Ainsworth State Park

We would camp here again and stay in A sites. A sites are about 70 feet up the hill from the B sites which are closer to the highway and to the railroad tracks. The highway sounds more like a river, quiet, constant hum. The railroad tracks, about every half hour by train goes by. They would be more noticeable in the B sites and if I were in a tent rather than an RV. We avoided the spot because of the railroad track responses. Not nearly as bad as some spots that we’ve been at.

Very impressive spacing between the campsites. There is ample space to walk around and stay socially distanced. No trash or shower service right now, but restrooms are open. Plenty of water, electric, sewer hookups.

Although the campground was full at the end of the week for the weekend, we felt very at home and it was such a good location to see all the water falls on the Columbia Scenic Highway! Would definitely recommend staying here for a week or a weekend to see the beautiful falls! Definitely visit Laturell Falls, my favorite! But the camp grounds were very well kept and the hosts and rangers were always nice! On site showers to if you are tent camping!

Ainsworth State Park is right off highway 84; I mean, RIGHT off it. The train noise all night doesn’t bother me... but loud semi trucks all night? Obnoxious. The campground itself was clean and very green. Sites are decently spaced on the upper loop (loop A), but there isn’t much privacy. The lower loop was even closer to the road so I imagine it’s even louder.

This campground just wasn’t something to write home about, but I understand the appeal. It’s about a 7 minute drive to Multnomah Falls and close to several other waterfalls along the old scenic highway. It’s a good jumpoff spot for hiking if you drive to the trailheads. The trails leading out from the campground itself are not open, I’m assuming because of the Eagle Creek fire of 2017.

You can reserve online (plus an $8 fee) or honor pay via envelopes when you get there. Campsite host was nice.

Ainsworth State Park was a perfect location for our exploration of Portland (30-40 minutes away), the Columbia River Gorge (you're in the heart of it!), and the Mount Hood area (about an hour to the ski area on the southern side of the mountain). The hiking trails at the park itself remained closed from fire damage in October 2018, but we were easily able to explore other trails in the area including on the Washington side of the gorge. The park offers great services, with all sites being full hookup, plus recycling (hooray!), a nice bathhouse, and a helpful information station with lots of brochures about attractions in the area. Our biggest issue with the park was that it is extremely heavily forested and shady, and with the sun being low in the sky in October we were in a dark, gloomy environment for much of our visit, even though the outside weather was sunny without a cloud in the sky. We had to turn on the lights inside our trailer during the day in order to see, and the constant twilight made it hard to get motivated to get out of the house in the morning!

During our visit, the park was busy on weekends but practically empty during the week. When it was full, the heavy foliage helped create a sense of privacy even though sites are fairly close together. We thought the sites were surprisingly unlevel -- they looked a lot more level than they actually were, and lots of campers used creative leveling solutions. Utilities all worked great. Internet service was not particularly robust on AT&T; we had slightly better service in the B loop (closer to I-84) than in the A loop. With our booster, B loop was consistently 2 bars while in A loop we struggled with one bar at times. Highway noise was muffled thanks to all the trees, but the train was definitely noticeable. It didn't bother us at all, since the horns are blown fairly far away and the rails don't screech.

Check out the free tour at the nearby Bonneville Dam if you have any interest in feats of engineering or fish ecology. We loved it!

Though I usually travel with my camper, on a recent quick trip to Portland for a concert I threw my tent in the car with the anticipation of camping at Ainsworth State Park. I didn't make reservations because, with the state park closure, I figured "how busy can it be at the end of September?"

The answer is--pretty busy! Because the state park is closed the entry road is blocked off and there is an employee on duty near the entrance who checks reservations and assigns campsites. Lucky for me a cancelation was radioed in just as I arrived, so I snagged the last campsite available for the weekend.

Tent sites are a short distance from the parking area, and all were full, so I got a full hookup site in the B section for $26 a night. There were two camp hosts couples, in addition to the entrance employee. Sites are a good size though not too generous (the biggest rigs will have limited options) with decent spacing in between. Bathrooms were immaculately clean, and full hookup sites meant no generator noise. Neighbors were friendly and quiet.

I could not see the highway from the campground, but I could hear it. Those in campers probably won't even notice the highway, but it's hard to miss the sound of the train. In a tent it was so loud I thought perhaps the train was going to run right over my sleeping bag. Trains don't bother me, but light sleepers may have a hard time ignoring it.

The campground is an easy on/off from the highway and a 30-minute drive to and from downtown Portland. As of September 2018, all trails around the park were still closed due to fire damage.

We booked our site before the Eagle Creek fire destroyed the area, really was a shame someone was so stupid! We wanted to keep our reservation, the campsite was a large pull thru with plenty of room and were glad we did. There is minimal noise from the trains, I have ear plugs and with the window open, I slept fine. The campground is a loop and the A side is single wide for pull thru sites and the other side is sites on both sides of the road. We were the only ones in or area several nights and it was quiet, shady and peaceful. You are not allowed to wander out of the campground since the area is off limits while they repair the damage. We hike at Mosier Twin Tunnels, did the hood river fruit loop tour, wine tastings and explored Cascade Locks and the Hood River. We will be back. We made Brownies with extra walnuts for our snack.

I have read the previous reviews and want to say that Ainsworth was a lovely small park tucked away from the road with lots of greenery. It was a little confusing getting to the park initially because the road is still closed for repairs from the big Eagle Creek fire they had less than a year ago- but it should be opened very soon.
Unfortunately during our stay the hiking trails at the campground were all still closed due to the fire- but we saw volunteers working on them during our stay so hopefully they can open up soon. We totally understand that the Eagle Fire was devastating to the area and it will take some time to recover. The campground itself was not burned so it is still very lush and beautiful.
We stayed in A4 which was a great spot.(we have a 31 ft. 5'er) We feel that the A loop sites are quieter than the B loop sites if thats what you are looking for. There is only one row of sites in the A loop, but 2 rows in the B loop (more sites, more people, more noise.)
We spoke with the hosts and the rangers who were all very nice and friendly. You could hear the highway (minimally) and a train every once in a while but it did not ruin the experience for us. We wished we were staying longer as we enjoyed our time here. We will be back for sure!
We have Verizon and there was very spotty coverage. We could text but that was about it.

We loved our stay at Ainsworth! The park itself is in the middle of a beautiful forest and has a wide variety of large, well-spaced sites. Our site (B7) was a great pull-through that was level and spacious with both shade from the pine trees and a sunny large picnic table and fire pit. The park is very dog-friendly - many campers brought their pups and there are large grassy areas to walk to.

You couldn't ask for a better home base to explore the Columbia River Gorge- you are just a mile from Horsetail Falls and a few miles from Multnomah and what became our favorite waterfall, Elowah. You're also centrally-located between Hood River to the East and Portland to the West, each just 30-45 minutes away if you want a change of scenery.

Ainsworth is a terrific value at just $24/night! The only downsides are limited cell coverage and some train noise but you remind yourself that you are at Ainsworth to experience nature and after a while the train noise becomes background noise. All in all, it was a terrific place to stay!!