U.S. Forest Service · Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest · Washington

Ballard

This forested campground is located along the West Fork Methow River gives access to nearby hiking trails: Robinson Creek Trail 478 and Lost River/ Monument Creek Trail 484 entering the Pasayten Wilderness and the West Fork Methow Trail 480.

First-come, first-servedFrom $10 per nightTents only

Sites are first-come, first-served. Recreation.gov lists this campground for paying on site, and you may be able to pay with the Scan and Pay feature of its app.

More like this: first-come in Washington · tent only in Washington

Ballard
Photo from the area. lamblukas (CC BY 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons
4fires
active
Ptarmigan · 20 mi away · 25,566 acres
3 more within 50 miles
Incident details ↓

Amenities & rules

EquipmentTents
Fees$10/Night for single unit plus $5 per extra vehicle. (2 vehicles per site maximum) 2 tents or 1 RV and 1 tent maximum per site

Individual sites vary. Confirm on Recreation.gov or with the managing office.

Season & status

SeasonMay
ForestOkanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
Fees$10/Night for single unit plus $5 per extra vehicle. (2 vehicles per site maximum) 2 tents or 1 RV and 1 tent maximum per site
RulesTrailers 28 ft. max. Maximum stay limit is 14 days.

Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest recreation page ↗

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Ballard20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 3.61 inches of precipitation, 34.3 inches of snowFebruary: 2.35 inches of precipitation, 19.6 inches of snowMarch: 1.99 inches of precipitation, 11.2 inches of snowApril: 1.05 inches of precipitation, 0.2 inches of snowMay: 1.13 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJune: 1.04 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 0.61 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 0.54 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 0.76 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 2.09 inches of precipitation, 2.3 inches of snowNovember: 3.84 inches of precipitation, 17.6 inches of snowDecember: 4.05 inches of precipitation, 37.9 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 22.5°F averageFebruary: 28.0°F averageMarch: 35.9°F averageApril: 45.0°F averageMay: 54.8°F averageJune: 61.5°F averageJuly: 69.6°F averageAugust: 68.7°F averageSeptember: 59.4°F averageOctober: 45.0°F averageNovember: 31.7°F averageDecember: 22.3°F average0 in10 in20 in30 in40 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Mazama, 7 miles from the campground at 2,141 feet, station USC00455133 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 23 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 123 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Getting there

From Winthrop, drive 15 miles west on Highway 20. Turn right onto Lost River Road, drive 7.5 miles on pavement. Continue another 1.5 miles on gravel Forest Road 5400 to Ballard Campground on left side of road.

Coordinates48.6605° N, 120.5423° W · Directions ↗

Fire nearby

  • Wildfire
    Ptarmigan

    20 mi from the campground · 25,566 acres · 90% contained

  • Wildfire
    Sisi

    25 mi from the campground · 4,615 acres · 34% contained

  • Wildfire
    Luna

    32 mi from the campground · 8,553 acres · 42% contained

  • Wildfire
    Border 2

    32 mi from the campground · 9,108 acres · 74% contained

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Call the managing office before you drive.

Supplies & services

Outdoor gearGoat's Beard Mountain Supplies ↗7.8 mi
Dump stationDump station ↗21.3 mi
RV sales & serviceRV sales & service ↗50.3 mi

Locations © OpenStreetMap contributors. Call ahead; hours change seasonally.

Explore

Video

Ballard's Campground & Store near Joplin, Missouri - Campground Review, Full Time

Worth a stop

Trails nearby

Forest Service trail data →

Trailheads within three miles

Trail and trailhead records are the Forest Service's. Distances are straight-line to the nearer trail end. Trail conditions are not tracked here.

Public land it sits in

On Wilderness Atlas →

This campground sits inside Pasayten Wilderness.

Each unit is published as a centre point and an acreage rather than a boundary, so this section stands it in for a circle of the same area. Whether a campground is inside, and how far it is from one it is outside, are both approximate.

On the National Register nearby

On Register Atlas →

Guidebooks for Washington

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Best Tent Camping: Washington
    Ellie Kozlowski, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Washington camping
    Tom Stienstra, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Waterfalls in Washington
    Sawyer Scheer, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

Do I need a reservation at Ballard?

No. Ballard is first-come, first-served. Sites are taken on arrival and paid at the fee station.

Source: Forest Service

How much does it cost to camp at Ballard?

$10/Night for single unit plus $5 per extra vehicle. (2 vehicles per site maximum) 2 tents or 1 RV and 1 tent maximum per site

Source: Forest Service

Can I bring an RV to Ballard?

Ballard is listed for tents only.

Source: Forest Service

What if Ballard is full?

The nearest public campgrounds are Early Winters (6.2 mi, first-come), Lone Fir (6.6 mi, first-come), and Meadows (6.9 mi, first-come).

Source: Campgrounds nearby