Thompson Flat Campground

Camped near the end of October and all the other campsites were closed and locked. This one was open and I was the only one there. Beautiful campsites with tons of trees. Seemed like they all had stoves and picnic tables. There was service there too for Verizon.

We loved our stay at Thompson Flat! We had a fantastic time and our dogs loved it too. We were one of 3 campsites in use during out stay in the last half of September. We never saw a camphost anywhere, but the forest service were thinning trees during out stay.  There were clear markings on the trees from antler rubbing by deer and elk.  You are in direct line with a tower on another mountain peek to the East and we got excellent signal for both cell and tv. Lake Cleveland is approximately 2 miles away and has great fishing opportunities. Mt. Harrison Peak is 3.1 miles away and gives beautiful views into the South and West of Idaho.  There is a fire watch tower there along with an interpretive area to learn about the plants in the area.  There is also a monument dedicated to nine military men that died in a military plane, B-24, that crashed nearby in  February 1945. There are restrooms at the campground, lake and Mt. Harrison. The roads are paved until you turn off to the campground and lake just off the highway.

We reserved a site at Thompson Flat well in advance last summer. The drive up and into the campground was absolutely exquisite-beautiful meadows with flowers, and tree-covered mountains. You can imagine our surprise when we pulled into the campground and found that the ENTIRE place was completely overrun by large crowds of people. The campsites were all full with multiple vehicles that were spilling out into the road, loud music was playing, and it was almost like a party had rented the entire campground. There were no campground hosts present, and we realized that there was no way that we were going to be able to get a decent night's sleep if we stayed(we were tent-camping). We actually pulled out and left--something that we have never had to do before. I don't know what was actually going on here, and perhaps it was a fluke, but this was so disappointing for a national forest campground. Definitely not the remote, quiet, family camping experience that we enjoy.

This is one of the last campgrounds you come across before arriving at the turnoff for Lake Cleveland.  It has a ton a ton of spots but they are pretty close together so try to camp here during the weekday or if you have to come here on a weekend go to the campground immediately before Lake Cleveland as it is a little more secluded and the sites are more spaced out.  If you're planning on having a large get together or party in the mountains then this is the best campground to come to!

Each campsite has a minimum of a metal fire ring and BBQ grill, picnic tables and some even have a large metal BBQ pit thing.  The large sites also have massive fire rings where you could basically get a bonfire going!  There are trash cans and vault toilets scattered throughout the campground.  The only problem I had with the campground is that there isn't a map and the roads through it are narrow and confusing.  Other than that this is an amazing spot to spend the weekend or a few days during the week

We went in the beginning of July and the wild flowers were gorgeous, my kids were in heaven! Our site was not too close to any others except the other one we booked with friends. Decent bathrooms. Close to Lake Cleveland. Great birding in the actual campground. This campground is one of the best places to find the Cassia Crossbill. We will definitely be going back!

Before and after Thompson Flat's "make-over", I've been to the group sites many times for reunions or girls camps. My favorite is Group site B. Each individual family can have their own campsite which all circle a large firepit/cooking area. It has the best shade of the 3 group sites. I'm still a bit disappointed they haven't worked out the water issue. We always bring a lot though......4 stars...5 as soon as there's water!