Looking for an adventure where you can explore Avery and then fall asleep in your tent? Find the best information on tent campgrounds near Avery, including sites, reviews, and tips. Each tent site offers quick access to one or more of Avery, Idaho's most popular destinations.
Photo of Telichpah CampgroundTelichpah Campground features 5 camp units and vault toilets. Please observe the Pack it In, Pack it Out refuse policy. There is no developed water. Trailers are not recommended. Attractions include fishing on the North Fork St. Joe River, nearby streams. Trailhead to Nelson Peak National Recreation Trail System.
Located in the southern portion of the Mallard Larkins Roadless Area, this alpine trailhead offers dispersed camping and a rustic hiking/stock trail (Trail 240) which connects to many other trails in the area, making it a great place for day hikers as well as for those seeking a longer, more strenuous backpacking/stock packing trip.
The Isabella Point Trailhead serves as the beginning to trail 95 which connects to trail 399, taking hikers/stock on a journey into the spectacular Mallard Larkins Pioneer Area. Two campground units are located at the trailhead.
Photo of Big Creek Campground9 camp units, vault toilets, day use area, Pack it In Pack it Out waste management system. Fishing, National Recreation Trails, hunting, berry picking, hiking, site of former Civilian Conservation Corps camp.
This site is forested and shady, and is located in a narrow canyon bottom along a stream. A hiking trail is available nearby.
Traveler
Great tent camping. Also, it's a great starting point to some really good dirt bike trails. Be prepared for no cell service. 0 amenities. it's just a place to pitch a tent and have a fire. And it cost nothing.
Ranger
This is primitive off grid camping. No services, no water, no tables, just a bathroom in a field with a few campsites around it near the creek. Great location to stay if you're doing the Hiawatha trail and want to camp in the area. The busses picking up hiawatha trail users go right by the campground multiple times a day in the summer.
Traveler
We were glad we read the reviews for directions & info about spots — like others mentioned, the best spot is a big grassy area amongst the trees (continue past the first circular parking area). However, the entire area has sportsman access, so we listened to gun shots most of the day… not exactly the peaceful nature vibe we were hoping for. Would likely come back, but pray it’s a day of no hunters
Guide
What a place! I saw no trash or broken glass, it was very clean. I got there after dark and left first thing in the morning, wish I had more time to explore. Sites only had a fire pit, I believe there are also pit toilets but I didn’t have time to check them out.
The road up is rough, potholes, it does get better about halfway up. Expect at least 30 minutes to get up after you hit the gravel, and that’s pushing it pretty hard.
ScoutCross the bridge at the exit and there is a wide turn around. I'd pull my teardrop down here, but unsure about longer trailers. Close to the interstate so a little noisy, but close to good fishing access.
ScoutNice and quite considering how close it is to town. There doesn't seem to be an official way to get from the camp sites to the river despite being only a few feet away. People have bushwacked their own trails through. We are here in mid September so not much in the way of bugs. The toilet is clean and well stocked for a pit toilet. Lots of bear warning signs around so be sure to bring your bear boxes and bear spray.
TravelerStopped at the little restaurant and got a fantastic meal after being on the road all day then headed past all the massive houses to end up in such a gorgeous location. This is one of my favorite spots now!
Scout
I was surprised how nice this was since it's just about 5 minutes from the highway. You feel miles away - absolutely no noise. It's super clean and pretty. Very clean pit toilets and nice private spaces with plenty of room. We didn't stay long, but it was nice to be in the forest in the middle of a long drive across Montana.
Scout
So gorgeous! Tent camped along the river! Very spaced out campsites, nice for lots of privacy and quiet! Signs to be aware of bear country but took precautions. Rock fire pits at each site. Super easy for quick stop road tripping (0.5 miles off main road)! Stayed in early September on a road trip to Glacier, was able to find our site decently well in the dark! Verizon cell service 3-4 bars! Loved it!
The west is the only safe way to enter onto the road to the campsites. On the map, it looks like you can enter/exit either way from 135… but the east side of the road to get back onto 135 is impossible… so we just had to turn around and exit the same way we came in (from the west).
Guide
This is a cute campground with great hosts. Most folks come in to bike the trail. Verizon is not great and our Starlink had some blockages, but that’s what you get with lots of trees.
ScoutFound this great little riverside spot while checking out the paid campgrounds along St Joe River. Saw several similar sites that were already taken. This one has a small boat launch and several fire pits. Camping is prohibited from spring to mid July. Not the best spot for swimming due to the current in this section of the river but good enough to wade in and cool off anyway. We slept in a tent and loved the river sounds. There were some mosquitoes but with bugspray it was fine.
GuideWe were able to get our fifth wheel (40ft long, 13 1/2 ft tall) in and out easy! Lots of spaces and places to turn around. After crossing the bike path, take the first right onto the dirt road at the sportsmans access sign (parallel to the small paved parking lot.) Like another said, the best spot is past the first circular area. Keep going down the road and you’ll see a big shady area in the trees. (You can go further along to two more sites more suited for smaller pop-up campers, tents, or vans.) Close to the water so of course, there were some bugs: lots of bees and mosquitoes.
Legend
We decided to stay here because we’ve seen this campground(CG) featured the last five year’s we’ve been on the road by CG review websites, travel forums, and big-name RV bloggers. So we thought we’d give Nugget a try. We followed our RV GPS to the CG that is near I-90, but far enough away that you don’t hear highway noise. There was another camper checking in when we arrived, but check-in was fairly quick and thorough. There was a sign about being a Good Sam Member and we had to ask to get the discount as that option was not available for the online reservation. We then had a very friendly escort to pull through site 63 with FHUs, which is supposedly a premium site. This gravel site has a little grass yard with a picnic table. The site is across from a community fire pit and couple of their little trail heads. When we were there in July, there was a fire ban so not having a site fire pit was no big deal. The utilities are nicely placed in the middle of the pad. Water pressure is good at about 50 psi. We got 2 to 3 bars on Verizon. As there are a lot of mature pine trees in this CG, satellite is iffy. Our campsite was at the north end of the CG facing the woods, so we used our Verizon MiFi versus Starlink. We probably could have gotten the Starlink to work if we put the antenna on our roof, but as we were only here for three nights, we didn’t try. There’s a nice trail system around the CG to walk with your kids and it is dog friendly. They offer a lot of amenities of which laundry was one that we did use. There’s a nice 9-hole golf course just down the road. They used to let veterans golf for free on Wednesdays, but now charges vets only$5. The CG also had a food truck one evening that was convenient. We wanted to see what all the hype was about and we got the chance. This CG has a lot to offer families or campers who desire a lot of comforts. Overall, its a nice and well run CG, but we are not compelled to repeat with all the other options in the area.
TravelerDispersed camping at the "Peninsula" Recreation Area. 6 day stay limit according to the sign. No potable water. Stone fire rings throughout.
We stayed mid week during August. Stayed in a medium sized site on the river. Small steep slope to the water.
Pros:
Plenty of space, both large and small sites.
Room for a 30' in a couple of the sites.
3 bars Tmobile.
Some sites on the water with a short steep slope down.
12 miles to gas station.
Beautiful views.
Cons: No pit toilets (edit: another camper said they are at the end of the campground) No potable water. Road/train noise. POISON IVY (found it... found all of it)
Overall we loved this spot. Being ok the water in a mostly private setting with such amazing views is our goal. Little bit of road noise but hardly noticeable over the wind in the trees.
Sites were clean but well used, so thank you to all the campers that took care of this place!
TravelerI was alone while camping, parked my car at the first fire pit I saw open and it was perfect. Absolutely beautiful river, beautiful spot. Great for fishing, swimming, etc.
Guide
Do not follow maps directions to this spot. Click the one a little south east next to the river titled “Dispersed Site - Lolo National Forest Recreation Area”. This is the right location. Good spot.
GuideTurn onto the road, once you reach end of that road, there’s more spots to the left. If you drive far enough you’ll find pit toilets. We had good service on Verizon and T-Mobile to work. River is beautiful. Would definitely come back
ScoutThis is my 2nd time visiting and the quality has dramatically dropped. Maybe the difference was that I went in early fall 4 years ago and this time was late summer but YIKES.
There was broken glass EVERYWHERE. We cleaned up so much trash in our site and off the road. The pit toilet was completely out of toilet paper (which we anticipated). Despite being stage 1 fire restrictions, multiple people were having fires, one person's was still smoldering when I got up the next morning. Due to the number of people, ATVs, dirt bikes, nearby shooting range, etc it was just much more noisy in the busy season. I recommend going in the off season.
The road up to the lake is really rough and narrow but manageable with a proper vehicle.
The lake is gorgeous! I just wish people were more considerate.
FYI There is a moose that frequents the area so keep your trash in your car to avoid feeding the moose.
Traveler
Albert is a very kind, chill and accommodating host. My only regret is I couldn't stay long enough to listen to his guitar skills. A gost that with stum hos guitar for his guests? Thats a good enough reason to go see the place and what made me pick it out from all the others. His prices are very reasonable too. We won't rake you over the coals if you forget something. The place can be really busy on a hot Saturday and he runs it well shuttling people around. i loved that there were clean bathrooms and showers and a general store incase you forgot or ran out of something. I also enjoyed the cool old iron bridge and the peace and quiet of the place. It's no party zone where teenagers have keggars. I was there on a Friday and by 10pm it was quiet and peaceful then the next morning everyone showed up to have swim or float the river there and the water looked nice a shallow and slow perfect for small children and for kayakers it gets a little faster on the other side and fast enough to not have to worry too much about your kids drown but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't pay attention.
TravelerGreat customer service! Helped us set up, talked with us. Checked in with us. Quite. It’s definitely a resort. But it was a great spot for a one nighter.
Ranger
Very clean campground. The sites are flat and gravel. Small general store at office. There is also a pool that is small but clean. We were on our way home and decided to do one night with power hook up.
Scout
The further you drive on the road the closer you can get to the river! There are some pit toilets too! Absolutely beautiful!
Ranger
This was a great stay right on the river with night sites and a vault toilet. Only issues I had was the train across the river runs throughout the night and it sounds like it’s coming right through your tent
Traveler
This campsite is perfect for a simple and free camping spot. Doesn’t have any hook ups but is right on the water and you can park your boat. We caught many fish and enjoyed swimming right on the river
Traveler
Beautiful hideaway!
TravelerPulled off, quickly found decent dispersed site. A bit buggy, no mosquitoes though. Great night sleep until OHVers came screaming through early
Traveler
Not far from town but well hidden. Nice creek but REDNECK TRASHED. Tons of trash, shotgun shells, etc. I couldn’t pack all of it out. Pretty spot just trash.
Avery, Idaho, offers a stunning backdrop for tent camping enthusiasts, with its lush forests and serene lakes providing a perfect escape into nature.
Frequently Asked Questions
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Avery, ID is Lake Elsie Campground with a 4.4-star rating from 8 reviews.
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