Cape Disappointment State Park Camping: Campground Loops, Yurts and 2026 Reopening Guide

Cape Disappointment State Park camping puts you at the far southwest corner of Washington, on 2,023 acres where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean. You get two lighthouses, old-growth forest, a beach a short walk from your tent, and some of the best storm-watching on the West Coast. It's also a park that just came through a year of major construction. This guide covers what reopened, the campground loops, yurts and vacation houses, reservations, the campground map, and what's still under construction this fall.

Cape Disappointment State Park Camping: The Basics

• Address: 244 Robert Gray Dr, Ilwaco, WA 98624, at the south tip of the Long Beach Peninsula.
• Operator: Washington State Parks. Campsites, yurts and vacation houses are booked on the Washington State Parks reservation site (washington.goingtocamp.com) or by phone at 888-226-7688.
• Day-use hours: 6:30 a.m. to dusk, year-round.
• Day-use parking: a Discover Pass ($10 per day or $45 per year).
• RV length: RVs and combinations up to 45 feet.
• Amenities: showers, restrooms, accessible campsites and a trailer dump station ($5 per use).

Is Cape Disappointment State Park Open? (2026 Status)

If you've searched "Cape Disappointment State Park closed," here's the short version. The campground closed on September 16, 2025 for a roughly $8 million renovation that the legislature funded in 2023 (the project had already been postponed once, from 2024). All four camping loops (A, B, C and D) closed. Work covered culvert replacements, a widened and repaved entrance road, a new welcome center, a new trail in the Three Waters Trail system, a boardwalk and overlook at Lake O'Neil, and wetland restoration.

The park scheduled the campground to reopen on July 1, 2026, and warned that some construction would continue after that. That's where things stand now. The park's current alert (posted September 17, 2026, running through October 31, 2026) says parts of the park are closed or have limited access:

• Boat launch: closed October 1 to 31 for paving.
• Campground entrance: one lane only October 1 to 17, with flaggers. Expect delays when you arrive.
• Burn ban (Level 2): wood fires only in fire pits in designated areas. Gas and propane are allowed.

Construction plans change, so check the alerts on the park's page before you leave home.

The Campground and Its Loops

The Cape Disappointment State Park campground sits behind the dunes between Lake O'Neil and the ocean. It offers four kinds of sites:

• Standard sites for tents and small rigs, with no hookups.
• Partial-hookup sites (water and electric).
• Full-hookup sites for bigger RVs.
• Five primitive hiker/biker sites, first-come, first-served.

Sites are spread across Loops A, B, C and D. Campground directories list about 220 sites in total, but Washington State Parks doesn't publish an official count. A loop is the one people search for most. When camping came back, the park opened reservations for sites 7 to 10, 21 to 25 and 101 to 110 in Loops A and B starting May 1, for stays from July 1.

Cape Disappointment Campground Map

The park links a Cape Disappointment State Park campsite map as a PDF from its main page. That map is dated February 2023, before the renovation, so treat it as a rough layout. To pick a site, use the map view on the reservation site. It shows current site types and availability loop by loop. Download the PDF for offline use anyway, because cell service on the cape is patchy.

Reservations

• Online: washington.goingtocamp.com. Same-day campsite reservations are open until 2 p.m. on your arrival day.
• Yurts and vacation houses: bookable up to nine months before your arrival date.
• Busy season: summer weekends sell out. With the campground just reopened after a year closed, expect demand to be high through 2027.
• First-come, first-served: the five hiker/biker sites are never reservable.

Cape Disappointment Yurts

The Cape Disappointment yurts are within walking distance of the beach. All of them have:

• A 16-foot diameter and 10-foot ceiling, electric heat, lights and a locking door.
• A bunk bed that sleeps three and a futon that sleeps two (five guests max).
• A picnic table and a fire pit with a grate outside. Bathrooms and showers are nearby.

Bring your own bedding. No pets, no cooking and no smoking inside. You can rent an RV pad with hookups next to the yurt for an extra fee. Washington State Parks discount passes don't apply to yurts.

Lighthouse Keepers' Vacation Houses (the Cabins)

People searching for Cape Disappointment State Park cabins usually mean these. The Lighthouse Keeper and Assistant Lighthouse Keeper's Residences at North Head are a Victorian-era duplex with period furniture. Each house has:

• A full kitchen, dining room, living room with TV and DVD player, and a library.
• Three bedrooms upstairs (two queens and two singles) and room for six guests.
• Linens provided. No pets, and no Wi-Fi or cable.

These are the closest thing to lodging in the park. For hotels near Cape Disappointment State Park, look in Ilwaco (minutes away) and Long Beach.

Things to Do: Lighthouses, Trails and Beaches

• North Head Lighthouse. Still an active navigation light. Climbing costs $3 for adults and is free for ages 7 to 17. You must be at least 7 to climb, and you need shoes with heel straps. Volunteers run the tours, so call ahead for hours.
• Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. The older of the two, looking out over the Columbia River Bar.
• Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center. Exhibits on the expedition, the Chinook people, and the area's maritime and military history, plus a First Order Fresnel lens and an observation deck. Admission is $5 for adults, $2.50 for ages 7 to 17, and free for ages 6 and under.
• Hiking trails. The park has about 8 miles of trails through forest, around freshwater lakes, and along saltwater marsh and tidelands. Favorites include the North Head Trail, the Lake O'Neil boardwalk, and Beards Hollow.
• Beaches. Waikiki Beach and the North Jetty are the classic storm-watching and king tide spots in winter. Stay off the jetty in high surf.
• Boating and fishing. A boat ramp and 135 feet of dock on Baker Bay ($7 launch fee). The ramp is closed through October 2026.

Why "Cape Disappointment"? British fur trader John Meares named it in 1788 after he failed to cross the river bar. Lewis and Clark arrived in 1805, and the Army's Fort Canby later guarded the river mouth.

Weather and When to Go

Cape Disappointment State Park weather is classic Washington coast: mild, often foggy summers and wet, windy winters. July through September is the driest stretch. Fall and winter bring storm-watching and empty loops, but plan for real rain. Our camping in the rain guide and how to stay warm camping are worth a read before a shoulder-season trip. Dogs are welcome on a leash in the campground (not in yurts or houses). See camping with dogs.

Recommended Gear

Coastal camping here is about staying dry and warm:

• Coleman Sundome Camping Tent. A full rainfly and quick setup are what you want when a squall rolls in off the bar.
• Teton Celsius Sleeping Bag. Nights on the cape run cool even in August. A 20°F bag covers you year-round.
• Black Diamond Spot 400-R Headlamp. Waterproof and rechargeable for foggy evening walks to the beach or the bathhouse.

For the full checklist, see tent camping essentials. Exploring more of the region? Start with our Washington State camping guide, Olympic National Park camping, and, just across the river, Oregon Coast camping.