An Oregon Coast Family Adventure: Our Trip to Fort Stevens State Park

Hey everybody, Matt here for AVC and welcome back to the shop!

I recently returned from a trip to the Oregon coast, our family's third time visiting the Oregon State Parks, and we're absolutely falling in love with the amenities and beautiful scenery they offer. This trip was a little different from our previous van adventures, and I hope our experience gives you some great ideas for your own travels, especially if you're traveling with a family.

 

The Journey: Solo Drive & a Family Rendezvous

To save my kids the grueling 20-hour drive from Colorado to Fort Stevens, my wife and kids flew directly into Portland. This is a pro-tip for anyone considering a long drive trip with their family - it worked out great for us! It gave me two full days to drive at my own pace and explore a couple of unique spots along the way, while the family got to experience the fun of van camping without the exhausting travel time.

My solo journey started in Loveland, Colorado, with my first major stop being Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. It's a beautiful town and the hot springs facility was one of the cleanest I've ever visited, with six different pools. It was a perfect first-day pit stop, about 8 hours from Colorado, and a great way to break up the drive.

On day two, I blasted through Idaho and into the Columbia River Gorge. I linked up with the guys from GoCode Overland, who were also headed to the Adventure Van Expo in St. Helens. We used the Grover app—a really cool app that helps with van life trip planning. Grover is an AI-powered tool that lets you use voice commands to find dispersed camping, state parks, and more, making it super easy to discover new spots while on the road. We found a windy but beautiful dispersed campsite right on the river, circled the vans, and caught up.

After the Adventure Van Expo, where I gave a few personal tours of the van and hung out with friends, it was time to meet up with the family in Portland. From there, it was a short and easy 1.5-hour drive to our main destination: Fort Stevens State Park.

 

Fort Stevens: Our Home Base for Four Days

The Oregon State Parks have incredible facilities—hot running water, fresh water hookups, and power. They are very popular, so reservations are a must. In the past, we've done road trips hopping from one park to the next, but this time we decided to stay put at Fort Stevens for four nights and five days. It was a fantastic decision, allowing us to truly relax and explore one area in-depth.

Fort Stevens, located in the northwest corner of Oregon where the Pacific Ocean meets the Columbia River, offers some amazing amenities:

• A Drivable Beach: This is a classic van life dream! We drove our van right onto the sand, fulfilling that iconic beachside photo op. The beach is also home to a historic shipwreck, with steel pieces sticking out of the sand that the kids loved to climb on.

• Historic WWII Bunkers: The park is dotted with massive, brutalist concrete gun placements from World War II. We had a picnic at one and spent time exploring and climbing all over them, which was a huge hit with the kids.

• A 27-Hole Disc Golf Course: If you're a disc golf enthusiast, this is a premium course. It’s not for the faint of heart, with huge holes that wind through the old fort grounds.

• Junior Ranger Program: For families, this is a must-do! The program gets kids engaged in the park's natural and historical setting, and they even get a cool keepsake badge.

Van Life Upgrades: The Perfect Family Setup

 

This trip was the first big test for our new van build, and it performed perfectly! We were particularly impressed with some of the new amenities we added:

• Hot Running Water: This was a game-changer for dishes and cleanup, saving water and time.

• Filtered Drinking Water Tap: Made filling water bottles easy and provided great-tasting water for everyone.

• Built-in Induction Cooktop: We didn't even use our camp stove! The induction cooktop was so easy to use that we cooked all our meals inside the van, a stark contrast to a previous trip where we only cooked outdoors.

• The Cloud Cap Pop Top: Getting the kids into their own beds upstairs was a huge win. For the first time in years of van life, my wife and I got to sleep together in the van! It was a cozy and comfortable setup for our family of four.

Exploring the Surrounding Area

 

To break up our time at the state park, we took day trips to two nearby towns:

• Astoria: The iconic town where the movie "The Goonies" was filmed. We visited the Astoria Column for incredible views and had lunch at a local brewery. The trip to the column alone is well worth it, even if you don't climb it!

• Seaside: A classic tourist town right on the ocean. We rode a carousel, enjoyed some fresh seafood on the beach, and even found a cool local arts fair.

After a wonderful 10 days of van life, it was time to head home. The van performed flawlessly, everything worked, and our family had an amazing time.

If you thought this trip report was cool, let us know in the comments below! We're trying to dial in the format and your feedback helps. Don't forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube for the final tour of our van build! We'll see you on the next adventure.

 

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