Campsite Review: Sam Owen Campground

Campsite Review: Sam Owen Campground, Lake Pend Oreille is located just to the east of Hope, Idaho along Highway 200 on the Hope Peninsula. Sam Owen Campground is operated by the Forest Service and is on the southwest shore of the Peninsula. The nearest city big enough to have most services is Sandpoint. Sam Owen Campground is in a forested area. The campground has 80 sites for RV and tents and a large section of gravel beach suitable for water play. In the day-use area, there is a small boat ramp.

We really like camping at the Sam Owen Campground.

Details

Website: Sam Owen Campground, Online Reservations: recreation.gov

Address: 15 Eames Shores Park Rd, Hope, ID 83836

Link to Google Map for the area: Sam Owen Campground

Phone Number/Reservations: (877) 444-6777 email and chat also available

Dates stayed: July 29 – August 3, 2020

Comfort: during our stay, each day was in the upper 90-degree range. Low temperatures at sunrise about 70 degrees.

Elevation: 2000′

Season: Mid May through September

Price Paid: $11.50 per night, plus “transaction” fee. Here is a link to the article I wrote on how I get such a low price. FoxRVTravel-Snippet: America The Beautiful Pass

Our Site: #76

Hook-ups: none

Dump station: Yes

Potable Water: Yes

Water to fill your RV storage tank: No

Cell service: Verizon – weak service / AT&T – no service

Observations

Campsite Review: Sam Owen Campground, insider info:

Sam Owen Campground has good tree cover and is mostly shady. Our site had sunshine in the morning and shade in the afternoon. The closer to the lake you are, the more shade there is. The morning sun would have supplied plenty of sun for solar in our site.

The Sam Owen Campground is divided into four distinct areas. We are camping in the Scented Leaf Loop which seems to be newer and has larger sites. Sites # 63 – 66, 71, 75 – 77, 79, 81 were big enough with enough maneuvering room for our RV. These sites were also level enough for our RV. Many sites in the campground were not big enough or level enough for our RV.

FoxRVTravel-Campsite Review: Sam Owen Campground, Lake Pend Oreille Site 76

I didn’t evaluate site sizes in the other loops, but they were smaller. The pads in the other loop were on gravel rather than asphalt. Some of the campsites in the other loop were big enough for our RV but most were not. The other loops were even more shaded. The shade at our site was in the afternoon.

Bonus

Lake Pend Oreille is huge, and for us with the calm winds, it was a kayaking playground. The lake seems endless and spans for miles. We could have spent the summer camping at only Lake Pend Oreille staying at the numerous campground. We picked this one only based on it being on the north end of the lake.