Camping at the Gorge

5/20/2008 Chris "healthy dose of reality for ignorant seattlites" H. says:

something to combat wind and dust, it was really really bad last year.  I saw a few tents blow away too, so you might want to stake yours down real good!

5/20/2008 Betsey "Happy Meatball" S. says:

Bring food that requires no heating, or bring a back packing stove (the small one burner deals that run off fuel canisters).  I myself eat a lot of Spaghetti O's out of the can when I go to the Gorge.  It's a tradition by now.

Bring lots of water and/or gatorade... toilet paper (I have heard the port a potties run out).... baby wipes (for hand washing)... if you have them bring a set of those two way radios to communicate with friends (cell phones don't work consistently out there)... a tall flag or something to attach to your car is nice so you can easily find your way back to it.

5/20/2008 Crespin "The Boss" R. says:

Watch out for your buddies. I hear of a lot of sketchy stuff that can happen there late night.

5/20/2008 Danielle B. says:

I'll add mase to my list then.

5/20/2008 Jake "The Lake Returns" R. says:

Also bring clothing for every type of weather there is! I've been to Sasquatch 4 times now and it has had weather from scorching heat, you'll need some shade, to hailing, you'll need some cover and warmer clothes. I say pack as though it will do both cause it has all in a matter of minutes.

5/20/2008 Danielle B. says:

What kind of food should i bring?

5/20/2008 Adine "Bean" L. says:

something that will keep in hot hot weather. they also have a little store if i remember correctly... bring some ear plugs and a LOT of tarps for shade. there is zero shade on the camp grounds.  also, bring a bat or something.  i think the basic idea for most people staying on the camp ground is: "get as drunk as is humanly possible" and the end result definitely reflects that.  tons of kids acting a fool.

5/20/2008 Tiffany "Never had a middle name, never needed one" S. says:

Definitely ear plugs! Everyone's so tired of my Gorge camping story but I'm STILL tired from that night. It didn't not get remotely quiet until 5:30 am, and even then some dumb bitch in a tent was blah blahing about whether or not some guy liked her. I seriously wanted to kick her in the head.

5/20/2008 Joolie "mzjoolz if you're nasty!" T. says:

i totally agree w/ Crespin.
i went to the Gorge a few times for Summer Jams and other events.
guys would be literally trying to rip off women's clothing- after throwing them into a crowded circle.
my cousin and friends all were traumatized from the incident. they were lucky. some chicks were sexually assaulted- i think it was back in 2001-2002.  

anyway.. there's new SPF 80 now from Banana Boat. i'd DEFINITELY buy one of those for the extremities of the sun rays and heat. baby wipes and anti-bacterial gels and water-less soap are crucial. toilet paper and paper towels are also important. bring gallons of Vitamin Water, Coconut Water (more electrolytes than Gatorade/Powerade), water, etc.

5/20/2008 Jake "The Lake Returns" R. says:

It does get pretty rowdy but I have never seen anything like Joolie described. I think that only happens at Summer Jam type concerts and the kind of people that type of concert would attract. I believe that is why they banned Summer Jam from the Gorge.

Found this...
http://www.lowellhende...

5/20/2008 Adine "Bean" L. says:

jake, i'm glad they banned summer jams there.  funny story:  i went to the phish concerts (2 nights) at the gorge one year, i believe it was 97 or 98.  it was the year that summer jams and phish were back to back.  summer jams was the two nights before phish started.  we arrived late on the last night of the summer jam concert, so the site was starting to thin out a little.  some of the summer jammers were leaving after the show, but many of them were staying that night and leaving the next morning.  you can imagine how funny it was, all these phish-heads and summer-jammers meshed into a big campground.

to my pleasant surprise, there were no real bad incidents or anything.  i remember being drunk on carlo rossi (hey, i was seventeen) and walking around looking for my friends.  i hear someone yelling my name and i look over to find my friend sitting by a tent and a hooptie, motioning me to come over.

we ended up getting into the hooptie with these two summer jammer dudes and smoking a blunt.  pretty weird, pretty funny.

but i did hear that a couple of years later, some girls were raped and beaten at summer jams... not cool.

5/20/2008 Betsey "Happy Meatball" S. says:

Yeah, it can get a little nuts there late at night.  I was there with just one of my girlfriends for Dave Matthews, and some guy came into our tent!  He wasn't even lost, he was like, "hey girls."  We slept in the Explorer after that and were glad we could lock the doors.

2nd the shade thing, if you have a canopy in addition to your tent, that's excellent.  For food, do stuff that doesn't need refrigeration like peanut butter and jelly, chips, etc.

5/20/2008 Adine "Bean" L. says:

i saw dave matthews there too! 98-ish?

5/20/2008 Diana L. says:

should be avoided at all costs.

5/21/2008 Tim K. says:

Ear plugs if you plan on getting a little sleep, the loud partying goes on all night long.

5/21/2008 Katie "M'lady" S. says:

'Camping at the Gorge'

Godspeed and don't forget the toilet paper!

5/21/2008 Jon L. says:

I feel cheated. None of these exciting things has ever occurred where I was. : \

5/21/2008 Jen "Captain of Makin It Happen!" J. says:

Thank you all for this!  This is my first year camping there.  eek!

5/22/2008 Danielle B. says:

What about shoes?  I'm so torn.  My feet get hot if i wear socks and shoes but i dont want to wear flip flops which will do a number on my back.

5/22/2008 Adine "Bean" L. says:

i like sandals that have support (unfortunately, those seem to come in the birkenstock variety) but Sketchers makes some really great sandals with support as well.  but for the campground, sneakers are the best.  if i remember correctly it gets pretty dusty there.

5/22/2008 Crespin "The Boss" R. says:

Go out and buy some Chaco flips they are actually made to give support. I have a pair there nice.