Join the fun near Murray. With tons of outdoor activities and scenic camping, this is an excellent vacation spot for all kinds of travelers. Aside from great camping spots, you'll find hiking and many more outdoor experiences. Thinking of traveling with kids? You're in luck—Murray is surrounded by family-friendly activities. Get the dirt on all the best camping near Murray. Browse campgrounds by amenities, site types, and more.
"Easy to drive up to. Any vehicle will do. Dirt road to the top where you will find a lovely little lake with 4-5 camp spots surrounding it."
"You’ll want to bring good cars because the road gets pretty primitive. Awesome lake for kayaking and paddle boarding."
"Great tent camping. Also, it's a great starting point to some really good dirt bike trails. Be prepared for no cell service. 0 amenities. it's just a place to pitch a tent and have a fire."
"This campground stretches along a tributary of the CdA river, and there is great tent camping and fly fishing. Downside is that there is limited vehicle access to most spots."
"We wanted a place to tent camp as close to the Pearson, Idaho end of the Hiawatha Bike Trail as possible. This little (5 camping sites) primitive campground suited our needs perfectly."
"great trail for hiking and exploring. this camp is not heavily used so you could possibly get the place to yourself. lots of shade great place to go get away"
"The campgrounds have few trees which lead to me only scouting it out and hiking the trails nearby."
$75 - $150 / night
"Located not far from Thompson Falls, and lot of water ways. Fish are not as abundant as other areas, and there are no walking trails within walking distance."
"Camp here for a real north Idaho camping experience."
"The Marble Creek Campground has a few sites and one outhouse facility nearby. Just miles from the camp, there is an old man-built cave that makes its way through the entire mountain."
ScoutThis used to be a great place to camp, especially at the Pavilion. However, two recent camping trips were not so great. There is no water, even though there are cisterns everywhere. There is no trash pickup. Restrooms are visited and "cleaned", but there is no evidence that anything was done. There are still tons of bugs and webs. I think they just replace the TP. Last visit was at the Pavilion with a men's campout with around 20 individuals. No trash containers, no bear boxes, and no water. We brought 250 gallons of water with us and pulled up to where the fire pit was, so it would be close to the fire for safety and convenience. The day after we left the site, a ranger called and accused us of "off-roading" and not placing our food in the non-existent bear boxes. We weren't "cited," but the temperament of the management is that they want you to pay the same price for camping without a host, water, trash, bear boxes, or clean restrooms. If you wish to dry camp, there are plenty of spaces, but it is definitely dry camping. Beautiful campground with severe management issues, all blamed on"lack of funding".
TravelerWe stayed at Chatcolet campground for two nights in late June. The campground is really nice with lovely hosts and clean flushable toilets. We booked site 128 and didn’t realise it was a tent only site with a short walk from where you park to the picnic table, fire ring and tent pad. We have a rooftop tent so we parked and set up our tent and then just carried our chairs, food and wood down to the picnic table. Privacy on these sites isn’t the best, I would recommend booking this site along with 129 as a group site to give yourself good privacy.
Overall this campground was great, the toilets were clean, they are porcelain, flushing toilets inside a hut. There was drinking water and some nice walks to the lake, if you have bicycles there is a really nice cycle that you can do. The reason for rating this 3 out of 5 is that there was very noisy and intrusive maintenance going on from 7am to 5pm in the sites next to us which was very disruptive. No warning had been given about maintenance in the campground, notice was only given regarding roadworks leading into the campground.
GuideThis is a free campground. There are five sites with generous spacing. Each site has a picnic table and a fire ring. There is a privy and one bear box in the middle of the circle. This campground doesn't really accommodate large RVs, but it's great for tent camping. Although it sits along the river, it doesn't really have great river access. The campground is no more than 10 minutes from Thompson falls, so it's easy to get to town if you need to.
RangerTalk about a hike! This is a pretty steep trek, with rewarding views at the top. Be sure to read trail reports and weather reports before heading out. North Idaho weather can be pretty finicky, especially at high elevations. Make sure to be aware of wildlife as well! Scotchman's is known for mountain goat sightings, but as they become more accustomed to people they can be a little aggressive. Keep a safe distance!
TravelerCoeur d’Alene River Road has SO many places to boondocks and camp, I wouldn’t waste our money on this campground again. The pit toilets were clean and the fire rings and picnic tables were in good shape, hence the two stars. Lots of wasps. No water. Nothing to do within walking distance. Find a boondock spot and save the $28.00
GuideSites Right along the river. A few sites are in a cul de sac style and would be great for group camping. The other two are fairly secluded. No water. No garbage. There is a Vaulted toilet. Each site has fire ring and a picnic table.
Guide2020 cost is $16 + $8 extra car, half off with Federal parks pass, & it's average for a Forest Service pay campground. There's water, & you can fill a holding tank, but no power or dump. The lower loops are very close together & less shade. The upper loop has more shade, bigger sites, but sound rises from below. You can hear the conversations and generators of your lower neighbors. Our site was next to a vault toilet - we could smell it. There was lots of noise, e.g., road, train, barking dogs, etc. The 2020 camp hosts were very intrusive. They stopped us in the middle of the road while they inspected our front license plate (we aren't required to have one), then interrogated us, without masks, about where we were from, what we were doing & how many dogs we had. We have a nice RV and look like average middle class folks. Maybe it was because we were in a Class B Van, but our van cost more than most class As. This is a self-pay campground so unless I need firewood I don't need to be forced to stop & be questioned by a volunteer. While we drove through looking at sites one host tailed us on foot through the CG. Five minutes after we began to set up they showed up, not wearing masks, wanting money. I didn't think volunteers were supposed to handle any money. We'd already paid at the iron ranger pay station & they seemed disappointed to not get the money directly from us. Then, within a minute, they returned, not wearing masks, & fussed because we hadn't gotten the tag on our campsite post yet - we were still setting up & hadn't had time yet. They weren't social distancing & we thought they were very peculiar and intimidating.
TravelerWe’ve stayed here a couple times now. It is a nice place. It is a little run down though. The car, tent camping is great. You have your own plot under trees. If you tent camp is the rest of the camp ground you will need a pad under your tent. I ground is pretty course gravel with up to 1.25” sharp stones. Firewood is free though.
GuideI found this free spot on another free campsites app. It’s right next to a National Forest boat launch, where there are 2 pit toilets. The campgrounds themselves are dispersed, with already human made fire rings. Some sites are next to the water (those were taken), I ended up driving to see what’s open and settled on top of a hill. There was another camper who must have been there for a while, set up a little tarp village, he looked like he was moved in there… and then a bear up pickup truck drove by few times - something about it felt sketchy to me. I explored a bit more the next day - there are several walk-in sites which looked great - but you can’t drive into those - some up on a hill, some at the bottom of a hill past big boulders.
Nestled in the scenic landscapes of Idaho, tent camping near Murray offers a perfect escape into nature, with a variety of campgrounds that cater to outdoor enthusiasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Murray, ID?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Murray, ID is Lake Elsie Campground with a 4.2-star rating from 9 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Murray, ID?
TheDyrt.com has all 39 tent camping locations near Murray, ID, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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