Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park, near Whitehall, Montana, is a fantastic spot for those looking to immerse themselves in nature while exploring stunning geological formations. The campground offers a mix of tent sites, RV accommodations, and even cabins, making it a flexible choice for different camping styles.

With amenities like electric hookups and clean showers, visitors appreciate the convenience while enjoying the great outdoors. One camper noted, “The drive in was beautiful,” highlighting the scenic routes that lead to this picturesque location. The park is also known for its proximity to the famous Lewis and Clark Caverns, where guided tours reveal breathtaking underground wonders.

Wildlife sightings are common, with deer often wandering through the campground at night. Reviewers have mentioned the peaceful atmosphere, especially during the off-season, making it a great escape from the hustle and bustle. If you’re up for a little adventure, there are hiking trails nearby, but be prepared for a bit of a trek if you want to reach the caverns without driving.

Whether you’re here for a quick stop or a longer stay, Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park offers a unique blend of relaxation and exploration. Just remember to check the weather before you head out, as conditions can change quickly in this beautiful part of Montana.

Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park — Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park

Are you in need of a campground near Cardwell, MT? Discover secluded campsites where you can reconnect with nature. Or maybe you like to bring your family and friends along. Either way, there are Cardwell campgrounds just for you. Ready to plan your adventure? Check out our campgrounds near Cardwell and user-submitted reviews.

Cardwell

The Best Camping Near Cardwell, Montana

The campground is very open, flat and has very very little shade.  It is not comfortable to stay at during the summer.  The facilities are nice, clean and the camp staff has always been great.  The campground is more a spot to facilitate visiting the caverns which are a natural wonder.

The Campground is Underwhelming but the Caverns are Amazing

Amazing family campsite with amenities, gift shop and stores. For small children it's quite a hike for them, they do get fatigued on the way, there are pit stops along the hill with shade for rest, follow tour guide. The caverns has been modified since I was young making paths and walking through easier with better footing and railing for balance. You will see live animals and bats!! Shh.. Lots of history to learn. The family will love this trip! I call it the Bat Cave 

Caverns & Campground 

Caves and Tipis! plus the chance to walk in Louis and Clark's moccasins!! Bring bug spray though!

Caves

These caverns are AWESOME!  The tours teach you so much and the beauty you see is amazing.  A bit of hiking is required so be ready for that!

Great place!

Lots to do in this park with local history and geology being the focuses. Not far off 90 if you’re road tripping. The campground is simple and open. Pros: different sleeping options (tent, RV, cabin, yurt, tipi), cave tours, river access, short hiking trails, lots of history (native, mining, settlers, etc), ranger talks, ice/wood camp store, helpful rangers, stargazing, nice modern bathrooms. Cons: very open campground with no privacy nor shade, no tent-only area, lots of RVs. We’d definitely visit again. 


Lewis & Clark caverns 

We stayed in the cabins at the campground, which were clean and well taken care of. There is a playground in the middle of the campground, as well as many trails to explore and places to ride a bike. The caverns were closed for the season, but the visitor center was open and fun to visit.

Cabins at the campground

The campground at Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park has all the amenities you would need. Power and water hook ups, bathrooms and showers, a nice big playground for the kids. But, it feels more like a big parking lot with little shade or privacy. Great if you are in a camper, but maybe less appealing if you are tent camping. The campground lies at the base of the mountain that the caverns are in--about 3 miles. Once you are up near the caverns there is plenty of parking for RVs or cars. There is also a shady area to kennel your dogs for a fee, as they are not allowed in the caverns. There is also a small deli and a gift shop.

The total hike to and through the caverns is about 2 miles and about 2 hours. The hike to the caverns is about half a mile, and was fine for our 4 year old. However, the two year old, we carried in a pack. Once inside the caverns, there are over 600 stairs and a lot of bending and stooping, so take that into consideration if anyone in your party has mobility issues. There are handrails throughout and no particularly dangerous areas, other than some slippery spots. As long as children are old enough to know to stay near, they should be fine walking and holding hands.

Campground Okay, Caverns are Great! 

Did you know you can print out a packet for your little ones to become Cub Rangers at this State Park? There are great amenities for both camping and RV'S with a child's playground located on the camp. With a short walk up and into the mountain you can tour the caverns.

Go Cub Rangers!

Cool campground but extremely flat with very little trees to provide shading. Campsites are very close to one another and without trees or other shrubbery on campground itself, there's not a ton of privacy. Right at the base of cave, makes it a comfortable stay right before any cave tours begin. Convenient spot with power &amp; water hook up.

Wide open spaces

While driving across the country I was looking for a place to camp between Yellowstone and Butte, MT and this campground came up. It was a little pricey for my needs (just somewhere to stay a night with a shower) but I also didn’t get a chance to fully enjoy the park. The campground is in an open field with few trees near a large river and train tracks cradled by mountains. There are readily available amenities but few stores of gas stations nearby. The drive both in and out were incredible!

Quick stop in a quiet local

This campground was a pleasant surprise. We had initially planned to camp at Glacier but were thwarted by fire and smoke. We booked this campground when we arrived at the State Park, no problem. The road circles the campground. There are five loops inside the outer road, with about 7 campsites per loop, and the playground and bathrooms in the center. The sites have electric hookups. We were able to fill our water tanks with spigots centrally located throughout the campground, but could not keep it connected. No sewer, but the bathroom is very convenient. The site was level with a fire pit and very spacious. The State Park was awesome. We went hiking and the cave tour was great. They have two souvenir stores and one cafe near the cave. We stayed there for 4 nights which was perfect for what we had planned. Would highly recommend.

Beautiful campground in a Montana State Park

We camped here with a group of families and the playground was nice for the kids. There aren’t many trees and the land is flat but we were able to really keep a decent eye of the kids running around because of it and the views were still beautiful. Loved the caverns!

Good spot for kids

This is actually a 5-star campground in terms of cleanliness and amenities. Nice bathrooms, showers, electric, drinking water, playground, and all that. It’s basically a wide open field with a few trees and no privacy, which isn’t my usual style and that’s why it’s only a 4 star for me.  The cavern tour is also great, fun, beautiful, informative...

Good

I thoroughly enjoyed this park. The campground is a large field for the most part and the sites are located around the circle. As many other reviewers have mentioned, it is not very private, but I thought the camp sites were fairly well spaced out and I didn’t feel like we were crowded at any time. There are not a lot of trees, but we had no problem moving our chairs under the nearest cottonwood and getting some shade. 
I liked the open feel of the campground surrounded by the canyon. It was a pleasant change as we had just left Glacier National Park which is incredibly busy and packed with people. 
The park has enough room for tents and RVs. There are 3 cabins centrally located and a tipi, which we stayed in for a night- as it was a nice change not having to set up our tent after having done so the last two weeks on our trip.
Water is easily accessible, bathrooms are clean, showers are available but for a fee. It was $3.00 for six minutes. 
There is a visitor center at the campground as well as a gift shop and cafe near the cavern. We took a cavern tour and really enjoyed it. It was a short but all uphill climb to the cavern, and then a 2 hour tour. Very informative. 

Enjoyable easy camping

The caverns are fantastic. Amazing tour and stories. Camp ground is decent and provides campers with a typical state park site.

Easy to find great family park

The layout of this state park was somewhat unusual: there are five loops within one larger loop with 32 sites plus seven additional pull-through sites on the outside of the loop. There are also three handicap accessible cabins and one tipi. All are reservable. This campground appeared to be very family-friendly, with many kids riding bikes and playing on the playground (first campground I’ve seen in a while that had kids playing on it). There are some trees, but they don’t necessarily provide shade (certainly not for B4!) Flush toilets plus (fee) showers; it was nice that there was HOT water! The path leading from Loop B (where we were) to the bathroom went between one of the cabins and their driveway, making it feel like we were walking through their yard – a little bit awkward. There is one 6.5-mile trail from the campground but the real attraction is the cave tour (and no, Lewis and Clark never saw the caves)! The Classic tour is $12 and lasts approximately two hours and is very interesting. You cannot make advance reservations for the tour, but we had no problem walking up and buying tickets at 5:30 pm on a Friday. It is a 3/4 mile UPHILL walk to the cave entrance and a half-mile walk back to the visitor center when done with the tour. There was also a covered picnic pavilion and a day-use area, but it appeared to be closed when we were there.

Family-friendly campground

$14/night tent camping.  Spent two nights.  Thursday night was great. Plenty of site for everybody to spread out.  Friday night was much more crowded.  Sites are all nice and flat and level for tent camping. Vault toilets are very clean. There is a playground if you have kids.  Decent hiking, unfortunately the caves themselves were closed during our stay.  Easy access from I-90.  Would stay again mid-week or off season, but during prime time I'd prefer a bit more seclusion.

Nice, but crowded.

We stayed here the night before our cavern tour. Camping included the out of state vehicle charge which was nice. It’s 28 for out of state cars, 14 for in state. There are also senior discounts. There were some specific regulations  as far as what site you could pick and how many tents etc that you could put up. We don’t know how strict they are with it, but make sure your read the signs at the fee area. Sites are spread out but not private, our neighbors were seated looking straight at us, but we couldn’t blame them since there weren’t many good ways to sit without looking at someone. Good for RVs, maybe less so for tents and vans in our opinion. Bathrooms were clean though and everything seemed nicely maintained. Caverns were very cool, but were in limited groups and the tour was shortened because of covid. Still cool though, would have liked to stay when a full tour could have been done. 

Decent place, caverns are cool

We just stayed there in our travel trailer and the campground is beautiful! A few things I want to highlight for others considering it: 1. It wasn’t busy at all and we had our pick of electric sites. Of course it’s late September so I have no idea how busy it is earlier in the season. 
2. This is a beautiful open area with just a few trees. It actually makes for a gorgeous campground especially with fall colors popping up, but anyone going during hot weather should keep in mind there isn’t much shade. 
3. Sites are gravel, mostly level, and spacious (but not very private since there aren’t many trees dividing the sites). Bathrooms are nearby and clean. There’s a nice play structure for kids. 
4. It was windy!!! I have no idea if it was just the weather during our stay or if this is a particularly windy spot so please take this with a grain of salt. In all fairness it was windy all around the area (we went to nearby Madison Buffalo Jump park and Missouri Headwaters State Park and it was windy there too), but it did seem that the gusts were a bit stronger in the campground. We ended up leaving a night early because we didn’t want another night of cooking and eating inside the trailer and it was too windy to sit outside. 
5. The cavern tour is definitely worth it!

Loved this campground!

Great park and campground popular with locals for a quick getaway, and ideal for travelers between Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.  Yes, it is on a bench above a river valley and below higher sage and juniper covered foothills.  It can be windy, and it can be hot and sunny in the summer.  Locals find it a great early and late season destination for these reasons.  The trails also dry out/stay dry early and late making it a hiking and mountain biking destination when the higher mountains are snowy or muddy.

The campground itself has great facilities, and manicured lawns (good since this is rattlesnake country), but little to no natural shade.  Clean restrooms and clean vault toilets.  Small visitor center at the highway entrance and second visitor center for the cave entrance at the top of the mountain (foothill).  Summer brings intermittent ranger programs.  I reserved a star for wind and  lack of shade, otherwise it’s great camping. 

P.S. spotty cell coverage!

A SW Montana Favorite

We have stayed here a few times on a trip to or from the west coast. It is not far away from freeway I90.

It has never been crowded when we were there in spring or fall. Big campground, clean and tidy, in an open area with few trees. Shower building was OK. Park Visitor Center is nearby.

We took the cave tour on one visit. Nice guide. You slide down a rock at one point that has been smoothed by the passage of many.

Convenient from I90

Caverns are worth the trip.  Relaxing campground!

Amazing adventure 

Caves were wonderful! Campground is near the Jefferson River but it is across the highway and has private property on the other side. There were fishing access about a mile down the road. It would be a nice stop for a day/night stay but not any more. Showers were nice and clean. 

Not a destination but good stop

Great access to L&amp;C caverns.  Electric only campsite.  Water fill and dump station are separate from sites. 
One to 2 bars on at&amp;t or Verizon.

Late Aug 2021

We arrived on a smokey evening, Butte was over 250 AQI and our face masks came in handy. Fortunately, the campground was around 130 AQi.  

Quiet spot by the Jefferson River

This was a really beautiful spot in between the mountains. The drive out was gorgeous by the river. The site was clean and the host was nice. I went when the water was shut off, so I can’t speak to those facilities. There are supposed to be hiking trails accessible from the campground, but I didn’t have time to check them out.

Nice spot for the night

While traveling through MT, we came across this park. The drive in was beautiful &amp; we were lucky enough to find a spot that was first come for the night. It was starting to get warm in June &amp; what a relief to have electric hook ups for ac. The sites were very spacious &amp; the camp host was wonderful. We did not have time for a cavern tour, but the campground was very accommodating. Great place to unwind &amp; relax.

Great spot

I came here for a wedding… I’m apparently into self torture. 😆 The campground was very well maintained. And the camp hosts are very nice. The bathrooms are clean. The showers looked okay but I didn’t use them. It was VERY hot and not much shade at all so prepare to sweat to death. We also had some wind that I swear was going to knock the tent over. The mountains around the camp area are insanely majestic- my favorite part and the reason for my three stars.  There is also an amphitheater (where the wedding I attended was held). The campground is good for group events for sure. 

Wedding 

What a nice, quiet little spot.  Not much shade, but lots of space between campsites. Plenty of wildlife (rabbits, snakes, deer).

So peaceful

The campground itself is in a beautiful location framed by mountains along a river.  I thought $44 for an electric only site was a bit high compared to other States campgrounds.  No water hookup and a shower was $3.00 extra.  The sites are decently dispersed.  The Caverns are about 3 miles away and an additional $15 to tour.   

Expensive SP camping

Nice quiet state park

Great hosts,  clean and well maintained.  They do have drop in non reservation sites, but recommend getting reservations as well as cave tour reservations on line In Advance.  Walk in for the cave tours without reservations best between 9 and 11 am.  Beware, it's a 2mi hike uphill from the campground of you don't want to drive your rv up the caves!   Deer visited camp at night! Check weather report, strong winds and we had thunderstorms.  Warm showers $3.  (Cave tours not included in camp fee,  dump is $5 also).  Some hiking in area, but ..  bears!

Great location near the caves

Carter Lake south shore.  NIce pull through sites with electric. Dump station with easy access. Many sites on the lake and more with lake view. Many shaded sites. Boats allowed. Very pleasant experience.

Lake Camping

The Paradise tour was really easy and it was spectacular! 

Paradise tour 

Was able to snag a primitive spot for one night. This campground isnt too far off I90 near 3 Forks, MT. No cell service (ATT) at the campground but 5g at the caverns. Hosts were super friendly and nice. I was in A7 which had a nice shade tree. Did not use the facilities so can’t speak to that. They had a guest speaker that night share about the bat population in MT. Very interesting!! Be sure to unhook and get to the caverns early in the morning to get a reservation to tour. We did the Paradise tour as my son is in a wheelchair. The classic tour looked super cool though!

Photos of Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park — Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park

Real photos from real campers