If you're looking for a place to pitch your tent near Jackson, look no further. You can find tent campsites by type, including drive-in, walk-in, and even hike-in for a backpacking adventure. You're sure to find the perfect campsite for your Montana tent camping excursion.
This campground is named after an early homesteader, the "Wild Man of the Mountains" George Pettingill. His grave is nearby. He is widely admired in the area although he was somewhat of a hermit. The campground is located where the Wise River meets Pettengill Creek.
12 campsites on Wallace Lake with picnic tables and fire rings. Within the campground are vault toilets and drinking water. Fishing in the lake. Primitive boat launch can be used for non-motorized canoes or rowboats on the lake. The drive on Salmon River Mountain Road offers fantastic views of the Salmon River Range and of deep pine forests.
This 2.5-acre access offers primitive camping below US Highway 93. There is a beach area at low water along the Salmon River. A small boat could be launched here with difficulty. The road is unimproved and steep. Camp trailers and RVs are not recommended.
This campground is located across the lake from North Van Houten Campground and surrounded by lodgepole pine.
Legend
There is a 16 stay limit, and a $15 a night fee.
The road is easy accessible
Tent camping,Camping trailer,Fee charged for some activities ($5) ,Picnic tables,Toilets,Drinking water,Parking
Very clean and well maintained
Guide
I’m not sure why others gave this campground reviews any stars under five! First, this campground is on BLM and free, and only costs money if coming with a group of many or some type of organizations’ camping outing; and the fee is so very minimal even for this. For regular, independent camping, it’s free being on BLM land, per their notice board. Despite being a free, BLM campground, it’s well-maintained, clean, possesses established, separate tent sites with a parking block for each separate vehicle, an area for RVs, even, and a maintained outhouse central to the tent sites and RV space. It’s also set right next to the river offering great fishing! There’s homes across the river, and a bit of vehicle traffic from those specific homes, for whatever reasons; but this campsite is still very much separated, regularly maintained, and flippin’ free! What’s there to possibly complain about?! I’ve camped free on BLM land many times, and it is pretty rugged and wild. There are no established tent or RV sites, no outhouses for the bathroom to use, nothing. You make of it as you will. I’m not understanding why every camper hasn’t given Glen Campground five stars! Also, future campers, PLEASE remember to pack in and pack out of ANY campground, including this one. Though it is maintained, they do not come daily as it is a free campground on BLM land and does not have garbage bins or water spigots. The campers that stayed before us, in the tent site next to ours, left litter everywhere and aluminum and tin cans in the fire pit. Come on now, people! Beer cans, canned vegetable cans, and the like are NOT biodegradable and do not burn down in a camp fire! Use common sense!! Pack in AND pack out all your items, including your GARBAGE!!
Guide
2 great back in sites tucked into the trees with fire rings and tables. Other areas are a parking lot. Multiple tent sites. Bathroom was clean and stocked with tp. Hand pump water was broken in the camping area. Day use area has functioning water pump, but no way to drive to it. Great place to fish.
Guide
This is a nice smaller forest service campground adjacent to grasshopper creek. A great spot to stay if exploring the Pioneer Mountains.
There are 7-8 spaces, most suitable for a trailer or van. We were tent camping as were others. There are vault toilets and the ubiquitous forest service green potable water pumps/drinking fountains.
There are no dumpsters so have to pack trash out. There are campground hosts but they don’t have firewood for sale, so either need to bring or be prepared to do quite a bit of hunting for wood. The area around the campground is picked pretty clean of good firewood.
This is bear country and there are food storage boxes located throughout the campground for shared use. I expect the presence of bears is also why they don’t have any dumpsters on site.
The campground sits at approximately 7000 feet and by late summer gets near freezing temps overnight. Bring your fall/winter sleeping bag if tent camping here in late August or late Spring!
Just a few minutes up the road from the campground is Elkhorn Hot Springs where you can pay a few bucks to use the rustic pool and hot springs.
Legend
A beautiful combination of the mountains and Big Sky of Montana! This reservoir is quite large and even has a cool little island in the middle of it that you can cliff dive from when the waters are high enough! There are boat docks, day-use areas, and campgrounds spread all around the reservoir. The campground we featured in this review was an RV only site (because why would you tent camp there) that was right next to the Lewis & Clark Day-use area that has a giant canoe and flag pole. It is an extended stay RV site with the option for paying for weeks if you plan on spending a good chunk of your summer here.
Right along the road on the dam there is a sign showing you that you're halfway between the equator and the north pole! Also nearby is the cute, cozy town of Dillon, where you can venture into the 1st Patagonia and Great Harvest stores in the world! If you're here around Labor Day they also have a great rodeo and parade and the Patagonia Store has HUGE discounts!
Scout
Stayed two nights at this campground in August. There was a camp host setup, but we didn’t see him at all while we stayed. He did not seem to be staying here. The toilets ran out of tp and many people could not get their questions answered. It’s also only about 20 feet from the highway, so expect a lot of traffic noise at all hours. There is a boat loading dock located here as well, so many people were driving in and out all day. Cell service was good if we needed it but there are several more remote areas only about 20 minutes in to the forest that actually feel like camping (Cougar Point and William’s Lake). Overall it’s decent but I recommend it more as a pit stop if you need to crash for a night. The tent sites are well maintained and running water was a plus.
Guide
This is a great spot in a tiny town south of Butte Montana. They have a couple cabins, several motel rooms and about 10 full hookup, all grass, RV spots. Also a large area for car/tent camping. The grounds are meticulously maintained by the owner and it has nice views of the bluffs and mountains all around it. Walking distance to the restaurant and bar in town if that’s your thing. Quality hookups at each site, and each site has its own trash can. Clean bathrooms and laundry on site. Owners are very present and attentive on site and super friendly. Picnic tables at every site. One shared fire pit out front of the office. It’s in a very small town, with several fishing spots nearby. Very peaceful location. We would stay again.
A few things to be aware of:
Legend
Salmon Fly Fishing Access Site is a beautiful small campground along the Big Hole River. The site has six campsites all nice spread apart from each other, and a decent size day use area. Sites have gravel parking pads, metal fire rings and picnic tables, along with nice grass areas to set up a tent. The fishing access site is with in walking distance to the small town of Melrose. The site has one vault toilet. No water or trash service is available. The site has a concrete boat launch, but be warned that Montana FWP has posted that the water is shallow for larger boats. The campground is nice and quiet, far enough from the Interstate to not really hear the road traffic, there also is a lightly used rail line near by, but did not notice any train noise while at the site. Cost to camp is$12 with a valid MT fishing license,$18 with out, if you are over the age of 62 then those rates drop to$6 or$9 a night.
Guide
It is a very off the beaten path, tucked away in the woods, true getaway from the busy city life. Travel south on 278 from Wisdom, MT and take the chance on an 18 mile gravel road to find a place only you see in pictures and read about in magazines. Drive through open cattle ranges and find a beautiful campground nestled up to 2 small lakes connected by a shallow channel. Clear water to see the bottom where it's shallow enough. No motorized boats allowed, so bring your own kayak or canoe and a fishing pole or two to enjoy the refreshing waters at the bottom of the mountains. Even in July, you can see snow atop the mountains on the Montana-Idaho border.
Guide
Very clean. Highway noise is not bad at night. I slept well in a tent. Three other people there including one who slept in her car. If you want privacy or shade, go to the end of the day use area and put your tent by the picnic tables around the rock. It is closer to the road tho, and the river.
Ranger
My family and I had such a blast here. We stayed at a different campground the last time we visited Montana and it wasn’t a very good place, so we definitely did more research beforehand and found that this place was a real gem and it truly was. The lake nearby was incredible. We spent a lot of our time here. We also found some amazing hikes that were less than 30miles away from the campground and they were incredible. Hiking in Montana is amazing and hands down worth it. I’m from Washington where hiking is perfect, but Montana gives it a run for its money. Worth the drive! The campground was clean and well kept. Decent size spaces which was nice. Lots of shade which was awesome!
Legend
If you like history, ghost towns and camping then Bannack State Park is for you. Bannack Montana was the 1st Territorial Capital of Montana. The Ghost town allows you a look at how settlers and miners leaved in the early day of Montana. See the 1st Territorial Governors Manson (ok, small cabin). Almost all of building you can enter. The best times to visit is when reenactments are happening at the park. The state park has two small campgrounds, Vigilante Campground with 15 sites and one Tipi site. One of the sites at the Vigilante site is only for bikers. Vigilante campsites can be reserved. The other campground is Road Agent Campground. Road Agent has 8 sites. Both sites have Vault Toilets, water and trash bins.
GuideNice are to get away from it all. Road is best traveled with AWD-4WD. Campgrounds are nice and level for tents.
Traveler
We went there with two tents. The sites are large and there are enough space for more than 2 or 3 tents easily. The sites are well organized and clean, the bathrooms are well maintained and the camping is pretty close to the lake, you can reach the lake with a 3 - 5 minutes walk. We had a really good experience. Just be aware to check your car breaks because the back travel is downhill the mountains.
Legend
Camp at Bannack State Park, site of Montana's 1st Territorial Capital. Road Agent Campground is one of two campground at Bannack State Park. Bannack state park is a nice state park, see how the early settlers lived in this old mining town and former Montana Capital. Road Agent Campground has eight campsites with one vault toilet. Campsite sits among mature cottonwoods. Prices are a little steep, $18 for residents, $28 for non-residents.
Legend
This campground is probably one of my favorite places to visit in Montana. My family makes the trip from washington to Montana once every summer, since I was little. We have stayed here a few times because it is so pretty and great hiking!! The campground is pretty basic, but the views make it great! Each campsite has its own table and fire ring and is separated by trees from the next campsites. Sites are a little on the small side, but we don’t spend much time in the campsite because we are out exploring. Bring bug spray because the mosquitos are out of control! Highly recommend doing some hiking nearby! Great trails with beautiful views!!!
LegendShoup Bridge Campground is a small Campground surrounding cottonwood trees along the banks of the Salmon River. It is also right along the Highway. We found this a pleasant campground to stay in, plenty of flat ground for our tents and only $5 a night. A few sites are quite small, but still room for a tent. This was our Scouts jumping off point for a backpacking trip the next day. While next to the highway we expected a lot of noise during the night, but that was not our experience, the only real road noise we had was in the early morning with worked out as it helped wake us up. Each site has a picnic table and metal fire ring. Water is available and the area has a vault toilet and trash cans. Campground has a boat launch.
Guide
South of dillon montana. Where Sacagawea met her brother Cameawhait, with Lewis and Clark. Many many spots. Some are covered tables boating and fishing. Free 14 days
Guide
Blm camping on the big hole river, montana, free up to 16 days. About 15 spots. Boat ramp, fishing hiking fire pits, no wood available.
Guide
We stopped here to sleep on our way to Glacier NP. It was easy to find but off the main road and quiet. Very clean campsites with fire pits and trash cans. We drove around the campsite before we left, all the sites were camper trailer friendly and had grassy areas for tents. All for $5
RangerBannack lies in a remote corner of Montana, but there is much to see and do at the Bannack State Park. The Bannack ghost town is extensive and well-preserved. They offer tours, gold panning and more. Great family stop on a road trip. Very interesting.
Traveler
This is a beautiful campground at higher elevation. The wildflowers were amazing in early July. There were a good amount of spots for tents and rvs. Its up high in elevation so it's hard work on the engine towing a trailer up there but worth it to take it slow. Vault toilets were clean and you can hand pump drinking water. A really lovely place!
Legend
This is not the location of the Maidenrock campground. The campground which is part of Maidenrock Fishing Access site is located further south. The correct location can be found at
https://thedyrt.com/camping/montana/maiden-rock-campground-2
Traveler
Great location along big hole river for fishing and hunting.Some rvs run generators all night long very rude, caused some tent campers to leave because of noise , I guess some people do not respect to space of others. This site is run by blm
and does not have hours posted or Regis posted as to noise.
TravelerWe had a lovely site that was close to the Wise River. Even with a full camp, the ambient sound of the river shielded the sounds of people talking or kids playing. The bathroom facilities were clean. Most campsites had some shade for either sitting or having a tent. Most people were in self sufficient RVs since there are not hookups. The campground also had a water pump with clean and very cold water.
Traveler
Great location closer to the north side of the park near Wise. Was great falling asleep to the sound of the river. Everything in the park was a short drive away. Campsite was clean, good spots to pitch the tent. Vault toilet was clean and had a fresh bottle of hand sanitizer. Highly recommend Crystal park as an activity for families with kids, but even adults find it highly enjoyable. Highly recommend this location.
Guide
This is a great place in Montana. Easy access. Right outside Dillon MT. We stayed here one night and then the the Lewis and Clark Limestone Cavern tour. It is about an hour. Camp ground is super clean and all the sites are very easy to access. Very nice hosts.
Jackson, Montana, offers a fantastic backdrop for tent camping enthusiasts, with a variety of campgrounds that cater to different preferences and needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Jackson, MT?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Jackson, MT is Beaverhead National Forest Grasshopper Campground and Picnic Area with a 5-star rating from 1 review.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Jackson, MT?
TheDyrt.com has all 44 tent camping locations near Jackson, MT, with real photos and reviews from campers.
Keep Exploring
