Best Campgrounds near Bayard, NE

We were only going to stay one night at this convenient campground with full hook-ups after a visit to the first Cabela's.  But in the store we learned from an employee of a side trip we could take and extended our stay another day.  Beware of the sprinklers, they will definitely leave water spots. Cabela's also has a very large parking lot if you are inclined to park overnight.  I do not know if Cabela's charges.

Chimney Rock is a landmark that rises high above the prairie and was a landmark for those traveling the Oregon, Mormon, and California Trail.  Chimney Rock historic site is only 60 miles from the Cabela's campground. A paved trail leads to great views of the rock and opportunity for pictures.  There is a museum on site that was very educational.  We tend to spend more time than most, taking about 2-3 hours in the museum.  It was educational to learn how much weight and what they carried in the wagons as they worked their way west.  We walked the trail first (carry water) then cooled off in the museum.

Another stop near Chimney Rock is the historical markers of Courthouse and Jail Rocks. These landmarks were visible from Oregon Trail. There are no facilities nor buildings at Courthouse and Jail Rock, just a few story boards.  There is about one mile of gravel to reach the viewing area. 

We were very happy to have spent a day visiting these two landmarks.

The manager Sue is amazing and is doing what she can to update and make sure everyone is happy. Small all gravel park, spaced rather close to each other but it works. Mostly surrounded by trees to help with wind. Small dog park and I believe there was a swing set as well.

Huge campground with countless beautiful sites. Even if you arrive after sunset, you will definitely find a very nice spot here. The camp host is super nice and friendly. She invited us to go kayaking on the lake, lent us all the equipment for free, and we had a wonderful time with her.

It could really be the perfect campground... but there are two issues to consider:

1. As others have mentioned, freight trains run regularly across from the campground and are incredibly loud. So definitely sleep with earplugs!
2. The restrooms are swarming with flies. I've never seen so many—each restroom has 50-100 flies. It's a shame because this problem could be easily managed.

Still, 5/5, as everything else here is truly more than perfect.

Very nicely run campground and wonderful host. All sites easy walk to or on Reservoir. Trains seemed to whistle through across highway at least 1x every hour until late at night. 🙄 clean bathrooms. Lots of grass area. Locals with their water toys made for happy campers all around. Stayed one nite 6/14/24

Really nice spot with free camping, donations accepted. Run as if a paid campground and lots of overflow space where there were RVs. We got the last site (#35) on a busy holiday weekend, so happy about that as it was getting dark soon!

Picnic tables and firepits with grate for cooking provided. Was able to find kindling in the trees around. 

Bathrooms were pretty nice.

Would definitely recommend.

There were wrecked cars at the edge of the water, both sides of the “lake” are not much bigger than a pond. 

We left and drove on!

Well maintained grounds, restrooms and showers are clean and easy to access. Unfortunately there are trees but none are mature enough to provide adequate shading. Gas and convenience , shopping, and food located close by. Cabela's Sydney store is across the parking lot with plenty of things to browse for. Easy on and off I-80 access for RVs, vans, and tent campers with a nice playground for the kids and running room for your pets. Easy access horse Corral 🐎 for the equestrian motivated individuals. Overall when the trees mature to provide shade this will be a 10 for passing through and short stay campers. There aren't any sewage hookups but it does have a black and Grey water dump. Electrical rv hookups are in each spot and there's plenty of green grace to go around.

Pros

-Wifi

-Sewer hookups

-Water

-Pull through sites

-Nice owner

Cons

-Unlevel sites

My friends and I stayed here for a night as we were headed out towards Yellowstone. The owner was great and one of the employees helped make an extra accommodation for us since all of the spots were full. We stayed in June of 2023 and as of that time they were still in the process of hooking electricity up to about 20 or so new sites. He mentioned putting a stage in as well for entertainment. I think this is going to be a great place to stay once he has everything completed.

Really easy campsite off of I-80. Easy to navigate in the dark and flat dirt roads (Masada CX-5). The lake is a hot spot for many different birds and a beaver so no shortage of wildlife. The trains kept me awake until 10:30 and started again at 6am. The campsites that I saw all have picnic tables, fire pits, and BBQ. I felt very safe as a solo female.

The wildlife make dealing with the train worth it, would stay again.

Very large sites, spaced well away from neighbors. Grounds are meticulously kept. Would have stayed here longer, but it was 100 degrees in the shade!

We stayed overnight with no issue. Roads were fine for our class A. Two turnarounds and spacious spots available.

I was charged $50 for this below average electric only hookup for my truck camper. There is a county RV park about two miles away that has full hookups with a bath house and nice spacing for less money. There is an area on their corn farm where they added some gravel and three 50 amp connections. Apparently, they offer boondocking on the prairie above the farm, but I was not offered that. They did a mediocre job of preparing the sites and they are just not very attractive. See photos. Their website says they can accommodate a big rig, but I would not drive one into such a tight space. Lisa the host was very gracious and accommodating but I would not return because of the lack of value in their pricing.