Slide Creek

Show on map 801-226-3564 help.willamette.mckenzieriver@americanll.com

Camping Restrictions in Cougar Recreation Area

The Cougar Recreation Area is a specially designated area around Cougar Reservoir. It includes a 1/2-mile strip on either side of Forest Service Road 19 from Hwy 126 to Forest Service Road 1927 as well as Terwilliger Hot Springs, Hidden Lake Day Use Area, areas surrounding Delta Campground, Slide Creek Campground, and Echo/East Fork Day Use and Boat Ramp.

To provide for public safety, the following acts are prohibited in the areas and on the roads described in this order within the administrative boundaries of the Willamette National Forest.

PROHIBITIONS:

Dispersed camping outside of designated campgrounds.

CLOSURE AREA DESCRIPTION:

Within the Closure Area, as described below and shown on the attached Exhibit A, dispersed camping outside of designated campgrounds is prohibited:

North Zone

From Forest Road 19 and the Highway 126 junction, follow Highway 126 west to the section line dividing section 24 and section 19 (T16S & R04E and T16S & R05E) near mile post 45, the area is ½ mile wide going north up the section line, then east to Mill Creek, and Highway 126 to the south, excluding any private land within the area.
The area surrounding Delta Campground bordered by Highway 126 to the north, Forest Road 19 to the east, the South Fork of the McKenzie River to the south, and McKenzie River to the West.

West Zone

The area that is ½ mile on either side of Forest Road 19 beginning at the junction of Forest Road 19 and Highway 126 to milepost 16 at the junction of Forest Road 19 and Forest Road 1927, which is the southernmost part of the closure along Forest Road 19.

East Zone

The area that begins at Cougar Dam at the Forest Road 19 and Forest Road 1993 junction, ½ mile on either side of Forest Road 1993 to the junction of Forest Road 1994.
The area that begins at the junction of Forest Road 19 and Forest Road 19-410, ½ mile, including both sides of the Forest Road 19-410 to the base of Cougar Dam.
The area that begins at the junction of Forest Road 19 and 19-500, ½ mile on either side of Forest Road 19-500 to Slide Creek Campground.

Hidden Lake

The area located within ½ mile of Hidden Lake.

The affected area within Exhibit B is described as:

The area bordered by the Lower McKenzie Trailhead to the west of the McKenzie River Ranger Station, encompassing all land between the McKenzie River to the north, and Highway 126 to the south, and bordered by Forest Road 26-302 to the east. This description is to exclude private land holdings within the affected area.

EXEMPTIONS:

Pursuant to 36 CFR § 261.50(e), the following persons are exempt from this Order:

Persons with Forest Service Permit No. FS-7700-48 (Permit for Use of Roads, Trails, or Areas Restricted by Regulation or Order), specifically exempting them from this Order;
Any Federal, State, or Local Officer or member of any organized rescue or firefighting force in the performance of an official duty.

These restrictions are implemented for the safety of the public.

These prohibitions are in addition to the general prohibitions in 36 CFR Part 261, Subparts A.

Violations of this prohibition are punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for an organization, or imprisonment for not more than 6 months, or both (16 USC § 551; 18 USC §§ 3551, 3571 and 3581).

Executed in Springfield, Oregon on this 18th day of February 2025.

Duane Bishop
Forest Supervisor(Acting)
Willamette National Forest

Overview

Slide Creek Campground is a unique camping destination just 50 miles from Eugene, Oregon. Located on the east bank of the Cougar Reservoir, it is known for handy access to boating and many water activities. It is also near Terwilliger Hot Springs, a pristine area with 5 soaking pools fed by the Rider Creek waterfall.

Recreation

Activities on the reservoir include water skiing, swimming, fishing and canoeing. Anglers might catch some quality rainbow trout. The campground is close to a large network of hiking trails in the Olallie Trail Area. Half of the trails are open to biking as well.

Facilities

Both campground and the day use area guests have access to drinking water, vault toilets, a boat ramp, ample parking and a swimming beach. A separate parking lot is available for boat trailers. The facility has 15 campsites that can accommodate tents, trailers or RVs and come equipped with campfire rings and picnic tables.

Natural Features

The Willamette National Forest stretches for 110 miles with varied landscapes of high mountains, narrow canyons, cascading streams, and wooded slopes. Native wildlife includes Roosevelt elk, black bear, bald eagles, black tail deer and bobcats. Cougar Reservoir sits at 1,700 feet in elevation and is an estimated 1,280 acres. Some campsites have views of Cougar Reservoir and all sites are an easy walk to the swimming area.

Camp site features

Across 15 camp sites:

Fire pit: 8 of 15 sites
Pets allowed: 8 of 15 sites
Longest RV: 90 ft
Largest party: 12 people

Directions

From Blue River, travel 4 miles east on Hwy 126 to Aufderheide Drive (FS road 19). Proceed on Aufderheide Drive for 9.5 miles to FS road 1900-500 and continue for 1.5 miles to Slide Creek Campground.

Stay Limit

Check in from 2 PM, check out by 11 AM.

Reviews

42 reviews

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 stars

Rebekah N

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 2 months ago

The campground site was nicely kept and the facilities were close by. The water area was nice to walk around and nearby Terwillliger hot springs. We enjoyed at stay at Slide Creek!

Tyler S

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 3 months ago

Love this quiet little campground. So close to cougar reservoir and hot springs. Some of the sites are tiny but there secluded and give privacy.

Don N

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 3 months ago

All sites are tent sites, and almost none are on the plane of the roadway. Any pop-ups or other small RV type units will be hard pressed to find a level area to camp.

Megan M

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 4 months ago

Loved site 8. So private and cool perched up above. Very woodsy with lots of moss and ferns even though the cougar terwilliger area was burned in a lot of areas. It’s quite a ways off 126, but worth it. Very convenient to the hot springs also!

Brenda A

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 4 months ago

Not a great campground. Only positive was one of the bathrooms was pretty clean. We stayed in a different site than the one I was assigned because we would have been about 10 ft away from the other campsite that had multiple cars, tents, dogs, and children running all over. Reserved for 3 nights, only stayed one. The host wasn't there when we arrived, he arrived later and ran his generator through the evening and then again in the morning. Was quite a drive around the reservoir to get there, definitely not worth it. Would not recommend to anyone.

Sarah S

Loop:Slide Creek

Site:

Reviewed 4 months ago

This campground is pretty tucked away, a little hard to find, but once you get there the size is really nice. We brought our pop-up camper and selected Site 12, which said a camper was appropriate only to find that we would just be parallel parking on the side of the camp loop. We made it work, enjoyed the area, and were really pleased with the condition of the vault toilets. Really nice campground host too.

Availability

See the Camp Sites section below to find detailed booking availability.

Reserve