Oak Grove Campground

If you like dry camping, this might be a campground you should check out. None of the 81 sites have electricity or sewer hookups, but there are water faucets spread around so that you're never more than 100 feet from one. Most of the sites are for single vehicles, but there are a few large enough for multiple vehicles, and you'll pay double for these.

Oak Grove is located in the high desert, so there is not a lot of rain throughout the year. There is sufficient plant life to give most sites a modicum of privacy. However, many of the oak trees have been destroyed by beetle infestation. Not every site will have shade.

The host keeps the numerous vault restrooms very clean, and he makes the rounds to greet new campers (at least when it's not busy).

I stayed two nights and listened to the coyotes coming in from nearby Palomar Mountain and the surrounding hills. They were quite noisy for perhaps 30 minutes, causing all the dogs in the area to go crazy. The daytime temperatures during my stay (November 22 and 23) were between 87 and 90 degrees. At night, temperatures got down into the mid-50s.

INSECT SCREENS was the operative phrase of the day at Oak Grove while I was there. From sunrise to sunset, the flies were all over the camp. It was so bad that cooking outside was an impossibility during daylight. Bring along an insect-screened enclosure if you can, or you'll regret it. Now to be fair, the camp host did say that he had never seen such a heavy fly infestation at the camp in the six years he had been there. At any rate, when the sun went down and the temperature dropped, all the flies went home for the night leaving campers free to start their campfires for the evening's marshmallow and weenie roast.

Oak Grove campground sits right off of hwy. 79, and there was traffic most of the day and night--some of it quite loud. It's in the Cleveland National Forest and maintained by the US Forestry Service. Put your cell phones away because there is no cellular service.