Galena Gulch
Milagros A.
Reviewed Aug. 29, 2018

BLM Free camping Outside of Boulder, MT

I I initially found this on free campsites. Com. Though the official website is listed as BLM, BLM actually doesn't have Galena Gulch on their site. However, this is a clean and mowed campsite that is largely grassy field next to the boulder River. The mountainous and forested Recreation area surrounded it though.

There is plenty of space for RVs, though there are no hookups of any kind. There is no water and no electricity and no cell phone service. I have Verizon. I took a star away because there wasn't any water but added it back because it was free!

There were probably a dozen official sites that had fire rings and a parking spur. While there were a couple sizable rigs there, if your RV is so big that you must have a pull through, you will probably find this Campground challenging.

There was a large grassy area and another smaller grassy area that were simply open with no fire ring or parking spur. However, it was very easy to park on the grass and several people could pitch tents there if they wanted. I did this.

There are two side-by-side pit toilets and an information board in the center. They were clean and stocked. Once again, I want to emphasize that there is no water here. The boulder river is directly adjacent but locals in Montana don't consider any water safe.

There were multiple people there with their dogs and a great number of sites filled with RVs. At the time I was there there were only two of us tenting.

Your GPS will get you here, nearly. Take the exit it tells you and follow the directions. However, my GPS told me that I had arrived and I was looking at the boulder River on the right and houses on the left and no Campground. What you have to do is go up the road another hundred feet and follow the sign to turn right to Galena Recreation Area. This takes you on an underpass under the freeway and immediately becomes a gravel road that goes over a one-lane bridge. You can't make any wrong turn here. As soon as you cross the bridge you will see the campground immediately on your right. From the time you make the right hand turn to the campground it is probably a couple hundred feet.From getting off the freeway to the campsite is probably less than a mile

I was there for 3 night and it was full every night. However, the turnover seems high as it appears most people use it as an overnight on their travels, especially since there are not any services there. But it's a pretty area. Some people bring their ATV and use the dirt road that runs through the recreation Area to drive around. You can use that road to hike to , also the radon health mine is right up the road.

Bring water and food as you would have to drive 20 minutes back to Boulder to get services. Boulder's a cute small town with a few restaurants, a grocery store, gas stations and a very wonderful Hot Springs Resort.

Month of VisitSeptember
  • Review photo of Galena Gulch by Milagros A., August 29, 2018