Best Tent Camping near Menan, ID

Camping on the banks on the banks of the Warm River, which actually is quite cold, can’t get much better than this! There are several options here- tent camping in a tent only walk in area along the river banks and under some pretty good hammocking trees (best sites are #12, 13, 16, and 8 because they have some space from neighbors and are right on the river); RV sites with what looks like at least electric hook ups (best sites for river views and/or privacy are #2, 4, 6, 19); from what neighbors say is pretty good fishing; and an awesome alternative to camping at Mesa Falls if that campground is full. Walk down the road and cross the river to check out a protected area of the river where the fish are HUGE and you can stand with your toes in the river while you feed them bits of bread. The sites all have the usual picnic tables and firepits, with nice level tent pads, clean vault toilets, and firewood for sale from the campground host. The only two downsides are no showers and the campground is wedged between the road and the river, so there is quite a bit of road noise in the day which fortunately dies down once dark sets in. At that point the river covers the road noise (also helpful in the morning). The campground is close to a lot of hiking trails, but there are no trailheads in the campground (so I guess that makes three bummers). All in all, a cool place to camp.

The camp spots are well maintained and its easy to get to. The road in is very winding but is completely paved now.

Seems like it’s more established for trailer camping but we did tent camping and it was great. I would camp here again.

We've stayed here twice in the same tent site because we loved it. Very fun wood park for the kids, and the lake access is included in the camping reservation. Our site had running water and a nearby creek. Great place!

This campground was cramped and all the tent sites are practically on top of each other. We also had a bad run (three days) of loud neighbors that made is unbearable and forced us to leave the campground.

In Swan Valley the name of the game is fly fishing. This small campground is also a fly fishing outfitter and shop. While l was just passing through and I am not a fisherwoman, it seemed to offer pretty good services if that is your thing. I pulled in after hours but fortunately the owner’s dog alerted her to my presence and she was willing to open the office to rent me a tent site for the evening. There are 3ish tent sites(one was being worked on), about a half dozen pull thru RV sites, and 3 or 4 cabins for rent. There is a central bathhouse with two full bathrooms in a trailer for everyone to share. The bathhouse rooms are electronically accessed with codes the host gives you on check in. They were really nice and clean, like bathrooms in a typical modern home, except that one had the water heater tank in it and both had space heaters on the floor to plug in(fire hazard??). The tent site I chose was at the back of the campground so I didn’t have much highway noise, and fell asleep to the sound of the nearby horses grazing. Next door on the other side is a municipal building that appears to be the home base for the sheriff. The view of the back of the office/fly shop is not very picturesque, with boats and atv’s and odds and ends laying about. There are nice trees providing shade, but there is no real privacy between sites, tents, or cabins. The grass was quite lush, so I am wondering when the sprinkler system comes on. This place works as a layover or for someone who will take advantage of the fly fishing services, but not much else.

I stumbled across this campground while driving Mesa Falls scenic by-way. This campground has 27 sites, both tent, RV and a group site right along the Warm River. It also has a day use area. This campground had new vaulted toilets but no showers. Within the campground was the trailhead for The railroad grade trail (great for mountain biking) which I was told use to take train passenger to Yellowstone’s old faithful. Tubing was very popular and the campers next to us insisted that we borrow their tubes so we could try it out for ourselves, very refreshing during our hot August stay.

I snagged the last tent site #21 across the bridge in the northern half of the campground. This large secluded tent site up on the hill had a very small tent pad, fire pit and picnic table and enough room to put up my hammock. This site is next to two double sites. Unfortunately during the 5 nights I stayed some of the RVers close to us ran their generators beyond the 10pm curfew and one RVer felt the need to pull out his noisy leaf blower and blow leafs and dirt everywhere.

There is tons of things to see and do in the area, Mesa Falls, Island Park… but the hidden gem is the close proximity (less than 25 miles) to Yellowstone National Park - Bechler Ranger Station. Bechler Ranger Station is in the far SW corner of Yellowstone National Park. This area has more streams, creeks, lakes and waterfalls than any other area in Yellowstone. There is a historic Soldier Station there that is about 100 years old and there are lots of hiking trails to beautiful waterfalls. You can see cave falls right from the parking lots. I would definitely return to this campground next time I am in the area.

Unfortunately it was raining the whole night we showed up. However there was a covered pavilion, with a fridge, and 2 walls. We were able to stay dry under the pavilion and cook our food on the stove we bought. We were tent camping which offers plenty of picnic tables and nice green grass. There are plenty of areas from for RV camping along with hookups. There's also a boat ramp.

Now the bad, as we were getting ready to go to bed, the sprinklers came on. Thankfully we had springbar tents that were able to take the rain as well as the sprinklers. We tried waking the camp host to turn them off. Didn't work. We just waited it out and we were fine.

The campsite firepits, and pavillions with fridges, basketball courts, a boat doc, and bathrooms (clean, with no nasty smell, and hand blower dryers).

Free. Coordinates: 44.09981,-111.17306. Camped here on Sept 21, 2024. Set back and above busy Forest Road 582 which heads toward Cave Falls; no issues with dust from forest road. Site is also referred to as Lower Creek Road Campground. Large site, should easily accommodate 3 rigs. A few spots are level. Up on a small hill above Rock Creek. Can't see the creek, but you can hear it. Dirt surface. Tent camping possible. Surrounded by tall trees, but open sky above. Site has a bear box and a rock fire ring. There is also an old lean-to near the fire ring. The access track is pot-holed; may be muddy. No hiking trails. No T-Mobile nor AT&T cell service. It's a nice site; nothing special. Good for a quiet overnight stay if visiting Cave Falls.

Juniper is an excellent campground located on the Ririe reservoir and recreation area . The campground consists of 3 loops all have large level sites with platforms for tents and full hookups at only $30.00. The entire area is dotted with huge junipers that offer good cover and seclusion. The fishing at “Blacktail is good for Rainbows and perch - highly recommended. The area is out in the middle of nowhere and was only 1/4 full . A great spot to reach Idaho Falls or the Grand Tetons , and Jackson Wy .

Stayed 3 nights here in reservable loop A. Extremely clean, modern, and quiet. About 20 minutes from Idaho Falls.

Easily accessible. We camped in our tent, the roads were super easy to drive on. Great water access. Lots of wood for campfires. Yes cell phone service and it was free! Although the bathroom was very unclean.