Looking for an adventure where you can explore Howe and then fall asleep in your tent? You can find tent campsites by type, including drive-in, walk-in, and even hike-in for a backpacking adventure. You're sure to find the perfect campsite for your Idaho tent camping excursion.
This campground has 21 campsites with a maximum length trailer size of 35 foot. Seven sites are located along Iron Bog creek and the rest are out in the open sage-brush. There is one hand pump (during summer months) and two accessible restrooms. Four campsites have shade-awnings. Non-reservable campground with a $10.00/night fee. Hitching rail available, one group campsite with 25 person capacity. Nearby Iron Bog Lake, Brockie Lake and Fishpole Lake. Smiley Mountain looms overhead. Use is light, with the exception of holiday weekends.
This area serves as a base camp for climbing the tallest mountain in Idaho. It has 5 campsites, accessible vault toilet, No drinking water, safety and informational signs. Nearby areas of interest include Earthquake site and Mackay Reservoir.
$5 / night
The Timber Creek Campground has 12 camp units in a wooded setting, with two creeks flowing on either side of it. Two faucets provide potable water in the summer months. There is also one accessible vault toilet, a horse hitch rail and unloading ramp. Nearby areas of interest include Mill Creek Lake, and Timber Creek ATV trail.
Copper Creek/Garfield Campground is a primitive, non-fee, non-reservation campground composed of 8 campsites in a canyon carved by Copper Creek. This area is accessible from May through October. Fishing is available in area streams. Mormon Hill trailhead is located at the end of Forest Road #130. This trail extends north into the Challis National Forest. Campground amenities include a vault toilet, picnic tables, fire rings, and hitching posts for stock.
Legend
$10 (paid $5 with senior pass). First come, first served. Camped at site #10 in late September 2024. This primitive national forest campground was not busy during my visit. Copper Basin Loop Road accessing this campground, which has a gravel surface, was in good condition; there was some washboarding in a few places. The campground has a lower loop and an upper loop. The campground has a mix of pull-through and back-in sites; some leveling may be reuired in some sites. Site #10 is a short gravel pull-thru in the upper loop, good fit for my campervan, although very close to the campground road. There is a short path from the site driveway down to a picnic table and metal fire ring. The ground is a little chewed up from voles and cow hooves. Tent and hammock camping are possible. This site has partial shade; others in the loop are open. Little privacy between sites. Depending on the site, you can get a view of Copper Basin from the upper loop. The upper loop has two clean vault toilet facilities; I didn't use the vault toilet in the lower loop, but assume that it is clean. There is a hand water pump in both loops but shut down for the season during our visit. Trout fishing in nearby Star Hope Creek was pretty good; it's about a 1/4 mile walk from my campsite. No T-Mobile or AT&T cell service. Overall, a pretty campground; mostly wooded. I would camp here again. Boondocking is also possible along the Copper Basin Loop Rd.
Legend
$10 ($5 with interagency pass). First-come, first-served. Camped one night in site #13 on Sept 24, 2024. Gravel road to this out-of-the-way campground was in good condition. Pretty part of the Challis National Forest. Nothing remarkable about the campground itself. Looks like some of the sites have not been maintained in a while; overgrown with weeds, grass and sagebrush. Sites have tables and fire rings; some had shade-awnings over the tables. The vault toilets were clean. The hand water pump did not pump water; water was probably turned off for the season. No payment envelopes were provided - maybe because it was the end of the season. No hiking trails. Most sites are in the open with no shade; a few were shaded near the creek. Gravel campground road and site driveways. Site sizes varied. No privacy between sites. Tent camping possible. Solar recharging possible at my site. Great views of the mountains around the campground. Very quiet, peaceful evening; only one other site was occupied during my visit. No T-Mobile and AT&T cell service. There were several boondocking sites on the way to the campground.
Legend
Coordinartes: 44.16547,-112.90392. Beautiful views. Large dirt and gravel site, right along side to Skull Canyon Road, about a mile from ID Hwy 28. Canyon walls on each side. Rough narrow rocky track to the site from the highway; recommend high clearance. High humps on this track. Small rock fire ring. Grass and sagebrush all around site. Some leveling may be required. Tent camping possible. Very peaceful; can hardly hear road noise from highway. The only vehicle that drove by was a national forest truck. No cell service. There are several boondocking sites, some with vault toilets nearby, along Hwy 28 in the Birch Creek Recreation Area.
Traveler
We stayed here 1 night in mid-October, 2024. Bulletin board directed us to our reserved site. never saw any of the staff and received our welcome email at 9 a.m. the next day as we were departing. Poor trees are half dead. Stay was OK except for the racket from a neighboring property with massive loudspeakers blasting reveille in the a.m. and an annoying, caterwauling rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner at sunset. Nutty Arco.
Ranger
We came to Craters of the Moon early, ended up being there most of the day. Instead of going on and trying to find dispersed camping, we treated ourselves to a site in the park.
Sites are $15, and you must have the American the Beautiful Pass or pay park entry fee.
The sites are dry camping with toilet facilities and water (no dump station).
The sites are right in amongst lava field and is quite unique.
Campground was very quiet at night and very dark. Could see the sky and stars wonderfully.
Definitely a great park and place to stay.
GuideWe arrived with a reservation for a rental RV, smooth and friendly check-in. But then... Small site, no shade at all. Nicely flat though. Firepit/BBQ filled with cigarettes, non-usable. Pool was as small as can be, 10 pax= overcrowded. Toilets and showers outdated, broken and terribly dirty. The neighbour will play a loud national anthem at 9 p.m. and an even louder reveille at 9 a.m. One can see as far as possible, but the scenery consists of old trailers and mess.
Pro's: The showers were for free and nicely warm. 4 washing machines ($1,75 half an hour) 4 dryers ($1,50 half an hour) Free wafles and coffee between 9a.m. and 10 a.m. Friendly staff.
Overall: nearly good enough for a one night stay. Never saw something like this before.
ScoutFor our family's first vacation in our new travel trailer, we foolishly chose to visit the KOA campground in Arco, Idaho. We had informed them of our late arrival around 11 PM. Upon arrival, they handed us a map and pointed to a campsite number. None of the spots were properly marked, but surrounded by other trailers, we assumed we were in the right place. The next morning, we discovered the bathrooms were absolutely revolting, clearly not cleaned for days, despite a sign claiming daily cleaning. Mud on the floors, mold and mildew in the showers, overflowing trash, and toilet paper strewn about—it was utterly disgusting. When we returned later that day, a staff member immediately confronted us, accusing us of lacking a reservation. We provided the requested documentation, and they disappeared. Then the owner or manager approached us aggressively, violently pointing out our supposed error on the map and ordering us to move everything to the correct spot—right behind where we had parked, already occupied by another family they had mistakenly placed. In a menacing tone, he begrudgingly decided to relocate the incoming family to our original spot. This whole scene unfolded in front of numerous families at the KOA, with no regard for our embarrassment or the other campers' discomfort. After this disgraceful ordeal, we decided to just pack up and leave, not even bothering to request a refund. As we were packing, the manager approached, still not apologizing, but handed me a receipt for a refund that I never asked for nor wanted. I informed him firmly that this was not about money but about their appalling mismanagement. I intend to dispute the refund because this KOA should not be associated with such incompetence and filth and I will not accept hush money.
RangerGreat sites nestled In The lava rocks. Great hiking or biking the 7mi loop road. We didn't have reservations but got there early (2pm) it looked very full by 6pm. We got our spot, then drove our rv around to the different scenic spots and returned to camp 5 hrs later.
GuideIt was a special camping experience. They just renewed all the roads in the park. Campground is right next to loop around the park with some nice spots. Clean flushing toilets and water. Get there in time! We had one of the last spots at 5pm
TravelerNice sites . Some more suitable for tents, other for vans.
15$ per night, first come first serve. We were there Memorial weekend (Sunday) and there were still spots.
LegendStopped at Craters of the Moon on our trip home from Mt Rainer. It’s not a large campground, and it off the main road. A little hard to find. (Behind Pickle’s Place). Convent to Craters of the Moon !
Guide
Prices are 28$ a night unless you have the America the beautiful pass then it's 4$ they have caves that are free to access but you have to get a permit from the visitor center the spots are small and people get there late sometimes so it was a bit noisy at night we stayed for 4 days the hole attraction is because of lava formations over all a very nice stay
Traveler
This is a great campground We parked at site 7 We would stay there again and next time spend an extra day or two, riding the bikes through the loop
RangerFirst come first serve, clean bathrooms and water. Easy card payments for campsites. The geology of the area is really neat, and it's right off the main road drive through the rest of the park. Very unique.
Traveler
It’s a long uphill drive on a narrow road to get there but it’s worth it! Each camp site is nice with plenty of space, fire pit and tent site. We took our chances on a Wednesday night in mid August and got lucky. Two sites were still open. With the drive and location we were surprised how many people were there but it was still very quiet and peaceful. The lake is beautiful and would be fun to kayak or paddle board on. We did some hiking up the trails to look over the campsite and the lake but did not take the full trail. Bathrooms were very clean and well stocked.
Traveler
I selected this campground after missing out on a nearby first come first serve that was fully booked. I am just thrilled with the campsites and cleanliness of the pit toilets and nearby stream and fishing.
TravelerCame after a few nights in Yellowstone to escape the crowds. Can’t recommend this area enough - the campground/bathrooms are immaculate and the scenery is super cool. Had a very private campsite, could still see the Milky Way despite the bright moon. Worth a detour for sure.
ScoutGreat campground, very unique setting, great visitor center. Loved it!
Scout
We stayed in site 4 and we only saw one family but they were a few sites away. Part of that had to do with the rainy weather that week was. We were right by the river and it was kinda loud because of spring run off, but we got used to it and it was good! The Millcreek trailhead was super close and it was absolutely stunning! We made it up to the lower lake and thought we got there, but we actually didn't reach the real lake. Come to find out it was like another 1000 ft up the trail. 😅 Definitely one of my favorite camping trips!
Traveler
Nice & clean. Accommodating hosts. Nice & level pull thru and back in sites. Restrooms are key coded thus nice and clean. Great area for ATV/UTV riding!
TravelerVery cool park, stayed just for a night but would definitely go again. Great short hikes but the campsites are close together.
TravelerThe wife and I are new to camping. Our plan was to SUV camp at one of their back in site with the hook ups. Last minute I decided to book one of their renovated retro campers. We stayed in "Ruby". This cute little red and white 50-60's style camper had all the amenities, microwave, fridge, a/c, heater, coffee maker and a little sitting area for relaxing. The bed was comfy and the entire camper was warm, inviting and clean. Outside there was a firepit and a picnic table. There is also a very clean pit toilet 30 sec walk from camper. If you want hot showers and flush toilets, they have that too. They also had a retro playground for kids. Love love love this place!
GuideI stayed here two nights. I made reservations online and received an email (and text) letting me know to head straight to my site, with no need to officially check in. The campground was huge with lots of stuff to do for kids. A hiking trail is attached to the grounds as well. Bathroom and shower were clean. The surrounding hills were pretty to look at with leaves changing in mid-october. Only downside is the noise from the highway but if you can tune that out, I highly recommend.
GuideGreat sites in a simple well-run NPS Monument. Sites are placed amongst cool lava rocks and features. Nearby well water, plumbed bathrooms in-season. Cool activities in park, quaint visitor center. Hiking, running, road biking, and casual cave exploring all recommended.
TravelerWe like staying here while traveling through Idaho. It’s a short drive to Craters of the Moon National Monument, and Arco, Idaho is a neat little town. The Showers and Laundry facilities at this park were not used by us during this visit. Staff was very friendly during the check in process. There is limited shade in the park.
LegendGreat place to camp to enjoy the park. Dry camping but restroom pit toilet was very clean. We pulled in at 430 and was able to obtain a spot though lots of campers already parked. Stayed one night. Price was only $7.50 with senior pass.
TravelerIncredible views after driving through most of Idaho this spot is a relief! Water /fishing access ,private spots , even one really nice paved spot close to entrance , don’t miss the turn it’s near a cattle gate on the gravel road
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Howe, ID?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Howe, ID is Iron Bog Campground with a 4-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Howe, ID?
TheDyrt.com has all 8 tent camping locations near Howe, ID, with real photos and reviews from campers.
