If you like spending time in countryside with alpine-type scenery where you can fish, hunt or hike, you'll be in your element RV camping at Dworshak Reservoir in Idaho. The fifty-four-mile-long lake was created by the construction of the Dworshak Dam across the Clearwater Valley. It is surrounded by magnificent national forests and parklands including the eight-hundred and fifty acre Dworshak State Park which borders part of the lake's western shoreline. The Dworshak Dam itself is an impressive sight to see. Named after an Idaho senator, the dam wall is over seven-hundred feet high and that's a fact which makes it one of the highest in the US. It took the US Army Corps of Engineers seven years to complete the work on the dam and the power it now unleashes is used for generating hydroelectricity.
The COE campground at Dworshak Lake sits at a slightly elevated level and there are incomparable views over the reservoir waters from many of the campsites. From some you can even see right over to the Dent Bridge which spans the lake further up the valley. When you head out into the forests or onto the trails around Dworshak Lake, you could find yourself hiking through landscapes once trodden by the great explorers, Lewis and Clark. You can discover more about them and their expeditions at the Weippe Discovery Center. You can also get to know more about the people who have lived and worked in the area, from loggers and miners to the indigenous Nez Perce Indians, by visiting the Clearwater Museum near Orifino.
Whether you're planning on taking a quiet getaway break, heading out to bag some game, or are going to be delving into Idaho's fascinating history, you'll find an RV campsite at Dworshak Reservoir is the perfect unspoilt spot to park in.
If you've been in Washington state to see the Spokane Falls or been RV camping in the Coeur d'Alene National Forest, you'll have around a three and a half hour drive to Orifino. If you're driving through the state from Idaho itself it'll take you around seven hours. Whichever direction you're coming from, you'll be heading into the wilderness of central Idaho on the way to your COE campground at Dworshak Reservoir.
It'll feel like you're on a real escape-from-it-all-route as you motor through Orofino, pass over Dent Bridge and drive the twenty miles along the Dent Bridge Road that will take you to the campground. It doesn't sound much, but it's a twisting road running through some particularly impressive mountain scenery which could take you about an hour to negotiate in your RV. Be prepared to be almost doubling back on yourself on occasion as you go round the horseshoe curves. The views will more than compensate for the difficult drive though. They are breathtaking.
Dent Bridge Road may be windy, but it's well maintained. Once you're inside the campground, you'll find the internal road system consists of narrow, single lane asphalted tracks. There's not room for two RV's to pass side by side, so make sure you follow the directional signs from the entrance. That will also make it a lot easier to pull into your campsite once you've found it.
The COE campground at Dworshak Reservoir goes by the name of Dent Acres. While it may be a quiet mountain retreat, it has all the facilities to make your RV camping in the Idaho wilderness not quite as rustic as you might expect. There are fifty campsites at Dent Acres all of which are accessible for anyone with impaired mobility. The campsites have standard fifty amp electricity, water and sewer hook-ups plus dumpsters for trash, picnic tables and barbecues.
There are good communal facilities at the Dent Acres Campground too. The restrooms and showers have all been designed to accommodate the mobility impaired as has the site's boat launch ramp. The site also has a fish cleaning station, playground and a shelter for large group gatherings of up to seventy-five people.
Dent Acres Campground is open twelve months of the year. Advance reservations are required even during the two off-peak seasons which start in mid-April to the end of May and then again at the beginning of September continuing through to the middle of December.
If how hydroelectricity is generated is a mystery to you, and you have no idea how the US Army Corps of Engineers went about building a dam, stop in at the Dworshak Dam Visitor Center and you'll find out all you need to know. There are multiple exhibits displayed over the three floors of the center as well as on demand film presentations. If you're there between Memorial Day and Labour Day, you can take a guided walk across the dizzying heights of the dam wall.
A tour of the Nez Perce National Historical Park will give you an amazing insight into the lives and tragedies of the Nez Perce Indians. Pop in to the visitor center in Spalding and wander around the many exhibits or watch a film presentation. Outdoors, you can walk around the historic site on one of four different trails which will lead you by a surviving homesteading building and general store as well as through a site which was a Nez Perce Village.
Indulge your adventurous spirit with a visit to the Weippes Discovery Center which you'll find in the basement of the town's public library. It's just a small museum, but through the medium of artefacts and photographs tells the interesting story of the expeditions explorers Lewis and Clarke made through Idaho. There are also informative presentations about the Nez Perce Indians and their meeting with the expeditionists.
There are acre upon acre of public hunting grounds at Dworshak Reservoir and in the parklands which surround it. Whether your prefer big game, water fowl or want to bag something smaller like rabbit and pheasant, you'll be able to stalk to your hearts content at this Idaho lake. Popular prey for big game hunters during the relevant seasons are elk, deer, mountain lions, wolves and bears.
Anyone wanting to hike while RV camping at Dworshak Lake will be seriously spoilt for choice on which trail to take. The Dent Trail is a great out and back trail leading from the Dent Acres Campground and along the lake shore. The longer and more challenging West Ridge Trail will see you hiking higher up along the south-west shore of the reservoir. It's a trail with marvellous views that also links up with two more trails, the Merry's Bay Trail and the Bruce's Eddy Trail. There are more great hikes in the Dworshak State Park and in the Nez Perce National Forest.
Big catches are what draws many fisherman to cast their lines in Dworshak Reservoir and the many surrounding tributary creeks. Stocked by the local game and fish commission, the waters hold prolific amounts of trout, small mouth bass and kokanee salmon. Whether you're fishing from a boat or from the shore, you can almost be guaranteed of hooking more than you can eat.
You don't need to be a keen anglers to enjoy taking the free, self-guided tour around the Dworshak Fish Hatchery. There you'll see where the reservoir's fish population is spawned and how its health is cared for. Fascinating.
