Class C motorhome · 25 ft · sleeps 6 · 34 mi from campground
$199/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rental
Travel trailer · 27 ft · sleeps 3 · 36 mi from campground
$120/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rentalstays up to 28 nights (Recreation.gov rules).
For May weekends, book about 181 days ahead. Three in four May Friday and Saturday arrivals were booked later than that, and half were booked 175 days or less before arrival. Past timing is guidance, not a guarantee of what is open now.
| Arrival month | Fri/Sat arrivals: half booked at least | A quarter at least | Other days: half booked at least | A quarter at least |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May | 175 days ahead | 181 days ahead | 139 days ahead | 178 days ahead |
| June | 143 days ahead | 176 days ahead | 125 days ahead | 176 days ahead |
| July | 140 days ahead | 178 days ahead | 119 days ahead | 180 days ahead |
| August | 122 days ahead | 178 days ahead | 78 days ahead | 176 days ahead |
| September | 61 days ahead | 145 days ahead | 60 days ahead | 150 days ahead |
| October | 36 days ahead | 78 days ahead | 26 days ahead | 62 days ahead |
Months with fewer than 30 reservations of that kind are left blank. Sites where nearly every booking was made the day of arrival (pay on arrival) are left out. Closed seasons, windows not yet released for booking, and currently unavailable nights are separate from this history.
Based on Recreation.gov reservations, FY2015–2025 (8,832 reservations in the years scored). Counts reservations made, not nights actually camped: cancellations aren't in the data, and nights a site was closed count as not booked. FY2020–21 (COVID) are left out of the scores.
34 individual reservable campsites from Recreation.gov, checked Nov 8. Rates are the listed nightly rates.
Tent, van or small RV, no power
34 sites · $31, $29/night
Loops: SMILING RIVER CAMPGROUND (34)
0 open Nov 13–Nov 15