Oregon’s Private Campgrounds – Camp Dakota

To paraphrase John Lennon. imagine there are no government campgrounds. It’s easy if you try. Take Camp Dakota, for example, near Scotts Mills, 35 miles east of Salem. This privately-owned, in-the-forest get-away offers nearly 50 sites for tents, campers and RVs. You can also rent yurts and teepees. Want to play volleyball? Disc golf? Shoot air rifles or practice archery? You can at this private campground in the green Cascade foothills. A group of friends and I were just there to play paintball. Everything about this not-a-government campground is reasonably priced, well maintained and welcoming. Camp Dakota is exemplar of what would be if government focused on its core mission — protecting life, liberty and property — and left campgrounds to the private sector.