Are you in need of a campground near Stanley, ID? Discover secluded campsites where you can reconnect with nature. Or maybe you like to bring your family and friends along. Either way, there are Stanley campgrounds just for you. Find the best campgrounds near Stanley, plus reviews and photos from other campers like you.
"The views are amazing as your at the foot of an incredible drainage to hike. Your close to the wilderness so be prepared for the adventures that await. There is no water, so bring a filter."
"The sunset over the lake was spectacular – the water was so clear and peaceful, I could have sat there all night."
"The roads in to this area, NF-563/Stanley Creek Rd and NF-633/Nip and Tuck Road are in pretty decent shape for all vehicles coming in from the West off of Hwy 21, but be warned, do not come in from the"
"Got to Stanley area around 6pm on a Friday. Drove to Stanley Lake and Iron Creek but everything was full."
"This site was excellent as it offers both spots for vehicles as well as a tent only area where the sites are walk-in."
"On one of the most beloved and popular lakes in the Sawtooth. Redfish Lake. Gorgeous views. Any kind of water sports you crave. Backpacking destination trails. Short or long hiking. Biking."
"this camping site is great, super bumpy dirt road takes you to a few hidden plots tucked away by a river. private and easy to crash for the night"
"One thing my family and I always look for when we camp is if there are great hiking spots nearby."
"Vault toilet, picnic tables, fire rings. No horses this time, so we let the dogs roam around a bit. Little sandy from the burn, also dead fall and associated hazards so beware I guess."
"Up near the top of the pass is Bench Creek campground. There are only 6 sites on this lollipop loop, all on the non-highway side. But you can hear the highway from everywhere in the campground."
"Close to the road so you get a little road noise. Nice small quiet campground. Wasn’t to busy when visited. Got starlink but no Verizon service. Clean sites and nicely paved."
"As the other reviewers mentioned, it is right on the road, so you're likely to hear cars driving past. Because it was so dusty, we decided to stay in our car rather than pitching the tent."
"No need for a hotel in Ketchum Idaho. Park and camp here! Several dispersed sites after the Sawtooth National Forest boundary, with creek running by and a hot spring down the road."
"Toxaway Lake was the first stop on our backpacking trip (Alice-Toxaway Loop). We started at Tin Cup Trailhead and did the loop counterclockwise. This campsite was about 7.5 miles from the trailhead."
LegendThere are about 6 designated spots here in this free little campground. Camping is allowed in designated sites only and there is a 10 day stay limit.
Site #1 is all by itself to the right at the fork, and it was the best site, in our opinion.
Each site has a fire pit (no fires allowed at this time!). There is no picnic bench. There is one vault toilet and no garbage collection and no water. There are no bear boxes but proper bear proof food storage is required.
A small creek runs along this campground and the views are incredible. Nice shade cover and trees. This area is fine dirt and so-so in terms of flat spots. Campground is right on the road so you hear the cars but considering how beautiful and free the campground it, the cars aren’t bothersome. Plus it quiets down at night.
Zero cell service.
LegendThere are about 6 designated spots here in this free little campground. Camping is allowed in designated sites only and there is a 10 day stay limit.
Site #1 is all by itself to the right at the fork, and it was the best site, in our opinion.
Each site has a fire pit (no fires allowed at this time!). There is no picnic bench. There is one vault toilet and no garbage collection and no water. There are no bear boxes but proper bear-proof food storage is required.
A small creek runs along this campground and the views are incredible. Nice shade cover and trees. This area is fine dirt and so-so in terms of flat spots. Campground is right on the road so you hear the cars but considering how beautiful and free the campground it, the cars aren’t bothersome. Plus it quiets down at night.
Zero cell service.
TravelerLovely little campground with many amenities close to Redfish Lake Lodge. Each campsite has a dedicated level pad for tents, a picnic table, a bear box, and fire ring. The sites are a bit open, so privacy can be a bit lacking if that's a concern. This campsite is also walk-in, so you will need to use provided wagons to bring your stuff to your site and park your car in the provided parking lot. There are also bathrooms which had flushing toilets and running water and are well maintained. We loved that Point Campground is within walking distance to Redfish Lake Lodge, which has a bunch of different activities: horseback riding, kayaking, a dog beach, mountain biking, fishing, etc. This campground is great when camping with children, especially with the bathrooms & lack of car traffic on the tent-only side. We will be returning!
LegendIf you show up to Redfish Lake on a busy weekend and all of the campgrounds are reserved/full, no worries. There is a bunch of free dispersed camping all along highway 75. A quick stop at the Forest Service Office down the road and I had a pretty good map of the forest roads in the area, but more importantly, a tip about free camping a stone’s throw away from Redfish Lake and Sunny Gulch campground. The road in is a bit rough with ruts and rocks, but there are several established sites with fire rings. There was a loop to the right with about 8 such sites and a loop to the right with about 5 sites as well as one that was hidden behind the site I chose that you had to walk in to(it was actually a nicer site than the one I chose, but I was tired and set up before I saw it on my explorations. There was one vault toilet that was not especially clean, but free is free, and if you really wanted to, you could walk less than a quarter mile across to the developed Sunny Gulch campground. There are no picnic tables or grills or tent pads, but definitely stone fire rings at each site so no worries as long as you brought your own camp chair. If you need a shower, head into Redfish Lake to use the public pay showers there.
LegendThis is a tent only campground(there is nowhere for RVs to turn around, and backing out would be a horrific proposition) with only seven sites. The best sites are the four that are on the creek side of the camp road. There is a vault toilet(not especially clean) and a bear proof dumpster, and lots of signs about bears, but no bear boxes for food storage. The campsites are nicely shaded, but not especially private(you can see most of the sites from each other). This campground is$2 cheaper than the next closest campground(I drove to the other site to check it out and returned here because except for the price, they were about the same). There is a pretty cool avalanche/rock slide up the road that is impressive in size and there are some pretty cool beaver dams and lodges in the creek/marshy area that feeds into the river. Be careful picking a site along the creek as it runs pretty close to the edge of two sites and I suspect the sites get flooded during big rains(due to the beaver dams). Showers are not terribly far away at Redfish Lake Park.
TravelerBad Bear is a nice little campsite outside of Idaho City. The sites are good size with adequate privacy. There is lots of tree cover for shade during those warm summer days, and a babbling brook at the back of the campground. Each site had a picnic table, fire ring, and there is a well for water and a vault toilet. We enjoyed our stay here, mostly because there wasn't anyone else camping in the campground when we were there in mid-July! Score! We grabbed the big site, but the other sites seemed a bit small. Would recommend for a easy campsite close to Idaho City and just a quick little jaunt from Boise.
RangerSunny Gulch is a NFS campground right between Stanley, Idaho and Redfish Lake. The views are incredible and the location can’t be beat. The campground has two loops with the lower loop being closer to Highway 75 (not noisy at all at night) and more appropriate for smaller rigs while the upper loop has some larger sites with some above the Salmon River. All sites have picnic table, prep table, fire ring and tent pad and are quite large and lots of space between sites. Sites are FCFS except for 10 reservable sites; camp host is fantastic and super friendly. Firewood is available at the host site and vault toilets are located throughout the campground and water pumps are also positioned within a short walk of most sites. The Ranger Station is 1/2 mile away and has four dump stations ($12 as of this review) and free fresh water if the pumps at the campground don’t suit your needs.
Redfish Lake and all that encompasses is 1/2 mile to the south; the town of Stanley is beyond the Ranger Station about 2 miles to the north. We’ll definitely stay here again if we’re in the area!
GuideBlacktop drive and parking pads with a few pull through sites. You can fish from your camp site. No hookups but water is available. Plenty of space between sites. Fire rings and picnic tables were provided. Firewood was for sale. Bring your bug spray for late afternoon and evening. We needed it in early July.
LegendThis area along lower Iron Creek Road had some rough free dispersed spots that had cell signal from Stanley. As of June 2023 there are info boards and signage that notes dispersed camping only in designated spots marked on the ground with new signs. I saw an A group and a B group and may be more farther up but the road was so rough washboard potholed I did not check. These sites are small and not suitable for RVs and large TTs in my opinion. No toilets, no dumpsters and no water. However, this is very close to Stanley town.
Tent camping near Stanley, Idaho offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in stunning natural landscapes, with a variety of campgrounds catering to outdoor enthusiasts.
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Stanley, ID is Redfish Inlet Trailhead with a 4.6-star rating from 8 reviews.
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