Sheep Springs Horse Camp

Camp host was amazing!!

One of my favorite spots. Normally the area is kept very clean. However, this time the dumpsters were not emptied and they were overflowing. Tank toilets were spotless.

Clean and corrals are being fixed.

We absolutely loved our trip! It was clean, quiet and just beautiful there! The trails are just perfect! We loved it so much we already reserved a spot in August.

The water was working (though I brought mine just in case.) All campers were fine without a camp host. Like it that each manure dump had its own wheelbarrow and fork. Bathrooms were clean.

Sheep Springs is a lovely campground for trail riders. The sites are far enough away from each other to allow plenty of privacy. The vault toilets were the cleanest I have seen. The trails are beautiful and fairly well marked. The only issue I experienced was the water supply. As a 66 year old woman it was quite a workout to hand pump water for my horse. If the spigot accommodated a hose it would have helped direct water into my containers instead of losing lots of water onto the ground. I luckily brought a cart with me and carrying the water back to my site wasn't so much work.

Had a beautiful time at Sheep Springs Horse camp. Went on most of the trails. All are very easy. Metolius River loop is a must. Easy to get to and a beautiful view of the river. Shovel Loop is a ok ride. The forest and view are beautiful but at the beginning the tail is getting over grown with manzanita bushes. Your horse will have to plow through them for a couple of sections. Head of Jack creek is a wonderful ride. I went on the met-Win trail until you have to cross road 12. Once you cross you can take either trail on the right or left it will merge together but the directions is for the trail on the left. Trail does get narrow once you hit the camp so if horse is ok with campers hit the road until you get to the trail head. (was a 14 mile round trip Leaving on Met- W trail and coming back on the brush creek trail) The loops around the camp are pretty easy. The camp sites are all wooden logs that are getting tired and worn out. The gate is a chain which was not the best for my pony so bring some 2x4 or a small gate if your horse like to stick their head through. Site 1 is a nice site but close to the manure pile so bring some fly traps. Site 2 is next to the water pump. But is a nice site except for people coming to get water. Site 3 is a tight fit in-between some trees. I have a 2 horse goose neck with a 4ft short wall. Any longer and it would be pretty tight. But other than getting into your site it is very nice. Site 4 is a nice big site and in the shade. Site 5 has a pull though or back up site but it is right next to the bath room. Site 6 is still in the shade but the sites seem to get closer together after this site. All the other site on the loop are mostly in the sun. If you go when it is cool out get these site. On hot summer days they don't get much shade so take that into consideration. There is a bathroom at the far end of the loop. Site 11 is back into shade. No camp host. The host site has a very small round pen that is falling apart.

The sites are large and well taken care of. There are beautiful trails across the road that follow the river. Quiet, serene, great star gazing.

The campground was very nicely maintained. Campground host was very hospitable, He kept things tidy and was very aware of campground happenings. I felt very secure. The surrounding area was new to me, but very interesting and pretty. It might help to have copies of a good map of the area for the host to provide to campers and riders. A couple of neighboring campers had no map and were delighted when I gave them an extra copy of mine. Trails and roads were well maintained for vehicle and horse travel. It was overall a very good experience--only the first day and night weather was difficult with a lot of cold rain. Nothing anyone could do about that and to be expected in late September. Hopefully I will be back, but perhaps earlier in year.

Camp hosts are always great! Super helpful as we were seeking out some lakes to ride to.
Beautiful scenery, well maintained trails.
This is our annual “kick off to summer” starting point for horse camping and we really enjoy the layout of this particular camp