Shasta Campground

We knew this was an OHV/ATV hot spot. Since we did not have reservations anywhere, we thought we would check it out for a mid-week. It was more than 100 degrees in the valley and it was still hot up at the campground, but it did cool down. Not much shade available at the camp sites. Official at the dam entrance did not ask for ID or vehicle registration. He just walked around the van and waved us through. There were plenty of spots. It is only June, so the lake was still really cold. The few campers that were there were all very nice, but continued to ride their dirt bikes out to the trails until about 9 pm. Fine for us because we were just eating and knew what to expect. It was a planned BLM camp site so don’t expect driving around to pick your own spot ‘in the wild’.

We had a very positive experience at this location. $10 per night is a steal in California for restrooms, water, a place to park with an amazing view! We saw deer and wild turkeys. The bathrooms are ridiculously clean for vault toilets. There is a paved walking trail that takes you to an old railroad tunnel that was pretty cool along with other trails for access to the Sacramento River. Access was easy although it got very busy on the weekend. It is a very popular OHV area but it seemed at night no one was driving so it was very quiet at night. Adjoining town of Redding was super cool with lots to do!

Loved hearing the frogs at night. It was nice in the end but, we had to cross the damn to get to the campsite, and it was not easy. The guards make you stop, show your drivers license, and make you open up your rig to make sure “you got no bad guys in there” is what the guard said jokingly. He was nice but it was just extra, and we were tired and just wanted to get to the site. We got to the site we thought was BLM which usually equals FREE. It was not free. It was $10/night (Cash or check only) and a big sign said $150 penalty if you don’t pay. Discouraging. After all that we realized we had NO signal and couldn’t check in with our kids. I didn’t read anything that warned us of that.

Otherwise it was beautiful, the river was right next to our site. We could see it from our RV. The hosts were very helpful and friendly. The place was super clean. Quiet, and serene. Don’t think we’re coming back though.

Gorgeous views of the Sacramento River and Shasta Dam. Camp sites are small to medium sized gravel pads, each with fire pits and picnic tables. This campground serves off-road enthusiasts, thus expect to hear the occasional dirt bike and razor going by. Otherwise, it's actually a quiet place. A 40+ foot fifth wheel is not going to fit here. However, those with trailers below 35 feet can find spaces, most spaces are pretty small, however. The good news we found the campground pretty empty, so if you get here during mid-week you shouldn't have a problem.

We have Verizon, but zero coverage here. Our WeBoost couldn't help at all.

Even though the price per night is $10.00, or $5.00 for Golden Age members, I never saw any park rangers coming by, nor the camp host. We paid for 4 nights, but stayed 5, and no one said anything. I'm guessing you could stay here, not pay a dime and no one would say anything.

The only facilities are restrooms, water faucets, and trash receptacles. There is an excellent hiking path just a few hundred yards from the campground. We visiting here in April, and flowers were in bloom and the sound of Canadian Geese plentiful.

One thing worth noting is that you must drive across Shasta Dam to the reach the campground, and the dam closes between 10:00pm to 6:00am, hence if you drive into Redding for a night on the town (visit Jack's Cafe for an amazing filet mignon) you will not be allowed to return to the campground if you get to the dam after 10.

Great place to come during the week. There are 26 sites and we were the only people there mid-week. Keep in mind this is a popular OHV area so I'm sure it is very busy on weekends. We tried everything we could to boost a bit of a signal but with no luck. We were able to drive 3-4 miles up an off road trail in the jeep and got 2 bars of LTE in the evening. We really wanted to stay longer but work commitments kept us from being able to do that. There are about 6 sites that can handle bigger RVs and are level. There are pit toilets, drinking fountain and water spigot (unthreaded) and trash cans available. There are also picnic tables and fire rings at each site.