Best Equestrian Camping near Island Park, ID

Bootjack Dr.

Island Park, ID

44.5781, -111.341

Dept Fish & Wildlife 

14 day limit (doesn't seem to be enforced, but seems to be more seasonal campers, not permanent) Grass Spaces for even big rigs.

Verizon 4g/4 bars (no booster)

ATT 4g/3 bars

No OTA channels

Dump & water available at Henry's Lake St. Park

Amazon Locker in Idaho Falls

Large parking area as you exit I20 to Red Rock. visible from the hwy. 

Good place to drop a rig & scout out (highly recommended). 

Snow plow turnaround at the end of Bootjack Dr, so you can get turned around on that road.

Coordinates lead to the main area off the left on Bootjack Dr. 

There are 4 offshoot roads we saw, some going way back, but most people were parked fairly close to the tree line, or just in front of them for solar. 

Use Google satellite and then scout them out as the roads can get pretty rutted the further in you go.

This area gets pretty full in season, but we still found a spot pretty easily, and an even better spot down in a meadow by a creek (we needed sun for solar) with the help of a neighbor.

CAUTION: if you park down by the creek, watch the weather. It can get a bit mushy in spots, and the road in/out can rut out. 

This is a local ATV & Fishing hole. 

There will be traffic. Had a few joy riders on a Friday night, but everyone else great.

If you park by the creek, you will have fisherman coming down to fish. They were fun to talk to, and we never felt unsafe. Just be aware this IS a public area, and the local public uses it regularly. If you don't want people passing through to the creek, the meadow area might not be for you.

Wild West Pizza, Firehole BBQ,  Old Town Cafe our favorites in W.Yellowstone,

Cafe Sabor in Island Park.

Groceries & Supplies are at tourist prices, come stocked if you don't want to pay them.

We loved this spot. Peaceful, friendly neighbors, cows across the creek on private land, and Moose in the creek 3 days, easy access to Yellowstone,  and free.  Mid 80's high, mid to low 50's at night. We did have rain, and even some pea sized hail, but mostly just gorgeous days & nights. 

This one is on the 'return to' list.

HeadWaters Rv campground is located in the perfect place right between Yellowstone and The Tetons. Perfect for exploring both Parks. The cell service is pretty spotty, but it’s great to just put down your phone and enjoy your surroundings. It is only 5 minutes walk from the campground to Snake River access. Fires are allowed at this campground. There are Rv, tent, and cabins to stay at. The cabins in the camp area are small but have full sized bunk beds and a desk and dresser. These cabins do not have water or electricity, but there are other cabins with power up the road. The tent and Rv spots are on gravel with lots of shade, a picnic table, and fire ring. Rv sites are Electric and water. There are so many activities to do. Along with the activities they have every day there is horse riding, guided fly fishing, hiking trails for everyone, bus tours, jr. rancher classes and so much more Also on site at the campground is a dish washing area next to the clean bathrooms and showers. There is a propane fill, fresh water fill, restaurant, gift shop, ATM machine, gas station, and bear boxes. I would definitely recommend this campground for any duration of trip.

After a random restaurant stop, a local recommended we go check out big springs campground, which is the headwaters of the snake river and not too far outside of Yellowstone. I am so glad we did! After traveling over random dirt roads from Spencer, Idaho, we arrived to find several open spots for just $15 each. Nice and woodsy, pleasant neighbors, and sites are just big enough. There's bear boxes to use. Just a quick walk away is the headwaters of the snake river, where huge trout swim under a bridge and eat marshmallows and American cheese. Only downside is no showers or flush toilets. Close enough to Yellowstone that we slept in the car so we could wake up at 5 am and grab one of the early morning Yellowstone camp sites. Would definitely go back.

We camped along Grassy Lake Rd on the way to Yellowstone from the Tetons. The first 7-10 sites are developed and have trash/bathrooms at each site. Some have 2-3 sites at each camp. We were not able to get a developed site but apparently the road goes all the way to Idaho with random primitive pull-offs to camp. We drove about 30 minutes past the last developed site to find a nice area next to a little creek and a bridge. We saw maybe 3-4 vehicles pass through the whole night and morning we were there. Definitely has that middle of nowhere feeling the farther you drive and we loved it! Watch out for mosquitoes and bears!

Very close to West Yellowstone, about 25 minutes away. Close to Hwy 20. Lots of camping sites that are in the trees or out in the open. Dirt road has ruts, but many large rigs were camped here.

The last 7 miles are a well maintained road. The scenery prior to arrive is breath taking. Campground is beautiful with spacious area between sites and wonderful pavilion over the picnic table. It was quiet enough to hear the water in the creek while in our campsite. We will definitely stay here again.

Can’t say enough about how much we enjoyed this campground. Yellowstone is an awesome place but the crowds can get very intense. This campground was an excellent place to get away from the crowds and relax after a day in the park. Locate about 6 miles from the west entrance, it’s location was very quiet but conveniently located near a town. The staff was professional and very welcoming. There was some construction at the KOA but thy kept it quiet for the most part. The campground has a nice store and a small pizza restaurant. The bathroom facilities were the nicest I have ever seen. Large private bathrooms with showers. They were extremely clean. The staff works so hard to provide a clean and quiet place to stay. I can’t say enough about this place.

Without going into the plethora of reasons that you should visit Yellowstone, let me say that this campground stands on its own as a family-approved space. The views are fantastic (can you go wrong out in that part of the country) and the amenities are unparalleled in a campground.

There is every type of facility that you can imagine: washing, hot showers, dining, store, indoor heated pool, hot tub, etc. I mean, is this even camping? I was less than impressed with those features when we arrived and more with the fact that I was with my teenage daughter, younger brother, and father to see Yellowstone NP, but boy did that indoor pool and come in handy when it rained and got a bit chilly. The hot tub helped ease the hiking woes my body was taking in from the long hikes in the area.

Did you know there are so many stars? You feel like you can see them all from that darn KOA. The energy of the campground is palpable as the sites are only separated by a rustic wood fence. It is a busy place, so I was okay with that part. These days I prefer to be away from everyone or at least further 10', but my daughter loved it.

The main thing here is that I would recommend staying within Yellowstone if that is your purpose of your visit. It does book up fast, though, so this is still a viable option. I think we paid more for the KOA site vs. Grant Campground at the southern end of Yellowstone a couple of years later, but there is no comparison to what people paid to stay in town near the West Gate to YNP.

Oh, be ready for a LOOOONNGG wait at the YNP gate and DEFINITELY have your annual pass already purchased. We had a pass so we were able to skip about 30 minutes of a waiting to get in, but you still need to navigate four roads converging 1-2 miles out from the park's entrance. You've been warned.

Great site, primitive, but nice. Park is amazing, so it’s nice being close. Watch out for fire season, can get Smokey.

Lots of bears!!! This park is huge and the camping is in close proximity to all the super cool mineral pools and hot springs.

The park looks nice. The slot we have is no real level so we had to park in the middle of the slot so we barely have enough room for the pick up. We are here for a week so I may add to this other the week.

It took us a while to get set up so we ordered pizza from the KOA Lodge Pole Pizza and they delivered. Wow I am impressed the pizza had a really good flavor. Great pizza!

My daughter(5) and I are tenters. We love the KOA campsites for their amenities and generally above primitive camping features. This KOA at Mountainside does not have a lot of Kids stuff to do like a lot of other places. Of course all my reviews will hold the buildings KOA as the standard bear for camping with kids. But getting back to Mountainside, it only has a playground, but the staff is really really good. We were in tent site number one which they said was unlevel, but it was fine. It backed right up to the stream that gave an incredible calming sound all night long. There were two fire pits and electrical. It is spread out, lots of tent spaces, the bathroom facilities were excellent. 

 The store was well stocked, and not overly priced. They have a pizza place that I have heard was excellent, but we did not try it.

I continue to be impressed with the KOA experience (with the exception of the West Yellowstone KOA). 

This review is specific to tent camping which I don’t think is the focus of KOA locations.

For the good, the facilities we super clean and there were personal shower/bathroom rooms for use. The shower was great after a week of car camping.

The camp store had the basic and was convenient.

The location was very close to West Yellowstone and the west part of the park.

However, the tent camping left something to be desired. Our loop was around the back of the campground, with the basics of a fire ring and picnic table, it there was no tent pad and the ground was generally pretty sloped.

The tent sites overall were sort of fit into extra spaces and had little privacy.

This campground is e well kept and clean, the staff is friendly and fun to be around. We loved the park and the creeks behind the campground. The store was well stocked and has a fantastic gift shop. We could have gotten all our Yellowstone souvenirs right at camp. We had a wonderful week here; everyone in my family loved the clean and, in their words, amazing showers.

We are going to be booking ❤️😁2022 here real soon! Thanks, guys.

Campground is in a great location close to Yellowstone entrance. It’s a big campground and as expected it can be a little cramped. I recommend getting a site away from the main road and traffic noise. It has a large indoor pool that the kids loved, also has a coffee shop, breakfast grill, a dog area, and a large playground. All-in-all a very solid campground with a convenient location.

This campground has all of the amenities and it is a short drive to Yellowstone Park.

Very clean campground, lots of amenities. Showers were very clean. Tent sites are a little bit cramped but it was okay. Felt safe from both people and animals.

I think the other KOA close by has more food options, but i liked this one just fine.

Love this KOA!  It had plenty of room for RV's and tents with lots of amenities.  The showers were very clean and spacious with plenty of hot water.  The staff was very helpful and friendly.  We enjoyed our stay here and loved that it is close to Yellowstone.  We will definitely be back!

We stayed in a large pull through site in our van because it was all that was available during last minute booking. We enjoyed a single night here on a level gravel pad with clean private showers nearby, and we were able to sleep in because of a long travel day.

The staff was great. Shop open 8-9 and had everything you might need, drinks, ice, and keep sacks. There is also a pizza shop attached. The shop delivers to your site or you can eat in.