Best Tent Camping near Picabo, ID

Recent Tent Reviews in Picabo

240 Reviews of 28 Picabo Campgrounds

• 

  arden A.

  Scout

  

  Dec. 6, 2024

  Antelope Creek

  Beautiful view of sun valley

  Nice dispersed camping for the prepared person :)

• 

  Fred S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 31, 2024

  Corral Creek Designated Dispersed

  Large dispersed site near creek

  Free designated dispersed campsite along Sawtooth Nation Forest Road 137. Camped here at the end of September 2024. Very large designated dispersed site set downhill from the forest road; no issues with dust from this road. The area is level. May be able to park 3 rigs. Tent camping is possible back from the parking area toward the metal firering. This area can accommodate 3 or 4 tents, or one big hot tent. Corral Creek is just down a short path from the campsite. The sound of the creek can be heard at the site. Very quiet area. Mountains on either side of the site. The parking area is dirt and gravel. The "tent" area is grass and dirt. Don't see opportunities for hammock camping. No cell service. No shade; solar recharging and Starlink possible. 3 day limit. Hiking trailheads and vault toilet at the end of the forest road.

• 

  Fred S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 30, 2024

  Star Hope

  Primitive camping in Copper Basin

  $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.

• 

  Fred S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 29, 2024

  Iron Bog Campground

  Pretty location - peaceful stay

  $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.

• 

  Corvid C.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 23, 2024

  Craters of the Moon-Arco KOA

  Adequate for a quiet night with full hook-ups

  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.

• 

  James B.

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 3, 2024

  Craters of the Moon Wilderness — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Beautiful spot in a hidden gem

  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.

• 

  Marlis N.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 30, 2024

  North Fork Campground - Sawtooth National Forest

  Quiet

  The campground is clean $20 a night with some highway noise. There is a bear in the area at this time.

• 

  Kathryn D.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 10, 2024

  Silver Creek Public Access Dispersed

  Creekside!

  Delightful creekside free campsites! Turn at the BLM sign and take a little gravel road to several free creekside spots! There are at least two pit toilets, one at a spot with two picnic tables, each has a great shade, fire pit, and a place for a camp stove! One has a flat raised gravel spot for a tent, which was good because we actually saw a couple mice. The second pit toilet was further down the road at a more separated spot, it looked like it was ADA accessible and also had a picnic table, etc. Close enough to Carey to get gas/ice. Only giving it 4 stars because of the mice (pack out your own trash guys! It isn’t hard!) and the complete lack of trees, the covers over the picnic tables did proved shade, but it still got crazy hot.

• 

  George B.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 4, 2024

  Wilson's RV Park

  Not like the pictures for sure

  We stayed a week in July, and the green trees in the pictures are all dead skeletons now with no shade at all. There is a constant smell of a combination of septic and farm compost. The one advantage was an onsite parts store and repair shop.

• M

  Merel J.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 20, 2024

  Craters of the Moon-Arco KOA

  Disappointing and " unique"

  We 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.

• 

  andrew N.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 20, 2024

  Craters of the Moon-Arco KOA

  First family vacation gone wrong

  For 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.

• 

  Pearce F.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 18, 2024

  Silver Creek Public Access Dispersed

  Great night on Silver Creek

  Arrived later than I wanted and was thrilled to find site 1, I believe this was the North entrance, was available. Great spot with a pit toilet and table. Plenty of room to park and level. Loved listening to the creek all night. Wet a fly the next morning and caught a great brown trout. Lots of little dinkers, too.

• 

  Cindy S.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 6, 2024

  North Fork Campground - Sawtooth National Forest

  Great Place to get away

  It’s a quiet place. It is dusty. The camp host was awesome. He was quick to tell us what sites were still available on a holiday weekend. He even alerted the campers that a bear was spotted a few miles down. There is no power and no cell service.

• 

  laura S.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 1, 2024

  Hayspur Hatchery

  Free, beautiful, a little buggy

  Free (donation box) camping. I have a hard time imagining this place filling up, plenty of field to park in. Most RVs were under a row of trees. Two vault toilets, on either end of camping. Not the cleanest or freshest I’ve used, but not the worst. Great scenery and birdwatching. Good stop on the way to/from Craters.

• m

  mark F.

  Ranger

  

  Jun. 29, 2024

  Craters of the Moon Wilderness — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Great unique campground right inside the national park!

  Great 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.

• 

  Martijn D.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 22, 2024

  Craters of the Moon Wilderness — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Camp in a volcano Crater

  It 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

• 

  Amber G.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 9, 2024

  Picabo Angler Silver Creek RV Park

  Just okay

  Spent two nights here so we could visit nearby Craters of the Moon. Spaces are long and level at least. Fire pits are shared with 1-2 other spots. Our table was completely leaning over. Neither of the bathroom toilets would flush. The sprinklers came on in the middle of camp and soaked everything with no warning. Okay if you need a quick stop for the night.

• P

  Patricia F.

  Traveler

  

  May. 27, 2024

  Craters of the Moon Wilderness — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Nice clean quiet

  Nice 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.

• 

  Nicki S.

  Guide

  

  Feb. 22, 2024

  Antelope Creek

  Great

  This site was pretty easy to find. There were a couple of campers camped closer to the road from the turn-off but we managed to find a spot that was secluded and perfect for us right next to the creek. Tons of space, especially since we were by ourselves. Had a real fire pit! This was a cold stay and our tent was covered in frost in the morning, but a good spot to be. Close enough to town, close enough to hiking.

• 

  Joel R.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 30, 2023

  Craters of the Moon-Arco KOA

  Nice quiet camping

  Stopped 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 !

• 

  Jack R.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 22, 2023

  Lava Flow Campground — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  It's a site

  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

• K

  Kristi R.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 2, 2023

  Corral Creek Canyon Dispersed

  Nice location, campsites spreadout

  Quiet, private campsites. Close to Sun Valley. Place to turn around if unable to fine a campsite. No cell coverage. Only 3 day limit.

• K

  Kristi R.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 2, 2023

  Antelope Creek

  Close in to Sun Valley

  Nice location, close to town. Close to road but not much traffic. Access can be difficult with steep access from main road and tricky spots along the access road. There are three access spots. Would pick the first or second. The road is difficult between the second and third access roads. Would recommend walking down to see if safe for you and your vehicle. There is more dispersed camping farther up the road but you begin to lose cell coverage.

• L

  Lexine H.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 23, 2023

  Group Campground — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Craters of the moon

  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

• 

  Emily T.

  Ranger

  

  Sep. 22, 2023

  Lava Flow Campground — Craters of the Moon National Monument

  Super cool def stop here if you can

  First 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.

• 

  Nikki R.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 11, 2023

  Lava Creek

  Rough field with fire pits with view of water

  Accesible by any car. Giant desert field with fire pits. No shade . No one there when I was there. Sunday evening Some broken glass around fire pit

• C

  Chad L.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 27, 2023

  Murdock Creek Dispersed

  Quiet spot near Ketchum

  This is a fee based campground with a host that offers a first come first serve camping experience. We got in late in the day and were happy to find a spot. The ground was a bit limited for tent camping but we ended with a great location near moving water. The sound of water created a very serene environment for rest. The real treat came when we saw the beauty of the night sky unencumbered by city lights; the Milky Way was on full display.