Our sixth and final stop on our recent family vacation was at Cove Palisades State Park near Madras, OR. Cove Palisades is located near th e deep river canyons with towering cliffs where the Crooked, Deschutes, and Metolius Rivers meet behind Round Butte Dam to form Lake Billy Chinook. There are two campgrounds in the park. Both have separate reservation systems although staff works both campgrounds. We stayed in the Crooked River campground which is in a nice shady lawn area on a bench overlooking the lake. All sites are hookups with grey water disposal in the sites. You will have to drive down the hill to reach the water. Our site had great views of the top of the canyon walls and a beautiful view of Mt. Jefferson. Crooked River was packed with kids and families. Reservations are hard to come by here. I believe that campers with a boat reserve spots year after year. Each morning they all pull out of camp with their boats to spend the day on the water. Crooked River camp has nice big lawns, horseshoes, a beach volleyball court, and a basketball hoop if you are so inclined. Our kids loved the family atmosphere, but the main reason we came was to swim and play in the water. There are three nice day use areas at Cove Palisades--we spent the whole day at the Crooked River one at the bottom of the hill next to the marina. Great swimming in a protected area from boats. Next time we will probably rent a boat from the marina and explore the canyons more. The other campground is the Deschutes CG. It is down in the canyon between the Crooked and Deschutes. It is five miles from the top to the campground so it is not as convenient for exploring outside the park. We drove through and it looked nice, but a little on the dusty side. Sites are in a little valley and so views are of the canyon walls rather than the water. The other two day use areas are down near this campground. On balance I think Crooked River is a better place to stay, but others may disagree. Overall, we enjoyed our stay at Cove Palisades. If you boat, fish, or want a good place to swim in a desert climate I would highly recommend it. The amazing Smith Rock SP is an easy day trip from here. We camped here in a Tent Trailer.

We workamped here for July and August and I have to say it's one of the prettiest campgrounds I've ever stayed in. The upper campground, where we stayed, is Crooked River Campground and has huge sites with gorgeous trees. The campgrounds at the bottom of the canyon, Deschutes, are very near the water. Heavily used by boaters. Family campground. Watched over carefully by the Rangers and just all round wonderful place in the High Desert of Central Oregon. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is because the campsites don't have sewer hookups but there is a dump station. Cell phones connections (Verizon) are spotty. Oregon parks are wonderful and I heartily recommend the Crooked River Campground. We camped here in a Motorhome.