Cougar Rock Campground — Mount Rainier National Park

Pretty big site that is a short drive to paradise. Many hiking trails nearby. Sites are a bit rugged and small but it was cozy enough.

This is a great quiet campground convenient to Paradise. 10-15 min drive up the mountain.

No cellphone reception and the spots were not the most level and a little tight (we have a 23 foot rig and it would be tough to bring much bigger) the roads are narrow and spots are narrow to get in and out of. The national park also has a limit on the size, so check before you try to come here. It is first come first serve after Sept 5th. We went during week and got a spot, but campground was still pretty full. People seemed to leave on Wednesday; but loved having the Carter falls trail across the street and Mt. Rainier in plain site. It was a quiet spot and you could also drive to Longmire a couple miles down the road. You have the option to sit at the lodge in Paradise, if you need to check emails or make a phone call.

Dump station was closed. Fireban in affect, so no firewood option, but they have trash and a place to recycle and of course, bathrooms were open.

My wife and I came here on a Friday afternoon hoping to get a spot. We did! We got lucky because only a few hours later, it was full. Keep in mind this is a “first come, first serve” campground. Our site was decent sized. There’s a burn ban pretty much everywhere, so no fire but we made due. It’s a good location to all the good spots in the park. The only downside was that the women’s bathroom flooded, and the other one got shut down so the one closest to our site was the only operable one, and it was packed. But, they were clean. We would absolutely go back!

Super quiet and felt tucked away, not too far from Paradise and Ashford. My neighbors felt close enough for me to feel safe, but far enough away for some privacy. Beware the squirrels and chipmunks and keep your food secure. Bear box provided.

These sites were great, pretty spread out and trees for privacy. Beautiful area and a great spot for hikers as it is close to many popular trails! Clean bathrooms were great.

Nice secluded area close to the Carter Falls trailhead. Spots range from heavily wooded to out in the full sun. Our spot was better designed for tents with the parking a bit removed from the site, but it gave us more trees and a quieter experience. This spot does have shared parking with B15, so if two larger vehicles parked here it would be tight. We have a Mercedes Sprinter (170" WB) and were relieved we parked next to a small car. Site parking is rarely level, some with steep slopes to contend with.

Was able to get a tent site first come first serve for what wasn't reserved. Very cold and rainy in comparison to campsites outside of the park. Site were private but the bathrooms were a walk.

Stayed here for two nights over Memorial Day weekend and it was first come first serve, we got to the campsite around 7 pm and there were still two campsites left. We stayed in site 22 A which was spacious and had the perfect trees for hammocking as well as an open space to view the stars above. This campsite in particular was closer to the busier road that parkgoers drive on so you could hear muted car traffic drive by. The bathrooms were farther from this site, up a small hill. Was a two min walk, would recommend walking to the bathroom with someone when it's dark. On the walk, you can see Mt. Rainier behind some treetops! Such a cool sight. There is a beautiful hike that leads to Carter Falls with the trailhead near the campground entrance. We did not have service at the campground but we did get reception at the visitor center closer to the top of the mountain.

Sites were so secluded, silent, and beautifully full of nature. We had a great site that bordered a small gully for the kids to play in.

What not to love views of Mt Rainier. Close to paradise visitors center. And tons of hiking trails

This is a wonderful campground at Mt rainier. Close to paradise visitors center

This is a pretty area next to the upper White River, but it is just an average campground. The sites are tightly spaced and they are not all that level. Backing into the space was a bit of a chore for my large truck camper. The loops are all heavily wooded and I was not able to get satellite signal or cell. I had to go to the paradise visitor center to be able to connect with Starlink and use the internet and phone. The bathrooms are average and there are no showers.

Beautiful campground at the foot of Mount Rainier. Lots of great site options. Great tasting water and lots of restrooms. It is unfortunate that there aren’t any showers. There were also a lot of closed sites closed due to falling tree danger.

This beautiful wooded campground is close to the river by the Carter falls trail. We stayed at 3 different spots all unique. Only thing that was a little scary was many spots were closed due to hazard trees.

This is a popular, reservable campground at Mt Rainier. There are 5 loops with A loop and R(Road) loops not reservable. There is a fancy electronic iron ranger at the ranger station(something the rangers want you to use even when they are in their booth and clearly able to handle reservations). I had a nifty little bridge connecting my car and the picnic table to the the tent pad. I also had kids running through the trees and the middle of my campsite from the sites behind me. Most sites had good hammocking trees, and it looked like all had picnic tables. There is an amphitheater in the campground that had a nice draw of campers for the evening program. Bathrooms were clean and well maintained, but no showers. E loop was a no generator zone, which means it was fully booked while I was there. There is a good hike to Carter Falls along the Wonderland Trail, which cuts right through the campground. You are fairly close to Paradise which has more hiking trailheads and a visitor center.

Perfect jumping off point to explore and hike Longmire and Paradise areas of Rainier. The campsites are clean and well maintained. We used our teardrop trailer on loop C of the campground. Not a ton of privacy but certainly not crammed in together with plenty of wooded area behind each site. Recommend for either tent or RV camping at Rainier.

In the NP and close to Paradise area. Sites are nicely spaced and private.

This is a great campground and especially convenient place to base your Mt. Rainier explorations out of.  Nice clean bathrooms and lots of water stations available.  Ranger talks nightly are great for kids.

Our second night we had to change sites and had B002. It was adequate, but we like C001 better. The site had lots of large rocks on the ground so be careful as there were lots of trip hazards. The bathrooms and water were a little ways down the loop. Most sites in the area were closed due to “hazard trees” so it was very quiet. This site is best for only one tent or two small tents. The bear locker was a little tough to open, like the lock got jammed or something. It was still a great place to camp.

Site C001. It was very spacious and fit our 10x10ft tent. Lots of shade and trees to hang several hammocks. Right across the street were the bathrooms and water fountain. Most of the sites around us were closed due to “hazardous trees” and so it was very quiet since the campground felt empty. Be sure to bring bug spray.

National Park camping is so special, and luckily I have a friend who’s good at helping me to remember to reserve sites in January. This campground was lovely and it’s perfect for exploring the park. Stay here if you can get a site.

A mostly pleasant national park campground in a beautiful setting. Be advised that not every site has a lot of privacy and I would definitely not recommend site C012. This site has a trail right next to it connecting to loop B that numerous people use to get to the bathroom in loop C. Normally I would not mind people walking past nearby, but this trail was a mere 5 feet away from our site, so the entire time we were sitting at our fire pit, people continuously walked past us. The worst of it was at night when people had lanterns and headlamps and we kept getting their lights shined in our eyes as they walked past. Other than this inconvenience, I enjoyed camping here and would return again. I would just be more careful about which site I choose.

I’ve spent a couple of nights up here this year and I LOVE this campground. It is large, but there is plenty of separation and the sites seem to offer fairly good privacy and have a good amount of space. 

I camp in a hammock and there are a lot of sites that offer enough well spaced trees to set up hammocks.  There are nice fire rings at each of the sites, nice tables and firewood is available at the camp site.  I didn't know before I went, but dogs are allowed as long as they are on leashes, BUT they aren't allowed on most trails around the mountain.

The campground is well situated to get you close to Paradise as well as a ton of hikes nearby. 

There aren’t any showers, but the bathrooms are clean and have flush toilets.

Very nicely maintained campground. Get your reservations in the winter before your trip. Spots fill up fast. Bathrooms are clean. Tent sites are nice and provide plenty of room. Tent sites aren’t to close to each other but typical for national parks. Highly recommend this camp ground.

What could be better than camping next to a river on the side of a snow capped volcano

Bring cash and a card for stay overnight. Card for kiosk and cash for firewood. 

Nice campground view of mountain from some campsites. 

Also has wash basins at the flush toilets sites for washing dishes. Has recycle bins as well. 

Not far from paradise.

Cougar Rock is a large campground (and the one closest to Paradise) with over 170 sites in six loops.  Note that the maximum allowable length for motorhomes is 35 feet and 27 feet for trailers and 5th wheels. Loops A and E have some sites that are right on the road. Some sites are pull-through and most are spacious with varying amounts of privacy between them. Each site has a fire ring, picnic table, and a bear box. C1 felt very private, even though it was the first site in the C loop. You can hear the Nisqually River lull you to sleep. Don’t forget to bring your towel to the bathroom as there are no paper towels or air dryers in the bathrooms. The bathroom was reasonably clean but as with all NPS campgrounds, there are no showers. Cougar Rock was a very quiet campground on a Monday in mid-June, even though there were a fair amount of people camping. The campground opened in May; the sites are reservable June 21-September 3 only. If you haven’t reserved a site (and therefore pre-paid), there is a machine that accepts coins and credit cards (but not bills that I could see!) to pay for your campsite. The Wonderland trail is accessible from the campground, but you would have to drive to other trailheads. We are told you can get a great view of Mt. Rainier just across the street on the trail, but we will have to take the ranger’s word on it as the clouds completely obscured the view! No cell service.

We got a campsite near the back of the campground right next to a trailhead. The spots seemed to be well spread out so we had plenty of privacy. The restrooms were clean and the park rangers were very helpful. Only downfall of being near the trailhead was having backpackers walking through late at night coming back from hikes up the mountain.

We met some friends at Cougar Rock Campground on Mt Rainier at the end of September thinking we would have no problem getting a site. We ended up getting the very last site in the entire campground. So even if you're going a little later in the season, I would recommend getting a reservation. (And the campground closes in October for the season.) Of course, we ended up at a site right next to the bathroom, which is not my favorite. But once again, lucky to even get a site. The site (C-22) was actually kind of interesting because there is a big rock right behind the fire pit so you can sit on the rock and be a little higher over the campfire. The bathrooms were clean and fine. You really can't go wrong looking at the stars on a clear, September evening on Mt. Rainier.

On Sunday before heading back to Portland, we took the short drive up to Jackson Visitors Center at the top of Rainier where we took some easy walks (can't even call the hikes) around the absolutely gorgeous area. The colors were stunning! Then had some awesome chili at Paradise Inn right next to the visitors center before heading home. Perfect fall weekend.

Large campground located near the Paradise area of Mt. Rainier. Many sites tucked into large trees. Some loops close to main toad so the noise can be an issue, but overall beautiful!