About this place
This is a five unit campground on two acres, beside the Wild and Scenic Lochsa River, about fifteen minutes east of Lowell.
Families, anglers, kayakers and floaters all use it. There is boat access to the Lochsa here, and people fish it for salmon, steelhead and trout. In the spring rafting season some of the sites are kept for boaters to park in, so fewer are left for campers.
The highway runs close behind some of the sites, and you can hear it.
There are picnic tables, fire rings and a changing room. There is a vault restroom. You will not find drinking water here, or a phone signal. This is bear country, so keep food and trash shut away.
RVs up to 40 feet will fit.
The facts
- Cost
- Free to camp
- Drinking water
- No, bring your own
- Toilet
- Yes
- Phone signal
- None on any of the big networks
- Type
- Specific campsite
- When it’s open
- All year, though snow can shut the way in
- Managed by
- Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests
Rules and restrictions
Eight people per campsite, and no more.
No stock animals.
Getting there
It is on US Highway 12, about 11.6 miles east of Lowell, between the highway and the river.
Coordinates 46.229620, -115.475088
Open in Google Maps Agency page
What is near here
Nothing is close to this one. Everything below is a long drive away, and each line says how far.
- Tolo Lake Directions
- Dworshak Dam Directions
Every distance on this page is the driving distance. A short distance can still take a long time. The road may be closed for the season, covered in snow, or washed out. Many of these roads are dirt. Plan your route before you leave home. Out here there is often no phone signal to look it up on the way.
Nearest town and supplies
- Pierce, ID Directions
- Kamiah, ID Directions
Kamiah is big enough that you’d normally expect fuel and somewhere to buy food. Nobody from here has been to check, so don’t count on it if you’re running low.
Why the drive to town is usually twice what the map says — what we found measuring every campsite in this guide.
When it’s time to move on
On most public land you can camp for 14 days before you have to move on. Check this site’s own limit before you plan a long stay. This is Forest Service land, and each forest sets its own rule for how far you have to go, so check before you travel.
The nearest other free campsite in this guide is Meadow Creek Campground, Idaho — 35 miles in a straight line, but a 66 mile drive. Nine more sit closer than 25 miles, if the rule here allows them.
This guide covers five states and does not list every free campsite, so there may be something closer that we do not hold. Check this site’s own rule before you rely on it.
Have you been here?
Fees and access change, and the records do not always keep up. If you have been, tell us what you found.
Thank you, that is recorded. It helps the next person.
Add road notes for this site
The thing we cannot get from any government record is what the drive in is actually like. If you have done it, this is the most useful thing you can leave behind. We read everything before it appears, and we print a first name with it if you give one.
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Where this information comes from
The description on this page is ours. The facts in it, and the fee and facility details below it, come from the Forest Service’s own records, read in August 2026.