New Tillamook State Forest campground opens April 1

The Tillamook State Forest is getting a new campground next month after Oregon Department of Forestry crews converted the Diamond Mill off-highway vehicle staging area into a 16-site campground.

Photos courtesy Oregon Department of Forestry

Diamond Mill, a longtime staging and parking area for motorcycle trail riders, will reopen April 1 as a full campground with picnic tables, fire grates, numbered site posts and signage, the Oregon Department of Forestry said in a press release. An existing double-vault pit toilet is already in place.

"There will still be a day use staging/parking area at Diamond Mill with approximately 20 spaces," said ODF spokesperson Tim Hoffman in an email to this newspaper. He said that a change coming when the site opens for the season is that all overnight camping must be in one of the new camping sites. "The 20 spots are just day use, not overnight," he said. Hoffman added that the department is working on a new map of the site.

"Diamond Mill is in the heart of some of the most active OHV usage areas in the Tillamook State Forest," said Ben Burns, ODF's Recreation Facilities Manager. "Historically, Diamond Mill has been a staging and parking area for mostly single track trail users. Now we are revamping it into a full-fledged campground."

ODF staff and work crews from South Fork Forest Camp brought in boulders, soil, gravel and vegetation and reshaped the area to give each site more privacy. South Fork Forest Camp is jointly run by ODF and the Oregon Department of Corrections in the Tillamook State Forest.

"It was a bit of a free-for-all with parking before," Burns said. "This will improve traffic flow and safety in the campground."

Sites will cost $20 a night, up from the previous $5 per car parking fee. For the first year, the campground will be first-come, first-served. ODF said it may move to a reservation system in 2027 based on user feedback.

A kids' track sits next to the campground.

"ODF staff and South Fork Forest Camp crews have been working really hard in sometimes difficult weather to transform the area, and we are excited to have it ready for the April 1 opening," Burns said.

More information on Diamond Mill and other state forest recreation sites is at oregon.gov/odf/recreation.

This story has been updated with additional site information from the ODF.