Boise National Forest is the perfect place for adventurous campers and RVers. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in. Experience some of the most stunning views that Idaho camping has to offer. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.
"Quiet with restroom and clean water. Lots of firewood laying around. No cell service, except Mores Peak and Idaho City..."
"Nice and quiet campground close to highway 21. We arrived on a friday night without reservations and there was plenty of space."
"Edna Creek campground is off of Highway 21 and is a little farther off the main road that some of other near by campgrounds. It is a little more private and quiet. "
"This Campground is got an hour and a half from Boise and above Idaho City on the Highway 21."
"As the other reviewers mentioned, it is right on the road, so you're likely to hear cars driving past. Because it was so dusty, we decided to stay in our car rather than pitching the tent."
"No need for a hotel in Ketchum Idaho. Park and camp here! Several dispersed sites after the Sawtooth National Forest boundary, with creek running by and a hot spring down the road."
"Nice primitive USFS site. It's about 30 min above the highway so a bit far. Close to the bald mtn lookout"
"Long runway, above a big field for camping and plenty of trees to set up a hammock. Right along the river, all we heard was the sound of running water. Very big mountains around, plenty for hiking."
"You’ll hear echos of gunfire, the occasional semi blasting up the highway or the rumble of tons of bikes making their way up the highway... and if its fire season, there will be helicopters coming in and"
LegendThere are about 6 designated spots here in this free little campground. Camping is allowed in designated sites only and there is a 10 day stay limit.
Site #1 is all by itself to the right at the fork, and it was the best site, in our opinion.
Each site has a fire pit (no fires allowed at this time!). There is no picnic bench. There is one vault toilet and no garbage collection and no water. There are no bear boxes but proper bear-proof food storage is required.
A small creek runs along this campground and the views are incredible. Nice shade cover and trees. This area is fine dirt and so-so in terms of flat spots. Campground is right on the road so you hear the cars but considering how beautiful and free the campground it, the cars aren’t bothersome. Plus it quiets down at night.
Zero cell service.
LegendThere are about 6 designated spots here in this free little campground. Camping is allowed in designated sites only and there is a 10 day stay limit.
Site #1 is all by itself to the right at the fork, and it was the best site, in our opinion.
Each site has a fire pit (no fires allowed at this time!). There is no picnic bench. There is one vault toilet and no garbage collection and no water. There are no bear boxes but proper bear proof food storage is required.
A small creek runs along this campground and the views are incredible. Nice shade cover and trees. This area is fine dirt and so-so in terms of flat spots. Campground is right on the road so you hear the cars but considering how beautiful and free the campground it, the cars aren’t bothersome. Plus it quiets down at night.
Zero cell service.
TravelerLovely little campground with many amenities close to Redfish Lake Lodge. Each campsite has a dedicated level pad for tents, a picnic table, a bear box, and fire ring. The sites are a bit open, so privacy can be a bit lacking if that's a concern. This campsite is also walk-in, so you will need to use provided wagons to bring your stuff to your site and park your car in the provided parking lot. There are also bathrooms which had flushing toilets and running water and are well maintained. We loved that Point Campground is within walking distance to Redfish Lake Lodge, which has a bunch of different activities: horseback riding, kayaking, a dog beach, mountain biking, fishing, etc. This campground is great when camping with children, especially with the bathrooms & lack of car traffic on the tent-only side. We will be returning!
LegendIf you show up to Redfish Lake on a busy weekend and all of the campgrounds are reserved/full, no worries. There is a bunch of free dispersed camping all along highway 75. A quick stop at the Forest Service Office down the road and I had a pretty good map of the forest roads in the area, but more importantly, a tip about free camping a stone’s throw away from Redfish Lake and Sunny Gulch campground. The road in is a bit rough with ruts and rocks, but there are several established sites with fire rings. There was a loop to the right with about 8 such sites and a loop to the right with about 5 sites as well as one that was hidden behind the site I chose that you had to walk in to(it was actually a nicer site than the one I chose, but I was tired and set up before I saw it on my explorations. There was one vault toilet that was not especially clean, but free is free, and if you really wanted to, you could walk less than a quarter mile across to the developed Sunny Gulch campground. There are no picnic tables or grills or tent pads, but definitely stone fire rings at each site so no worries as long as you brought your own camp chair. If you need a shower, head into Redfish Lake to use the public pay showers there.
TravelerBad Bear is a nice little campsite outside of Idaho City. The sites are good size with adequate privacy. There is lots of tree cover for shade during those warm summer days, and a babbling brook at the back of the campground. Each site had a picnic table, fire ring, and there is a well for water and a vault toilet. We enjoyed our stay here, mostly because there wasn't anyone else camping in the campground when we were there in mid-July! Score! We grabbed the big site, but the other sites seemed a bit small. Would recommend for a easy campsite close to Idaho City and just a quick little jaunt from Boise.
GuideMy wife and I were forced to make last minute changes to our camping trip this year(thanks to the Wapiti 2024 fire in Stanley) and Dog Creek was the only campground available on the dates we had set aside. We had been up to Pine once before but had never explored past the town.
The campground itself is quiet and away from the main road but it is directly parallel to the South Fork of the Boise River. There are a TON of ponderosa pines and other various pine trees so the campground looks small because of the dense tree cover. From the main road, the main drive is a fairly narrow paved dirt/gravel road and not bumpy at all so most vehicles shouldn’t have an issue with it.
The camp sites themselves are a little close to each other but you’re not shoulder to shoulder or directly on top of each other. The camp host greeted us upon our arrival, filled us in on the fire restrictions and said to let him know if we needed anything.
We had reserved sites 10 and 11 but in reality, they might as well call it a group site because there is no separation between the two, you even share a"driveway”. There were fire rings, tent pads(at some sites) and picnic tables, along with shepherds hooks for hanging trash off of the ground. There were also metal tables at every site that we think are intended for camp stoves.(The picnic tables are wood)The fire rings were well cared for(none damaged that we saw and they all had adjustable grills)….but our fire ring was very close to the bushes which was a little sketchy.
This campground is nice and quiet and full of trees. But unfortunately, for us, that’s where the appeal ends. In order to get to the actual Dog Creek from the campground, you have to hope that sites 2 and 5 are not occupied and even then, the creek isn’t super exciting. It’s pretty but it’s a climb down into a ravine of sorts and it’s not deep enough to lay in and there aren’t any places to setup chairs to just enjoy it. The water flowing through the creek is clean and it is pretty to look at, but that’s about all it’s good for.
As for other things to do at the campground, there isn’t much. There are no hiking trails as far as we could tell, but if you go across the street to the river, you can actually enjoy your stay, assuming the banks of the river aren’t packed with dispersed campers and their ATV’s.
The campground does have water spigots and the water tasted fine. The restrooms(vault toilets) were impeccable in terms of cleanliness. Some of the nicest Forest Service campground restrooms we’ve used and the camp host does an awesome job of keeping them clean and bug free.
Speaking of bugs, we didn’t see many mosquitoes but we did see a good amount of bees, wasps and yellow jackets and there were traps setup throughout the campground so bring an epi pen if you’re allergic to any of them.
We lost cell service just after the reservoir (T-Mobile) but my satellite communicator worked fairly well at the campground.
There are dumpsters to take your trash just inside the entrance to the campground, which is a little annoying as you have to walk quite a ways to dump it, but there were also no critters hanging around the sites.
Dog Creek campground is the type of campground where you setup your camper or RV and leave for the day to do other things. Whether it’s boating at Anderson Ranch, taking the ATV’s up into the mountains or try to find hiking trails. The campground itself is very pretty BUT it doesn’t offer much in terms of things to do while there. However, if you are looking for some peace and quiet, with very little noise from the outside world, it’s great.
TravelerWe camped here in June 2020. There are clean vault toilets but not much else. The reservoir was practically empty. There were not picnic tables and the roads off the main road were not maintained. It was hard to tell if there were campsites there at all, but there were fire rings so we pulled in next to one and set up. One other camper came in later and set up down by the lake, but otherwise it was really quiet. Nice place to get away from everyone during a pandemic.
GuideBlacktop drive and parking pads with a few pull through sites. You can fish from your camp site. No hookups but water is available. Plenty of space between sites. Fire rings and picnic tables were provided. Firewood was for sale. Bring your bug spray for late afternoon and evening. We needed it in early July.
RangerSunny Gulch is a NFS campground right between Stanley, Idaho and Redfish Lake. The views are incredible and the location can’t be beat. The campground has two loops with the lower loop being closer to Highway 75 (not noisy at all at night) and more appropriate for smaller rigs while the upper loop has some larger sites with some above the Salmon River. All sites have picnic table, prep table, fire ring and tent pad and are quite large and lots of space between sites. Sites are FCFS except for 10 reservable sites; camp host is fantastic and super friendly. Firewood is available at the host site and vault toilets are located throughout the campground and water pumps are also positioned within a short walk of most sites. The Ranger Station is 1/2 mile away and has four dump stations ($12 as of this review) and free fresh water if the pumps at the campground don’t suit your needs.
Redfish Lake and all that encompasses is 1/2 mile to the south; the town of Stanley is beyond the Ranger Station about 2 miles to the north. We’ll definitely stay here again if we’re in the area!
Boise National Forest in Idaho offers a fantastic escape for tent campers, with a variety of campgrounds that provide access to stunning natural beauty and outdoor activities.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Boise National Forest?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Boise National Forest is Boise National Forest Whoop-em-up Equestrian Campground with a 4.5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Boise National Forest?
TheDyrt.com has all 79 tent camping locations near Boise National Forest, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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