Spring Canyon Campground was the second stop on our Eastern Washington road trip. We chose it mainly for two reasons: its proximity to Grand Coulee and our hope of stargazing.
The location turned out to be a great decision, but the stargazing part was a little more questionable, and I’ll explain why.
If you’re wondering where Grand Coulee is, it’s a small city about an hour and a half east of Lake Chelan. We chose it as our base because we didn’t want to drive too much, and we also wanted to catch the nightly laser show at the dam. Basically, it was two birds with one stone.
About Spring Canyon Campground
For our stay, we picked Spring Canyon Campground, located on the southern shore of Lake Roosevelt Reservoir. This landscape was carved by Ice Age floods and has long been home to Native American communities, settlers, and dam builders. Today, it offers all kinds of recreational activities, from boating and fishing to swimming and camping.
The campground has 78 individual non-electric campsites, each with parking space, a picnic table, and a fire pit. There were shared water spigots in each loop, along with three restrooms, but no showers. Hand soap was also missing, so definitely carry your own. Unlike our previous stop at Lake Wenatchee State Park, this campsite didn’t offer much comfort.
We had booked a lower campground site, and ours was site #19. Unfortunately, it was on a slope and didn’t have a tent pad, which made the stay quite uncomfortable. The sites were also fairly close together and noisy, which wasn’t exactly what we were looking for.
Since we were only staying one night, it was manageable, but it did leave me with a bad backache the next day, bad enough that I had to rely on painkillers.
Dinner at La Presa Mexican Restaurant
Since there was a total fire ban and no electricity at the site, including in the restrooms, we had no choice but to eat at a restaurant. There are a few places in Grand Coulee, but most close by 8 PM, except for La Presa Mexican Restaurant, which stays open until 9 PM.
It was super busy the day we went and seemed to be a favorite among both tourists and locals. We ordered Pollo Asado, a Chimichanga, and an extra bowl of guacamole on the side. The food was absolutely delicious, love at first bite.
Every dish on our plate was full of flavor, and the portions were generous. Service was fast despite how busy it was, so kudos to the staff. I highly recommend stopping by if you’re in the area.
Grand Coulee Dam Laser Show
Watching the laser show at Grand Coulee Dam was one of the main reasons we stayed at this campground. The visitor center was just a 10-minute drive away, which gave us time to rest and reset before heading out.
Grand Coulee Dam is the largest concrete structure in the United States, a massive gravity dam standing about 550 feet tall and generating roughly 6,800 megawatts of electricity. You can take a tour from the visitor center to learn more about the history and construction of the dam.
One of the most fascinating parts of the visit is the nightly laser show, called One River, Many Voices. It’s free to the public and a beautiful way to learn about the dam’s story, including its impact on the people and the environment around it.
Overall Thoughts
From a location point of view, this is a great spot and probably better suited for RVs than tents. As for stargazing, the area around the campground does get dark, but it’s not ideal for photography. Between restroom lights, neighboring tents, fire pits, and RV lights, it didn’t feel dark enough for good night-sky shots.
In the summer, it can also get very hot with very little wind, which makes tent camping feel pretty uncomfortable. If you’re traveling in an RV or have your own power source, it works much better. But purely for tent camping, I wouldn’t recommend it as strongly.
If you haven’t already, check out my previous posts from this Eastern Washington road trip, including Lake Wenatchee and Chelan, by clicking on the respective links.
