Best Dispersed Camping near Irwin, ID

A bit of a drive and a rough road, but totally worth it! Off of antelope flat Rd, take a left at the dead end toward the national Forest land. Then you will veer left on the dirt road. There is a camping area at the base of the mountain but if you continue on up the mountain there are many, many dispersed camping pullouts. Beautiful views of the Tetons and excellent wildflowers. There are sites that have some shade and trees but several are pretty exposed. This is a very popular place on the weekends so make sure you get there early to set up camp (or avoid it if you like quite on a Saturday night). No water, no toilets, just a free place to camp with established fire rings! Dogs are welcome.

I have not personally spent the night camping here, but I do work for the Forest Service and wanted to give more information about the Darby Canyon dispersed camping sites. I also had a friend stay here for three nights last September and they had a good time. There are about 10~ sites (I will check and edit when I can) all along the canyon road, some are just right off road and others require a short drive down beaten paths to find the sites. All of these sites (except 2 or so very close to the road) are past the cattle guard. Depending on the time of year, many of these sites may not be accessible. Snow typically stays in the canyon until mid-June and starts collecting in October. The area may also be buggy at the height of the summer (July 2024 had been atrocious). There is limited cell service down most of the road and it completely disappears the closer to the Wind Cave trailhead you get. This area has a 14 day stay limit, meaning that once 14 days (13 nights) have been reached you must move at least 5 miles away to continue camping on forest service land and cannot return to this canyon to camp for 30 days. This is in a bear food storage enforced area and any bear attractants (food, pet food, soaps, sunscreen, etc.) are required to be stored properly in a locked hard sided vehicle or other bear resistant containers. Fires are allowed but must be put out dead (cold to the touch) before leaving a campsite. This canyon is regularly patrolled by Forest Service staff and ranger law enforcement officers, especially on the weekends, to keep up with the food storage and fires out dead orders. Hope this helps weary travelers that are deterred by low-rated reviews.

Great option if the Curtis Canyon campground is full, or if you would prefer something a little more remote. High clearance vehicles recommended - forest road 30440 is in pretty rough shape. Town of Jackson is fairly close.

Same great views you'd expect anywhere near the Tetons; trailhead to Goodwin Lake is close by. Full Teton view is better at the trailhead, but its not far. Dispersed sites are spread out with plenty of space; although no one stayed in the site next to us on this rainy evening in June.

To get there, continue past the Curtis Canyon campground in Bridger-Teton National Forest (behind the Elk refuge) as if you were heading to the trail head. You'll start to see marked sites along the extremely rutted forest road. I would not attempt very muddy conditions.

We camped here in a 4x4 Sprinter van in early July and it was one of the best dispersed sites we’ve ever experienced. It took about 45min driving East from Antelope Flats Road to reach the site. The service road out to the turnoff is very easy, a 2WD crossover could make it in clear conditions. I wouldn’t be comfortable taking the turnoff itself down to the river without high clearance and 4WD as it’s steep and uneven.

There were two clearly defined camping spots with primitive fire rings, each directly on the banks of the river with views of the cliff side opposite the river.

Zero service and amenities but a wonderful experience. We got there at about 6pm on a Friday and the other site was filled.

If your wanting a place that overlooks the Grand Teton National Park this is your place. The views from campsites 1-15 are absolutely unreal and overlook Antelope Flats followed by the Grand Teton's. Some of the other campsites at Shadow Mountain are harder to navigate. Around Shadow Mountain there is about 8 miles worth of 4 wheeler trails that you can bike or walk where the other campsite locations are located. 

Shadow Mountain is part of the Bridger-Teton National Forest and from May 1- Labor Day you can stay a maximum of 5 days, the other dates you can stay up to 16 days. The camp ambassador has more detailed maps of the camping areas. This part of the national forest allows for FREE dispersed camping but only at assigned campsites. There is a camp ambassador on-site near sites 1-15 to help enforce the rules(this is a busier campsite in the summer as its very close to Jackson and lots of locals come out- kind of a party spot). There is a porta-potty on site on campsites 1-15 but no water or other amenities near other campsites. 

The road to get this location can be difficult but maneuverable as there are some large ruts in spots and larger river rock makes slower travel. It can be navigated by pretty much any car type or truck with trailer. If you have an RV it may be difficult to get to this location. 

Overall we highly recommend you check out this spot as the view is absolutely gorgeous. There is animal activity in the area Moose, Elk, Grizzly so use proper animal safety,"be bear aware." The camp ambassador mentioned a few weeks prior to our stay a grizzly attached a mom and her baby Moose near campsite 14! 

Check out our video review: https://youtu.be/8mVj1dxL5t4