Sahara Creek DNR Horse Camp | Established Campground

June 11th, 2023 by Mark Turley

Things have changed here and you now need reservations, except for state holidays when it is still FF from Thurs - Mon on holiday weekends. See for details - https://www.dnr.wa.gov/ElbeHillsTahoma . So no more dropping in to grab an open spot. And no online reservations, so you are forced to plan this one in your schedule. To reserve you need to send an email at least 3 days in advance, and up to 3 months out.

There are 30 spots, with 20 for horse folks only and 10 for horse folks, rvs, or tents. It is a very nice spot in the woods and would have been a great stay if we had reservations.

June 7th, 2022 by thunderchicken1200

Stayed here 2 nights. Gorgeous area. Insanely quite with ONE exception- there’s a shooting range less than a mile away- and it appears it’s open 24hrs, cause I heard gun shots from 10:30pm till about 11:15pm. It’s loud enough to hear, but you can tell it’s a ways away. At first it didn’t make me feel very comfortable, but when I learned it’s a shooting range- and not just a bunch of people drunk in the woods shooting guns wherever they want- i felt a little better. But this area has lots of spots, fire rings and tables at each. Pit toilets also on site. This is a pack in-pack out area. No trash cans anywhere. Most of the sites are reserved for equestrian trailers, but honestly- this campsite was about 95% empty, so I’m sure you could take one of those spots and wouldn’t be an issue. It’s surrounded by trees, so zero hope of charging your solar. This would accommodate any rig, but probably not a Class A too well. Road coming in is double in literally any car. I got intermittent internet on TMobile, ranging from 1bar LTE to 2bars 5G. But surfing was fine, streaming was fine and even took a FaceTime call. Zero service Verizon though. This has been one of my favorite sites. Pristine (no garbage), quite and hardly any people. The shooting range was it’s only drawback. About 15mins from Mt Rainier entrance. You will need a Discover pass to stay here. WA requires it for most of their campsites. you can get one here: discoverpass.wa.gov. $100 fine if your caught without the pass.

October 5th, 2021 by ourhomeonthemove

Awesome spot, water and rest rooms available, 7 free days stay with the Washington discovers pass

September 14th, 2021 by Liz

Nice campground with level sites. Mostly for horse camping but a few without corrals. Put toilets but no other amenities. Good T-Mobile signal. Close to road so some noise, but gets quiet at night. Free with discover pass.

September 1st, 2021 by The Wandering Shores

This campground has plenty of spots for just about any size rig. This is dry camping at it's best. Free for up to 7 days with the Discovery Pass. It should be noted that there are very few spot that will give you any access to a clear view of the sky. So of you are looking for solar you are going to have very limited options (mostly just the spot or two that are directly at the end of the road as you drive into the campground.) You are only about 15 minutes away from the entrance to the National Park. Couple items to keep in mind

* There are a couple of water spigots spread out around the campground (I was told it is potable water)
* Internet connection is good if you are on Tmobile/Sprint but non for Verizon
* There are no dumpsters or trash cans.
* Gasoline in the area is limited and much more expensive
* There is a "maintence area and home (possible campground host, but not labled that way), they have a deer derrent alarm on their property that goes off (with alarm) at all times of the night. If you are camped on the south side of the loop (directly to the right as you enter) this may keep you up allnight if you are a light sleeper.

This is a great spot and we will be back for sure.

July 16th, 2021 by nissimiko

beautiful campground. DNR free stay up to 7 days with Discovery Pass.
good t-mobile service no Verizon.

July 7th, 2021 by courtney.biggs

Nice, quiet, grassy campground with big spaces in partial shade between the trees. Campground was about 75% occupied mid-week in July. About half of the campers were there with horses and the other half were evenly split between basic tent camping and RVs. As to be expected for a horse camp, there was scattered horse dung all over the campground including parking area and fire pit area of the site I stayed at -- this can be a challenge if you're traveling with dogs who may be tempted to eat or roll in the dung. Discover Pass required. AT&T reception fluctuated between nonexistent and 2 bar LTE.

July 12th, 2018 by Alagoniajourney

Very nice and quiet! People are staying even without having a horse!

June 29th, 2018 by jennifer.vialette

Nice but not free. Requires Washington Discover Pass ($10/day pass, $30/annual pass) which you get at the nearby gas station. Flat, large, clean place with many sites and multiple dry toilets. Quiet. All sites have picnic tables and grills.

May 11th, 2018 by djmgrant

Grassy site in woods with level camping sites , fire pits , tables and pit toilets. Just off main road before Ashford on road to mt Rainier NP. Usage is for horses but we saw other people with camping only.