Scott Lake Campground (Willamette NF, OR): which site to take

Scott Lake Campground

Gorgeous Campground with everything you can dream of. Alpine Lake, Scenic View, Plenty of space. The only downside is mosquitoes. Place can be quite packed when the mosquito season subsides

Scott Lake is a small, primitive campground on the McKenzie Pass highway, 40 minutes from Sisters, with tent sites in the firs around a little lake and, on a clear evening, the Three Sisters reflected in it. No trailers, no water, no reservations: a $5 day fee and whatever spot is free.

It is only open when the pass is, from about mid-July to late October. Our note calls it a campground with everything you can dream of, apart from the mosquitoes, and says it fills up once they are gone; late in the season there is one more spot, on the dry creekbed at the head of the lake, where in October 2022 we took our best photo of the Three Sisters.

Quick facts

Sites: 15 numbered on our map, tent sites only; no trailers or RVs
Booking: First come, first served: you claim a site in person
Fee: $5 a vehicle a day, or a Northwest Forest Pass
Season: About mid-July to late October, while OR 242 is open
Water: None; bring your own or treat lake water
Toilets: Vault toilets
Rules: Up to 14 days in 60; quiet hours 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.; dogs on a leash
From Sisters: About 22 miles, 40 minutes; from Bend, an hour and a quarter; from Eugene, under two hours

Which site to take

Right at the water: 9, 1, 14, 5, 6 About 15 to 45 feet from the shore.
On your own: 1 About 450 feet to the next site.
The view, late in the season: End of summer Spot “The best spot with a beautiful view, but accessible only in the end of summer as it is a creekbed.”

Every site

Site	To the lake	Next site	In our photo
1	20 ft	450 ft	no photo
2	210 ft	190 ft	no photo
3	270 ft	190 ft	no photo
4	70 ft	70 ft	no photo
5	40 ft	60 ft	a tent beside a fallen log, firs around it
6	50 ft	60 ft	a table and fire ring among firs and logs
7	100 ft	100 ft	no photo
8	120 ft	100 ft	an open bench of bare ground among the firs
9	20 ft	110 ft	no photo
10	100 ft	90 ft	no photo
11	270 ft	110 ft	no photo
12	240 ft	110 ft	no photo
13	60 ft	80 ft	no photo
14	20 ft	80 ft	no photo
15	80 ft	150 ft	a table and fire ring under tall firs
End of summer Spot	100 ft	90 ft	the dry creekbed meadow, the Three Sisters across the lake

Distances are straight lines from each pin, to the water and to the nearest neighbor, so read them as “about”. Photos from June 2020 and October 2022.

Questions

When is Scott Lake open?: From about mid-July to late October, depending on when the McKenzie Highway (OR 242) opens and closes for snow. Snow can linger in the campground after the road opens.
Can you bring a trailer?: No. It is tent camping only; vehicles over 35 feet are not allowed.
Is there drinking water?: No. Bring your own.
What about mosquitoes?: The Forest Service warns of heavy mosquitoes in July and August, and our note agrees. It also says the place gets busy once they are gone.
Where do you see the Three Sisters from?: Across the lake, on a clear day. Our best view of them was from the dry creekbed at the head of the lake, in October.

Checked October 2026 with Forest Service: Scott Lake Campground, Recreation.gov: Scott Lake and OpenStreetMap (Scott Lake). Been there since? Tell us what has changed: support@tentspots.com.