West Shore Unit — Flathead Lake State Park, near Lakeside, Montana, is a serene spot that offers a perfect escape for campers looking to unwind. With spacious sites nestled among lush trees, you’ll find a peaceful atmosphere ideal for relaxing by the campfire or enjoying a quiet morning with a cup of coffee.

This campground features electric hookups and allows pets, making it convenient for families and furry friends alike. Visitors rave about the stunning views of Flathead Lake, especially from Loop B, where you can catch glimpses of the water through the trees. One camper described it as “incredibly serene,” highlighting the quiet surroundings that make it easy to forget the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

For those who enjoy outdoor activities, there are several hiking trails that lead down to the lake, perfect for a leisurely stroll or a quick dip. Kayak and paddleboard rentals are available nearby, so you can explore the clear waters at your own pace. Campers have noted the friendly and helpful staff, with one visitor sharing how the hosts went above and beyond to ensure a comfortable stay.

While the campground doesn’t have direct water access from the sites, the beautiful shoreline is just a short walk away, providing a great spot for swimming or simply soaking in the views. Whether you’re here for a weekend or a longer retreat, West Shore Unit offers a welcoming environment that keeps campers coming back for more.

Glacially carved rock outcrops rise from Flathead Lake to overlooks with spectacular views of the lakeshore and the Swan and Mission Mountains. Considered the most quiet park on Flathead Lake, this site is distinguished by a mature fir, pine, and larch forest. The beach is rocky but you can still swim, boat, and camp here. The park has approximately 2.5 miles of easy to moderate hiking trails offering excellent scenic views of the lake and surrounding mountains.

**ADA designated campsites may only be reserved and occupied by a party who can provide proof of disability upon arrival. Proof of eligibility for at least one member of your party will be required in the form of a DMV (or other states equivalent) issued person with disabilities placard or disabilities motor vehicle license plate. The eligible member of your party must be an occupant of the site for the entire reserved period. Failure to comply with these requirements will result in the cancellation of your reservation and forfeiture of your reservation fee. Additional cancellation fees will be applied.**   
  
To avoid attracting bears and other critters, do not leave food, coolers or cooking utensils in tents or out unattended at anytime. Place garbage in bear proof dumpsters. Horses are not allowed in campgrounds.  
  
Camping is allowed in designated areas only. All boats, trailers, rigs and motorized vehicles must fit entirely within the campsite parking-spur provided. Any equipment that does not fit entirely within the campsite parking-spur must be parked outside the campground in an area designated by the park manager.   
  
Reservations are non-transferable and cannot be sold, bartered, or traded. The primary occupant and/or their party are the only persons authorized to camp in the site during the duration of their reservation.   
  
Check-in time is 2:00pm for campsites (local time).  
  
Check-out time is 1:00pm for campsites (local park time). Late checkouts may incur additional fees unless prior arrangements have been made with park staff.  
  
The maximum capacity at each individually signed or numbered campsite is eight (8) people. This typically involves a single camping unit, which includes, but not limited to, a tent, motor home, camping bus, truck mounted camper shell, pull-type camper, or other device designed and commonly used for sleeping. In the event the site is designated as Double Site, the site capacity for that site is doubled to allow for sixteen (16) people and two camping units.  
  
Campfires are allowed in designated areas only!  
  
Pets must be kept on a leash. Please check with destination park staff for local restrictions.  
  
Quiet hours are enforced from 10:00pm to 7:00am.  
  
Fireworks are prohibited in all parks at all times. No Exceptions..   
  
All watercraft entering Montana must be inspected before launch and purchase Vessel AIS Prevention pass. For more information visit cleandraindrymt.com.   
  
In case of an emergency when visiting Montana State Parks, please dial 911. You may also wish to notify park staff for additional assistance if necessary.   
  
For non-emergency assistance please contact park staff.

West Shore Unit — Flathead Lake State Park

The Dyrt is here to help plan your best camping near Lakeside. Camping, hiking, biking: however you want to spend your days near Lakeside, you'll find great campgrounds with The Dyrt. You're sure to find the perfect spot for your Montana camping adventure.

Lakeside

The Best Camping Near Lakeside, Montana

This campground is the furthest north on the west side of the lake making Kalispell and Lakeside extremely accessible if need be. The campgrounds have plenty of restrooms and water spigots throughout. There is ample space for RVs or trailers and each of the tent pads are nice and wide with a soft base. There is also a day picnic area and a boat dock with paddle board rentals. At night you can hear the cars go by on the highway but if you play hard during the day you'll sleep right through it. Overall, this was a fantastic place to stay.

Flathead Lake!

West shore is a park unit of Flathead Lake State Park and it has two campground loops, walk-in sites, a kayak rental facility, hiking trails, and boat launch. It’s a stunning view of the swan and mission mountain ranges across the lake, and there’s a small island off the shore.

Absolutely gorgeous 

This campground has everything you would ever want in a campground! Lots of trails for light hiking, right on the water, some spots have electricity, 3 spots there is no driving to (which is great if you want some privacy!) They also deliver wood each evening and there are no mosquitos!!

It is very quite, beautiful, and no mosquitoes!

Good site for a stop onward to Glacier. Very quiet which was very nice!

West Shore

We had a hard time leaving this spot! Beautiful views of the lake, lots of hiking trails, and lake access. Our spot didn’t have quick access to the water- we had to hike down 1/2 mile or so to reach the rocky shore. There’s one hike in spot that allows you to camp right on the water that looked amazing. Our spot was walk-in with plenty of parking nearby. Well maintained pit toilet, water, bear box, and recycling all within easy access. Firewood and ice available for purchase and paddle board and kayak rentals down by the boat launch. 

Great stop on the way to Glacier

We lucked out with walk in tent site T1 — the only one right on the lake. We arrived in desperation — every campground was full, but the host had a cancellation on one night. She was amazing — she drove us to the site to make sure it would work, because we have a rooftop tent, which meant we had to camp at the parking spot (fine with us). We still walked in to enjoy the picnic table and beach at our site — the perfect viewing place for the perseid meteor shower.

Beautiful Right on Lake

We spent the afternoon kayaking here not planning to stay overnight. However, our truck had other ideas and broke down as we were leaving the park. The park staff, especially Sam, went above and beyond to help us. Thankfully there was a cancellation and Sam pulled our trailer into the spot while our truck was towed to Kalispell for repairs. The next day Sam drove my husband to town to sort out the truck issue. We finally were able to get back on the road that afternoon. We couldn’t have managed this without the helpfulness and generosity we found here. Wonderful people! I can’t think of a better spot to be stuck in though. The lake shore is peaceful and views of the mountains and islands are lovely. There are hiking trails throughout the park. Short-term kayak and SUP rentals are available. Loop B has views through the trees of the lake. It’s a special place. We plan on breaking down there again!

Beautiful location and best park staff ever!

Spectacular scenery - huge lake, islands, gigantic mountain range in the distance. This location will turn ANYONE into an expert photographer. Not every site has a water view, strangely enough, and sites were not necessarily huge or well-separated, but overall you feel so lucky to be here. And friendly camp hosts? You know it. 

Very Non-Forgettable

All campsites are up on the hill giving you great views. None have direct access to the water.  Amazing sunrises. Sites are spaced out and are on the medium size. 

Great views not much water access

We had such a great trip to Flathead lake, staying at the West Shore on Labor Day weekend. We decided to make the trip last minute and were unable to make a reservation. But we were not to be deterred, call it foolishness but we drove from Northern Colorado to Flathead lake arriving early Saturday morning. Lo and behold all the campgrounds were full but we decided to peruse the west shore unit. There we ran into a park ranger and she pointed us toward an available site. We were able to stay for a week and loved everyday waking to the beautiful views. The facilities were very clean and staff super friendly and helpful. If you want to get views of the lake, go to loop B. 

Gorgeous Views

West Shore State Park was a beautiful way to spend an afternoon after kayaking to Wild Horse Horse Island State Park nearby. The water was clear and the dogs throughly enjoyed splashing around. Us humans enjoyed swimming in water where we could actually see if anything was swimming around us ( there never was but I like that peace of mind). We only got to use the day use area since camping was full but they have a nice ramp for you to put your boat in the water. They have picnic tables nicely spaced and bathrooms nearby including a water spigot which was helpful for our thirsty pups! There’s plenty of trees to set up hammocks and take a nap. There is an entrance fee but it was very reasonable. We visited in July of 2020 so they had a little “shop” set up near the water where you could rent kayaks, etc. I’d love to come back and camp here when I come back to visit Montana. Verizon got some cell reception (2 bars) so I didn’t have to worry about missing any important messages while having fun. Definitely recommend this spot for a nice picnic and some fun in the fun. Even if you don’t camp!

Nice Place To Spend The Day!

Narrow roads, go slow. This is a busy park even early in the seasons. At 10 pm midweek in early May there are still people looking for spaces (there are none left on B loop as I write this). 

Pit toilet is relatively clean and decently stocked. I haven’t seen any sign of a camp host checking on B loop since arriving this afternoon. 

You won’t really see the lake well from here as sites are more set back into the forest but that provides welcome shade. 

The spot next to mine is a pull through that looks straight down into my campsite, which has been a real negative for privacy, especially given the cost of sites. Overall though, this is a pretty quiet park and decent place to stay if you are lucky enough to secure a spot. 1-2 bars T-Mobile LTE on B loop.

Narrow, Crowded, But Quiet

I have known of this site for many years but just recently experienced it.  On Flathead Lake with views of the lake.  Choose loop B if you want electric.  Loop A doesn't have electric and is closer to the highway.  Good trails to the lake. There is a place to rent kayaks and paddle boards.  The campground is only about 5 miles south of Lakeside where you can purchase anything you might need or have a meal at the Tamarack Brewery. 

Very nice state park. 

We are full-timers in a 36 ft Class A with a Cherokee Trailhawk tow and stayed in site B001 for 4 days in mid August. Our site was not level at all front to back, although the others didn't look as bad. Even with the front wheels several inches off of the ground, we still couldn’t get closer than half a bubble from level. Most sites are nicely spaced. The roads are quite narrow in places, only allowing one vehicle to pass at a time. The CG is well maintained, quiet and heavily wooded. There are no water or sewer hookups and no dump station at West Shore, the closest is in Kalispell. There are a number of short hiking trails around the CG. AT&amp;T coverage fair, with 2 bars of LTE and speeds up to 2.5 MB/s, but throughput did fluctuate a bit. T-Mobile service was nonexistent. We were not able to get DISH coverage on any of the three western satellites at our site. There were 4 OTA channels to be had with our fixed omni antenna, but the only network channel was NBC.

Nice, small, quiet CG 

After an absolutely horrid experience at Lake Mary Ronan state park, we were left without a place to stay for a night. We were due to camp at this CG but our rez wasn’t until the next day. It was raining , it was Saturday &amp; getting late. Most other CGs were full.  We decided we’d just pop- in a day early &amp; talk to the host , in case of a cancellation. Let me just tell you , the hosts on duty that evening- Luis &amp; Steffi, absolute angels on earth!!! We awkwardly knocked on their camper door , as the office was now closed, &amp; gave then the rundown on what just happened to us at Mary Ronan. They did NOT bat an eyelash! They jumped right into action &amp; made sure we were safe &amp; had somewhere to stay- immediately! They usually have kind of an “ emergency “ site that they use for overflow &amp; such &amp; they just happened to have it available. They promptly got the site ready &amp; got us all tucked into it , standing out in the rain &amp; everything. I can’t say enough how generous they were. We were stressed , wet, tired, hungry &amp; frightened by our ordeal &amp; they made sure we had everything we needed &amp; that we also felt safe . It was incredibly reassuring! 
Now the CG itself- we moved to our reserved site the next day. Site B11. B loop has beautiful views of the lake thru the trees . The sites are amply spaced apart &amp; heavily wooded . But not so wooded that you feel isolated. It’s just rich &amp; lush landscape! The site was generously sized &amp; included a tent site as well . It was neat , clean &amp; had a fire ring &amp; picnic table. This place is incredibly serene! It was so quiet &amp; peaceful. There were a few kids around but nothing more than faint background noise. There are little trails all over the grounds . Many leading down to the lake. There isn’t much shoreline but there is enough to site in silence &amp; enjoy your morning beverage. And plenty of space to swim too. I actually appreciate that there wasn’t a designated beach area because it kept the population of people to a minimum &amp; let you enjoy the lake in a little solace. It was exactly what we needed. The dogs loved it too !! There are also convenient dog poop bag stations that have the cutest personalized back up leashes should you need a quick one. 
This has been by far the best campground we have ever stayed at ! I hope to return one day. If Luis &amp; Steffi are around , make sure to give them a hello ! 

Absolute serenity. 

Nice campground by the water. Great hiking trails and boat ramp. Lots to do. Staying for 5 days very excited. Staff is very wonderful and welcoming. We will be back! If you tent camp, try site T 1, it's close to the water. Electric and water is available in loop B. Loop A is primitive camping. 

Great State park on the water 

Facilities are clean and nice. Good drinking water. The lake is lovely and super clear. 

Firewood is available for $8 bundle and they deliver to your site. They also drive around about 7 pm and you can buy it then too. 

No access to the lake from this site. 

Clean and friendly 

Staff were incredibly nice and helpful with my short notice stay. B15 has incredible views of the lake and close to the bathroom. 

Photos of West Shore Unit — Flathead Lake State Park

Real photos from real campers