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Clay Clay Creek Recreation Site is nestled in the Coast Range of Oregon between Eugene and the Oregon coast at an elevation of 436-492 feet. Located at the confluence of Clay Creek and the Siuslaw River, this recreation site offers a wealth of activities including forest hiking, fishing, wildlife viewing, picnicking and camping. The Springfield Office of the Northwest Oregon District of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages the Clay Creek Recreation Site. Recreation This quiet family oriented recreation site is a favorite if you enjoy riverside camping with an interpretive trail to old-growth timber. Spacious campsites with paved parking pads, mossy vine-maple tangles, and tall straight firs make up this camping area. The recreation site also boasts large group shelters available by reservation for group outings, weddings, or other events. The Clay Creek Trail, created in 1991 for hiking, provides access to a stand of Douglas fir high above the campground and the Siuslaw River. The site’s Clay Creek Trail ascends a ridge above the campground to a remnant old-growth stand. From camp, you cross the concrete bridge on Clay Creek Road and river to begin the hike. Facilities Clay Creek offers 21 individual campsites to accommodate 32 feet of RV, truck and trailer, or tents. Most sites contain fire ring, barbeque grill, picnic table, and tent pad. In addition, the site contains vault toilets, a summer swimming area with dressing rooms nearby, individual picnic sites, a children’s play area, horseshoe pits, potable water, volleyball area (bring your net and ball), and a ball field. The two group day use shelters have a maximum limit of 25 people due to COVID-19 social distancing regulations. Natural Features Clay Creek campground and the surrounding area are home to large canopy trees such as Douglas fir, western hemlock, red cedar, red alder and big leaf maple. The forest understory features a host of native plants like rhododendron, salal, various fern species, salmonberry and vine maple. On the forest floor, oxalis, Calypso orchids and mosses compliment the scenery. A diverse variety of bird life, from the seldom seen pileated woodpecker, northern spotted owl and marbled murrelet to the ever-present Oregon junco, frequent this area. Signs of larger animals, such as raccoon, mink, bear, elk, deer and beaver are evident. Clay Creek is part of the Siuslaw River watershed that drains water from the Coast Range to the Pacific Ocean. The river flows broad, cloudy, and green and calls to anglers; check current fishing regulations before casting your line. The Siuslaw River is a salmon watch site that runs fast and cold during the winter months, where you can observe spawning Coho and Chinook salmon in the river’s exceptional habitat during the fall and winter. Nearby Attractions Put-ins for the river downstream, along the Siuslaw River Road. No permit required to paddle the 6.5 mile river, with Class II - III rapids. Whittaker Creek Recreation Site (Florence) Alder Dune Campground (Florence) Archie Knowles Campground (Florence) B & E Wayside Mobile and RV Park (Cottage Grove) Baker Bay Campground (Dorena) Baker Bay County Park (Westfir) Bedrock Camp
From Eugene (valley): From Interstate 5 go west on Beltline Road to West 11th Avenue. Turn right onto West 11th Avenue (Highway OR-126). Follow Highway 126 about 29 miles to Siuslaw River Road just west of Walton. Turn left on Siuslaw River Road and follow about 10 miles to the intersection of BLM Road 19-7-20.1. Keep left on Siuslaw River Road for about 6 miles. The main entrance to the recreation site is located on the right.
From Florence (coast): Take Highway OR-126 east about 14 miles to Mapleton. Turn right and follow Highway 126 for about 12 miles to Siuslaw River Road. Turn right on Siuslaw River Road and follow about 16 miles to the intersection of BLM Road 19-7-20.1. Keep left on Siuslaw River Road for about 6 miles. The main entrance to the recreation site is located on the right.
$10 per night camping fee; $5 per night extra vehicle fee
Very loud! People were up tell 530 am blasting music and yelling. A lot of the sites had trash in them, and no deep enough area to swim in or easy access to the water. Just a slippery bank. It’s is pretty though, and the bathrooms were clean.
Clay creek is beautiful! Kids had a great time playing in the water (higher than usual) and catching crawdads!
An hour out of service, I like to be unplugged, but I need to know I can make a call in an emergency.
There was quite a bit of trash at our site when we got there, and parking is not optimal.
Lots of mosquitos and little itty bitty beetles flying around, very irritating. My fault for not having enough bug repellant. Loud families yelling profanities at their obnoxious children and the bathrooms smelled horrible. Also lots of brown moss and old crunchy dried up foliage that gave it kind of an "abandoned" feel. Also the water was about a foot deep so no swimming to be had. There's also no camp host. The bonus with the loud families was not feeling guilty for playing my music, of course we turned it off at 10pm.
Did find some free birch they had cut to clean up. Yay for free firewood! Also, the sites were pretty big and had lots of green coverage for privacy. And the tent pad was nice and flat. We were able to fit a 4-person tent on the tent pad and my dad's little 2-person far enough away from the fire so it worked out. It wasn't the nicest but I had fun anyway. There's potable water and a field where we threw the frisbee around.
Campground with a couple large covered areas with grills and many picnic tables. Also a large grassy area for kids to play in. It is set in an idyllic wooded location next to Clay Creek. I would have given 5 stars if the camp sites were a little further apart.
