We were looking for a place to stay the night and pulled into this part despite the "full" sign hoping that they would have an overflow area. They had a site for our camper but frankly I wish we had kept driving. The park was very crowded, each site near us had 3-4 tents/campers in it, only 2 bathrooms in the park, each with 3 stalls and one shower for the entire park so long line ups and cold water if you managed to get a shower. The bathrooms were filthy, I have seen cleaner ones in a sketchy roadside truck stop! As well our spot was right by the highway and all night I wondered if a truck would jump the curb and come down on top of us. Would have slept better in a parking lot and not paid the high fees they were charging.

We camped with our pop-up trailer at a sunny site. This camp seems to be popular with medium and large size dogs, but they were quiet and well-behaved. The dogs and numerous kids seemed to enjoy the large grassy campground area to run around and play. We hiked the several trails and found them all well-maintained and easy. If you do the full outer loop of trails, you will get about 1000' elevation gain. There are several geocaches along the trails. We found these. We also hiked out of the park for several more, but were not so skillful. The locals hanging out at the Brinnon restaurant were friendly and welcomed us into conversation.

The name of the this vacation rental is called The Historic Balch Waterfront Retreat. It's a Nantucket style home on Hood Canal built in 1920 and steps away from Dosewallips State Park. This was so great for us, since the group we were with had RV's, but we didn't, so it was super convenient. We also had our two dogs which was no problem. I was sweating bullets trying to find a place that took pets close to the State Park. It also allowed us to walk right onto the hiking trails at the state park, right from the house. It really was like walking back into 1920, but with the perfect touch of modern amenities. So many thing were original about the house it was really neat. It's also at the mouth of the where the Dosewallips river meets Hood Canal. I had no idea how much of a draw that is for wildlife. The Brinnon Elk showed up!! We thought we'd really hit the jackpot when we saw a navy submarine that was practicing along the Dosewallips shelf. It was so entertaining with the escort ships watching it's every move. Can't wait to go back and spend more time there. The big bonfire pit and covered balcony with heater and outdoor recliners was a great touch. The panoramic view jetted spa was to die for, especially if you used it at night because the opening skylight above it let you look at the stars and the moon on the water out the windows was..........lets just say inspiring.

40 miles NORTH of Shelton WA. The road leading us there was a curvy Highway 101 two lane (single in both directions) with pull outs for slow vehicles. Beautiful scenery all the way.

Campground is on both sides of the Highway. Spaces seem pretty good size through out. They have full hook-ups, partial, and primitive. They also have 3 Platform Tents. This is where we stayed.

We rented PT1 & PT2 for a night. Out of the 3 PT sites available, I believe PT3 is the best. PT3 is the furthest out on the road - away from most other campers.

All 3 have electric and water. But PT1's water is used by all of the other campers near by. They are told by the rangers to use the nearest one available - this is PT1.

PT2 is directly across from the PIT Toilet. When we were there, the site constantly smelled like a restroom. The PIT Toilets are non-flushing basic port-a-potties sheltered in a wood building with a concrete floor. This is the closest toilet to the platform tents.

Full service restrooms are a five minute walk away. (Very worth the walk) Lots of trees and grassy areas. Some of the roadways are paved, and some are gravel.

Our sites had picnic tables and deep fire-rings with a flip up grill. They also had a full size bunk-bed with a single up top. A full size futon and table with small step stool. They also had a heater, a table lamp, rugs, and small covered porch area.

There are trails through out the park. MOST all are non-marked. There is a walkway/roadway that passes under Hwy 101 leading to the other side of the park.

This is also where the trail to the Bay is located. LOOK Close for it, or YOU WILL MISS IT. You walk up at the underpass and walk across the bridge along the highway over to the otherside of the river. Then you walk across what appears to be a field. The walk from the platform tents all the way to the bay was a VERY long walk. My six year old was good most of the way, but the walk back (after playing in the bay) was almost too much.

The river was very cold. There were people fishing in it. There was some sand, but not an actual beach, mostly rocks and gravel. The bay was pretty neat to look at and my kids found exploring under the rocks to be the highlight of their trip.