Best Glamping near Heron, MT

Jake from the Dyrt here! Elysium Woods was recognized by Business Insider as the best glamping in Idaho for 2020! Check them out and leave a review about your stay on the Dyrt!

Farragut is a fantastic 5 star campground. Currently staying here at $40 a night. Went to book two more nights and found out they now charge out of state people double. My September stay will now be in Montana and I will skip Idaho completely. No gas, no food, no nothing.

We are in Washington supposed to meet family in Montana and stay one night here on the way. Our truck broke down and won’t be fixed for about 3 weeks at dealership. We were told we couldn’t have a refund because of late notice. I tried to call and work it out politely with a basic no. I understand you could have rented but you are the business taking risk. Do NOT punish future renters for something out of their hands. Bad business. I would understand a week or more booked but one night is petty. Also we called Wednesday to cancel and was told someone would call back, I was told we didn’t cancel 48 hours or more and that is longer than 48 hours.

Gilmore Campground Farragut State Park, Idaho Lake Pend Oreille

Who Knew?!!

I crossed the Montana / Idaho state line this morning and was pleasantly surprised at the AMAZING scenery . I’m from way over in Kentucky so maybe this is a best kept secret or it’s just not well advertised but NORTHERN IDAHO IS BEAUTIFUL!! I mean, someone says Idaho, I think potatoes/ farmland. So well played Idahoans! I stopped for an overnight at Farragut State Park. The staff was AMAZING! Friendly , informative and took the time to see if there were any cancellations or early departures in the crowded campgrounds. The campgrounds are well laid out in that there are many sites but they are situated in a way that still gives each site space for “stuff”. My site didn’t have a lot of shade but the breeze was enough that it was comfortable all day, temps in the 80’s. We may have hit the end of the mowing cycle or maybe they leave the grass rough cut due to it being dry. Our site was otherwise very well maintained. When I drove in the camp hosts were actually across the lane SWEEPING one of the cement pads clear of gravel. Full hook up, Pit toilets and a few shower houses. The shower house is on the other side of Gilmore CG. The sites over there have older trees and more shade. The general park map is lacking on the hiking trail venue. If you want to hike and in my opinion you do, see about getting a trail map or take a picture at one of the information stands. Even that map was not great, but useable. We took a stroll down through the woods and when we got to Lake Pend Oreille guess what?!! .... IT WAS AMAZING!! If you want a hike along the lake with easy to moderate difficulty 70 along Idlewilde Bay is excellent, it loops around by the parking lots and the shore. Plenty of spots for the dogs to get in and to swim. Once again there are trails coming and going and the trail markings are sometimes confusing but if you have a good sense of direction you’ll be fine.

Bayview, ID is nearby with a laundromat , grocery , etc. On site there is a small museum with the history of the area , a model plane field , a Tree to Tree Adventure Park and of course water activities galore.

Tent camped on RV spot. All spots have a leveled sand square for tents. Trees offered shade. No privacy due to layout. Tent spots appear to offer more privacy. However, be warned that the access road for tent sites is steep and bumpy. Pit toilets with no other amenities. Camp host is friendly enough. Camp is so close to the day use area. Perfect to go swim or paddle board.

Just. Book. You won't regret it.  The campground is just far enough away to feel secluded but not too far that it's hard to get to.  The views of Mirror Lake are just phenomenal.  Clean campground with all the amenities.  The dock is fantastic and the fishing is top notch.  Electric hookups if you are a "glamper".  Campsite A is the best but all sites are great.

Our family really enjoyed the campground. It was clean and organized. The staff were pleasant and helpful. We’ll be back!

The Gilmore Loop Campground is one of a handful of campgrounds in Farragut State Park. It is a large campground boasting 91 rv/tent sites. There are several ADA sites as well as the most amenities I have ever seen in a campground. Even tho you could spend days exploring and playing in Farragut State Park, there are quite a few things to do outside of the park also.

Some amenities for this campground include:

RV/Tent Camping - (Some are ADA)

Onsite Tables/Fire Pits/Water/Electricity on all and Sewer on some

Nice and Clean Flush Restrooms and Showers

Firewood for sale onsite by the hosts and a well stocked General Store/Visitor Center in park

Payphones and extra Parking

Dump stations for RVs

Extensive Day Use Facilities - (Including 3 professional disc golf courses and a large Lake for a $5 fee)

Boat launch/Swimming/Fishing

Museum and Historical Sites

Loads of Hiking/Biking/Horse Trails

Some amenities close to this campground include:

Bayview - (A small lake town about 5 min to the East)

Silverwood Theme Park - (About a 10 min drive to the West)

Coeur'd Alene and Sandpoint - (Both 33 min drives to the South and North respectively)

The negatives for Gilmore are all subjective. I personally prefer a much more secluded campground, I can see this place being packed during the on-season. The sites are closer than I like, tho I have seen much closer sites elsewhere. The tent pads are gravel filled squares, I Like the feel of the ground under me while camping and these will necessitate a mat/airbed. Overall I love this place as a day use, and see myself camping here soon.

Pros: electric, water, and sewer at site. 

Cons: all asphalt and gravel, no shade, too close to other campsites, barely any trees or barriers between sites. 

Good only if you come in a big rv that can only drive on roads. Terrible for tent use, which was advertised for our site. From our campsite, you can see 10 other sites with no barrier between. Zero privacy. (Great with the neighbors crying children) 

"Tent pad" is sharp gravel, good luck not ripping tent or puncturing your sleeping pad. Sunny as can be, only small baby trees in the campground, all of which are mostly dead. 

Farragut state park is nice, but no beaches at lake to hang out on. A few trails to hike on, tree obstable course for kids, shooting range, and lake for kayaking or boating. 

Bayview is an odd town close to park that does not seem very tourist friendly, but Lake House restaurant was good.

This loop in Gilmore is great. Paved roads and level camp spots. Lots of room between sites. Lots of great hikes to go on and peaceful.

Gorgeous area, well run and maintained. Large lake, lots of trails, could easily make an extended stay here.

We were not able to stay at Gilmore because it was closed for the season so we stayed across the street at the Peterson campground. The sites were nice but basic. Sites had running water, fire pit, and picnic table. The sites were also very close together. The showers were closed for the season and the bathrooms were not well maintained. They had no toilet paper, lots of bugs, and the lights were out. We got there late and had to pay in the morning. Had we known the cost, we would not have stayed. With the site fee and a required day pass recreation free to the park, it cost $74 for one night. That is insanely overpriced. If amenities are going to be closed and not well maintained during the slow season, they need to lower the price. Would not stay again.