Unity Lake State Recreation Site

This remote campground in the high desert of eastern Oregon is surprisingly very good with 35 water and electric campsites and two rental cabins. The electricity is 30 or 50 Amps depending on the site. The center section pull-throughs are long, 70-100 feet, and spacious but only 30 Amps, which makes no sense since these pull-throughs are long enough for the largest motorhomes that routinely would prefer 50 Amps. Water pressure is very good and we found the water to not show any signs of high iron content as some reviews have noted. The camp host Mike and the ranger Aliceson both confirmed the water is safe for consumption. There is a dump station at the campground entrance but the loop to the station is fairly tight which would be problematic for any big rigs. Mike was easily the most engaging, active and apparent camp host we have encountered in our 5 years of motorhome camping. Aliceson was similarly ever-present and accommodating.
The campground is relatively new with young trees between most sites that are too small to provide any shade. With summer daytime temperatures in the mid to high 90s, we ran our AC unit from early morning until late night. Nighttime temperatures dropped to the high 40s to low 50s making for a very comfortable night’s sleep.
With the high desert mountain temperatures, the lake has an extremely high algae content that precluded any water activities to include our water-hound golden retriever from swimming.
The highlight for us was the view across the lake with amazing sunsets on the far side of the lake. With minimal light pollution the night sky was amazing with stars and a good view of the Milky Way. There are no hiking trails or other outdoor activities close by. The nearest is the Sumpter Valley Dredge State Heritage Area, about a 45-minute drive. The dredge is a 5-story, 125 foot long floating dredge used to excavate gold from 1935 to 1954. The park staff were very helpful with information and recommendations for activities. There are 3 short nature trails there running along the tailing piles and Powder River. The town of Sumpter was pretty well shuttered, maybe because it was not a weekend.
We would stay here again if passing through the area, but not in the heat of the desert summer.

So, my husband and I made a reservation for the two of us two weeks before arrival for Loop B site #23 for the weekend. Arrived on time to find someone camped in our spot...Not Happy! Camp host was okay and apologized that the reservation system was new for 2023. Not our fault. Then he showed us what was left....Oh wonderful...pull through slots that mimic a Truck Stop with no space in between. Since we weren't about to go home we figured we'd stay for the night since no one was parked on either side of #19. Then 5 o'clock rolled around and like someone rang the dinner bell two large campers with boats pulled in on either side. Then we realized that two other campers, parked along the same strip, were family members...so it was an all out family reunion we were smack dab in the middle of. The party raged until 9:45 complete with camp fire smoke that filled our camper, and all the alcohol they could drink. And like a hurricane they all bugged out at 9:50pm and we were totally exhausted. We got up at 5am and out of there...and not quietly I might add. Worse place to be if you're not a party person. The campsite we wanted was in Loop B #23 and was located on a nice grassy lawn far apart from the next camper...but when rap music started playing around supper time we figured we wouldn't be back because none of the sites would have been peaceful. Not a place I'd take my family for some quiet R&R...the lake was nice though and they did have two large cabins.

This campground was a very pleasant surprise for us! We arrived on a Saturday evening, and there were spaces available! The parking spaces are paved & level, and have adequate spacing between sites. The sites are grassy, with fire rings, electric, and water. There are flush toilets & showers. Beautiful view of the lake. It’s quiet, and clean. If we didn’t have a destination already planned for tomorrow, we would have stayed longer. We have AT & T & have great cell service.

Honestly, nothing bad to say about this little state park. Well maintained, nice sites and beautiful views. Why 4 stars not 5, just not a lot to do unless you want to fish or boat and at 43 degrees and strong winds in early May, not boating or fishing.

Our site had great views of the water and the snow capped mountains. Sites was wide enough for our Class A with slides and tow car. Site has 30/50 amp electric and water. There is a dump up front.

The loop we were in has grassy areas with asphalt RV a s parking pads. A little un-level but not bad. Sites also have a picnic table and fire pit.

If we were passing through, we’d definitely stay again. Sites are first come, first serve. First loop has pull-through and small back-in sites. Go through the first loop into the back loop and there are some great back-in sites and one very long pull through buddy sites.

We were passing through to central Oregon when we stayed here. It was late season, Oct 11, and cold. Days were in the 50's and night's in the mid 20's. In spite of that, each site had water including electricity as advertised. This is a clean park with great views, great for an overnight stop and if you like to fish. Each site has a table and a fire ring.

A nice campground with good lake views from the sites. Electric (30 amp) and water at each site. There is a dump station at the entrance. There is lake access from the campground but the stairs are basically in a campsite. Other access points from the day use and boat launch area. There are some pull-through sites which are long enough to accommodate any rig but, the orientation is a bit odd. There are arrows on the road indicating one-way traffic but, if you’re a motorhome, you’re going to have to make a very tight right-hand turn to get out. I made it but if someone had been camped in the spot across from me I would not have; I would have had to go opposite the one-way. Not a big deal since there were so few campers, may be a different story when crowded. There are a couple of cabins at the campground too. The grounds were very clean and well-maintained. Other reviewers indicate they had some sort of Verizon coverage, I did not…zippo.

After a week boondocking to watch the Total Solar Eclipse and wanting a place to wait out traffic after in South Eastern Oregon, we chose Unity Lake State Park for one night due to a nice kayakable lake and water and power hook ups.

There are several level sites with views of Unity Lake, a swimming area and a boat launch. The Lake itself was fairly murky and algae filled but provided beautiful views from out on a kayak.

Each site had power and water hook ups, plus there were free showers available for campers or $2 for a shower for a non-camper. There are no sewer hook ups but there is a dumpstation at the entrance to the park.

Would definitely stay again in the future for a few days to explore the area more.

Access is a paved road and rigs of any size will easily navigate.

Verizon cell coverage was very spotty with minimal 1X available.