When planning a trip with 2 or more families, consider reserving one of 8 group camps on the Klamath. There are many advantages to being in the group camp instead of several family camps.
Group camps may save you money depending on the number of people you have and the number of vehicles, RV's and boats that need parking.
Group camps allow you to eat together as a group and in some cases, have special cooking facilities and garbage bins.
Group camps usually have restrooms located nearby for the group that are generally not used by the other campers in the area.
Group camps are generally set apart from the family camps so the additional noise created by the group does not bother other people.
Group camps are assigned by reservation only so you know when you get there that your entire group will be together.
Summer or winter the Goosenest Ranger District provides opportunities for many types of recreation. Deer Mountain and Four Corners snowmobile parks provide 135 miles of groomed snowmobile trails which are part of a 250 mile network the reaches into the western half of the Modoc National Forest and the northern part of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. Juniper Flat OHV Area provides 48 acres of open riding terrain.
Happy Camp lies at the heart of recreation in northern California. River rafting, gold panning, wilderness hiking and scenic driving are all popular activities in the summer. Spring and fall offer the best weather and lower fire danger. Winter snowshoeing and cross country skiing can provide opportunities unmatched for solitude.
The Klamath River was designated a Recreational River within the National Wild & Scenic Rivers System in 1981. The Klamath River enters California from Oregon just north of the Goosenest Ranger District. As it heads west it is impounded by two dams which form Copco Lake and Iron Gate Reservoir. Nine miles further west it turns south and follows Interstate 5 for a few miles before again turning west and entering the Happy Camp/Oak Knoll Ranger District. The next 85 miles provide many opportunities for recreation and scenic vistas before the river enters the Six Rivers National Forest. This is a high-use recreation zone. Human waste must be packed out. A scat machine is available in Happy Camp for disposing of collected human waste.
Our interactive river map will help you plan your river trip. It includes information on put-ins and take-puts, rapids, and potential camping sites. You will need to download Google Earth to view the map. You can also book a river trip with one of our permitted outfitters.
Before you start your river trip please complete a trip documentation card. Trip cards are available at river access sites, and may be turned in at the Happy Camp Ranger District office or dropped into one of the trip card boxes available at put-ins. The trip cards help Forest Service staff estimate river use, help us focus our limited staff resources on busier river sections, and help us know if boaters are on a river section if the need for an emergency evacuation arises.
Sections of the Klamath River downstream from Happy Camp are subject to temporary river use restrictions during the summer in observance of Karuk Tribal ceremonies. Please refer to the current schedule for information on the current year's river access restrictions. 2021 Klamath River Closures for Karuk Tribal Ceremonies
The Salmon River was designated a Scenic River and Recreational River within the National Wild & Scenic Rivers System in 1981. The South Fork of the Salmon was designated a Scenic and Recreational River, and the North Fork of the Salmon was designated a Wild and Recreational River, also in 1981.
The watersheds of two great wilderness areas combine to form the Salmon River. The North Fork of the Salmon River begins high up in the Marble Mountains Wilderness, and the South Fork of the Salmon finds its origins in the Trinity Alps Wilderness. The two forks join forces at a place aptly called Forks of Salmon. Twenty miles further west, the Salmon River empties into the Klamath and continues on to the Pacific Ocean. This area is rich with the culture of native people and the history of gold seekers and pioneers.
