Nehalem Bay State Park

I only stayed one night, but what’s not to love about camping (well, yurt-​ing) so close to the beach. I arrived after dark, which I don’t recommend. The road to the park (coming from Portland) was windy and foggy this time of year and I saw a couple deer. I also drove by the campsite and it took me a few minutes to figure out where to check in. But the yurt was clean & private and the campsite was quiet and peaceful. The yurt has lighting, electricity, a heater and sleeps at least 4 people with two beds and a futon. In the morning, I drove out of the park and across the street, parked and walked up a sandy hill to the beach. Perfection. (If you would like to do this too, look for Glenesslin Ln), which is to the left when exiting the park.)

Just returned from 3 nights at NBSP, and we had the usual AWESOME stay at our favorite beach campground. It was the warmest stay we’ve ever had (daytime breezy low 80s), with the usual cool clear evenings-​nights with starry skies and hardly a breeze.
The campfire ban (during this drought year) just went into effect today, so we were fortunate to have spent what appear to be the last few days of the 2015 summer season when you could have a roaring fire during the evenings. We feel a little bad because we gave away the last box of our firewood to our neighbors who were staying another night. Now it sounds like they won’t be able to use it!
For those reviewers on here who don’t like the 10pm shutdown of all noise: It’s a well-​enforced rule that results in a uniform great experience for nearly all campers. In past years we and our friends were the ones who the rangers had to notify to quiet down. Today — years later — we ‘get’ why it’s a part of what makes NBSP the special place it is, one of incredible relaxation including very quiet nights. Bottom line: If you want to have music — or even loud talking and boisterous laughing — past 10 pm, this isn’t the park for you.
For all you familiar with this great campground, a few notes:
** Portions of Necarney City Rd (connecting from Hwy 101 down to the «front entrance» of the park) have been repaved and are in much better shape for the heavy traffic this road gets. But it’s still a twisty narrow drive.
** 50 amp electrical has been installed throughout much of the park (good for you big-​RV electrical users), but the downside is each site’s electrical box now has a light that apparently cannot be turned off. Collectively the ‘light pollution index’ at the park has been increased, and was not at all beneficial to our camping experience.
** A number of the older fire grates have been replaced with a nearly 2-​foot-​tall open-​ended «burn barrel». These look like they’re designed to be buried more than halfway into the ground, but OSP has placed them with the bottom at-​grade. If you have a fire, it’ll have to be pretty big to even see it in these things. I guess that point is moot now anyway, since the burn ban just went into effect.

I have loved this campground for a long time though it’s barely even camping and you are packed in so close to other campsites. But it’s right next to the ocean which is reason enough for this inlander to return year after year since 1998.
However, with each year that passes it seems to attract clueless unexperienced campers who seem to be oblivious to the existence of other people. They play music all hours of the day which, nevermind the fact that the point of camping is to relax in nature, is soooo rude if you are right next to others. Who cares if it’s music that is non-​offense and enjoyable to most people – you are being plain inconsiderate.
Every time we drive down the campground loops there are always idiots who are mired in their self-​absorption walking down the middle of the road. What happened to being aware of your surroundings? Those are probably the same people I see parking in the two lanes meant for through traffic at the entrance of the park. Or worse, mindlessly watching their awful children run in front of moving vehicles but do absolutely nothing about it.
10pm may seem like an early time to keep the noise down but there are many people who stay here when they come out to fish. That means they have to be up around 4:30 or 5am get down to where the boats take off. I’ve never gone but I have family members who look forward to it when the drive 400 miles to do it. Being a jerk about your noise level is like taking a taking a dump on their trip.
If any of this resonates with you as one of the inconsiderate campers I’ve described I have some advice for you:
You and your thoughtlessness are in the wrong place. Stay home and spare the rest of us who want to enjoy this beautiful campground.

Camp sites are small & little privacy. The beach is beautiful but HIKE up to the top of the dunes is really hard in soft sand! We only tried it once! Also the chalk graffiti the kids doodle is out of control. The parents need to be required to wash if off the ground upon leaving as it really takes away from the natural beauty!

The facilities are well maintained and in excellent shape. The spaces are a little close together, but the campers followed the quiet time restrictions and we did not have any problems.

BEWARE — CAR VANDALISM
Our trip was cut short as someone vandalized our car while at the Nehalem Bay State Park. Two window broken and quite a few things taken from our car. We were only gone for 45 minutes, parked by other cars, and with the horse rental business nearby. Very brazen morning break in. Take anything of value with you when you go out for your hike or horse ride. Don’t assume just because it is in your trunk or hidden out of sight you will be OK.
This spot came highly recommend from a friend who lives in Portland and we were excited to visit. It was really pretty and we were looking to spend a few days around this area and on the coast, but had to head back to Portland to deal with busted windows and replacing other items.
From our talk with others in the area, it sounds like ours was not an isolated event.

I couldn’t have asked for a better escape from the city. It was my first time staying in a yurt and it was really cozy on a windy and rainy coastal night.
The bathrooms were spotless and beach access was really close. One of my favorite beaches on the Oregon coast!

We went here to go hiking, but honestly, if you’re on foot, this place really isn’t where you want to be. There isn’t a lot to look at and there is horse poop everywhere, so dodging that really took away from any visuals we might have seen. We hiked for a while and then decided to cut out losses and just head back to the car. Really pretty okay with that decision.

Great place to camp! Clean facilities, quiet campsites. One of my favorite places in Oregon!

The lake here is amazing! Highly highly recommend for a fun family outing/​day trip!
We took our outboard here, dropped it in at the boat ramp, and crabbed here. It was our first time and this place made it seem like we were pros! We dropped the trap on the side with the boat ramp and it was incredible! 18 keepers! Not only that, but they were the best I have ever had! Very heavy with meat and very sweet!
Will def return soon — maybe tomorrow actually!

We came here to camp with our two kids. We were told by the Rangers to stop playing music after 10 pm. First of all, we were playing music so quietly and we weren’t listening to rap or anything, just very mellow music. We turned it off and played some guitar. They came back again and said we couldn’t do that either. First of all, my husband works 60 hour weeks and just wanted to come somewhere to relax. That is such crap that we couldn’t even enjoy ourselves. We were so quiet! This place sucks. It’s a retirement home. Very rude people here.

Everything was pretty good about our stay with the exception of the belligerent horse rental staff and their inability to make use of the trails designated strictly for horses. Don’t freak out at myself and my wife to get off the trail so you may pass, with the horses you just pulled out of the wild 60 days earlier, and whom are not accustomed to humans on bikes. Besides these knuckleheads who clearly seem to think the park is just for their enjoyment, overall we have had an enjoyable stay at this Oregon state park.

Watch out for the deer poop in B25! Other than that, an excellent experience. You are super close to the beach and hear the waves all night. Clean restrooms and kind staff.

if your into nature and walking and seeing pretty things then this is as good as it gets… many times on walks I’ve seen deer and elk and there’s always people walking their animals… at certain times of the year you can even go horseback riding through the park… camping is also a popular thing to do… and being so close to the beach it’s a hope skip and a jump to the water which if you go when the sun is setting and be truly awesome…

I came here a few weeks ago and had a great time. The campsites are big compared to what I’m used to, and it is right on the beach. The beach is gorgeous but not crowded at all. I’m not even much of a beach person myself but I will be coming back here next year. The only downside was that the people staying in the other sites can be slightly uptight, so definitely adhere to to 10:00 quiet hours if you don’t want to make any enemies. There could also be more bathrooms with easier access. Still, I can’t believe I haven’t been here before. It’s gorgeous!

Love this place. It is an annual trip for us. We usually get a Yurt which have electricity, heat, bunk bed with a double on the bottom and a futon (aka Camping-​lite). I like that they have dog friendly Yurts now. The grounds and facilities (with hot showers and real toilets) are clean and there is plenty of space. The dune on the western border protects the grounds from the Pacific winds, but doesn’t hide the wonderful sounds of the waves crashing.
The beach is a wonderful expanse of sand. There are times, in the low season, where you feel like the only person in the world.
It is close enough to town, Manzanita, if you forget something.

Beautiful park!
We stayed in a YURT (year-​round universal recreational tent?) for a night and it was a great experience. We were able to make reservations online, drive up to the park ranger to pick up keys, park right in front of the tent and drop off our stuff then go exploring. The yurt is heated and has electricity. There was a bunk bed and a futon that would have easily fit 6 people comfortably. The showers and bathrooms were a short walk away. The downside is, there aren’t many lights in the park so don’t wander too far without a flashlight and don’t arrive to the campgrounds too late.

So much to love about this campground but a few things I didn’t love. The best features are that it’s behind a big sand dune so campsites are sheltered from the weather of the beach and are nestled in wooded areas, so you get the best of the coast. The weather was very nice when we were there. Cloudy in the morning but it burned off by noon and was pretty hot but there was plenty of shade. At night it was chilly but not windy because of that big sand dune protecting the park.
It’s walking and easy driving distance to a boat ramp at the bay and a beach along the bay. So you can walk on the beach at the ocean or the bay. Both are very nice! Lots of people crabbing and fishing here from boats. We stayed at the horse camp so if you have horses and want to ride on the beach, this is a great place to stay! There’s also a two-​mile long bike/​pedestrian loop through the woods that’s really nice and not very crowded. The town of Manzanita is super quaint and also has a number of walking trails so this is a great place for a relaxed trip with lots of walking opportunities.
What I didn’t love: The horse camp doesn’t have real bathrooms, only port-​a-​potties. You can walk to restrooms with showers in 5 – 10 minutes or to the restrooms at the boat put-​in. The non-​horse campground is very crowded in the summertime (though the weekdays were considerably less) and you have to drive all the way through it to get out of the park. There are kids running around everywhere across the road and on bikes. I would not want to camp in that crowded chaos but if you have kids and want company, this would be a lot of fun.
But my biggest complaint is that the park is full of invasive plants! Himalayan blackberries, Scotch broom, and tansy wort are crowding out huckleberry, red huckleberry, Douglas spirea and other native plants. I’ve not seen a State Park so badly overrun though they may not have the funding to take care of it. If I lived closer, I’d organize a volunteer cleanup. Despite that, however, the park is well-​staffed and the showers were always cleaned, the garbage emptied, etc. There’s good signage, on-​site camp residents to sell ice and wood and other things. Pretty good wildlife viewing too. I saw deer, squirrel, weasel and seal.

This is my favorite ocean camping spot in Oregon. We have a small travel trailer and usually are here during the ‘Discovery Season’ which means reduced prices and no crowds. There are so many things I like about this park:
PROS: Lovely long beach
Great for riding bikes
Close to an awesome grocery store in Manzanita
Doesn’t attract the party crowd
The boat ramp area is another place to hang and see the bay view

CONS: Can’t think of any!
Insider tip: You don’t need to make reservations and pay the extra vendor fee if you’re RV camping during the off season. Loop A that’s used for reservations is crammed together and the other first come, first serve sites are more spread out and private.

I haven’t used the campground here yet, but the park is a beautiful place to visit for a day trip. Most of the park is a two mile long sand spit with a central multi-​use path and beaches on both sides– the Pacific Ocean to the West and the more peaceful Nehalem Bay to the East.
$ 5/​day to park a vehicle at any Oregon State Park, or included with camping fees.